Title 23, Title 23 — Game And Fish

Certain trapping devices unlawful; game for bait prohibited; baiting big game animals prohibited; penalties. (a) No person shall take or wound any game animal, game bird, or game fish by use of any pit, pitfall, net, trap, deadfall, poison, or other similar device except as other…

Hunting from highway; entering or traveling through private property without permission; penalty; hunting at night without permission prohibited. (a) No person shall hunt, shoot, or attempt to kill any wildlife from any public road or highway. (b) No person shall enter upon, trav…

Use of aircraft, automobiles, motorized and snow vehicles and artificial light for hunting or fishing prohibited; exceptions; penalties. (a) No person shall harass, pursue, hunt, shoot, or kill any Wyoming wildlife that requires a license or permit to take, is protected under W.S…

Hunting while intoxicated or under influence of controlled substance prohibited. (a) No person shall carry a firearm with a cartridge therein, or take any wildlife in Wyoming, while intoxicated or under the influence of controlled substance as defined in the Wyoming Controlled Su…

Check stations; duty of hunters and fishermen to report. (a) Every hunter or fisherman entering or leaving areas for which check stations have been established shall stop and report at the check station if the check station is on the hunter's or fisherman's route to and from the …

Intentional feeding of elk; penalty. (a) No person shall intentionally attract or feed any elk by depositing, placing, distributing or scattering feed that results in commingling with livestock. (b) Nothing in this section shall prohibit: (i) Any normal or accepted agricultural m…

Possession of road killed wildlife. (a) The commission shall, in consultation with the state transportation commission, adopt rules to establish a program whereby any person desiring to possess wildlife killed as a result of unintentional motor vehicle collisions on any public ro…

Commercial operation or business without license prohibited. No person shall engage in any commercial operation or business authorized under this act without the proper license.

Violation of commission order prohibited. Any person who violates any lawful order of the commission is guilty of a low misdemeanor punishable as provided in W.S. 23-6-202(a)(v).

False swearing, fraud or false statement prohibited. (a) No person shall procure or attempt to procure any license or tag under this act by false swearing, fraud, or false statement of any kind or in any form. (b) Violation of this section constitutes a high misdemeanor punishabl…

Tanneries not to receive game specimens unless tagged; records. (a) No person shall deliver to any tannery, nor shall any tannery receive any game specimen unless tagged with a Wyoming game tag except as otherwise provided. Violation of this subsection constitutes a low misdemean…

Interference with lawful taking of wildlife prohibited; penalties; damages; injunction. (a) No person shall with the intent to prevent or hinder the lawful taking of any wildlife: (i) Interfere with the lawful taking of or the process of lawfully taking any wildlife; (ii) Engage …

Attempting to take simulated wildlife decoy; penalty. (a) No person shall discharge a firearm or other hunting implement at a simulated wildlife decoy in violation of any law or regulation with respect to the hunting or taking of the wildlife being simulated when the decoy is bei…

Remote hunting prohibited. (a) No person shall operate, provide, sell or use or offer to operate, provide, sell or use any computer software or service that allows a person, not physically present, to remotely control a firearm or weapon to hunt any live wildlife or animal. (b) A…

Fish stocking in waters without consent prohibited; penalties. (a) No person shall plant or release any fish or fish eggs in any public waters of Wyoming without the consent and under the supervision of the department or its authorized personnel. (b) The escape of lawfully stocke…

Operation of privately owned fish hatcheries, artificial lakes or ponds. (a) Any person who owns or operates a fish hatchery, artificial lake, pond or ponds for the purpose of raising fish for resale, may stock the fish hatchery, artificial lake, pond or ponds with eggs or fish p…

License to seine; license for dealers in live bait. (a) The department may issue licenses to seine or trap fish to such persons as it considers qualified upon application and payment of fees. The license entitles the holder to seine or trap fish at such time, place, and manner as…

Fish hatchery protection; penalty. Any person who, without consent of the owner, intentionally removes, destroys or introduces a substance into the waters of another with intent to destroy, any fish in a fish hatchery, artificial lake, pond including a catch out pond being used a…

Definitions. (a) As used in this article: (i) "Aquatic invasive species" means exotic or non- native aquatic organisms that have been determined by the commission to pose a significant threat to the aquatic resources, water supplies or water infrastructure of the state; (ii) "Con…

Prohibition on aquatic invasive species; mandatory conveyance checks; reporting. (a) No person shall: (i) Launch any conveyance into the waters of this state without first complying with aquatic invasive species prevention requirements established by commission rule; (ii) Possess…

Enforcement. (a) In order to prevent, control, contain, monitor and whenever possible eradicate aquatic invasive species from the waters of this state, the commission and the department of state parks and cultural resources shall promulgate rules and regulations to administer and…

Rulemaking authority; fees. (a) The commission and the department of state parks and cultural resources shall promulgate rules to administer and enforce the provisions of this article. (b) The commission shall establish and collect fees in accordance with the following: (i) An an…

Penalties. (a) Any person who violates the provisions of this article or any order under this article is guilty of a high misdemeanor punishable as provided in W.S. 23-6-202(a)(ii). (b) In addition to any other criminal penalty provided in this section any person who violates any…

Reciprocal aquatic invasive species program agreements with adjoining states authorized; water subject to agreements; implementing orders. (a) The commission is authorized to enter into reciprocal agreements with corresponding state officials of adjoining states for purposes of p…

