Hunters in DMU 333 reminded of the requirement to have harvested deer from the area checked

Since May 2015, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has been actively conducting surveillance for chronic wasting disease (CWD). To date, more than 6,000 deer have been tested since the first positive was found, with seven cases of CWD confirmed.

However, a 3.5-year-old buck taken recently in Meridian Township is likely to be the eighth positive and the first discovered since March of this year. The sample is currently being tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa, to finalize confirmation.

The suspect deer was taken as part of the DNR’s CWD management program through targeted sharpshooting, which actively removes deer that are more likely to be affected with the disease in and around areas where previously identified CWD-positive animals had been detected. Read more

On July 8, 2016, Conservation Force, the Garden State Taxidermist Association, a New Jersey taxidermist, and five New Jersey based hunters sued the state to compel an end to New Jersey’s ban on the import, possession, export, transport, and processing of hunting trophies of the African “Big Four” (elephant, leopard, lion, and rhinoceros). The plaintiffs alleged that the state’s ban was preempted by the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The applicable law is ESA Section 6(f): “Any State law or regulation which applies with respect to the importation or exportation of, or interstate or foreign commerce in, endangered species or threatened species is void to the extent that it may effectively … (2) prohibit what is authorized pursuant to an exemption or permit provided for in this Act or in any regulation which implements this Act.” 16 U.S.C. § 1535(f).

On August 29, Judge Freda Wolfson of the U.S. federal court in Trenton entered an Order and Judgment against the State of New Jersey. The Order prohibits the enforcement of the ban against activities authorized by federal law, regulation, or permit. Hunters may continue to import, export, and possess federally authorized Big Four hunting trophies in the State. Read more

By Glen Wunderlich

Fundamental change is, once again, being thrust upon Americans by the autocrats in Washington D.C.  This time, it involves a controversial and inexplicable maneuver that reeks of hypocrisy.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and its appointed director, Dan Ashe, have issued new regulations closing 77 million acres of land in Alaska to state wildlife management, including effective predator control and other established means and methods of hunting and trapping.

First, the hypocrisy:  This is the same FWS that has banded together with states in the Great Lakes region, including Michigan, in a lawsuit to return wolves to state management.  And, since the management of wildlife has always been the responsibility of each individual state according to its priorities, how does the heavy hand of central command’s rulers swing so much legal clout?  It doesn’t!

Our wildlife doesn’t belong to Washington, D.C. or any landowner; it belongs to the states.  When we purchase hunting and fishing licenses, we do some from state agencies and are required to follow the laws of the respective states issuing said licenses.  There exists no federal management program for any wildlife.  Until now.

When Alaska was granted statehood in 1959, its ownership and control of game populations – including that within federal lands – was specifically enumerated in three acts:  Alaska Statehood Act (1959), Alaska Lands Act (1980), and the Refuge Improvement Act (1997).  With the vested power of Congress, these acts were clearly approved.

Once again, the feds purport to know what’s good for us, as it dishes out the distasteful medicine.  Ah, but there’s a fly in this ointment.  Behind the scenes, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) – the most powerful anti-hunting lobby in the world that despises all forms of hunting and hunters – was thanked by Ash in a tweet.

The stench gets stronger.  The rule changes include provisions that abruptly deny American citizens of their collective voice relative to management of the National Wildlife Refuge through the following:

• Doubling the length of emergency closures of refuge lands from 30 to 60 days
• Removing requirements for public hearings on such closures
• Complete elimination of the maximum length of a temporary closure

Mr. Ashe, you’ve got some ‘splainin’ to do.

This precedent, if left unchallenged, shall lay the groundwork for non-affected city slickers to push their radical agendas throughout the nation.

As “We the People” are relegated to irrelevance, what is to prevent more power grabs in the Western states, where apex predators threaten to destroy what is left of its once-thriving populations of elk and mule deer?

The Sportsmen’s Alliance strongly opposes these rules and is working closely with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA), Alaska hunters and hunting guides, and the Alaska Congressional Delegation to block the Obama Administration from enforcing these new “HSUS rules.”

Sustainability has been built into all regulated hunting since its inception.  There is no movement to totally eradicate any species, including a couple years ago, when Michigan established a hunting season for wolves.  A mere 23 wolves were taken by hunters – about half of the established quota – a small fraction of the 600-700 wolves roaming the northern reaches of the state.

It’s called game management and that’s what hunters do.  And, that’s the way it should be.