The state of Wyoming is a place teeming with game and fish. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department provides a necessary but flexible system of control, propagation, management, protection, and regulation of all wildlife in Wyoming. Wyoming has an international reputation for trout fishing and big game hunting opportunities. This makes it the ultimate sportsman's paradise.
Wyoming has twenty-two species of game fish, including six kinds of trout. They are rainbow, brook, cutthroat, brown, golden and Mackinaw. Bass, walleye, crappie, perch, sauger, ling, channel catfish and bluegill are found in the warm water lakes. The water bodies of Wyoming provide excellent fishing conditions. Flaming Gorge is well known for its excellent fishing and is called the "fishing hot spot" "of America. It offers quality trout fishing all year round. People interested in fishing are required to get a fishing license from either Wyoming or Utah.
Hunting in Wyoming is the experience of a lifetime. Licenses for big game hunting is issued by a lottery system. A tourist must apply well in advance of the hunting season, as licenses are limited. Often the demand for license exemptions the supply. The wild life of Wyoming includes moose, elk, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, mule deer, gray wolf, grizzly bear, and mountain lion. Smaller animals like the fox, mink, coyote, bobcat, jackrabbit, cottontail, otter, beaver, and raccoon are also found here. Bird life includes the trumpeter swan, white pelican, great blue heron, and California gull. Carnivorous birds like the bald eagle, golden eagle, osprey, and several kinds of hawks and owls are also found here. Game birds like the sage grouse, wild turkey, ring-necked pheasant, Canada goose, and numerous species of ducks are found in large numbers in Wyoming.
Wyoming's Game and Fish Department has been successful in wildlife conservation. Even then, quite a few species are threatened by extinction. The pronghorn was influenced with extinction in the early 1900s. But the population has now increased to a decent number. The mountain lion is still common. However, other great predators like the grizzly bear and the gray wolf are classified as endangered species.
