What to ask your area wildlife biologist

[Hunting Wife]

Sometimes it's a necessity to use email if they are in the middle of their survey periods. I played phone tag with a biologist in Elko for about three weeks, so I finally just emailed him. I detailed very explicitly what my goals were for the hunt (solitude, scenery, quality of deer, number of deer, opportunity for multiple stalks a day, etc.). I then presented him with two different hunt plans I formulated based on my research. We emailed back and forth and I ultimately opted for a plan that was different from the initial two I sent him. I posed very specific questions, and I got very direct and specific answers back.

This is right on. The term "office hours" doesn't apply to wildlife people much of the time - you work on Mother Nature's schedule. Some days you've put in a full day's work before noon, some days you're checking email at 8:00 at night. If you can't reach your person by phone, and can track down an email that can be a good way to communicate. That way they can respond when they have time to devote their full attention to answering your question. But again, if you want detailed advice, ask detailed questions. Just don't wait until the last minute to ask your questions - late summer/early fall are invariably busy so it can be hard to catch people then.