Category: Wildlife

Goldfinch

USFWS Moves to Strengthen MBTA Applauded

Announcement is a positive step forward for maintaining the integrity of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act

(Washington, D.C.) — The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership applauds Interior Secretary Haaland and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for actions announced today to restore the integrity of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

Since 1918, the MBTA has been the foundation to conserving the nation’s migratory birds, from warblers to waterfowl. It has provided clarity to industry, including the oil and gas and wind sectors, about allowable activities and provided reasonable exceptions for “incidental take”—the accidental death of birds.

Yet the previous administration severely weakened the law, eliminating any incentive for the regulated community to take prudent actions to avoid killing birds. Moving forward, sportsmen and sportswomen look forward to working with the administration and industry to continue America’s remarkable track record of migratory bird conservation.

“At a time when migratory birds are in serious decline, we see this as a positive step forward for not only maintaining the integrity of this bedrock conservation law, but also removing additional threats to species facing the impacts of climate change and other habitat stressors,” says Whit Fosburgh, president and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “To effectively halt and reverse declines of migratory birds and reduce the risk of future endangered species act listings, we believe it is critical that the Migratory Bird Treaty Act remain an effective tool for addressing foreseeable and avoidable threats to birds.” Read more

Wildlife

Michigan: Governor Signs Trust Fund Bill for Outdoor Recreation Development and Acquisition Grants

Contact: Jon Mayes (DNR), mayesj@michigan.gov

Gov. Whitmer Signs Bipartisan Bill Investing in Outdoor Recreation in 76 Communities Across Michigan

LANSING, MI — Yesterday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed HB 4469 which appropriates $37.8 million in Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund grants that will support 76 recreation projects and land purchases throughout Michigan recommended by the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund Board in December.

“The Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund supports quality outdoor recreation, giving Michiganders the ability to safely enjoy the outdoors and boosting local economies,” said Governor Whitmer. “This funding is crucial to helping communities utilize their natural resources and make Michigan’s public spaces more accessible and attractive to residents and visitors. I am proud to sign this piece of bipartisan legislation into law and support Michigan’s recreational resources and economy.”

The Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund is a restricted fund that was established in 1976 to provide funding for public acquisition of lands for resource conservation and outdoor recreation, as well as for public outdoor recreation development projects. It is funded through interest earned on funds derived from the development of publicly owned minerals. Over the past 45 years, the Trust Fund has granted more than $1.2 billion to state and local units of government to develop and improve recreation opportunities in Michigan. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan DNR eliminates poison as cause of death in Oakland County swans

Wildlife biologists with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources have confirmed that a disease caused by a parasitic flatworm killed three mute swans found dead earlier this year, near Maceday Lake.

Since January, DNR conservation officers have retrieved eight dead mute swans from the lake, located in a residential area of Waterford Township. Concerned residents initially questioned whether the swans were ingesting antifreeze or another form of poison. Read more

Wildlife

MDARD, DNR stress biosecurity to help protect Michigan’s rabbits and hares from fatal disease

The Michigan departments of Agriculture and Rural Development and Natural Resources advise Michiganders to be aware of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus type 2 (RHDV2), which is a fatal disease for domestic and wild rabbits and hares.

While it has not yet been found in Michigan, the high mortality rates seen with this disease could have serious impacts on the state’s wild and domestic rabbits and hares. It is vital for those who handle, hunt and/or care for rabbits to be aware of this disease and to take precautions to keep the virus away from these animals.

Even though the disease does not affect people or other species of animals, RHDV2 is highly contagious and fatal to rabbits, and virtually all rabbits that contract the disease will die. RHDV2 is caused by a virus that can survive for a long time in the environment. A rabbit can develop the disease by having contact with an ill rabbit or its excretions or with an item that has touched an ill rabbit or its excretions.

In addition, people can inadvertently spread the virus into new areas by moving infected live rabbits, carcasses or parts from infected animals, as well as on clothing and shoes.

Disease onset is rapid. Often the only sign of RHDV2 is the sudden death of a rabbit. However, other signs can include fever, reduced appetite, lack of coordination, respiratory problems, diarrhea or constipation, and a bloody, foamy discharge from the nose. Read more

Wildlife

Stealth Cam Launches Enhanced Fusion X Wireless Cam

Irving, TX – When Stealth Cam® set out to build a better wireless trail camera, they began with the challenges faced by hunters disappointed with conventional wireless camera technology. Reliable performance, ease of connectivity, simple operation, affordable data plans, and the need for quality customer service ranked highest on the agenda. In 2020, we introduced the Fusion wireless camera. Throughout the year, we listened closely to our customers and vowed to make necessary improvements. You asked, we listened and now the Fusion X truly takes wireless cameras to the next level!

