House Bill 353 was recently introduced which starts off calling for a shed hunting license if you want to pick up any kind of naturally shed horn/antler off public land. Dead heads appear to be excluded from this classification. Bighorn sheep are specifically excluded from this classification as long as it is dead with the skull and horns brought out together. The fee would be $10 for residents and $50 for nonresidents.
A license is not required for a landowner or the family of the landowner nor any employees of a landowner for collecting of natural shed antlers or horn on said landowners land. Considering the price of brown deer and elk antlers these are very small fees in the grand scheme of things. I will keep you updated on future developments of this bill.
In addition this bill adds the requirement of a conservation license as a prerequisite for any license sale for any shed hunting, application or bonus point purchase, hunting, trapping, or fishing license in the State of Montana. The fee is currently $8 for a resident and $10 for a nonresident.
