The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish 2013 big-game and turkey application process goes live today, Jan. 9, 2013, at 10 a.m. The new Hunting Rules and Information booklet is available on the department website. Printed versions are expected to be available at license vendors and Game and Fish offices across the state in late January.

New information for 2013-2014 hunting season includes:

• The deadline to apply for bear and turkey hunting permits, including those valid on Wildlife Management Areas (WMA), is 5 p.m. Feb. 6.

• March 20 at 5 p.m. is the deadline to apply for public deer, elk, oryx, pronghorn antelope, ibex, Barbary sheep, javelina and bighorn sheep licenses.

• Hunters can pay for multiple applications at one time utilizing the shopping cart concept. Hunters will only have to submit their credit card information one time.

• License information and purchases are available by telephone toll-free 1-888-248-6866. The Department’s Information Center is open Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 9 –Feb. 14. The hours will be extended from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. beginning Feb. 15. The Information Center also will be open noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays beginning Feb. 16.

• Beginning April 1, licenses and permits can be printed on standard paper at home or on any other standard printer.

• All hunters applying for draw hunts and every student registering for a hunter or bowhunter education class, must obtain a personal Customer Identification Number (CIN). CINs are free of charge and available online at www.wildlife.state.nm.us.

The hunt dates for ibex will be Feb. 21 through March 31. All hunting will end when the harvest limit of 125 is reached.

Licenses will be available through the department online system and over the counter at department offices beginning Jan. 9. Any person who did not hold an ibex hunting license for the 2012-13 season is eligible to purchase one of these licenses. The cost of the license is $111 for residents and $1,630 for nonresidents.

This hunt is necessary because the ibex population is beyond the carrying capacity of the habitat. The bag limit will be two female or immature male ibex. Any hunter who harvests two ibex and has them verified by a conservation officer or at a Game and Fish Office, will be entered into a drawing for an either-sex ibex rifle hunt during the spring of 2014. All hunters must verify their harvests within five days.

All hunters must have a customer identification number to purchase these licenses. For information, please visit the department website at www.wildlife.state.nm.us or contact Kevin Rodden at the department’s Las Cruces office at (575) 532-2100.

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