EDGEFIELD, S.C. — The National Wild Turkey Federation supports and applauds the introduction of a bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate to improve active forest management practices in the West and reduce catastrophic wildfire potential on national forests.

In response to growing threats of more intense and frequent catastrophic wildfires on the nation’s national forests and the communities that surround them, Sens. Steve Daines (R-MT) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) introduced the Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020.

Key elements of the bill that the NWTF supports include:

 

• Directing the USDA Forest Service to identify three landscape-scale collaborative forest projects to restore forest health and reduce wildfire risk. The projects will benefit from streamlined environmental reviews, allowing for timelier project implementation, and a higher threshold to meet for a judge to impose an injunction if they are litigated.
• Establishes a categorical exclusion in the National Environmental Policy Act for constructing fuel/fire breaks.
• Creates grant programs to build biomass energy conversion facilities, help develop markets for biomass (plant-based waste from forestry practices) and support forestry workforce development, all important factors that typically limit large-scale forest management and fuels-reduction treatments.

“The National Wild Turkey Federation thanks Senator Daines and Senator Feinstein for introducing this important bipartisan legislation,” NWTF CEO Becky Humphries said. “Forest health and wildfire prevention are important to all Americans. It is also an issue of safety for wildland fire fighters and the numerous communities around and within these forests. We need well-thought-out solutions that everyone can support.” Read more

ATHENS, GA (August 3, 2020) – The most detailed and instructional guide to aging live whitetail bucks in the field, Observing & Evaluating Whitetails by wildlife photographer Dave Richards and wildlife biologist Al Brothers of Texas, has been expanded and republished with new color photos, more multi-year buck aging sequences, and 36 more pages. It is available now at www.qdma.com/oew.

First published in 2003 in partnership with QDMA, Observing & Evaluating Whitetails was a ground-breaking book, the crowning achievement of Richards’ 25 years pursuing whitetails with a camera. Richards has followed the lives of untold numbers of wild bucks across multiple years, documenting with his camera the changes in body, behavior and antler size as they age. The first edition of his book compiled photographic aging sequences for 17 unique bucks, and the new edition adds four more for a total of 21. Each sequence is accompanied by Richards’ commentary on the changes to look for, helping any hunter sharpen their skills at identifying age characteristics in the field. Nearly 100 additional photos highlight the body characteristics of each individual age class from fawn to post-maturity.

In addition, Richards teaches hunters techniques for estimating Boone & Crockett antler score in the field. This section of the book includes live photos of 35 unique bucks (eight more than the first edition) that were later measured, so their antler dimensions and final score are known. Measurement charts for each buck are presented alongside photographs of the live deer. Read more

Check trees in August for signs of the Asian longhorned beetle

This year, many Michiganders have found time to reacquaint themselves with the outdoors. Whether you spend time walking, hiking or exploring neighborhood parks, you can help protect Michigan’s trees by spending a little of your outdoors time checking for signs of the Asian longhorned beetle.

August is Tree Check Month, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture is asking the public to look for and report any signs of this invasive pest that’s not native to Michigan and could cause harm to our environment and economy. In late summer and early fall, adult Asian longhorned beetles drill perfectly round, 3/8-inch holes to emerge from within tree trunks and limbs, where they spend their larval stage chewing through the heartwood. After a brief mating period, female beetles chew oval depressions in trunks or branches to deposit eggs. Sometimes a material resembling wood shavings can be seen at or below exit holes or coming from cracks in an infested tree’s bark.

Asian longhorned beetle in the U.S.

The Asian longhorned beetle was first detected in the U.S. in 1996, when a Brooklyn, New York resident noticed a large, black beetle with irregular white spots and black-and-white banded antennae and reported it. Since that time, the Asian longhorned beetle has been found in 20 locations in six states, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Illinois, Ohio and, most recently, South Carolina. Read more

PHOENIX — Earlier this month, the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) received an alert from one of its solar-powered remote water sensors, located in the Chocolate Mountains near Yuma, indicating that a wildlife water catchment – critical to wildlife survival – was dry.

The sensors, developed and installed by the United States Army Yuma Proving Ground (YPG), deliver timely, remote notifications of significant water loss.

Concerned for the well-being of the animals, an AZGFD team hiked – in scorching heat – nearly 2 miles of steep terrain to assess the situation. Upon arrival, the team discovered the empty water catchment…and 15 bighorn sheep standing nearby. A broken pipe was responsible for the water shortage. The team mitigated the problem by turning on a back-up water system.

Without the real-time data from the electronic water measuring system, AZGFD would have not found the failure for weeks, which could have resulted in the death of bighorn sheep and other wild animals. In total, YPG has developed and installed four remote sensors on its property, where AZGFD manages several water catchments. Read more

FWC, SFWMD announce milestone in effort to restore the Everglades: 5,000 Burmese pythons removed

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the South Florida Water Management District, working together under the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis, removed 5,000 invasive Burmese pythons from South Florida’s Everglades ecosystem.

“We’ve learned through the Python Challenge that experience counts when finding and removing Burmese pythons,” said FWC Commissioner Rodney Barreto. “We can’t win the battle alone. It’s one team, one mission. We need the support of these experienced python hunters as well as the partnership with the South Florida Water Management District and the ongoing support of Gov. Ron DeSantis.”

