Michigan DNR awards $100,000 in Upper Peninsula Deer Habitat Improvement grants

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has awarded a total of $100,000 in deer habitat improvement grant funding to a dozen entities for projects in the Upper Peninsula.

The Deer Habitat Improvement Partnership Initiative is a competitive grant program designed to enhance deer habitat on non-state lands in the Upper Peninsula.

“I think we have a good crop of projects this year, and some new partnership and project opportunities,” said Bill Scullon, DNR wildlife field operations manager and administrator for the grant initiative. “These projects will allow us to continue making deer habitat improvements on private lands, which is an important component of our Upper Peninsula deer management strategy.”

A 25 percent match is required for the projects, which allows the DNR to reach beyond the original grant investment to accomplish more important habitat work. Read more

Wildlife

Stevens 320 Field Grade Pump

WESTFIELD, Massachusetts – – Stevens’ 320 Field Grade chews up and spits out anything shooters pump through it, from the heaviest hunting loads to light target shells. Shipments have been delivered to dealers.

The proven design, with a rotary bolt and dual slide bars, now features an updated synthetic stock that stands up to a lifetime of real-world use. It’s available in a wide selection of compact and standard models with matte black or camouflage finishes.

Features

    • Redesigned synthetic stock and fore-end
    • Pump action with rotary bolt
    • Dual action slide bars
    • Bottom load, right eject
    • Modified, extra-full or cylinder choke included, depending on specific model, Win. choke pattern
    • Matte black finish barrel and receiver
    • Several available models with various options.

Read more

Firearms

Michigan: Conservation Officer Rescues Kayaker on Lake Erie

A 24-year-old man from Taylor, Michigan, was hospitalized and treated for hypothermia last night after his kayak overturned in Lake Erie.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officer Nick Ingersoll received a call from Monroe County Dispatch at 7:18 p.m. A kayaker who was walleye fishing overturned in Brest Bay of Lake Erie, offshore of Sterling State Park in Monroe. The capsized kayaker originally was reported by Deputy Seth Evans, with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, who witnessed the kayaker overturn.

Located nearby on highway 275 and Ready Road, Ingersoll activated the emergency lights on his DNR patrol truck and drove to the Sterling State Park headquarters, where he had prepared his DNR patrol boat earlier in the season. Ingersoll towed the boat to the Sterling State Park boat launch, where two fishermen aided him in launching the patrol boat into the bay.

Dispatch provided Ingersoll with the kayaker’s location based on cellphone coordinates obtained when the kayaker had called 911 for help. Evans also had maintained sight of the kayaker and was able to direct Ingersoll through radio communication, once Ingersoll was in his patrol boat and on the water.

Receiving navigation assistance from Evans, Ingersoll saw the kayaker, located about a quarter of a mile offshore. The kayaker was in the water, holding onto the kayak with one arm, waving his lit-up cellphone in the air with the other arm.

“The water was very choppy, making it difficult to clearly scan the water for the victim,” said Ingersoll. “If it weren’t for the kayaker’s lit-up cellphone, he would have easily been mistaken for a log in the water.”

At 7:38 p.m., Ingersoll reached the kayaker and instructed him to continue holding the kayak. The kayaker was not wearing a lifejacket when he overturned and told Ingersoll that he was unable to find his lifejacket once he was in the water. Ingersoll positioned the DNR patrol boat as close to the kayaker as he safely could and threw him a lifejacket. Once the kayaker had the lifejacket, Ingersoll continued to instruct the kayaker. Read more

Fishing

SCI: Anti-Hunting Propaganda Ignores Reality

In a recent anti-hunting editorial piece focused on trophy imports from Africa of various species, The Guardianalluded to what are known as captive bred lions by others in the world.

“Campaigners have said the African lion parts imported from South Africa last year probably came from lion farms, where animals are bred specifically for trophy hunters and to meet rising demand for traditional medicine ingredients in Asian markets,” The Guardian reported.

