Michigan: DNR announces 2018 Black Lake sturgeon season harvest results

Michigan Department of Natural Resources officials announced the 2018 sturgeon harvest season on Black Lake (in the northern tip of the Lower Peninsula) ended after two and a half hours Saturday, Feb. 3, with seven fish being harvested. The fishing season, which included spearing or hook-and-line fishing, was scheduled to run Feb. 3-7, or until the harvest quota had been reached. The allocation of sturgeon for Black Lake this year was seven fish, although DNR officials set a harvest quota of six fish.

There were 426 registered anglers on the ice Saturday, up from 332 the year before. Most anglers registered at the pre-registration held Friday, Feb. 2, which continues to allow for a much more streamlined process. Anglers of all ages and genders participated, including a good number of supervised youth. Read more

Fishing

Join a Global Bird Count for The Year of the Bird

Snowy Owls are also being reported in higher numbers than usual in parts of North America this winter. Photo by Kim Mann, Saskatchewan, 2017 GBBC

The Great Backyard Bird Count takes place worldwide, February 16 to 19

New York, NY, Ithaca, NY, and Port Rowan, ON—The 21st Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) will take place February 16 to 19—in backyards, parks, nature centers, on hiking trails, school grounds, balconies, and beaches. This global event provides an opportunity for bird enthusiasts to contribute important bird population data that help scientists see changes over the past 21 years. To participate, bird watchers count the birds they see for at least 15 minutes on one or more days of the count, then enter their checklists at birdcount.org. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan: Copper exploration to resume at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park


Mining company plans modified, scaled-down winter exploratory drilling program

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has issued a use permit to Copperwood Resources Inc. – a subsidiary of Highland Copper – to resume its winter exploration of a 1-mile section of the westernmost portion of Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.

Work is being done in this part of Gogebic County to see if the eastern extension of a mineral deposit first explored in the 1950s might feasibly be mined, which would enlarge the mining company’s Copperwood Project beyond its currently-permitted boundaries.

Drilling and testing will determine hydrologic and geologic composition of the bedrock beneath the surface. Work on these sites is scheduled to be completed over the next month and a half.

“This use permit will allow Copperwood Resources to resume work begun last winter at the park,” said Doug Rich, western U.P. district supervisor for the DNR’s Parks and Recreation Division. “However, this winter’s exploration will be scaled back from the mining company’s original plans.” Read more

General

CMMG’s MkG GUARD in 450 SMC

Boonville, MO–CMMG’s MkG GUARD is an AR15 rifle that is chambered in .45 ACP and feeds from factory Glock magazines. At the heart of the GUARD is the patent pending Radial Delayed Blowback operating system that works to harness the strong recoil impulse of .45 ACP.  After extensive durability testing, CMMG is proud to announce that the GUARD is safely rated for 450 SMC.

For those unfamiliar with 450 SMC, Triton first conceived the cartridge in 2001. The design was ultimately taken over and completed by DoubleTap ammunition years later. In essence, it is a magnum version of .45 ACP that offers ballistics that are comparable to 10mm. It is a true “stopper” that delivers energy capable of taking down big game.

While the 450 SMC uses a case with the same outer dimensions as .45 ACP, there are a few significant differences that allow DoubleTap to load 450 SMC with five to six thousand pounds per square inch of pressure more than a standard .45ACP. First, the 450 SMC uses a small magnum rifle primer instead of the large pistol primer. This modification allows the hardened case to be thicker at the base.  Second, the brass is manufactured from the ground up to handle up to 30,000 pounds of pressure. The result is a dual-purpose cartridge that is exceptional for both hunting and personal defense. Read more

Ammunition, Firearms

Hunter Safety System Brings Back the Pro Series Harness

Danville, Ala. (Feb 6, 2018) – In response to customer requests, Hunter Safety System—the leader in treestand safety—has announced that a new updated Pro Series harness will be available this year. With new features and lighter, high-tech materials, the new Pro Series is poised to become as popular as the original Pro Series, which was introduced in 2005 and became one of the most popular treestand safety harness of all time. Read more

Hunting

Michigan DNR Seeks Interns

We have partnered with the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to created a student internship program. This program provides a window through which to view potential careers, as well as insight into the workings of state government through meaningful work experience. These internship opportunities can be for Associates, Bachelors, Masters, or Doctorate students.

