Category: Wildlife

Goldfinch

Alabama: Whooping Cranes Are Back

Whooping Cranes have returned to Alabama. Where to see them and how you can protect this endangered species.

Decatur, Alabama- Whooping Cranes are back.

“North Alabama is blessed to hold about one-third of the Eastern Migratory Population Whooping Cranes,” said AJ Binney, Whooping Crane Outreach Program Assistant at the International Crane Foundation. “Alabama provides excellent wintering habitat from the vast mudflats on the Flint River to a large number of agriculture fields.”

The first Whooping crane arrived on November 9th at the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters. W7-17 is a wild hatched chick from Necedah National Wildlife Refuge and this is the second year in a row that she was the first Whooping Crane to arrive in Alabama. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan fights CWD with research, education and collaboration

When chronic wasting disease was first discovered in wild deer in Ingham County in 2015, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and its many partners took action to better understand the neurological disease that is always fatal to deer, moose and elk infected with it. This coalition of dedicated partners – including Michigan State University, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission, the Michigan Legislature and many others – has appropriated significant funding, resources and personnel to research and fight this disease, taking aggressive steps to stop the spread of CWD while emerging as a national leader in disease testing, research and management.

Last year alone, the DNR tested more than 40,000 deer heads for CWD, about 25% of all samples tested in the entire United States. Since testing began, 133 deer in nine Michigan counties have tested positive for the disease. Michigan joins a list of 26 states and three Canadian provinces with confirmed CWD in wild cervid (deer, elk and moose) populations.

Among many other proactive steps taken to fight this disease, Michigan – along with Wisconsin – formed a coalition of state and federal natural resource managers, wildlife biologists, veterinarians and social scientists.

Dr. Russ Mason, the DNR’s executive in residence and adjunct professor at Michigan State University, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, is helping to lead this coalition. Before Mason’s recent appointment through MSU, he oversaw the DNR’s CWD efforts as the department’s longtime Wildlife Division chief.

“By working together in our fight against CWD, we are capitalizing on the talents provided by universities and combining resources across the state and federal government,” Mason said. “This will help us move more quickly to identify solutions that will help us manage this unique disease.”

In addition, the MSU-DNR Chronic Wasting Disease Advisory Group was created in 2018 to identify and fund high-priority CWD research and outreach activities. Recognizing the threat that CWD poses to Michigan’s hunting traditions and local economies, the Michigan Legislature provided $4.3 million in funds in 2019 to support these activities as well as to help fund CWD field surveillance.

Funding new research, education efforts

In April, the advisory group issued a national call for proposals to seek collaborative research, education and outreach projects to address the most important issues around wildlife disease in Michigan, especially CWD in deer. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan conservation officers helping curb the risk of wildlife disease

People might not think immediately of Michigan’s conservation officers as being on the front lines in the fight against wildlife diseases.

However, the roughly 200 men and women sworn to protect the state’s natural resources are vitally important in helping to control disease threats, including bovine tuberculosis and chronic wasting disease.

This disease, always fatal to those white-tailed deer contracting it, has been detected in several Michigan counties, prompting the Michigan Natural Resources Commission and Department of Natural Resources to implement deer baiting and feeding bans in effect for this fall’s hunting seasons.

“These bans are in place to try to help minimize the amount of contact between deer congregated where baiting and feeding occur,” said John Pepin, Michigan DNR deputy public information officer. “Chronic wasting disease can be transmitted through direct deer-to-deer contact, or by contact with saliva, feces, urine, blood and contaminated feed, water, plants, soil or carcass parts.”

In the Lower Peninsula, a ban went into effect Jan. 31 for all 68 counties south of the Mackinac Bridge. Regulations also restrict carcass movement in the Lower Peninsula and prohibit importation of certain carcass parts statewide.

In the Upper Peninsula, baiting and feeding deer is banned in a core CWD surveillance area situated in portions of Dickinson, Menominee and Delta counties. Throughout the rest of the U.P., baiting and feeding is allowed, but must be done in line with state regulations.

Tomorrow is Michigan’s opening day of firearm deer hunting season. For those who have been getting ready by baiting deer in violation of the law, odds are good conservation officers are aware.

Whether in the air or on the ground, patrols have been ongoing for weeks and are conducted by a range of means.

A conservation officer patrol vehicle is parked near a woods road.
Conservation officers are responsible for locating illegal bait, educating hunters and enforcing current regulations to help reduce the risk of CWD. Officers manage deer and elk carcass movement by conducting increased patrols, enforcement and surveillance at primary access points between counties and states.