Seems as though the antis are a bit slow on the draw in light of action Safari Club International took in 2018.

At that time, SCI adopted a policy on captive bred lions:

Considering that the practice of the captive breeding of lions for the purpose of hunting has doubtful value to the conservation of lions in the wild, and considering that such hunting is not consistent with SCI’s criteria for estate hunting, the SCI Board has adopted the following policy:
· SCI opposes the hunting of African lions bred in captivity.
· This policy takes effect on February 4, 2018 and applies to hunts taking place after adoption of this policy and to any Record Book entry related to such hunts.
· SCI will not accept advertising from any operator for any such hunts, nor will SCI allow operators to sell hunts for lions bred in captivity at the SCI Annual Hunters’ Convention. Read more

Animal Rights

NSSF Applauds Introduction of Freedom Financing Act

Legislation Protects Firearms Industry from Corporate Discrimination

NEWTOWN, Conn. — The National Shooting Sports Foundation® (NSSF®), the firearms industry trade association, praised the introduction of S. 821, the Freedom Financing Act in the U.S. Senate. The bill was sponsored by Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) and John Kennedy (R-La.). The legislation would ensure large financial institutions cannot deny service to certain constitutionally-protected industries that are fully compliant with all laws and statutes.

“American taxpayers need to be reassured their tax dollars that subsidize insurance and bailout policies for banking institutions aren’t weaponized in an attempt to eradicate a lawful industry because it has fallen out of favor with boardroom executives,” said Lawrence G. Keane, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. “Senator Cramer’s leadership in confronting this issue guarantees social policies are debated and created by the elected officials Americans vote to represent their interests, not by faceless corporate boards representing the interest of the few. We applaud Senator Cramer for his clear vision in correcting this abuse of American trust and taxpayer dollars.” Read more

Firearms

Stealth Cam G45NGMAX Trail Camera

Grand Prairie, TX – Stealth Cam® engineers know the biggest game animals come out at night; that’s why the company developed the new G45NGMAX—a trail camera that has no match in capturing high-quality stills and video!

The G45NGMAX advantage starts with Stealth Cam’s next-generation, high-resolution night imaging technology, which produces 26MP photos to capture crisp still images across the camera’s 100-foot flash range. This exceptional imaging comes courtesy of 45 NO-GLO IR emitters combined with integrated Retina™ Low Light sensitivity, Matrix™ Advanced Blur Reduction and the super-fast 0.45-second Reflex™ Trigger system technology, deliver the most reliable nighttime performance to ensure the big bucks are captured on camera.

In addition to its unrivaled nighttime operation, the G45NGMAX offers diverse setting customization to achieve the best imaging and video results regardless of the terrain or site layout. They’ve upgraded from 720p to 1080p with a Sony image sensor only found previously in their DS4K series. Utilizing an intuitive menu and easy-to-see backlit LED programming interface, the G45NGMAX also allows the user to set numerous still and video capture parameters. Setting options include HD video recording from 5 to 180 seconds, a burst mode that can take from one to nine stills per trigger event, and precise recovery time-out that covers 3-59 seconds or 1-59 minutes. Data logging features time and date, moon phases, temperature, and GPS meta-tagging provide essential information for documenting game activity and planning future hunts. Read more

Hunting

SAF: Permanent Injunction Issued Against Deerfield Gun Ban

BELLEVUE, WA – An Illinois judge has issued a permanent injunction against the Village of Deerfield, Illinois prohibiting that jurisdiction from banning so-called “assault weapons” and thus granting a victory to the Second Amendment Foundation, which sued the town in 2018 over the ban,

SAF was joined by the Illinois State Rifle Association and Deerfield resident Daniel Easterday, a lawful firearms owner. They were represented by Glen Ellyn attorney David Sigale.

“We are delighted with the judge’s decision, which we hope sends a message to other municipal governments that they can’t try to sneak around the state’s preemption statute in an effort to ban legal firearms ownership,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Last year, we were granted a temporary injunction by the circuit court, and this order making it permanent simply solidifies our position.” Read more

Gun Control

The time has come to take the fight to the antis.

