Following this weeks’ angst about the possibility of sage-grouse hunting closures in Montana, the state’s Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission voted yesterday to consider curtailing or closing this fall’s hunt as one tool to address widespread declines of the open-range game bird.
Hunters and conservation groups spoke out against the hunting closure while livestock groups advocated for hunting restrictions.
A final decision on the fate of this fall’s season, which was set to open Sept. 1, will be made at the commission’s July meeting.