Illegal baiting can result in court costs and fines, a revoked hunting license, confiscated game and jail time. Read more
Hunting, Poachers, Wildlife

Louisiana Gets 11 Young Whooping Cranes

– The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) and partners took another step in re-establishing the state’s whooping crane population Tuesday (Nov. 12) when it received 11 juvenile whooping cranes.

The cranes were received Tuesday at the White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area (WLWCA) near Gueydan. Once the new arrivals are released into the wild they will bring the Louisiana population to nearly 80 cranes.

Of the new arrivals, six juvenile whooping cranes came from the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wisconsin and four cranes were hatched and reared at the Freeport-McMoRan Audubon Species Survival Center in New Orleans, part of the Audubon Nature Institute.

LDWF and Audubon Nature Institute have been longtime leaders in whooping crane conservation in Louisiana and are continuing to expand their partnership with the goal of developing a self-sustaining population of whooping cranes in Louisiana. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan Politcians Know It All

By Glen Wunderlich

Hunters have dutifully relied upon the advice of wildlife biologists, when it came to the effects of their studies and knowledge on all matters flora and fauna. We listened to them when it came to managing our wolf population and we listened to them when it came to hunting mourning doves; we put emotion aside and stood by science. However, a group of short-sighted politicians – largely Republicans – have announced, by virtue of their vote for baiting deer that they know better.

Michigan House bill 4687 would scrap years of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) studies and would allow up to five gallons of feed at each bait site. Additionally, any antler-point restrictions (APRs) on bucks would be lifted – even in areas where hunters have approved APRs. Fortunately, deer season is upon us, and since the Michigan Senate has yet to act on the measure, there’s no time to rush this through in time to affect the ban on baiting currently in place.

It’s no secret that the number of hunters continues on a downward slide that began years ago and that some of those on the sidelines would return if baiting were allowed. Just what type of impact would be felt relative to hunting dollars is unknown but oddly enough in September a representative of Lucky Buck Mineral and the M-65 Bait Shop testified in support of lifting the ban. Hmmm.

On the side of science, was Amy Trotter, executive director of the Michigan United Conservation Club, who stated the science is clear — that banning the feeding and baiting of deer will help stem the spread of chronic wasting disease, an ailment that has decimated Michigan’s deer herd and is always fatal.

Ironically, Proposal G, which was passed into legislation 23 years ago by the citizens of Michigan, gave the NRC the authority to regulate the manner and method of take for game — this includes authority over the baiting and feeding of deer and elk.

The fiscal impact of House Bill 4687 on the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is uncertain at present. Current penalties for violating a ban on baiting may include jail time, $50 to $1,000 in fines, or hunting license revocation. It is unclear whether the explicit allowance of deer or elk baiting would affect departmental revenues, as the number of forgone baiting violations is yet to be determined.

It is equally unclear whether this allowance would have an impact on enforcement costs for department personnel. The sale of hunting and fishing licenses generated a combined $60.5 million in revenue in FY 2017-18. This revenue is deposited to the Game and Fish Protection Fund, which primarily supports wildlife and fisheries programs as well as DNR law enforcement. The bill is unlikely to affect local government costs or revenues.

State Rep. Beau LaFave, R-Iron Mountain, said the commission is unelected and shouldn’t be making these types of decisions.

“At what point did this Natural Resources Commission become lawmakers? I never got to vote for them,” he said. “They banned baiting without a single hearing in the Upper Peninsula. This show should be over and we should end this baiting ban once and for all.” My question to Mr. Beau LaFave is this: When did you get your credentials to become a wildlife biologist?

Nobody ever said that a baiting ban would end CWD fatalities in our deer herd. However, there is no plausible rationale to suddenly go against science and exacerbate the plight of our wildlife. All we have to do is follow the money and resist the temptation to take the bait.

Hunting, Wildlife

The path forward – developing Michigan’s signature Iron Belle Trail

Momentum that has been building over the past couple of years to develop Michigan’s Iron Belle Trail – The Trail State’s roughly 2,000-mile centerpiece trail system – continued to gain steam over the summer months as nearly 30 miles of the route were completed.

A bike leans against a rail at mile zero of the Iron Belle Trail in Gogebic County.

“The Iron Belle Trail continues to be a shining example for trails in Michigan,” said Paul Yauk, state trails coordinator with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ Parks and Recreation Division. “Through partnerships, collaborations and trail champions across the state, the trail has truly come alive the last couple of years. The planning that was done two and three years ago is now leading to construction projects across Michigan.”

