GREAT FALLS – Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is investigating a bear attack on a hunter on state-owned land near Elk Creek and Haystack Butte south of Augusta.

The victim was archery hunting on the morning of Sept. 14 when he encountered the bear and was attacked, sustaining significant but fortunately not life-threatening injuries. The hunter drove himself home after the attack and was transported to Benefis Hospital by private vehicle for treatment.

FWP’s priority is human safety, and game wardens and bear management specialists are continuing their investigation and posting signs in the area to notify the public of bear activity.

The species of the bear involved is currently unknown, and the incident remains under investigation. No further details are available at this time. Read more

Photo courtesy Michigan DNR

Fall is breeding season for Michigan’s elk herd in the northern Lower Peninsula – a great time to see and hear one of the state’s most iconic animals.

From late September to early October, elk are more active as they search and compete for mates. During this time of year, elk tend to congregate in open fields and the males bugle loudly, making for a great opportunity to experience the wild herd. Hear an elk bugle courtesy of the National Park Service.

Elk can be found primarily in areas throughout the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ Elk Management Area in Otsego, Montmorency, Presque Isle and Cheboygan counties. The DNR manages 13 elk viewing areas throughout the Pigeon River Country State Forest and Atlanta State Forest northeast of Gaylord.

Make sure to bring your binoculars, spotting scope or camera for close-up viewing while remaining a safe distance away from the elk. Road conditions in the viewing area are variable depending on weather. And remember to drive safely at dawn and dusk, when elk (and deer) are active and distracted during the breeding season. Read more

Today, Safari Club International (SCI), the Coalition to Save Catalina Island Deer, and HOWL For Wildlife express their strong disappointment that the Los Angeles County Superior Court denied a preliminary injunction to prevent the slaughter of mule deer on Santa Catalina Island until their lawsuit challenging the eradication plan’s legality is resolved by the court.

The Court’s failure to grant the motion for preliminary injunction allows for the continued implementation of the Catalina Island Conservancy’s plan to eradicate the Island’s mule deer in the name of promoting native vegetation growth. Petitioners alleged that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife approved this project without the environmental review and public process required by law, exceeding its authority. Halting the killing of mule deer while litigation proceeds is essential to protecting this public wildlife resource from irreparable injury before the legal questions are resolved.

“SCI is disheartened that the Court failed to take the vital steps needed to protect deer on Catalina Island until SCI’s lawsuit can be resolved,” said SCI CEO W. Laird Hamberlin. “Denying this motion does not answer whether the Department followed the law; it just means the mule deer may pay the price while that question is being litigated. SCI will continue to look at all available legal avenues to stop this senseless slaughter.”

“We are deeply disappointed by the Court’s decision. We believe the Court got the irreparable-harm analysis wrong and relied on factual premises that are not supported by—and in some instances are difficult to reconcile with—the record before it, including the Conservancy’s own documents,” said Melinda Benson, Attorney for the Coalition to Save Catalina Island Mule Deer. “As the petitioner organization whose members include people who live on Catalina and experience this Island every day, we also know that the harm cannot be reduced to a percentage of the deer population. Our members will hike these trails, camp in these places, encounter the aftermath of the killing, and live with the knowledge that animals treasured by this community are being systematically destroyed while the legality of the program remains unresolved. The ruling does not decide that the eradication program is lawful, and we will continue to pursue every available avenue to protect Catalina’s deer.”

“We’re deeply disappointed, because once these deer are killed there is no remedy that can bring them back,” said Charles Whitwam, Founder of HOWL For Wildlife. “A denial of preliminary relief does not resolve the larger questions about how this project was approved or whether the required process was followed. We will continue fighting for those answers and for every available opportunity to prevent an irreversible decision from outrunning the law.” Read more

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are reaching their peak migration period across the eastern half of the United States (photos by Paul Konrad).

As hummingbirds are migrating and making crucial stopovers during September, it is interesting to learn more about the biology and energetics of how some Ruby-throated Hummingbirds prepare for long non-stop fall migration flights. During a study of Ruby-throats making a stopover in southern Alabama, one of several interesting pieces of information was discovered that permitted researchers to estimate that the “average” Ruby-throated Hummingbird has a nonstop migration flight range of about 1,320 miles.

