Gila County, Arizona – Arizona Deer Association has started a 24 mile water pipeline project on the H4 Ranch in Southern Gila County. The ranch recently lost all of their water infrastructure due to the 200,000-acre Bush Fire, where 90% of the H4 allotment burned.

Working closely with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, USFS Tonto National Forest and H4 owners – the Brown family, Arizona Deer Association volunteers recently completed the first phase of the project. Volunteers installed 5.9 miles of water distribution pipeline, much of which had to be done on horseback due to the rough terrain. The project is scheduled for completion by mid-February, bringing much need water to the area’s wildlife.

Arizona’s continued drought and dismal 2020 Monsoon season, has left the States wildlife stressed. Winter Moisture Forecasts for Arizona are bleak as well. As the drought continues, Wildlife Biologists are predicting less than normal fawn recruitment this year. Arizona Deer Association volunteers are making a difference – by hauling water to dry catchments, developing water sources and improving habitat. Read more

MISSOULA, Mont. — Seeking to further elk-related scientific knowledge for the overall benefit of the species, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation so far allocated $846,443 for research in 2020. Those funds leveraged an additional $4,771,734 in partner dollars.

“We need to continually accumulate all the accurate, scientific data we can in order to further our mission of ensuring the future of elk, other wildlife, their habitat and our hunting heritage,” said Blake Henning, RMEF chief conservation officer. “Supporting and working alongside respected biologists and scientists from many different state agencies, universities and other organizations across the country helps us do that.” Read more

Leaves are down, temperatures are cooler, and that means it’s prime time for pruning oak trees, which can be infected by the oak wilt fungus if they’re pruned during the high-risk period April 15-July 15.

“Beetles that can carry the disease from tree to tree are not very active now, and the trees are not vulnerable to infection,” said Simeon Wright, forest health specialist with the DNR Forest Resources Division. The beetles are attracted to fresh bark damage or wounds where tree limbs have been removed.

Firewood can harbor the fungus, too. If you suspect your firewood is infected, burn it, chip it or debark it before April. Once the wood has been dried over a year and/or all bark loosens, it can no longer spread oak wilt. Read more

Freight carriers, warehouse workers, and delivery drivers should be on the lookout

LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) is asking freight carriers, warehouse workers and delivery drivers to be on the lookout for invasive spotted lanternfly after the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed dead spotted lanternfly insects were found in Michigan in recent weeks. While the specimens found were dead, these cases demonstrate one of the many ways this insect could find its way into the state. There is no evidence of established populations of spotted lanternfly in Michigan.

“Thanks to the collective efforts of MDARD inspectors, alert business owners and USDA, we were able to intercept these shipments. These detections showcase the importance of being on the continual lookout for invasive species,” said Robert Miller, MDARD’s Invasive Species Prevention and Response Specialist. “This a great example of the public and government agencies working together to keep out unwanted pests and protecting our prized natural resources.”

Invasive species are those that are not native and can cause harm to the economy, environment, or human health.

First found in the United States in 2014 in southeastern Pennsylvania, spotted lanternfly has been spreading rapidly across the nation. Infestations have been confirmed in Delaware, Virginia, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, West Virginia, Connecticut, and Ohio. If introduced, spotted lanternfly could seriously affect Michigan’s agriculture and natural resources. This insect could damage more than 70 varieties of crops and plants including grapes, apples, hops, and hardwood trees. Read more

Live-streaming camera offers unique viewing experience

PHOENIX — Sandhill cranes by the thousands have once again returned to their wintering grounds at the Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area in southeastern Arizona.

For the next few months, viewers can observe almost 20,000 of these fascinating birds on a live-streaming camera installed by the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The live stream can be viewed at www.azgfd.gov/sandhillcranes.

The cranes will begin to leave the wildlife area between late February and the middle of March. By April, all of the birds will be on their way to their northern nesting grounds, some as far away as Siberia.

“Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area has once again sprung to life with thousands of sandhill cranes,” said Jeff Meyers, the department’s watchable wildlife program manager. “It’s truly a pleasure to offer this unfiltered view of our state’s wildlife directly to the public, giving them a chance to see the migration of this species in action.” Read more

Salt Lake City, UT: The Mule Deer Foundation (MDF) welcomes the release of the new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States: Volume 1. The report brings together the findings of migration research across the West and documents critical information that will help guide conservation of the most important big game seasonal habitats. The coordinated mapping effort is a result of the implementation of Department of the Interior Secretary’s Order 3362 that has targeted efforts to manage and conserve big game migration corridors and winter ranges. The state fish and wildlife agencies in Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming worked closely with the USGS to produce the maps that provide a detailed picture of the annual movements of ungulates, including mule deer.

“We greatly appreciate the hard work of the U.S. Geological Survey and the collaboration with state fish and wildlife agencies for publishing this impressive volume on western big game migrations,” commented Mule Deer Foundation President/CEO, Miles Moretti. “The implementation of SO 3362 has been a top priority for the Mule Deer Foundation over the last two years through our Migration Corridors and Winter Range Initiative. The ability to visualize where the highest priority areas for conservation action are will help MDF and our partners make achievable improvements in the places that will make the biggest difference for mule deer.”

MDF and Arizona Game and Fish Department cooperative mule deer biologist, Lucas Olson, has been focused on this mapping effort. In his role, Olson participates on the USGS Corridor Mapping Team, a team of scientists and spatial analysts that have developed the methods used to analyze and map big game migration corridors and winter range. The Corridor Mapping Team uses analytical tools such as the Brownian Bridge Movement Model to create heat maps, which represent ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ spots as probabilities of animals using certain areas. Models like the Brownian Bridge are powerful tools that can help wildlife managers identify road crossing hotspots, movement bottlenecks, or critical winter range within a population of mule deer and prioritize these areas for conservation.

“Science indicates mule deer migration routes are legacies passed down through cultural knowledge in a population. When migrations are lost, it may take decades for a population to re-route, or re-learn a migration,” commented Olson. “Through early landscape planning efforts and science-based assessments, there are opportunities to mitigate negative impacts and conserve these migratory traditions. The work MDF and state fish and wildlife agencies are doing with USGS through the Corridor Mapping Team will help us address these conservation challenges. Today’s technology allows us to understand these migration corridors with fine detail, and this effort is just the beginning of more great work to come.”

“The new Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States report is a tremendous compilation of migration data and will help establish the road map for our conservation activities in the coming years. We thank the USGS and our state partners for their hard work to develop this critical tool,” concluded Moretti. Read more

CHEYENNE — The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has confirmed a new hunt area where an elk has tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD).

CWD was confirmed in Elk Hunt Area 1 with a positive test from a targeted bull elk. Elk Hunt Area 1 is located in the Black Hills and borders Elk Hunt Area 117 where CWD was detected in 2008.