On March 22, the Indiana Natural Resources Commission granted final adoption to allow the limited, regulated trapping of bobcats in designated southern Indiana counties.

Bobcat Trapping Rules:

In 2024, the Indiana General Assembly passed legislation (SEA 241-2024) directing the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to have rules in place for bobcat harvest by July 2025.

The approved rules include:

* Establishing a bobcat trapping season in 40 southern Indiana counties, including a limit of one bobcat per trapper and a cumulative season limit of 250 bobcats for all trappers combined.

* Allowing bobcats and their parts that are legally acquired to be sold.

* Allowing bobcats that are found dead to be kept by people with a permit.

* Adding bobcats to the list of species for which a game breeder’s license is required.

The NRC granted preliminary adoption of the rules in September 2024, and it later held two public comment periods and two public hearings.

Research maintained by the DNR and Purdue University shows the bobcat population in Indiana has expanded during the last two decades. The research can be reviewed at on.IN.gov/dfw-rule-changes.

Bobcats have well-established populations in the 40 counties where trapping will be allowed. Analysis shows this high-quality habitat can support regulated harvest while also maintaining a healthy, sustainable bobcat population.

After the rule’s adoption, DNR anticipates Indiana’s first bobcat trapping season will begin this fall. A summary of all rules and regulations will be available in the annual Hunting & Trapping Guide, which is typically available in August.

LARE grants

Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Director Alan Morrison announced organizations in 20 Indiana counties across the state will receive $1,116,940 in grants to fund 53 lake and stream projects through the Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program.

Funded projects are in Dearborn, Fayette, Fulton, Hamilton, Johnson, Knox, Kosciusko, LaGrange, LaPorte, Marion, Marshall, Monroe, Noble, Owen, Porter, Pulaski, Putnam, St. Joseph, Steuben and Sullivan counties.

Grants totaling $643,300 will support 11 sediment or logjam removal projects in 10 counties. Another $473,640 will be used to support 42 projects to combat aquatic invasive plants, involving 52 bodies of water in 13 counties.

The grants are funded through the LARE fee paid annually by boat owners when they register their crafts with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The user-funded program benefits boaters all over the state by allowing for the completion of lake and stream projects difficult for local organizations to fund on their own. Grants are awarded on a competitive basis, and local sponsors share at least 20 percent of the cost.

Funded projects for the planning and removal of sediment and logjams help improve recreational access by removing nutrient-rich sediment and woody debris near inlets or navigational channels, helping prevent bank erosion and the formation of new channels. These types of projects receive the highest priority for LARE funding, and they are only funded for projects focused on large-quantity debris removal. Aquatic invasive plant control grants help control or manage aggressive non-native species which can out-compete native species and dominate plant communities. The grants can also provide economic benefits to lake communities by improving lake conditions for individuals who fish or boat.

A list of grant recipients and sediment and logjam removal projects by body of water, county, project type, and grant award can be found at lare.dnr.IN.gov and clicking on project awards at the top of the page. Reports on all past LARE-funded projects can be found at larereports.dnr.IN.gov.

Firewood at McCormick’s Creek State Park

McCormick’s Creek State Park has extended the period the public may cut up and remove certain downed trees to May 2. Trees eligible for firewood have fallen as a result of natural causes or have been dropped by property staff for safety purposes. They are along roadsides or in public areas such as campsites and picnic areas. All available wood will be on the ground by April 1.

The cost of one pickup-truck load is $10. A load is defined as an 8-foot standard pickup truck bed without any modifications.

A firewood permit must be obtained for each load at McCormick’s Creek’s office from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday through Friday, which are also the hours when wood may be cut and removed. Permits are not available on observed state holidays.

McCormick’s Creek State Park (on.IN.gov/mccormickscreeksp) is at 250 McCormick’s Creek Park Road, Spencer, 47460.

‘till next time,  

Jack

Readers can contact the author by writing to this publication or e-mail Jack at jackspaulding1971@outlook.com 

Spaulding’s books, “The Best Of Spaulding Outdoors” and “The Coon Hunter And The Kid,” are available from Amazon.com as a paperback or Kindle download.