Through in-depth field evaluations, valuable feedback, and expert analysis from our partners and hunting enthusiasts, the Stealth Cam engineers have refined the Fusion X platform and technology. These updates allow the Fusion X to deliver top-notch performance and operation, separating it from the competition.

Topping the list of upgrades is a significant improvement to the image quality which means even sharper, more detailed photos to meet your expectations! In addition to higher quality photos, you can now utilize video downloads to the app that has a 720p resolution on your SD card at 30FPS. Taking it even further, you can also preview the video captures through the new app in a GIF format (640 x 360 – beginning, middle, and end of video frames)!

For coverage and convenience, the Fusion X will continue to run on very budget-friendly data plans, starting as low as $4 per month with the first month provided at the unlimited level completely FREE! If you choose to stick with the unlimited plan, you can pay as low as $15 a month and that includes the new GIF video feature at no additional cost. Read more

Wildlife

Users-Pay to Support Michigan Pheasant System

By Glen Wunderlich

Charter Member Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA)

Recalling a Michigan pheasant hunt in the ‘70s on a farm in Chelsea, it was big-time fun!  We donned our orange jackets and made sure our hunting licenses were secured on our backs and at the crack of the official starting time of 10am on October 20th off we went into the standing corn.  The anticipation was similar to that of opening day of deer season and for good reason:  Success was inevitable.

The colorful game birds may not have been as plentiful as they were in the ‘50s, but pheasant numbers were substantial enough to motivate hunters to hit the fields.  In fact, schools were closed on opening day and up to one million pheasants were taken per year.  More recently, however, with habitat loss and the older generation fading from the throng of licensees, the take has tumbled to less than 60,000 roosters annually.

To get sustainable numbers of wild pheasants, Michigan needs large-scale habitat restoration at various levels.  The operative word here is wild, because pen-raised birds do not fare well, as we have learned from failed turkey experiments years ago.  It’s all about habitat.

In the meantime, a new Michigan pheasant hunting license, now available for purchase, will generate funds for a pheasant release program.

The $25 license is required for anyone 18 and older who plans to hunt pheasants on any public land in the Lower Peninsula or on lands enrolled in the Hunting Access Program. Private-land pheasant hunters statewide and hunters on public lands in the Upper Peninsula do not need the pheasant license. Additionally, lifetime license holders, hunters 17 and younger, and those hunting pheasants only at a game bird hunting preserve do not need the pheasant license.

“The new public-land pheasant hunting license will provide funding to continue a pilot pheasant release program that was conducted in 2019,” said Sara Thompson, Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Division Species Management Unit supervisor. “The pilot program was very popular with participants, especially among new hunters who were able to harvest a bird for the first time.”

Passed by the Michigan Legislature in 2020, the new law requiring the public-land pheasant hunting license has a sunset date of Jan. 1, 2026.

The license is on sale now at Michigan.gov/DNRLicenses or over the counter at license retailers. Hunters must have a 2021 base license to purchase the 2021 pheasant license.

Money from the new license will be placed into an account to be used only for the purchase and release of live pheasants on state-owned public lands with suitable pheasant habitat. Releases will be conducted during the regular pheasant season, which runs from mid-October through mid-November.

Pheasants are expected to be released at the following state game areas in 2021:

  • Cornish (Cass County)
  • Crow Island (Bay and Saginaw counties)
  • Erie (Monroe County)
  • Lapeer (Lapeer County)
  • Leidy Lake (St. Joseph County)
  • Pinconning Township (Bay County)
  • Pointe Mouillee (Monroe and Wayne counties)
  • Rose Lake (Clinton and Shiawassee counties)
  • St Johns Marsh (St. Clair County)

The free pheasant endorsement required in 2019 and 2020 has been discontinued and is no longer required for hunters pursuing pheasants.

Information about pheasant hunting regulations and season dates will be in the 2021 Hunting Digest, which will be available around July 1 at license agents and online at Michigan.gov/DNRDigests.

The good ol’ days may be behind us, but the new user-pays system is sure to provide hunters a taste of what it was like.

Hunting, Wildlife

Spotlight on Spring White-tailed Deer Management

Shining or jacklighting white-tailed deer is a known poaching technique. A bright spotlight cast on deer in the dark of the night has a slight stupefying effect on the animal. For that reason, it is a remarkable tool used in deer management in Iowa.

For 43 years now, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources has relied on spotlighting each spring as one means of counting deer. Since 1978, department biologists, game wardens and a multitude of volunteers have counted white-tailed deer along standard, predetermined routes. In 2006, Iowa DNR redesigned the statewide survey to better gather data representing all deer habitat types found in the Hawkeye State. The survey also collects information on observed nocturnal furbearers: raccoons, opossums, badgers, bobcats, and skunks. This is conservation work funded by excise taxes paid by archery, firearms, and ammunition manufacturers through the Pittman-Robertson Act.