The trail touches hundreds of cities, towns and smaller communities as it winds through 48 of Michigan’s 83 counties. Using existing trails, networks and new connections, the trail extends more than 2,000 miles from Ironwood, at the far western tip of the Upper Peninsula, to Belle Isle Park in Detroit. The trail includes two separate routes – one a designated hiking route and the other a designated bicycle trail.

The concept to develop a signature trail – to help showcase Michigan as The Trails State – was announced by former Gov. Rick Snyder at an economic conference in 2012. Read more

Wildlife

Wildlife officials help restore desert bighorn sheep herds by relocating 50 sheep from Nevada to Utah

BEAVER — A small herd of desert bighorn sheep was released last Thursday and Friday in the Ranch Canyon area of the Mineral Mountains west of Beaver by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and other partnering organizations. The translocation creates a herd in a location that has been void of bighorn sheep for many years and is part of a long-term effort to fill vacant wild sheep habitat.

Fifty-one bighorns were captured from a healthy herd in Nevada via a helicopter and were then transported to Utah. The bighorn sheep were taken from expanding Nevada sheep populations that were nearing carrying capacity, which is the maximum number of sheep that could be supported by the habitat in the area. This made it possible for the extra sheep to be translocated to the stark, rocky landscape of the Mineral Mountains. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan: Deer Movement in Studies Provide Insight into CWD Spread

A colorful map shows deer movements in the Upper Peninsula.By EMMA KUKUK
Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Since wildlife researchers first detected chronic wasting disease in Colorado in the 1960s, it has emerged as a growing concern for the nation’s wildlife agencies and hunters.

The disease is a fatal nervous system malady found in animals from the Cervidae family, which includes deer, moose and elk. It attacks the brain of infected animals, creating small lesions. There is no cure for CWD – it is 100% fatal in all animals that contract it.

Though the disorder affects several species, its impact on deer is of special concern. In states where CWD is established, it diminishes the health of deer and causes long-term population decline.

In Michigan, this disease challenges not only the foundation of wildlife conservation, but the state’s long-standing hunting traditions.

Wildlife agencies investigating CWD have found that deer movement is key to disease spread. Understanding deer movement is therefore vital to making the most of CWD management strategies. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan: DNR Reports CWD-Positive Deer

A 2-year-old, hunter-harvested doe from Hamilton Township, in Gratiot County, Michigan, recently tested positive for chronic wasting disease – the second confirmed CWD-positive wild deer from that county. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said that tissue samples were sent to the Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for confirmation.

Gratiot County’s first CWD-positive deer was discovered in late 2018. CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer, elk and moose. To date, the disease also has been confirmed in Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent and Montcalm counties.

“When we find CWD a few townships over from a prior detection in the same county, it becomes increasingly important to discover if and where additional cases might be within that county,” said DNR deer and elk specialist Chad Stewart. “In light of this new detection, we ask hunters in southeastern Gratiot and southwestern Saginaw counties, especially, to have their deer tested this year.”

Nearby deer check stations and drop boxes are available at the DNR field office in St. Charles, McNabb Park in Ithaca and Bellingar Packing in Ashley.

“The DNR sets surveillance goals – basically, a number of deer tested in a particular area – to understand the scale of infection in the local deer herd,” Stewart said. “The closer we come to meeting these goals, the better we can learn about where chronic wasting disease exists in Michigan. That’s why we encourage hunters to get deer tested, especially in areas where we haven’t yet met surveillance goals.”

CWD is not common among deer in Michigan, and the Department of Natural Resources encourages hunters to assist in disease surveillance.

Stewart said some of easiest ways hunters can help address CWD are to keep hunting throughout the remaining deer seasons, dispose of leftover parts in the trash and, if possible, take additional does in the Lower Peninsula’s CWD areas.

Deer check stations and drop boxes will be open throughout the deer hunting seasons, while the DNR Wildlife Disease Laboratory and partner Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory will continue processing and testing deer as hunting seasons continue. For check station locations and hours, visit Michigan.gov/DeerCheck. Read more

Hunting, Wildlife

West Nile virus survey in Great Lakes region shows limited exposure in ruffed grouse

First-year results from a multistate West Nile virus study show that while the virus is present in some ruffed grouse in the Great Lakes region, most birds exposed to the virus can survive. More than 700 hunter-provided samples from Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin were analyzed – both for exposure and infection – in the West Nile Virus in ruffed grouse surveillance project coordinated by the natural resources departments in those three states. Read more

Wildlife
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