Sources: Tennessee Code Annotated, 1987 Replacement Volume, Title 70; 1992 Cumulative Supplement.
STATE WILDLIFE POLICY
The ownership of and title to all forms of wildlife within the state, that are not lawful individual property, is declared to be in the state. A person taking wildlife shall consent that title shall be in the state for possession, use and transportation after such taking. The taking of any and all forms of wildlife at any time, in any manner, and by a person, shall be deemed a consent that the title to such wildlife shall be in the state for regulating its possession, use and transportation for the public welfare (70-4-101). (See also STATE FISH AND WILDLIFE AGENCIES.)
PROTECTED SPECIES OF WILDLIFE
Live wildlife, kept and maintained for any purpose, shall be classified into five classes with included species specified by statute: Class I - species inherently dangerous to humans, which only may be possessed by zoos, circuses and commercial propagators except as otherwise provided; Class II - all native species except those listed in other classes; Class III - all species not listed in other classes, subject to additions or deletions by the Commission; Class IV - native species that may be possessed only by zoos and temporary exhibitors, provided that rehabilitation facilities may possess Class IV wildlife as provided by Commission rules and as authorized by the Director; Class V - species that the Commission in conjunction with the Commissioner of Agriculture may designate as injurious to the environment and which may be only held in zoos under conditions preventing escape (70-4-403).
The Agency shall issue permits for possessing live wildlife, and the Commission shall adopt rules for the permits and for establishing conditions to insure the health, welfare and safety of animals and the public. The Director may authorize possession of a class of wildlife for research studies or for temporary holding of animals in the interest of public safety. Details of the classes of permits and qualifications of applicants to possess live wildlife are in the statutes, including the requirement of a written examination covering basic knowledge of habits and requirements in regard to proper diet, health care, exercise and housing of species to be covered by the permit (70-4-404). [Housing and transportation of wildlife requirements, liability for escape, transfer to new owners/facilities, and keeping of records are detailed in the statutes 70-4-405 through 70-4-409.] Owners of unpermitted wildlife who do not qualify for a permit shall dispose of it to an approved recipient on 30 days notice by the Agency. Each day of possession after this period is a separate violation (70-4-408). A violation of a provision or Commission rule regarding captive wildlife is a Class A misdemeanor; in the court's discretion in lieu of, or in addition to, a fine or jail sentence, or both, the permit may be revoked and no new permit issued for up to three years. Wildlife held illegally or in unsafe or inhumane conditions may be seized and sold at public sale or retained by the Agency for educational purposes after final case disposition (70-4-415).
It is unlawful to operate without a permit a private wildlife preserve for propagating and/or hunting any class of wildlife reared in captivity. It is lawful to hunt approved species of pen- reared and farm-reared animals on such a preserve without a hunting license (70-4-413).
The Legislature declares that: it is the state policy to manage certain nongame wildlife to insure their perpetuation as members of ecosystems, for scientific purposes, and for human enjoyment; species or subspecies of the state's indigenous wildlife found to be endangered or threatened within the state should be accorded protection in order to maintain and to the extent possible enhance their numbers; the state should assist in the protection of species or subspecies of wildlife which are endangered or threatened elsewhere by prohibiting the taking, possession, transportation, exportation, processing, sale or offer for sale or shipment within this state of species or subspecies of wildlife listed on the US List of Endangered Fish and Wildlife unless such actions will assist in preserving or propagating the species or subspecies; adequate funding shall be made available to the Agency annually by appropriations from the general fund or from other sources for management of nongame and endangered species (70-8- 102).
The Director shall conduct investigations on nongame wildlife to develop information about population, distribution, habitat, needs, limiting factors, and biological and ecological data to determine management measures to sustain them and to develop programs designed to insure the continued ability of nongame, endangered or threatened wildlife to perpetuate themselves. Proposed regulations shall set forth species or subspecies of nongame wildlife in need of management, giving common and scientific names by species or subspecies. The Director may recommend amendments to such regulations by adding or deleting species or subspecies of nongame wildlife. The Commission by regulation shall establish limitations relating to habitat, alteration, taking, possession, transportation, exportation, processing, sale or shipment necessary to manage nongame wildlife. Except as provided in Commission regulations, it is unlawful to take, possess, transport, export, process, sell or ship nongame wildlife, or for a common or contract carrier knowingly to transport or receive such for shipment (70-8-104). Violation of these provisions or regulations issued under 70-8-104, or failure to procure or violation of permit terms is a Class B misdemeanor (70-8-108).