“Another win for the Everglades. This is what agencies like the South Florida Water Management District and the FWC, focused and working together, can accomplish,” said SFWMD Governing Board Member “Alligator Ron” Bergeron. “Every snake counts. Each invasive python eliminated represents hundreds of native Florida wildlife saved. With Gov. DeSantis’ continued leadership, Florida is doing more than it ever has to remove pythons from the Everglades and protect this ecosystem for generations to come.” Read more

SALT LAKE CITY — Though most Utahns probably don’t correlate bats with summer, here’s why you shouldn’t be surprised if you find one in your home this time of year. Utahns may see more bats this time of year because the baby bats (also called pups) are learning to fly and leaving their roost for the first time. Here’s what you should know about bats in Utah and what to do if you encounter them.

There are currently 18 confirmed bat species in Utah, but there may be more. They are the only mammals capable of true flight. Bats are found throughout the state and can be abundant wherever they can find food, shelter and water. The greatest species diversity is in the southern part of Utah.

Utah’s bats feed almost exclusively on insects. When insects aren’t available, like during the winter months, the bats typically either migrate or hibernate (although some species do a combination of both and others stay active year-round). Sometimes they hibernate in caves and mines, and recent research in western states has shown that many small bat species also hibernate in crevices in cliffs. Bats in Utah do not usually hibernate in large groups like they do in many eastern states in the U.S. They typically hibernate either in small groups or by themselves.

Five Utah species primarily migrate, flying south from late August through October and then returning in April and May.

“Encounters with bats seem to spike in September as the migratory species, especially the Mexican-free tailed bat, move around the state,” DWR Mammal Conservation Coordinator Kimberly Hersey said. “

If you discover bats roosting in your home, what should you do? Read more

Springfield, Mo. – Johnny Morris’ Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium has been voted America’s Best Aquarium through a national public poll conducted by USA TODAY ranking the top 20 prominent institutions across North America. The latest nationwide recognition marks the second time that the conservation-based museum and aquarium has been nominated for and voted as the winner of the significant award.

Wonders of Wildlife is a gift to the sportsmen and women of America from noted conservationist, angler and Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris. Johnny endeavored to create a world-class not-for-profit conservation attraction located in his hometown of Springfield, Missouri, next to Bass Pro Shops’ flagship headquarters store – where half the nation’s population lives within a day’s drive. Unprecedented in scale and scope, Wonders of Wildlife has been acclaimed as the most important natural history museum to open in America in more than a century.

Featuring an immersive design with surprises around every corner and more than 35,000 live fish, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds, the not-for-profit Wonders of Wildlife is unlike any other aquarium on earth. Fans cite the aquarium’s over-the-top multisensory habitats, engaging interactive exhibits and strong conservation ethic as defining features that set Wonders of Wildlife apart. Larger than the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the not-for-profit attraction is the world’s grandest tribute to the conservation movement. Read more

By Glen Wunderlich

Charter Member Professional Outdoor

As baiting and feeding deer have become unlawful in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, more hunters have moved toward the use of food plots, as a viable means to attract and hold deer on hunting land.  Although hunters with disabilities who meet specific requirements can still use bait, the practice is being curtailed more and more, as a means to minimize the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease.  Hunters looking for an edge and have access to private land hunting may want to consider reviving old apple trees as a viable option to baiting.

Many existing farms and abandoned properties have overgrown orchards or even lone apple trees sprinkled about and with a bit of timely maintenance can become a focal point of early season wildlife activity.

It may take a few years to get trees to bear fruit prolifically, but a good time to begin is now, while the trees are still in full leaf.  Although pruning is best done while trees are dormant, leaves or a lack thereof, will show a good place to start by identifying dead or decayed branches and removing them.

To do so, it is wise to invest in a good pole saw that allows pruning without the use of a ladder.  Such saws typically incorporate a pruning device actuated by means of an attached rope for smaller branches, which by the way are problematic to cut with a saw.  The sharp blade of the pruner makes for a clean cut, thus minimizing the chance for insects and disease to enter at the wound.  Just insure that all dead-wood pruning is performed as close to the living tissue as possible.

Look for dead limbs or branches and remove them first.  Also, eliminate branches that either rub on other branches or will do so in the near future.  Fruit trees are different than other trees in that they do best if the center of the tree is open, as opposed to maintaining a central leading trunk.  Apples are typically produced on the youngest growth, so identify these branches now and leave the new growth alone.

Apple trees do well with lots of direct sunlight.  If there is competition with shrubs, vegetation or other nearby trees, remove undesirables.

For the most part, however, substantial pruning is best done in springtime after the last frost and before blooming begins.  Remove no more than one third of the upper branches of the canopy to reduce the height and to let more valuable sunlight into the tree.  It may take a few years to complete the job, but taking too many of the branches off at one time can weaken a tree’s ability to survive.

Finally in the spring only – never in the fall – fertilize the perimeter of the drip line, which is a circular line directly beneath the outermost tips of the branches with three pounds of 6-24-24 fertilizer.  (The same fertilizer is great for clover and alfalfa food plots, as well.)

If you’d like to create some rabbit habitat, make a pile with the branches.  Not only will rabbits be safe from predators within the makeshift hut, but they’ll feed on the succulent bark.