The Alabama study found that some Ruby-throats effectively double their body mass during feeding bouts during a migration stopover, in advance of making long-distance migration flights. To study these and other topics, researcher Theodore Zenzal and his colleagues captured, banded, measured, weighed, and released 2,729 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds during 5 fall migration periods at Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, located on the southern tip of Alabama adjacent to the Gulf of Mexico.

After collecting weight and age data about each hummingbird they caught, the researchers used a computer program to estimate the Ruby-throats’ flight range based on birds’ body mass and wingspan. The resulting information provided their estimate that the “average” Ruby-throated Hummingbird has a flight range of about 1,320 miles. Using this method, they also predicted that older hummingbirds and males were able to travel farther than younger hummingbirds and females.

The flight ranges that researchers calculated mean that most Ruby-throats would be able to migrate directly across the Gulf of Mexico to the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, a distance of less than 700 miles. While it is not yet substantiated that Ruby-throated Hummingbirds migrate across the Gulf of Mexico in numbers, new methods of tracking hummingbirds should soon provide more information about that continuing question. For now, researchers believe most Ruby-throated Hummingbirds migrate around the Gulf, funneling along the coast to locations like Rockport, Texas and the Corpus Christi area, then south.

Male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds tend to migrate earlier than females in many areas, with young of the year averaging slightly later migration times. Read more

Safari Club International (SCI) and the Wyoming Outfitters and Guides Association (WYOGA) applaud the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s release of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the National Elk Refuge Bison and Elk Management Plan. The draft EIS advances an adaptive management approach that protects one of western Wyoming’s most important elk herds, recognizes hunting as an essential conservation tool, and avoids unnecessary starvation and suffering among Jackson elk.

For more than a century, the National Elk Refuge has sustained elk whose historic winter range has been diminished by human development. The Service and the Wyoming Fish and Game Department rely on supplemental winter feeding when necessary to prevent widespread starvation and reduce conflicts with private landowners. SCI and WYOGA have consistently supported maintaining this adaptive feeding program until sufficient alternative winter habitat is available.

Throughout the EIS development process, SCI and WYOGA have represented sportsmen, outfitters, guides, and other stakeholders committed to conserving the iconic Jackson elk herd and protecting the significant economic benefits generated by elk hunting and wildlife tourism.

The draft EIS recognizes both the importance of the elk herd and the need to address challenges associated with elk concentration on the Refuge, including the risk of the spread of brucellosis and Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). Rather than imposing a rigid end to supplemental feeding, the preferred alternative seeks to reduce elk congregation over the next decade through a combination of potential management and feeding adjustments as well as targeted hunting.

“SCI is pleased to see the Service embracing adaptive management and proven conservation tools, including regulated hunting, to maintain healthy elk herds in western Wyoming,” said SCI CEO W. Laird Hamberlin. “Wildlife managers should not accept mass starvation and suffering based on arbitrary criteria and speculation. Hunters have long championed science-based wildlife management, and regulated hunting remains the most effective and responsible tool for managing wildlife populations.” Read more

If your Labor Day weekend travel plans include crossing the Mighty Mac Monday, Sept. 7, please keep in mind that the Mackinac Bridge Authority closes the bridge 6:30 a.m. to noon for the Annual Mackinac Bridge Walk.

Looking for a way to pass the time? The Mackinac Bridge Walk is FREE and registration isn’t required. Or, explore nearby attractions on either side of the bridge. Use the DNR’s RecSearch website, with its location-based filters, to easily find things to do while you wait.

The Asian longhorned beetle is a large, shiny black beetle with irregular white spots and black and white, banded antennae. Photo courtesy of USDA APHIS PPQ.

Michigan’s Invasive Species Program and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service are asking the public to look for and report signs of the invasive Asian longhorned beetle.

Each year, APHIS declares August as Tree Check Month because this is the most likely time to see the beetle and the damage it causes to trees. Though beetle sightings are less common, everyone can help look for signs of this destructive beetle by checking trees on their property and in their community for damage.

The Asian longhorned beetle, or ALB for short, is a non-native, wood-boring beetle considered invasive in North America because it attacks at least 12 types of hardwood trees, including maples, elms, horse chestnuts, birches and willows. There are no effective predators or diseases in North America to keep ALB populations in check. Read more