Today, Iowa DNR staff and volunteers count white-tailed deer in all of Iowa’s ninety-nine counties. Each county has two regular routes run the same way and the same times every spring. The outcome is a robust data set that allows for year-to-year comparisons that may reveal trends, good or bad. The survey offers data resolution at a local level, says Iowa DNR wildlife biologist, Dan Kaminski. “The survey is robust and replicable and the data are reliable,” said Kaminski who helps oversee the deer data collection at his agency’s Boone Research Station.

“The annual spotlight survey reveals statewide white-tailed deer population trends,” said Kaminski. “It’s a most useful tool that yields an index of what goes on at the county level.” Read more

Wildlife

Muddy’s Merge Wireless Camera: Clearer Images, Faster Trigger Speed

Wireless Camera for 2021

Irving, TX – Muddy Outdoors is home to the highest quality of products for serious hunters. From tree stands, trail cameras, box blinds, and safety harnesses, to all kinds of great hunting accessories, Muddy pushes the limits of hunting with innovative and advanced products. Today, Muddy is expanding its impressive arsenal with the new Merge wireless camera! The Merge wireless camera sets a new standard for the Muddy brand with clearer images and faster-triggering speed. The all-new Merge will let serious hunters rest easy at night knowing they have a top-notch product from a brand they can trust.

The Muddy Merge takes clarity to the next level capturing images up to 26 megapixels, which is 10 more megapixels than Muddy’s Manifest! That means even clearer and sharper images for the hunter. The updated burst mode allows hunters to capture up to 6 crystal clear images per triggering, bringing together quality and quantity. Beyond clearer images, Muddy’s Merge has blazing speed with a 0.4 trigger speed, meaning fast just got faster!

Muddy was able to create the all-new Merge with a solid base from other outstanding products in their arsenal. With an 80-ft detection and IR range, a Matte finish PIR sensor, a quick scan QR code set up, and much more, the Merge will continue to carry the outstanding features and legacy of current Muddy wireless cameras. Read more

Hunting, Wildlife

Pheasants Forever in Montana Selected for $6.4 Million Regional Conservation Partnership Program Award

Big Game HIP focuses on iconic species with ancillary benefits for upland birds

Malta, MT –Pheasants Forever and twelve dedicated partners have been selected to receive a major Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) award from the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) totaling $6.4 million for habitat delivery efforts in north-central Montana. Matched dollar-for-dollar through partner contributions, the Big Game Habitat Improvement Project will focus on outreach and technical/financial assistance programs to farmers and ranchers for improving grazing operations, restoring grassland habitat, and retaining intact rangelands on 60,000 acres in one of the state’s most coveted big game migration corridors.

“Pheasants Forever’s Big Game Habitat Improvement Project is set to make a landscape-level impact for wildlife habitat in north-central Montana,” said Hunter VanDonsel, Pheasants Forever’s Farm Bill biologist and the primary grant writer for the RCPP award. “This massive effort will work closely with local communities to improve grazing systems and anchor intact grazing lands that are vital to wildlife migration and wintering habitat. When we focus on Prairie Grasslands Region improvements for Montana’s world-class big game species – elk, mule deer, and pronghorn – upland birds such as sage grouse, sharptails, pheasants and partridge all benefit. This project wouldn’t be possible without amazing partnerships led by producers ranging from the Canadian border to the Musselshell Plains.”

The Regional Conservation Partnership Program promotes coordination of NRCS conservation activities with partners that offer value-added contributions to expand the nation’s collective ability to address on-farm, watershed, and regional natural resource concerns. NRCS announced on Monday its intent to invest$330 million in 85 locally driven, public-private partnerships to address climate change, improve the nation’s water quality, combat drought, enhance soil health, support wildlife habitat and protect agricultural viability. Read more

Hunting, Wildlife

Grand Canyon National Park Seeks Volunteers for North Rim Bison Reduction

The Arizona Game and Fish Department is forwarding this Grand Canyon National Park news release to constituents who may have an interest in this opportunity

GRAND CANYON, Ariz. — The National Park Service, in cooperation with the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD), seeks skilled volunteers to assist with the removal of bison on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park in the fall of 2021. Interested parties should carefully read this announcement and the information in the links below.

Given the current distribution, abundance, density and the expected growth of the bison herd on the North Rim, the NPS is concerned about increased impacts on park resources such as water, vegetation, soils, archaeological sites and values such as visitor experience and wilderness character. Reducing the herd size will protect the park ecosystem, resources and values.

Individuals who are interested in applying to be volunteers can submit an application on the following website (www.azbisonstewards.com) beginning at 12 a.m. (Arizona time) on May 3 through 11:59 p.m. on May 4, 2021. Read more

Wildlife
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