Title XI, NATURAL RESOURCES (Ch. 455 - 485)

1. Each licensed aquaculture unit shall prepare an annual report of all fish bought, sold, and shipped. The records shall include species name as well as the weight, volume, or count of fish involved. Reports shall be filed on or before December 31 of each year for the preceding …

1. A person shall not sell minnows, frogs, crayfish, or salamanders for fish bait without first obtaining a bait dealer’s license from the department upon payment of the license fee. A licensee shall comply with all laws pertaining to taking, possessing, and selling of bait handl…

1. Except for species listed as threatened or endangered under chapter 481B , a licensed bait dealer may take sufficient bait from lakes and streams of this state that are not closed to the taking of bait, to supply the licensee’s customers for hook and line fishing if the licens…

The director may take any fish from the public waters of the state, at any time and in any manner, for the purpose of propagation or restocking other waters, or exchanging with fish and wildlife agencies of other states, the federal government, or licensed aquaculture units. 92 A…

All fish in an aquaculture unit are private property and are not the property of the state, and the theft of fish from an aquaculture unit is punishable as provided in section 714.2 . 92 Acts, ch 1216, §9

It is unlawful for any owner or the owner’s agent to remove or destroy any existing dam, or alter it in a way so as to lower the water level, without having received written approval from the environmental protection commission of the department. [C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, § 1742; C46…

1. A person who is liable for polluting a water of this state in violation of state law, including this chapter , shall also be liable to pay restitution to the department for injury caused to a wild animal by the pollution. The amount of the restitution shall also include the de…

The director may take from the public waters of the state, at any time and in any manner, any fish for the purpose of propagating or restocking other waters, or exchanging with fish and wildlife agencies of other states, the federal government, or private fish hatcheries. [C97, §…

The department shall establish a target shooting sports program to promote recreational target shooting sports. The purposes of the program shall be to introduce more Iowans to target shooting sports, promote existing target shooting programs, provide more target shooting facilit…

This section applies to a person who is involved in a hunting incident with a firearm or a fall from a device that allows or assists a person to hunt from an elevated location, if the hunting incident results in an injury to a person, or property damage exceeding one hundred doll…

1. a. Any person licensed by the authority of Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, Nebraska, or South Dakota to take fish, game, mussels, or fur-bearing animals from or in the waters forming the boundary between such state and Iowa, may take such fish, game, mussels, or fur-…

The title and ownership of all fish, mussels, clams, and frogs in any of the public waters of the state, and in all ponds, sloughs, bayous, or other land and waters adjacent to any public waters stocked with fish by overflow of public waters, and of all wild game, animals, and bi…

This chapter shall not be construed to forbid the selling or shipping of parrots, canaries, or any other cage birds which are imported from other countries or not native to any part of the United States. [S13, §2563-r; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, § 1777; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73,…

A person shall not keep or use any live pigeon or other bird as a target, to be shot at for amusement or as a test of skill in marksmanship, or shoot at a bird kept or used for such purpose, or be a party to such shooting, or lease any building, room, field, or premises, or knowi…

1. a. All officially sanctioned field meets or trials and retriever meets or trials where the skill of dogs is demonstrated in pointing, retrieving, trailing, or chasing any game bird, game animal, or fur-bearing animal shall require a field trial permit. Except as otherwise prov…

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation, except as otherwise provided, to offer for transportation or to transport by common carrier or vehicle of any kind, to any place within or without the state, for the purposes of sale, any of the fish, game, animals, or bi…

1. For the purposes of this section : a. “One-way mobile radio transmitter” means a radio capable of transmitting a signal only but not capable of transmitting a voice signal. The signal may be tracked or located by radio telemetry or located by an audible sound. b. “Two-way mobi…

Except as otherwise provided, in any one day, a person shall not ship, carry, or transport game, fish, birds, or animals, except fur-bearing animals, in excess of the number the person is legally permitted to possess. [C97, §2555; SS15, §2555; C24, 27, 31, §1783; C35, §1782-e1; C…

Any person catching, taking, killing, or having in possession any of such fish, mussels, clams, frogs, game, animals, or birds, their nests or eggs, or other wildlife in violation of the provisions of this chapter , shall be held to consent that the title to the same shall be and…

In the shipping of fish, game, animals, birds, or furs, whenever a container includes one or more fish, game, animals, birds, or furs that are contraband, the entire contents of the container shall be deemed contraband and shall be seized by the director or the director’s officer…

It shall be lawful for any person, firm, or corporation to possess any fish or game lawfully taken outside the state and lawfully brought into the state, but the burden of proof shall be upon the person in possession of the fish or game to show that the fish or game was lawfully …

1. A person who does any of the following is guilty of a simple misdemeanor and shall be assessed a minimum fine of twenty dollars for each offense for which no other punishment is provided: a. Takes, catches, kills, injures, destroys, has in possession, buys, sells, ships, or tr…

1. A person who erects any dam or other obstruction prohibited by this chapter or at a place or in a manner prohibited shall be guilty of a simple misdemeanor. 2. A person who injures or destroys any dam lawfully erected shall be guilty of an aggravated misdemeanor. [C97, §2548, …

