Continuing a family conservation mindset dating back to the early 1900s, landowners worked with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) and partners to conserve important habitat for elk, mule deer and other wildlife, and bolster hunting access to adjacent public lands in southeast Wyoming.

“We salute the conservation ethic of our landowner partners,” said Kyle Weaver, RMEF president and CEO. “Entering into a voluntary conservation agreement with RMEF allows the family to continue to steward their land and maintain its wildlife values while also providing pivotal access through it to improve hunting opportunity on nearby public land.”

The property is about 35 miles northwest of Laramie and is mostly surrounded on three sides by state and federal land. In addition to conserving their land in perpetuity, the landowners and their neighbors extended an existing agreement, managed by WGFD, from five to 20 years for a road access easement that reaches adjacent lands administered by the State of Wyoming, Bureau of Land Management and Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest. Read more

BioLogic, the world’s leader in food plot research, has announced the development of a new, unique food plot planting. What if there were a plant that was irresistible to whitetails? What if the same planting helped to suppress weeds, improve soil nutrients, break up compacted soils and dramatically improved the soil for future crops? Most would say it sounds like we may have stumbled across “the magic bean,” but in this case it’s a new generation of radish developed for deer, introducing “BioLogic’s Endurance Radish!”

BioLogic’s exclusive New Zealand Endurance Radish is a unique, new generation of late flowering, soft-leaf type forage radish with high quality, large tuber and prolific leaf material. It is a new generation radish cultivar capable of growing extremely browse tolerant and nutrient-dense forage with advanced regrowth and cold tolerance over traditional radishes.

In testing we have found that in addition to the desirable cover crop characteristics described above, these new radishes are some of the most attractive plants to whitetails we have EVER seen. These radishes are brassicas, just like others that BioLogic has made famous, but are attractive to deer earlier during the season than many other brassica types. However, because of the superior browse tolerance of this new cultivar the plants will continue to pump out more forage, even after being browsed, providing nutrient-rich forage for months of attraction and herd health. They’re tough, too, in addition to being browse tolerant, they are drought tolerant and cold hardy, too. Read more

New Haven, Mo. – ALPS Mountaineering, manufacturer of performance-driven gear for wilderness adventures, exploration, and family camping, expands its backcountry shelter lineup for 2024 with the release of the all-new Stealth Bivy. Designed for the minimalist backpacker, the Stealth Bivy combines durable, ultra-lightweight construction with integrated features to make bivouacking comfortable and convenient.

The Stealth Bivy is made of a durable, waterproof, and breathable fabric with a heavy-weight floor. All seams are fully taped to withstand the toughest weather, while no-see-um mesh over the head and foot vents offer maximum ventilation to keep bugs out and minimize condensation.

A key feature of the Stealth Bivy is its ingenious step-in design. The longer covered zipper path is designed to eliminate the need for the user to crawl across wet ground and slide their way into the shelter. It also allows for easier and more comfortable dressing and undressing while on your adventure. Read more

Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

For those of us fortunate enough to have lived in Alabama a number of years, one of the benefits the vast majority of residents cherish is interaction with the abundant wildlife that inhabits the state.

Becoming familiar with the different animal species and their preferred habitat comes with experience and education. Most of those animals are harmless, but a few species need to be given distance and avoided. A case in point is the American alligator, which can grow up to 15 feet in length.

An American alligator was recently sighted in the Huntsville area, which many people consider to be beyond the home range of the animal. However, alligators have lived in north Alabama for at least 60 years, according to Chuck Sykes, Director of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ (ADCNR) Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries (WFF) Division. Read more

Significant improvements to Fred Meijer White Pine Trail State Park are underway this summer, temporarily closing a section of the multicounty pathway and marking the final push toward completing what will become 92 miles of paved trail stretching from Comstock Park in Kent County to Cadillac in Wexford County.

The closure is expected to last until November.

“While we understand the inconvenience this temporary closure may cause, we believe that the long-term benefits will far outweigh any short-term disruptions,” said Scott Slavin, northwestern Lower Peninsula trails specialist for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. “The construction project will not only enhance the park’s amenities, but also contribute to the user’s experience – cyclists, walkers and runners will notice a smoother surface as they explore the trail.” Read more

Partners set to begin 16,000-acre forest health project in southwest Montana

Darby, Mont. – A new Memorandum of Understanding recently signed between Pheasants Forever, Blue Forest, and the U.S. Forest Service sets the stage for meaningful conservation work across Montana’s Bitterroot Valley through 2028. Starting later this summer, the partners will begin implementation in the Nez/Mud area of the Mud Creek Project, a 16,933-acre restoration plan to improve forest health, reduce fuel loads, and contribute to watershed/habitat improvement in southwest Montana. While work is being executed, the partnership is working to develop new financial solutions that will allow them to implement future forest health and fire risk reductions much more quickly.

Located in the Rocky Mountains, the Bitterroot National Forest/Mud Creek project was selected for restoration efforts due to a current, unhealthy forest system. Overstocked with small trees and brush due to fire suppression and a decline in active, sustainable forest management, the region’s communities, infrastructure, and wildlife are at significant risk for wildfire. Recognizing community safety and forest health are intertwined, public and private stakeholders are acting together to reduce wildfire risk, protect communities, and improve wildlife habitat at a pace and scale never witnessed before in Montana. Read more

The soundtrack of the hot, hazy days of late summer – times of lazy summer vacations and cookouts with friends and family – for many Michiganders sounds like the drone of a cicada. But for one animal, the sound of a cicada means something very different: survival.

As cicadas emerge from the ground to call in the trees, another insect comes out as well – the cicada killer wasp. Measuring over an inch in length, these wasps are built to capture and subdue large adult cicadas. Only female wasps have stingers, which they use to inject venom into their prey and carry it back to their burrow.

Cicada killer wasps are solitary, and female wasps use their short time as adults to dig burrows where they stash the cicadas they catch and lay their eggs. While male wasps may be territorial or act aggressively, they lack a stinger and pose no danger to people; females sting only in self-defense. Just like the cicadas, cicada killer wasps die as summer wanes. Read more