Compliance with provisions prerequisite to establishment of game bird farm. Any person who owns, or any person who holds or controls fee land, by lease or otherwise which holding, controlling or lease shall be for a period of five (5) years beyond the time of compliance with this…

Department to issue licenses. The department shall issue licenses for game bird farms, and for the propagation, breeding, possession, use, releasing, killing, hunting, and sale of licensed birds therefrom. No license shall authorize any of the acts specified in this section for g…

Applicant for license to file verified declaration. An owner or lessee desiring to establish, operate, and maintain a game bird farm in conformity with this act shall file with the department a verified declaration, describing the purpose for, and proposed methods of breeding, pr…

Investigation of applicant; issuance of license; purchase or replacement of birds; marking of birds. (a) Upon the filing of the declaration the department shall investigate and require the applicant to produce satisfactory evidence of the facts stated in the declaration. The lice…

License fee; expiration; renewal of license. Applicants for the license shall pay the proper fee. The license, if issued on or after January 1, 2019, expires as provided in commission rules, but may be renewed each year in the discretion of the department upon the payment of the …

Rights of licensee generally. The game bird farm license is prima facie evidence in all courts and proceedings of the lawful right of the licensee therein named, his or its successor or assigns, for the term of license, to establish and operate a game bird farm upon the premises,…

Receipt to be given for removal of birds from licensed premises. Before any bird may be removed from the licensed premises, the licensee or operator shall issue to the person removing birds a receipt. The receipt shall be dated and shall contain information as to the number of bi…

Hunting restricted to established seasons; license required; exceptions. (a) No person shall take game birds on any licensed game bird farm area at any time except during the established season for game bird farms and unless: (i) The person has in his possession at the time a lic…

Bird license; fee; license not required of commercial purchasers. All game bird farm licensees are authorized selling agents of the commission, may issue a bird license on forms prescribed by the commission to any person who does not have in his possession a license authorizing t…

Season required; exceptions. Game bird farms shall have a season commencing the first day of August and ending the last day of March. Each initial application or annual application for renewal shall submit the opening and closing dates of the season for approval by the commission…

Game bird farm-certification to raise greater sage grouse; authorization; requirements; limitations. (a) No person shall possess live greater sage grouse or propagate, breed, sell, raise or release greater sage grouse unless licensed as a game bird farm and certified to be in com…

Department authorized to issue licenses. The department upon application and payment of the proper fee shall issue licenses for fishing preserves permitting the acquisition, possession, and rearing of fish therein.

"Fishing preserve waters" defined. "Fishing preserve waters" means any artificial or man-made body of water not exceeding one hundred (100) surface acres, lying wholly within the boundaries of privately owned lands, operated for the purpose of permitting the owner to provide fish…

Issuance of license; separate license required for each body of water; contents of license. (a) The department shall, after application and payment of the proper fee, issue to an owner of fishing preserve waters a fishing preserve license permitting the holder to manage the fishi…

Permission to take fish from licensed waters; fee or dues; fishing license not required; receipts for removal of fish. Any licensee, during the term of his license, may grant permission to other persons to take fish in or from the licensed fishing preserve waters and to charge a …

Arrest without warrant; when person arrested to be taken immediately before a court. Any game warden, commissioner or other employee of the department designated by the commission and any Wyoming law enforcement officer may arrest without warrant any person violating any provisio…

Notice to appear in court; release upon promise to appear; release upon posting bond. (a) When the person arrested is not immediately taken before the proper court, the arresting officer shall prepare a citation in triplicate, giving written notice to appear in court, containing …

Failure to obey citation; appearance by counsel; penalty. (a) No person shall violate his promise to appear given to any officer upon issuance of a game and fish citation regardless of the disposition of the charge for which the citation was originally issued. A promise to appear…

Procedure prescribed herein not exclusive. The foregoing provisions shall apply to all arrests without a warrant for violations of this act, but the procedures prescribed herein are not exclusive of any other method prescribed by law for the arrest and prosecution of a person for…

Form for citations. The department shall provide an appropriate form of game and fish citations containing the notice to appear which shall be issued in books with citations in triplicate. The director or his designee is responsible for the issuance of citation books, shall maint…

Disposition and records of citations. (a) Every person issuing a game and fish citation as herein provided shall deposit one (1) copy of the citation with the court having jurisdiction over the alleged offense. (b) Upon the deposit of a copy of the citation with the proper court,…

When citation deemed a lawful complaint. In the event the form of citation provided hereunder includes information and is sworn to as required under the general laws of this state in respect to a complaint charging commission of the offense alleged in the citation to have been co…

Record of game and fish cases; report of convictions to department. (a) Every judge of any court shall keep or cause to be kept a record of every game and fish complaint, game and fish citation, or other legal form of game and fish charge deposited with or presented to the court,…

Search with or without warrant; confiscation and disposition of wildlife. (a) Any person authorized to enforce the provisions of this act may seize and take into custody any wildlife which has been unlawfully taken or which is unlawfully in possession. Any wildlife so confiscated…

Refusal to display proper license prima facie evidence of guilt. Any person taking any wildlife who fails or refuses upon demand of any person authorized to enforce the provisions of this act to produce his proper license if a license is required for the wildlife taken, is prima …

Inspection of premises or records. The owner or operator of any commercial operation or business permitted under this act shall upon request of any department personnel exhibit the records required to be maintained by the commission and permit inspection of the premises pertainin…