20-Year Agreement Paves Way for National Wild Turkey Federation to help Reduce Wildfire Risk, Promote Healthy Forests and Wildlife Habitat

EDGEFIELD, S.C. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service and the National Wild Turkey Federation recently signed a landmark 20-year national master stewardship agreement.

This first-of-its-kind agreement paves the way for these partner organizations to work together to address the wildfire crisis in the West and promote healthy forests across the U.S. It also includes an initial $50 million commitment from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as well as regular agency appropriations and other sources.

“This agreement reflects our strong, long-standing relationship with the National Wild Turkey Federation and its four decades of forest restoration work on national forests and grasslands,” USDA Forest Service Chief Randy Moore said. “Larger wildfires, more frequent natural disasters, and other disturbances that continue to threaten the health of the nation’s forests and grasslands, and the wildlife habitat they provide, means the work we do together is even more vital.” Read more

Invasive beech leaf disease was first confirmed in Michigan in July 2022 after landowners noticed its characteristic thickened leaf bands on trees in a small woodlot in St. Clair County. Since then, new detections in Oakland and Wayne counties indicate the disease is more widespread.

Beech leaf disease is associated with the nematode Litylenchus crenatae, a microscopic worm that enters and spends the winter in leaf buds, causing damage to leaf tissue on American, European and Asian beech species. Trees weakened by leaf damage become susceptible to other diseases and can die within six to 10 years after initial symptoms.

Two outdoor media engines will be pulling together to help ensure a bright future for wild turkeys. The Confluence Group is proud to announce its association with Kevin Tate and his agency, Tate Outdoor Communications. Together, they will be sharing the message of Turkeys For Tomorrow, a young, nonprofit organization whose mission is to secure the future of wild turkeys in the United States.

“TFT dedicates their resources to improving turkey habitat and studying how to help raise more birds,” Tate said. “It’s a tremendous honor to be working with a mission so necessary and pure. The true, positive message of the outdoors is a story common to all of us who love our natural world.”

Tate is a long-time freelance writer and former outdoor television production and marketing executive. He learned the business first-hand through two decades with Mossy Oak Productions. He made the leap to launch his own communications brand earlier this year.

“I bring more than 20 years’ experience in the outdoor industry and a professional lifetime in media to this partnership,” he said. “I’m also a lifelong outdoors enthusiast, and I’m excited about what we will accomplish together. I’ve known and worked with the guys at Confluence for years, and I’m proud to be part of the team.”

The Confluence Group is a full-service marketing agency founded in and for the outdoors. Their clients benefit from the group’s array of specialists, each thoroughly versed in the spirit and perspective of life lived under the open sky. Read more

Just in time for Halloween, it’s Bat Week! Whether it’s building bat habitat, learning more about different bat species, bat-watching in the late hours of dusk or other ways to brush up on bats, this international celebration (Oct. 24-31 each year) is the perfect time to spotlight this important species.

Michigan is home to nine species of bats, all of which are insectivores – meaning they eat exclusively insects. During the evening hours, these flying mammals consume many insect pests including mosquitoes, beetles, moths and flies.

Unfortunately, many bat species are facing challenges. The DNR, along with numerous partners, works to conserve bats and bat habitat because many species are in decline due to habitat loss, diminished food supply and disease. Read more

Roswell, Georgia (October 25th, 2022) – LiteFighter Systems is offering the Dragoon, a robust 4-season tent, originally designed and built for the military, now available for the avid adventurer who demands the most from their gear.

Due to its configurability, the Dragoon can be used as a summer shade tent, mild weather shelter, and a winter bunker. This all-season expeditionary tent is built to endure nature’s most extreme conditions. With its geodesic dome design, durable fabrics and 6-pole frame, the Dragoon is designed to withstand strong winds, heavy rain and accumulating snow while providing comfort from the elements. The Dragoon, large enough to accommodate up to 8 people with their gear, makes a great tent for a tailgating, family camping, hunting camp, or expedition base camp.

With unique features including a stove jack flap, HVAC duct connections, connected Dyneema® cord guy lines with built-in stowaway pockets and internal loops for hanging lights and accessories, the Dragoon is the most feature-rich tent available. The rugged and durable Dragoon contains 8-mesh panel doors with tuck-away panels, 8- Permethrin mesh window vents, and a removable floor for various set-up configurations. Read more

68 Stories Of A Simpler Time And Place in Appalachia

For many years, award-winning outdoor author J. Wayne Fears has been writing his folksy tales about Tater Knob for a variety of popular publications, including, among others, Progressive Farmer, Rural Sportsman, Great Days Outdoors, GunHunter, and Mature Living. Now, he’s collected 68 of these heart-warming short stories, most of them humorous, some quite poignant, in a new nostalgia-packed book.

So, go ahead. Buckle up. A Tater Knob Almanac will be taking you on an unforgettable wild ride full of rural-childhood adventures and misadventures from back in the 1940s and ’50s. Written for all ages and told through the eyes of three intrepid boys and one just-as-gutsy girl, these stories will introduce you to (or maybe reacquaint you with) plenty of colorful characters from in and around the remote Alabama mountain community where Fears actually grew up. Yes, it was a real place. Read more

Bozeman, Montana – The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF) congratulates the Arizona Game and Fish Department, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR), KUIU, Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, WSF Chapter Utah Wild Sheep Foundation and WSF Affiliate Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Society on a successful transplant of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep onto Utah’s Antelope Island State Park.

“This is what collaborative conservation looks like,” explained Gray N. Thornton, President and CEO of the Wild Sheep Foundation. “Wild sheep enthusiasts from industry, national and state conservation groups, and state wildlife agencies all pulling on the same rope to get good work done.”

Twenty-seven bighorn sheep were captured near Morenci, Arizona using helicopter netguns and darting. The sheep were then transported by horse trailers to Antelope Island for release. The wild sheep near Morenci were chosen for this relocation because of the high risk of vehicle collisions. In recent years more sheep living near Morenci began frequenting its urban areas with high traffic. Tranquilizer darting was used to capture those sheep that were closer to town. Read more

Contact: Mike Smalligan (DNR), 517-449-5666

Webinars focus on keeping white oaks healthy, productive

The Michigan Society of American Foresters is offering a series of five webinars to boost knowledge about white oak and best practices for growing and using it.

Foresters, land managers and family forest landowners are welcome to sign up for any or all of the webinars. A new one is offered the first Wednesday of each month November through March. Read more