Outdoor commentary and legislative issues.
Goldfinch
In Ohio, sixty percent of the 444 deer and more than 65 percent of 200 cats tested positive for Toxoplasma gondii – a parasite that can affect humans with toxoplasmosis. Details of the cat-astrophe are here…
PHOENIX — The Arizona Game and Fish Department has served a Notice of Intent with the secretary of the Department of Interior and director of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service). The action was taken in an effort to support development of an updated recovery plan for Mexican wolves that utilizes the best available science as legally required by the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Game and Fish has requested an updated recovery plan from the Service on multiple occasions over the past several years because the current recovery plan for Mexican wolves developed in 1982 is so outdated that it no longer provides an adequate framework to guide the recovery effort. That plan also fails to identify the recovery criteria required by the ESA including downlisting and delisting criteria.
“This Notice of Intent is an effort to ensure that the Fish and Wildlife Service adheres to its legal obligation to develop a thorough science-based plan that will lead to a successful recovery outcome that recognizes Mexico as pivotal to achieving recovery of the Mexican wolf given that 90 percent of its historical range is there, ” said Arizona Game and Fish Department Director Larry Voyles. Read more
HAUPPAUGE, NY, January 5, 2015 – Meopta, the industry’s leading designer and manufacturer of premium sports optics, is pleased to add two new high-performance binoculars to its MeoStar® line – the MeoStar 12×50 HD and MeoStar 15×56 HD.
These rugged binoculars are engineered to withstand the most extreme hunting conditions and are especially well suited for western hunters. Vast terrain requires exceptional glass, not only to spot animals at long ranges but also to assess their finest details. The new MeoStar HD binoculars deliver to the max thanks to the large HD fluoride objective lenses which eliminate chromatic aberration and provide spectacular image clarity and true, vivid color reproduction. The MeoBrightTM ion-assisted lens coating delivers 99.7% light transmission per lens surface providing exceptionally bright images in the most challenging lighting conditions. This gives hunters the advantage of seeing better, both earlier and later. Read more
Bedford, Mass. – “The Thermacell Repellent Camp Lantern is a natural addition to our portfolio of outdoor camping products,” said Allegra Lowitt, Thermacell chief marketing officer. “We married our patented mosquito repellent technology with the most desired features campers want in a rugged lantern, such as bright light, low battery indicator, emergency light settings, and a hanging hook.” Outdoor enthusiasts can now select one product to repel biting pests and illuminate their campsite. Read more
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Moultrie Products introduces the Dinner Plate Gravity Series of game feeders. The all new Dinner Plate Feeder Kit dispenses feed on demand and can accommodate both corn and protein for maximum flexibility. Available options include the Dinner Plate Feeder Kit, 30-Gallon Dinner Plate Feeder, or the 55-Gallon Dinner Plate Feeder. The specially designed adapter included can be used to convert most barrels and hoppers to receive the quick locking Dinner Plate Kit.
Moultrie’s Dinner Plate Feeder Kit has been designed to offer flexible feeding options, while eliminating the need for batteries or relying on electronic timers, providing a simple yet effective feeder. This feeder design accommodates corn or protein — up to 2.25″ in length and .25″ in diameter — and feeds deer on their schedule. The Moultrie Dinner Plate Feeder Kit has an MSRP of $39.99.
Moultrie’s 30-Gallon Dinner Plate Feeder is less than 6 feet in height, makes it extremely easy to fill from ground level. A High-quality, UV-resistant hopper is designed to weather the elements for many seasons and also features three integrated camera mounts allowing you to monitor feeding activity. The Moultrie 30-Gallon Dinner Plate Feeder has an MSRP of $109.99. Read more
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Moultrie Products is proud to introduce yet another game-changing product into an already outstanding line of trail cameras. The all new Moultrie A-7i has all the key features an avid deer hunter needs in a game camera, with the ability to capture images of even the most skittish bucks in the woods. At a price that’s hard to beat, the A-7i will be an instant must-have for both new and previous Moultrie game camera users alike.