Internships may be short term (one semester) or long term (more than one semester) depending on the assignment. The assignments may be for a specific project for an individual, or may be a class project. An assignment could be shadowing professional or managerial staff person(s) or shadowing different professional staff in different areas to give a broad base of experience. Read more

General

Nebraska: Sampling of deer results in 203 positives for CWD

GW:  These numbers are scary…

LINCOLN, Neb. – The presence of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer has been detected for the first time in the southwestern Nebraska counties of Chase, Dundy, Hayes, Frontier and Franklin, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.

The Commission conducted a CWD sampling operation in its Northwest and Southwest District deer check stations during the 2017 November firearm deer season.

There were 203 positives from 1,807 deer sampled primarily in the Frenchman, Platte, Republican, Pine Ridge, Upper Platte and Plains management units. Both whitetails and mule deer were sampled.

The goal of this sampling effort is to assess the spread and prevalence of the disease through periodic testing in each region of the state, which in turn helps biologists predict when and if future effects on deer numbers may occur. Testing will take place in regional locations of the state in the next several years.

Although present in Colorado and Wyoming for several decades, CWD was first discovered in Nebraska in 2000 in Kimball County. Since 1997, Commission staff have tested nearly 51,000 deer and found 499 that tested positive. CWD has been found in 40 Nebraska counties, but no population declines attributable to the disease have yet occurred. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan DNR has new online form for reporting fish kills

Winter weather can create conditions that cause fish and other aquatic creatures to die

To simplify the public’s ability to report fish kills, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources recently developed an online form for reporting fish kills in quantities larger than 25 fish. A fish kill of this size could have more factors involved that need further DNR investigation. The new Sick or Dead Aquatic Species form can be found in the DNR’s Eyes in the Field application at michigan.gov/eyesinthefield.

Information requested in the form includes waterbody and location (both descriptive and latitude-longitude coordinates), observation details, and any available photos showing the fish kill. Close-up photos showing any external disease signs such as bloody patches, unusual wounds or odd coloration are particularly helpful to DNR staff as they try to determine the cause of the issue and its seriousness. Entered reports and associated images automatically are forwarded to fish health staff for quicker evaluation and action. Read more

Fishing

SAUER Introduces New Rifles in its SAUER 100 Line

San Antonio, Texas – J. P. Sauer & Sohn, Germany’s oldest gunmaker, extends its line of SAUER 100 bolt-action rifles with the addition of five new models.  Distributed by Blaser USA Inc., these entry-level rifles are perfect for those who have a limited budget yet still expect maximum performance and style.

The extended line of SAUER 100 rifles gives shooters numerous options to meet their needs in the field and on the range. Each rifle features a crisp, user adjustable single-stage trigger, three-position safety, cold hammer-forged SAUER barrel, and smooth action bolt.   These rifles are also designed for accuracy, delivering a guaranteed five-shot sub-MOA performance.

Available in five new configurations: The S100 Ceratech is coated in a cerakote film for ultimate durability; the S100 Pantera features a highly ergonomic stock, a heavy fluted barrel, adjustable comb and sculpted pistol grip designed for long-range shooting; the S100 Fieldshoot is a match-quality rifle using the same laminate stock as the Pantera without a coating and a heavier match barrel; the S100 Cherokee, with a synthetic digi-camo stock and tundra green cerakoted barrel and action, is designed to blend seamlessly into darker terrain and the S100 Atacama, as the name suggests, features a desert-sand cerakoted barrel and action.

These new SAUER 100 rifles, in addition to the Classic and Classic XT models, are available in a wide choice of calibers, including the new 6.5 PRC chambering from Hornady. MSRP: From $799. Read more

Firearms

Bushmaster XM-15 XD Pistol Equipped with SB Tactical Arm Brace

Huntsville, AL –  Bushmaster is proud to announce the introduction of its SD Pistols, so named for the Advanced Armament Corp Square Drop modular free float system.

The SD pistols are equipped with an SB Tactical arm braces designed by US veterans and proudly made in the USA.  The arm brace provides increased stability and improved accuracy.

The SD Pistols features Mil std upper and lower, AAC Square Drop handguard, AAC Blackout flash hider, SB Tactical arm brace, Hogue overmold grip and ALG Defense fire control group.

Equipped with a 7-, 9-, or 10-inch barrel, this compact MSR pistol is perfect for quick handling in tight quarters.  For more information on Bushmaster pistols, visit www.bushmaster.com

 

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Firearms
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