We’ve all heard their songs right before dark in the fall, the yips, barks, and howls of the crafty coyote. Now days there is virtually no place in the U.S. where these song dogs don’t roam. Their ability to adapt to urban sprawl and human intrusion is all too impressive. These canines can change breeding habits, diets, and pack dynamics to cope with the situation they find themselves living in. Females usually have a litter of 3-9 pups per year that are generally born in April or May. This coincides with the fawning season for whitetails as well.

Predator populations have changed dramatically over the past century. I’ve heard it explained by an old-timer that said, “before humans entered the picture an area would have 1 wolf, 2 coyotes, 4 fox and on down the chain.” Obviously, these numbers are fictitious, but the larger predators kept the others in check and on down the line. Now days with so many different factors influencing predator populations, I can’t imagine the challenges the states have in regulating harvest quotas and management plans for all game animals.

In my view, one of the major problems that we have had in the past thirty years is the anti-hunting/trapping public. Although they are the minority, they are very vocal. Through the 1980’s and 90’s, their push to ban trapping caused fur prices to plummet. Back in the early 80’s a trapper could get $120 to $160 for a prime “Christmas fox.” Now fur costs are about ¼ of what they were thirty years ago. My suggestions to hunters and trappers are to be more vocal than the opposition and use your vote! Read more

The Department of Natural Resources’ Law Enforcement Division recently honored four Department of Natural Resources conservation officers who worked as part of a search and rescue operation and who ultimately found a missing 2 1/2-year-old child in the woods in Newaygo County last year. The officers were honored at last week’s meeting of the Natural Resources Commission in Cadillac, Michigan.

Sgt. Mike Bomay and conservation officers Jeff Ginn, Brian Lebel and Mike Wells were presented with Lifesaving Awards by DNR Director Keith Creagh and DNR Law Enforcement Division Chief Gary Hagler for their role in locating Amber Smith, a toddler who disappeared Oct. 8, 2013, from her Barton Township home. Read more

With winter quickly approaching, the Department of Natural Resources reminds residents that fuelwood permits are available for the 2014 season, which runs through Dec. 31. Read more

The Department of Natural Resources today announced that the preliminary exam for a Beaverton, Michigan, man who is accused of robbing an Amish buggy at gunpoint in Clare County has been set for Thursday, Sept. 25, in Clare County’s 80th District Court.

Doyle Robert Dell, 20, of Beaverton, was arrested for armed robbery and is currently lodged in the Clare County Jail awaiting trial.

Dell allegedly robbed an Amish buggy at gunpoint in May in Sheridan Township. According to law enforcement reports, Dell allegedly stopped the buggy while brandishing a firearm and demanded money from the family in the buggy. Read more

What’s in a name? For the winner of a Department of Natural Resources contest starting today, it’s the chance to be a part of history by suggesting the official name for a landmark bicycling/hiking trail stretching from Belle Isle Park in Detroit to Ironwood in the western Upper Peninsula.

“This contest is a fun, inclusive opportunity for people to share their creativity, draw on their passion for our state’s trails and be involved in celebrating a milestone accomplishment for Michigan’s outdoor recreation,” said Ron Olson, chief of the DNR Parks and Recreation Division.

Name suggestions will be accepted now through Oct. 13, 2014. People can submit their ideas online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/namethetrail, via Facebook at www.facebook.com/midnr, or by mailing in a paper entry form, which is available by visiting www.michigan.gov/dnrtrails and clicking “name the trail.” Read more