It happens with more frequency now. A hunter, most often a woman, is “shamed,” harassed, and sometimes threatened on social media in what in any other circumstance would be considered a terrorist act. An ensuing tsunami of haters pile on for a while until their bile-laden attention is diverted to another righteous “cause.” Because of a legal hunt in Africa, a member of one of America’s foremost families of conservation, Brittany Hosmer Longoria, was put through the grinder of the progressive hate machine, and as usual, the basis of the attacks defy logic on several levels.

Hunters try, and some of us have been trying for decades, to use logic to convince the antis that what we do is of benefit to both Man and beast. The benefits of sustainable use conservation in a 7.5B person world is settled science, which is logical to those who are open to new ideas, but therein lies the rub. The majority of anti-hunters have no interest in science, logic, or even the well-being of animal species. Most anti-hunters want to stop hunting because they do not like hunting, and animals be damned.

Don’t believe me? Then here is a quote from animal rights activists Priscilla Feral, president of Friends of Animals from her interview on the CBS News program 60 minutes. When discussing the fate of three species of antelope that are virtually extinct in their native habitat in Africa but are thriving in Texas due to sustainable-use hunting, Ms. Feral stated emphatically, “I would prefer they all die rather than inhabit their non-natural habitat in Texas.” Reporter Lara Logan pressed for clarification asking if she (Ms. Feral) would rather see the animals go extinct than be hunted, the Friends of Animals president stated coyly, “They should not be hunted.”

Let that soak in for a minute. These so-called “friends” of wildlife are really no friend at all. Their true mission; nay their only mission is to ban hunting. Period. The welfare of wildlife is a secondary concern at best, yet useful cover for their calculated, deceitful social media smear campaigns to create a societal movement against hunters and hunting. We saw it again with Britt Longoria, but she is just the latest on a long list of hit-jobs on hunter-victims. Read more

Animal Rights, Hunting, Wildlife

Michigan: walleye egg collection efforts on Muskegon River to occur in coming weeks

Muskegon River anglers should be on the lookout for Department of Natural Resources personnel collecting walleye eggs below Croton Dam this spring.

Walleye will be collected with electrofishing boats starting as early as the week of March 27 and concluding by April 17. Anglers should exhibit caution when fishing near the electrofishing boats. Wading anglers will be asked to exit the water when the boat approaches to ensure their safety. Those who wish to avoid the walleye collection activities should fish downstream.

The DNR plans to collect approximately 30 million walleye eggs from the Muskegon River this year, which will result in more than 13 million fry for transfer to rearing ponds and direct fry plants throughout the Lower Peninsula. Walleye fry transferred to ponds will be raised to fingerling size (approximately 1.5 to 2.5 inches) and stocked in late spring or early summer in lakes and rivers throughout the state. Read more

Fishing

Remington 700 Mountain Stainless in 6.5 Creedmoor

6.5 Creedmoor now available in the Remington 700 Mountain SS lineup

Huntsville, AL – The Model 700 Mountain Stainless is a light-weight and durable rifle ideal for extended periods of handling in the worst weather conditions. The stainless-steel barreled action has an attractive satin finish and is coupled with a tough Bell & Carlson stock with an aluminum bedding block that provides the receiver with a sturdy platform. Featuring a mountain contour barrel, it weighs in at just over 6lbs. so you can carry it all day long and rest assured that when the time comes to take that shot of a lifetime, it will exceed all your expectations.

Key Features

  • Stainless steel barreled action with satin finish
  • 22” cold hammer forged light contour barrel
  • Premium Bell & Carlson stock with aluminum bedding block
  • Just 6.2 lbs
  • User adjustable X Mark Pro trigger

The Model 700 Mountain SS has a suggested retail price of $1152.00 and comes with a Limited Lifetime Warranty. Order # 85513. Read more

Firearms
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