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Wildlife Officers at Checkpoints across Utah

Don't be surprised if wildlife officers stop your vehicle at an administrative checkpoint this fall.

Division of Wildlife Resources officers conduct these checkpoints, formerly called roadblocks, throughout the year. But the number of checkpoints increases when the hunting seasons start in the fall.

Scott Dalebout, a lieutenant with the DWR, says the checkpoints allow the DWR to help Utah's fish and wildlife several ways.

"Monitoring public compliance with wildlife laws is one of the major reasons we conduct the checkpoints," Dalebout says. "We can contact a lot of people in a short period of time."

But catching those who violate wildlife laws isn't the only reason the DWR conducts checkpoints.

"Our biologists use these checkpoints to gather biological data about Utah's fish and wildlife," Dalebout says. "They examine the fish and wildlife that anglers and hunters have taken. They also visit with the anglers and hunters to learn more about the number and type of game they saw and the fish they hooked.

"We've been entrusted as the guardians of Utah's wildlife," Dalebout says. "That means a lot to us. Checkpoints are one of the most important tools we have to help us fulfill that role."