The Director shall establish programs, including acquisition of land or aquatic habitat, to manage nongame and endangered or threatened wildlife, including entering into agreements with federal agencies, private persons or state political subdivisions for administration and management of an area established or used for wildlife management, and shall encourage other state agencies in their furtherance of these provisions. The Director may permit the taking, possession, exportation or shipment of endangered or threatened species for scientific, zoological, or educational purposes or for propagation in captivity. Upon good cause and where necessary to alleviate damage to property or to protect human health and safety, endangered or threatened species may be removed, captured or destroyed but only pursuant to a permit issued by the Director and under Agency supervision. Endangered or threatened species may be removed, captured or destroyed without permit in emergency situations involving an immediate threat to human life. The Director shall issue regulations for removal, capture or destruction of nongame wildlife (70-8-106). A violation of the provisions of 70-8-106 relating to permits to take endangered or threatened species for scientific, zoological or educational purposes, for captive propagation or other specific purposes, is a Class A misdemeanor. An officer authorized by the Director or a state peace officer may conduct warrantless searches as provided by law, and execute a warrant to search for and seize equipment, business records or wildlife taken, used or possessed illegally. The officer may arrest without a warrant a person who the officer has probable cause to believe is violating, in the officer's presence, a law, regulation or permit relating to nongame and endangered species, and may search and seize wildlife, records or property used in connection with the violation, such wildlife to be transferred to a zoological, educational or scientific institution for safekeeping, costs assessable to the defendant (70-8-108).
HABITAT PROTECTION
Where a state agency owns in fee simple or controls by lease water areas or lands bordering such waters, it is illegal to place houses, docks, or floats, or to use as a landing area for boats, state owned lands or waters unless such rights are held by a signed written agreement, for which a fee may be charged. Each 24-hour period or violation is a separate offense. Violation: Class C misdemeanor (70-4-205).
No pollution, including, but not limited to, dye waste, petroleum products, brine waste, or refuse from a mine, sawmill or construction activity, or industrial or domestic sewage, or any deleterious or poisonous substance or activity shall be thrown or allowed to run into, wash into or take place in public or private waters in quantities injurious to fish life or other aquatic organisms, or which could be injurious to the propagation of fish, or which results in the destruction of habitat for fish and aquatic life. Violation: Class A misdemeanor; each day's violation is a separate offense, and each five day's continuous violation constitutes a public nuisance, subject to abatement by permanent injunction (70-4-206). Defacing or destroying Commission notices is a Class C misdemeanor, and the violator must pay for replacement of signs (70-4-207).
The Agency may establish, with the property owner's consent, public hunting areas, refuges, or wildlife management areas for the protection, propagation and/or management of wildlife. It is unlawful to hunt or molest wildlife within such areas or to trespass there, except as provided by regulation. Such areas shall be posted. The Director may issue permits for the destruction of predatory wildlife within such areas. The Agency may acquire by purchase, gift, lease or otherwise, and hold title thereto in the name of the state, lands and waters to be known as state wildlife preserves, and pay out of the Wildlife Resources Fund any taxes due. The Agency shall not construct dams or dikes on preserve property in such a way as to cause flooding on adjacent private lands, and private landowners may seek injunctive relief for lands so harmed. The Agency may acquire delinquent tax lands for wildlife preserves in cooperation with the county and Governor (70-5-101 through -103). The Governor may designate and set apart lands and waters which revert to the state due to delinquent taxes, or are given to the state by donation, and shall by public proclamation dedicate such lands and waters for wildlife preserves and fix their limits (70-5-105).
The Commission may set aside waters within the state's jurisdiction as fish preserves in which it is unlawful to take or kill fish after public notice is given and the areas are posted. The Commission may close or open such waters for fishing when sufficient time for restocking has occurred. Violation: Class C misdemeanor (70-5-106). The Director may acquire by gift, devise or otherwise the exclusive game and fish rights on privately owned lands or waters in the state, including the right to manage, administer, protect, stock and propagate wild birds, animals and fish upon these areas, and the right to permit hunting and fishing upon them in accordance with Commission rules. Violation: Class C misdemeanor (70-5-108).
Select another State Summary
New Mexico Center for Wildlife Law
University of New Mexico School of Law
1117 Stanford NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131
(505) 277-5006
lprovenc@unm.edu