Built on the platform of Moultrie’s best-selling A-5 game camera, the A-7i is now the lowest priced, iNVISIBLE flash camera in the Moultrie family. With black LED’s for imperceptible flash operation, this camera was developed specifically to be utilized in any scouting situation without alerting prey. With the rugged new look of the entire Moultrie lineup, the A-7i includes a functional LED array design for better break up and concealment in the woods and improvements in weather resistance and reliability. Read more
DALLAS – The U.S. government is deciding whether an American hunter should be allowed to bring home the taxidermy from a tentatively planned black rhino hunt in Namibia. An import permit could be approved or denied any day. DSC is urging the feds to make their decision based on the best available science, not emotional rhetoric.
DSC outlined its request in a formal letter submitted during a public comment period.
The letter reiterates the hunt is for a single, aged, non-breeding male known to charge and kill younger bulls, cows and even calves. This behavior, well documented in scientific literature, jeopardizes the future of the herd.
Since black rhinos are critically endangered, all forms of additive mortality “must be addressed in a manner that adds to stabilization and growth” of remaining populations, wrote Ben Carter, DSC executive director. Read more
Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and elsewhere say that a vaccination they have developed to fight a brain-based, wasting syndrome among deer and other animals may hold promise on two additional fronts: Protecting U.S. livestock from contracting the disease, and preventing similar brain infections in humans.
The study published in Vaccine online Dec. 21, documents a scientific milestone: The first successful vaccination of deer against chronic wasting disease (CWD), a fatal brain disorder caused by unusual infectious proteins known as prions. Prions propagate by converting otherwise healthy proteins into a disease state.
Equally important, the researchers say, this study may hold promise against human diseases suspected to be caused by prion infections, such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, kuru, familial insomnia, and variably protease-sensitive prionopathy. Some studies also have associated prion-like infections with Alzheimer’s disease.
“Now that we have found that preventing prion infection is possible in animals, it’s likely feasible in humans as well,” says senior study investigator and neurologist Thomas Wisniewski, MD, a professor at NYU Langone.
CWD afflicts as much as 100 percent of North America’s captive deer population, as well as large numbers of other cervids that populate the plains and forests of the Northern Hemishpere, including wild deer, elk, caribou and moose. There is growing concern among scientists that CWD could possibly spread to livestock in the same regions, especially cattle, a major life stream for the U.S. economy, in much the same manner that bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or Mad Cow Disease, another prion-based infection, spread through the United Kingdom almost two decades ago.
According to Dr. Wisniewski and his research team, if further vaccine experiments prove successful, a relatively small number of animals (as few as 10 percent) could be inoculated to induce herd immunity, in which disease transmission is essentially stopped in a much larger group.
For the study, five deer were given the vaccine; another six were given a placebo. All of the deer were exposed to prion-infected brain tissue; they also were housed together, engaging in group activities similar to those in the wild. Scientists say this kept them in constant exposure to the infectious prions. The animals receiving the vaccine were given eight boosters over 11 months until key immune antibodies were detectable in blood, saliva, and feces. The deer also were monitored daily for signs of illness, and investigators performed biopsies of the animals’ tonsils and gut tissue every three months to search for signs of CWD infection.
Within two years, all of the deer given the placebo developed CWD. Four deer given the real vaccine took significantly longer to develop infection — and the fifth one continues to remain infection free. Read more
Mesa police out-flank a black bear on Christmas morning, that had been seen roaming through a Phoenix suburb. Details of the capture and relocation plan are here…
“Given that bullets and shot can become spent only if they are first contained in a cartridge or shell and then fired from a weapon,” the environmental groups “have identified no way in which EPA could regulate spent bullets and shot without also regulating cartridges and shells,” precisely what the law prohibits, said the decision by appeals judge David Tatel, a nominee of President Bill Clinton. The other two judges on the case were Patricia Millett and Cornelia Pillard, both nominees of President Barack Obama.
The details of the ruling is here…