Hunting in Enontekiö

Permanent residents of Enontekiö, Inari and Utsjoki may hunt on state-owned lands in their municipality, and locals may trap the willow grouse (Lagopus lagopus), an important income for many Enontekiö families.

The Pöyrisjärvi Wilderness Area needs permit 1615 for Näkkälä or permit 1616 for Nunnanen. Game includes willow grouse, hare and water birds, and a limited number of small-game permits are sold a day at a time, so non-locals can hunt too. Reindeer husbandry is an important livelihood, so hounds are strictly forbidden even with a permit. Käsivarsi is part of Hunting Area 1613 (willow grouse and northern hare).

Hunting permits are sold by Skierri (the Fell-Lapland Nature Centre), Siida - the Sámi Museum and Northern Lapland Nature Centre, and Customer Service Ivalo, as well as by local tourist and activity enterprises and the Metsähallitus netstore (www.eräluvat.fi). For further information see the Enontekiö website (www.enontekio.fi).

Finnish hunting law rests on sustainable development. The Hunting Act and Hunting Decree set seasons by the size and trends of game populations, and restrictions preserve game stocks and the traditional character of hunting rather than maximise efficiency. Prohibited means include explosives, poisons, automatic weapons, live decoys and lead pellets in waterfowl hunting. In Enontekiö, Inari and Utsjoki the season for willow grouse and ptarmigan runs from April 1 to September 9.

Day permits sell quickly in autumn, so buy yours from Skierri or a local enterprise before heading out.

Where a game population needs it, a species is protected for a set period. Willow grouse and ptarmigan in Enontekiö, Inari and Utsjoki are protected from 1 April to 9 September. Wolf outside the reindeer herding areas, bear, otter, wolverine, lynx and harbour seal are always protected.

A hunting licence is required for moose, fallow deer, red deer, sika deer, wild forest reindeer and white-tailed deer. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry holds supreme authority over hunting legislation and the maximum limits for hunting certain game animals.

The Ministry also draws up national management plans for wild forest reindeer, wolf, bear, lynx, wolverine and seals. The first, the Management Plan for the Wolf Population in Finland, appeared on 28 December 2005. The plans balance conservation with regional differences and the views of local residents, prepared openly with broad citizen participation.