Dallas, TX – Regardless of how much practice one puts in at the range or the type of firearm, bow or crossbow one carries into the field, no variable plays a greater role in hunting success than knowing the distance to the target. Just a few yards of misjudged distance can result in a miss or worse – a wounded animal. For this reason, a quality laser rangefinder is one of the most important tools a hunter can carry into the field.

Delivering accuracy to +/- one yard, the Halo XL600 provides fast ranging out to 600 yards – plenty of distance for most hunting situations. Versatile 6x magnification provides bright, clear viewing and fast target acquisition, while an easy-to-read internal LCD displays the reticle, battery status, mode setting, numerical display and unit of measure, which is selectable by yards or meters. Read more

Ameristep’s new Deadwood Stump Blind makes great hunts happen… anywhere… anytime.

Plano, IL – Elite hunters know how important location is to hunting success. On any given day, the right location isn’t always the most convenient. Thankfully, ground blinds excel at delivering hunters flexible and portable concealment that makes it possible to set up and hunt from almost anywhere the circumstance requires.

Ameristep is constantly innovating new and better forms of ground-based concealment solutions for hunters. Their latest creation – the Deadwood™ Stump – is the most realistic and practical portable tree stump blind on the market. Read more

More than 200 entries vied for the honor of being the DNR’s winning design in the 2018 Deer Management Cooperator Patch contest. See all of the submissions in this short video.

In the end, Matt MacDonald of Toronto, Ontario, submitted a design that captured DNR staff’s attention. Thanks to everyone who participated in this year’s contest.

Cooperator patches are used as an incentive for successful hunters to bring their deer to DNR check stations. A deer head (antlers must still be attached on bucks) or an entire carcass must be presented to receive a patch. Patches are not available by mail. Hunters are urged to call ahead whenever possible to confirm hours and days of operation. Read more

The first hunt period of the 2018 elk season starts Aug. 28, and 100 Michigan hunters will have 12 days to fill 30 any-elk and 70 antlerless-only licenses issued in the northern third of the Lower Peninsula.

“In general, elk hunters have a remarkable success rate during this first hunt period,” said Brian Mastenbrook, DNR wildlife field operations manager working out of the Gaylord office. “With only 100 hunters, we can really work closely with hunters and landowners to find elk.”

The first hunt – also known as Michigan’s early elk hunt – allows hunters to harvest an elk in any location in the elk management unitexcept within the core elk range; this approach helps to target animals that have moved outside the core elk range. Regulated hunting is a management tool used to influence how many elk are present and where they are located. The goal is to keep the majority of elk within the core elk range.

Michigan’s elk population has been hunted annually since 1984 and at this time has an estimated population of more than 1,200 animals – above the state’s current population goal of 500-900 elk. That goal was set by the Elk Management Advisory Team and outlined in the 2012 Elk Management Plan. Read more

From Scent Crusher…

Wichita, KS – Earlier today, we received a ruling from the District Court Judge granting Ozonics’ request for a preliminary injunction. While we are disappointed in this decision and intend to continue to vigorously defend our right to sell a competing product in a market Ozonics deliberately abandoned, we must follow the court’s ruling and temporarily suspend sales of 2 newly released products, the Scent Crusher Field Pro and Field Lite products. We believe this is a temporary condition as we did not begin production of our Field Pro and Field Lite products without seeking outside legal counsel. We produced and marketed the units consistent with this guidance; however, the legal process can be difficult to predict, and the court has initially ruled against our position. We continue to believe our legal rights are sound, and that we will be able to return the Field Pro and Field Lite to market soon.

We maintain strong partnerships with our retailers and as we work through the legal and logistical issues resulting from the court’s ruling we will continue to support our retailers as we always have.

It’s almost time to polish up the shotgun, warm up the retriever with some practice throws and don that camouflage as we near the season for hunting ducks and geese in Michigan! Area wildlife managers have been working hard all summer to make sure that migrating waterfowl have great habitat conditions on Michigan’s state game and wildlife areas this fall.

• • Early teal season
  • Goose seasons
  • Youth waterfowl season
  • Duck seasons
  • Managed waterfowl areas
  • Michigan Waterfowl Stamp Program – new 2018 Governor’s Edition
  • Help stop the spread of aquatic invasive species
  • Questions?

Read more

ROANOKE, VA— September is tree Stand Safety Awareness Month and is the month that most hunters head back to the woods to hang stands in preparation for the upcoming hunting season. Tree Stand Safety Awareness Foundation’s (TSSA) mission is to significantly reduce tree stand accidents through promotion, education and best practices and our goal is to reduce the estimated number of tree stand incidents 50% by 2023. TSSA strives to ensure that every hunter comes home safe to their family and friends.

TSSA is excited to share that we are seeing positive changes in the estimated numbers of falls that are occurring on a national level. Based on the latest data available (2017), there has been a 28% decrease in the number of estimated falls requiring an emergency department visit, while over the same period of time, there has been 7.1% increase in the number of licensed hunters nationwide. This significant drop in the estimated number of falls reflects the industry wide efforts of TMA, NBEF, WTU, IHEA, state DNR’s, TSSA, our other supporting partners (Realtree, Hunter Safety System, Summit Tree Stands, Hunter-ed.com, American Hunting Lease Association, Sole Scraper) and others focusing on tree stand safety.

