ThinkingAfield.org

Three years ago, the folks at Mossy Oak worked to bring together two of the last remaining turkey hunters from the generation of men and women that saved the wild turkey: Mossy Oak’s patriarch Mr. Fox Haas and cult-classic Tenth Legion author Col. Tom Kelly.

The iconic camp became a celebration of turkey hunting history and tradition throughout the turkey hunting world. A short video of the significance of the camp was planned, but the Mossy Oak team quickly realized that there was an opportunity to tell a much greater story.

In the 1940s, wild turkeys and the way of life of those who hunt them were on the brink of extinction. In what would become known as America’s greatest conservation success story, turkey hunting’s greatest generation decided to do something about it.

The feature-length documentary THE COLONEL AND THE FOX was created with heart and soul and painstaking care to tell the story of the wild turkey through the life stories of these two woodsmen who’ve become icons of turkey hunting, conservation and family tradition. The film was premiered for the first time in West Point, MS for Mossy Oak’s employees and local friends and family of the brand.

It will premiere free to the public tonight, Wednesday, April 3, at 7 pm CT on the Mossy Oak YouTube account. Mossy Oak wants to make it easily available to each and every wild turkey hunter and enthusiast who wants to watch it; it’s an important story to hear. Read more

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources and Iowa State University partner with national nonprofit to launch statewide effort to conserve Iowa’s pollinators

A new statewide project is looking for Iowa volunteers to help researchers track and monitor the state’s at-risk bumble bees. The Iowa Bumble Bee Atlas is a collaboration between the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, Iowa State University, and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources that aims to understand native bumble bee distributions and their habitat needs throughout the state.

Iowa is home to at least 14 species of bumble bees that play an essential role in sustaining the health of the environment, from pollinating native wildflowers to flowering crops in farm fields and backyard gardens. Unfortunately, several bumble bee species native to Iowa have undergone alarming declines and face an uncertain future.

“The recent listing of the rusty patched bumble bee as an endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is increasing the need to collect data on the occurrence of all bumble bee species in our state,” said Dr. Matthew O’Neal, professor of entomology at Iowa State University.

The effort is one of a growing number of Bumble Bee Atlas projects run by the Xerces Society and their partners in 20 states. In 2023 alone, more than 900 individuals participated in the Atlas, documenting over 20,000 bumble bees. The volunteers have discovered species previously thought to be gone from their states, contributed to new field guides, and rapidly improved scientists’ understanding of bumble bee populations across the United States. Without the efforts of these “community scientists”, it would be impossible to gather information across such a wide geographic area. Read more

Michigan’s state forest roads are the gateway to the rugged side of the outdoors. Pack your helmet, start up your off-road vehicle and download a map, then turn your steering wheel from pavement to gravel to find your next favorite place to hunt, hike or explore.

Every year, the DNR updates state forest road maps on April 1 to keep them current. Maps are available in an interactive web format and as printable PDFs at Michigan.gov/ForestRoads.

After the annual road inventory and review, 11,765 miles of forest roads in the following areas will be open to ORVs: Read more