MONTPELIER — Vermont hunting, fishing and trapping licenses for 2016 will be available on the Fish & Wildlife Department’s website (www.vtfishandwildlife.com) on Dec. 14.
“Vermonters really enjoy hunting and fishing,” said Vermont Fish & Wildlife Commissioner Louis Porter. “Many people like to purchase their new licenses before January 1 so they will be ready to go ice fishing.”
According to a federal survey, Vermonters rank first among residents of the lower 48 states when it comes to participating in fish and wildlife recreation — with 62 percent of Vermonters going fishing, hunting or wildlife watching, and they led in the New England states in hunting and fishing with 26 percent of residents participating in one or both.
“Our online license sale system makes buying a year-round license as easy as purchasing a movie off Amazon.com, and hunting and fishing are way more rewarding,” said Porter. “By purchasing a license, you also support conservation statewide.”
Porter noted that proceeds from license sales have leveraged federal funding that has provided some of Vermont’s greatest wildlife conservation success stories, including restoring common game species such as moose and wild turkey as well as endangered bald eagles, loons and ospreys. These funds also go to managing more than 133,000 acres of conserved land that provide critical habitat for many species as well as recreational opportunities for all Vermonters.
Existing permanent, lifetime or five-year licenses cannot be updated online until Jan. 1.
Printed copies of the “2016 Hunting, Fishing & Trapping Laws and Guide” are also available from license agents. The department’s website will soon have a link to an online version.