However, we still have room for continued improvement to ensure that everyone that uses a tree stand does it in a safe manner and comes home safe to their family and friends. To accomplish this, let’s get the season started by putting safety first.

TSSA has designed an educational campaign called the “ABC’s of Tree Stand Safety” to serve as the building blocks to the awareness campaign:

*Always remove and inspect your equipment

*Buckle on your full-body harness

*Connect to the tree before your feet leave the ground

By performing these 3 simple steps, tree stand users can virtually eliminate their risk of falling to the ground as the majority of falls occur outside the stand. TSSA encourages all hunters to take tree stand safety seriously, every time you hunt from, hang, or remove a tree stand. Read more

To promote the role hunters, anglers and trappers play in conservation, and the need to protect those passions, the Sportsmen’s Alliance has launched their “Huntervationist” campaign with the support of industry-leading companies that have backed the movement.

“Hunters and conservation are inextricably linked. We are North America’s greatest conservationists. We believe that should be promoted, and that it’s up to hunters to educate people on the role we play,” said Sean Curran, vice president of membership and development for Sportsmen’s Alliance. “Our ‘Huntervationist’ messaging and apparel sparks dialogue with non-hunters, and even some hunters, who might not understand that relationship, and anytime you can do that, it’s a step forward.”

From Aug. 20 through Oct. 11, all new members and current members who renew or upgrade their membership will receive entries into the Huntervationist promotion, which includes great prizes from Mathews, ALPS OutdoorZ, onX Hunt, Vortex Optics, Benelli and Girls with Guns. Special member benefits apply, including Huntervationist-specific gear.

For every $10 spent on a new, renewed or upgraded membership, the member will earn one entry into the promotion (up to 25 entries).

To enter, just visit the Huntervationist campaign page and select the level of desired membership. For every $10, an automatic entry will be created and entered into all subsequent drawings until Oct. 11. For complete rules, click here. Read more

By Glen Wunderlich

Michigan’s paradigm for deer-herd management has changed and it’s time to acknowledge it.  Yesteryear’s philosophy to protect the females in the herd has gone the way of our seasoned citizens who’ve become the dinosaurs of the modern hunting fraternity.  For decades, we’ve managed our deer population to accommodate the desire of wildlife watchers and a protectionist attitude to build up the herd.  Now, it’s time end that tired thinking and to drastically reduce the number of deer to minimize the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD).  By all accounts, the dreaded disease will be with us for the rest of our time on earth.

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission (NRC) has approved a series of deer hunting regulations aimed at slowing the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD). The action came after months of commission members and Department of Natural Resources staff hearing from hunters, residents and others interested in the long-term health of the state’s deer population, and a thorough review of the best available science on chronic wasting disease. 

“We hope that by setting these specific CWD regulations we can limit the movement of this disease in Michigan,” said Vicki Pontz, NRC chairperson.  CWD is a fatal neurological (brain and nervous system) disease found in cervids – deer, elk and moose. There is no cure; once an animal is infected, it will die.

The disease first was discovered in Michigan in a free-ranging deer in May 2015. To date, more than 31,000 deer in Michigan have been tested for chronic wasting disease, and CWD has been confirmed in 60 free-ranging deer in six Michigan counties: Clinton, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent and Montcalm.

The approved deer hunting regulations, which will be in effect for the 2018 deer seasons, unless noted otherwise, include the following provisions:

§  Reduce the 4-point on-a-side antler requirement on the restricted tag of the combination license in the 16-county CWD Management Zone. Under the new regulation, a hunter in the CWD Management Zone can use the restricted tag of the combination license to harvest a buck with antlers as long as it has at least one 3-inch antler.

§  Create a discounted antlerless license opportunity in the CWD Management Zone on private land; if purchased, the license will expire Nov. 4, 2018.

§  Effective immediately, a statewide ban on the use of all natural cervid urine-based lures and attractants, except for lures that are approved by the Archery Trade Association.

§  An immediate ban on baiting and feeding in the 16-county area identified as the CWD Management Zone. This area includes Calhoun, Clinton, Eaton, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Ingham, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, Ottawa and Shiawassee counties.

§  A ban on baiting and feeding in the Lower Peninsula, effective Jan. 31, 2019, with an exception to this ban for hunters with disabilities who meet specific requirements. The start date on this regulation is intended to allow bait producers and retailers time to adjust to the new rule.

§  Effective immediately in the CWD Management Zone and four-county bovine tuberculosis area (in Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency and Oscoda counties), hunters with disabilities who meet specific requirements can now use 2 gallons of single-bite bait, such as shelled corn, during the Liberty and Independence hunts.

§  Allowance of all legal firearms to be used in muzzleloader season in the CWD Management Zone.

§  A purchase limit of 10 private-land antlerless licenses per hunter in the CWD Management Zone.

§  Restrictions on deer carcass movement in the five-county CWD Core Area (Ionia, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm and Newaygo counties) and the CWD Management Zone.

§  Antlerless options on deer licenses/combo licenses during firearms seasons in the five-county CWD Core Area.

§  Expansion of early and late antlerless seasons in select counties.

§  Changes to regulations regarding wildlife rehabilitators.

Even the animal-rights activists have no better solution than to reduce the numbers of our precious whitetail resource.  Yes, it’s sad, but true and all the bellyaching in the world will not change a thing.