A common carrier, and any agent, employee, or servant of a common carrier, which violates any of the provisions of this chapter relating to receiving, having in possession, shipping, or delivering any fish, fowl, birds, birds’ nests, eggs, or plumage, fur, raw pelts, game, or ani…

It shall be the duty of the attorney general, when requested by the director, to give the attorney general’s opinion in writing upon any question of law arising under this chapter ; and it shall be the duty of all county attorneys in this state when requested by the director or a…

1. In all prosecutions under this chapter , any number of violations may be charged in one information, but each charge shall be set out in a separate count if more than one charge is included in one information. 2. Prosecutions for violations may be brought in the county in whic…

It shall be presumptive evidence of a violation of the provisions of this chapter for any person to: 1. Have in possession any fish, game, furs, birds, birds’ nests, eggs or plumage, or animals, which have been unlawfully caught, taken, or killed. 2. Be in possession of such fish…

It is unlawful for a person to take, pursue, kill, trap or ensnare, buy, sell, possess, transport, or attempt to so take, pursue, kill, trap or ensnare, buy, sell, possess, or transport any game, protected nongame animals, fur-bearing animals or fur or skin of such animals, musse…

The commission is designated the sole agency to determine the facts as to whether biological balance does or does not exist. The commission shall, by administrative rule, extend, shorten, open, or close seasons and set, increase, or reduce catch limits, bag limits, size limits, p…

The commission may establish and control the state hatcheries and game farms, which shall be used for the purpose of stocking the waters of the state with fish and the natural covers with game birds to the extent of the means provided for that purpose; and for impartially and equ…

1. For the purposes of this section , “drug” means any chemical substance, other than food, that affects the structure or biological function of any wildlife under the jurisdiction of the department of natural resources. 2. Except with written authorization from the director or t…

Protected nongame species include wild fish, wild birds, wild bats, wild reptiles, and wild amphibians, an egg, a nest, a dead body or part of a dead body, and a product made from part of a body of a wild fish, wild bird, wild bat, wild reptile, or wild amphibian. However, nongam…

1. Unless application is first made in writing to the commission for a permit and a permit is granted, a person, firm, or corporation shall not, except as otherwise provided, bring into the state of Iowa for the purpose of propagating or introducing, or place or introduce into an…

1. A person, except as otherwise provided by law, shall not willfully disturb, pursue, shoot, kill, take or attempt to take, or have in possession any of the following game birds or animals except within the open season established by the commission: gray or fox squirrel, bobwhit…

1. The commission may establish state game refuges or sanctuaries on any land owned by the state of Iowa suitable for this purpose when necessary for the preservation of biological balance pursuant to the provisions of section 481A.39 , for the protection of public parks, for the…

No part of the plumage, skin, or body of any bird protected by this chapter shall be sold or had in possession for sale, irrespective of whether said bird was captured or killed within or without the state, except as otherwise provided. [C39, § 1794.013; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, …

A hunting license shall not permit the holder to trap any fur-bearing animal as defined in this chapter . [SS15, §2563-a1; C24, 27, §1718; C31, §1718-c1; C39, § 1794.014; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §109.51 ] C93, §481A.51

A person who has in possession any game bird, game animal, fish, or fur or part thereof shall upon request of the director or any officer appointed by the department exhibit the game bird, game animal, fish, or fur or part thereof to the director or officer. A person who refuses …

It is unlawful to have in possession while hunting or to use while hunting any ferret or any device or any substance to be used for chasing animals from their dens. [C31, §1767-c1; C39, § 1794.016; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §109.53 ] 88 Acts, ch 1216, §15 C…

1. A person shall not shoot any rifle on or over any of the public waters or public highways of the state or any railroad right-of-way. 2. A person shall not shoot a shotgun with a slug load, pistol, or revolver on or over a public roadway as defined in section 321.1, subsection …

1. Except as otherwise provided, a person shall not buy or sell, dead or alive, a bird or animal or any part of one which is protected by this chapter , but this section does not apply to fur-bearing animals, bones of wild turkeys that were legally taken, and the skins, plumage, …

1. a. A person having a valid hunting license may train a bird dog on any game birds and a person having a valid fur harvester license may train a coonhound, foxhound, or trailing dog on any fur-bearing animals at any time of the year including during the closed season on such bi…

A person having a valid hunting license and a valid deer hunting license who has wounded a deer while hunting may use a dog to track and retrieve the wounded deer. An unarmed dog handler assisting in the recovery of a wounded deer is exempt from the licensing requirements as long…

A person having lawful possession of game or fur-bearing animals or their pelts lawfully taken by that person with a valid hunting or trapping license, may hold, possess, or store the game or fur-bearing animals or their pelts in an amount that does not exceed the possession limi…

No person except those acting under the authority of the director shall capture or take, or attempt to capture or take, any game bird with any trap, snare, or net, nor shall any person use any poison, any medicated or poisoned food, or any other substance for the killing, capturi…

1. It shall be unlawful for any person or persons, except the owner or the owner’s representatives, to shoot, kill, maim, injure, steal, capture, detain, or to interfere with any homing pigeon, commonly called “carrier pigeon”, which shall at the time, have the name, initials, or…