Senate Unanimously Approves Permanent Electronic Duck Stamp

The United States Senate unanimously passed the Duck Stamp Modernization Act – legislation to make the Federal Duck Stamp more accessible for waterfowl hunters by authorizing the electronic stamp for use throughout the entire waterfowl hunting season.

The bipartisan bill will allow hunters to satisfy the Duck Stamp requirement in the field by accessing their electronic stamp using a smartphone. Physical stamps will remain available for purchase from the post office and other retailers. Read more

Hunting

CSF Leads Effort with Senate CSC Leadership to Pass Duck Stamp Modernization Act

Thursday evening, the U.S. Senate passed a top priority for the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) known as the Duck Stamp Modernization Act of 2023 (S. 788). This bipartisan bill is led by the entire Senate Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus Leadership, Co-Chairs Sens. John Boozman and Joe Manchin and Vice-Chairs Sens. Angus King and Roger Marshall.

Prior to the vote, CSF worked with the bill sponsors and key offices to help navigate this bill through the political process and ultimately a successful floor vote. The Senate passage of this bill builds upon the House Natural Resources Committee passage of the House companion bill led by CSC Vice-Chair Rep. Garret Graves and CSC Member Rep. Mike Thompson.

The Duck Stamp Modernization Act will simplify the Federal Duck Stamp process by allowing hunters to have an electronic duck stamp on their smartphone for the entirety of the hunting season. Under current law, when a hunter purchases an electronic Federal Duck Stamp (e-stamp), the e-stamp is only valid for a period of 45 days to allow for the actual stamp to be mailed. Once the actual stamp is received by the e-stamp purchaser, the actual stamp must be signed by the respective hunter across the face of the stamp and be in the hunter’s possession while afield. However, this legislation will remove the 45-day validation period and make the electronic stamp valid for the entirety of the hunting season. To ensure the continuance and integrity of the Federal Duck Stamp art contest, a longstanding tradition for waterfowlers and other bird enthusiasts alike, S. 788 will ensure that purchasers of e-stamps still receive the actual stamp in the mail. Specifically, the legislation will provide that actual stamps will be mailed to purchasers from March 10 to June 30. Read more

Hunting

High Water Temperatures Causing Fish Die-Offs

Nebraska Game and Parks biologists are investigating the extent of a fish die-off along the Platte and Loup rivers near Columbus and downstream, as well as along the Loup Power Canal.

Multiple species of dead fish were documented along the waterways July 28, but more are expected to perish as hot and dry conditions persist and water levels decline.

Extreme heat has led to water temperatures measuring over 90 degrees in shallow stretches of these rivers in recent days and is the likely cause of the die-offs.

It is hoped cooler temperatures in the forecast will reduce additional effects.

Fishing

SAF Will Oppose DoJ Stay Request to Supreme Court in Gun Parts Kit Case

The Second Amendment Foundation and its attorney, Chad Flores, are preparing a response to an application to the U.S. Supreme Court by the Department of Justice and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to stay a ruling which vacated the “final rule” defining gun parts kits as firearms in a case known as VanDerStok v. Garland.

U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor handed down the ruling, and the government wants a stay pending appeal to the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. SAF was allowed to intervene in the case. Earlier this month, the Fifth Circuit refused to stay portions of the rule SAF successfully challenged, pending appeal. Issues which SAF did not challenge when it intervened in the case were granted a stay.

“This case ultimately challenges the authority of the ATF to simply change rules and definitions of firearms without Congressional authority,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “We will vigorously pursue this issue through the courts.” Read more

Gun Control

Students Attend Rifle Small Arms Firing School at Camp Perry

The Rifle Small Arms Firing School (SAFS) kicked off with instruction from the Army Marksmanship Unit at Camp Perry on July 22 and 23rd for 310 students. This class gives new and experienced competitors alike the opportunity to learn from the best in the nation and develop their skills in a controlled and safe environment.

The class started out with two hours of instruction in Camp Perry’s Hough Auditorium, complete with demonstrations and time for questions. New students were encouraged to handle the AR-15 rifle to learn the mechanics and understand marksmanship basics like sight alignment and trigger control. More experienced competitors had the opportunity to ask advanced questions.

For the next section of the class, students headed out to Rodriguez Range and use their own equipment (scope, jacket, glove, mat, etc.) for training and eventually, the Excellence-In-Competition rifle match on Day II. The AR-15 rifle, sling and ammunition were provided by the CMP for the class and match that followed. Teams of four shooters worked their coaches and began training by dry-firing. Instructors worked with students individually to teach them the basics for prone, sitting/kneeling, and standing positions.

The dry fire and position work period was followed by live fire practice. Two members from each firing point were sent to the pits to raise, lower and score targets for the two relays on the range. Pit duty is crucial because the class and match are shot on paper targets and it provides valuable scoring opportunities.

Jeff Schneider, a SAFS coach, offered his advice to his students during the live-fire practice. “Shoot like you’re dry firing, focus on the front sight, follow through the trigger and repeat. Forget your last shot; focus on the one you’re taking. Pretend you are Dory from Finding Nemo and ‘just keep swimming’,” he said.
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Firearms

AZGFD Offering Additional Big Game Hunting Opportunities

The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) once again will be offering additional hunting opportunities that will provide all hunters with a chance to draw an additional elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, and Gould’s turkey permit-tag, while generating revenue to support wildlife conservation efforts across the state.

The draw will open at 8 a.m. (Arizona time) Wednesday, Aug. 2, and close at 5 p.m. (Arizona time) Tuesday, Aug. 8. Applicants who are drawn for a limited-entry permit-tag will be contacted by the department (during the week of Aug. 14), at which time payment will be required before the permit-tag can be mailed. It is the responsibility of each applicant to provide accurate contact information to avoid missing an opportunity to receive the permit-tag for which they were drawn.

These opportunities should not be confused with the annual draws that are conducted by the department in February, June and October. A limited-entry permit-tag application does not preclude a hunter from applying for any other hunts throughout the year or impact bonus points. Animals harvested during limited-entry permit-tag seasons are excluded from annual bag limits. Read more

Hunting

NWTF and USDA Forest Service Collaborate to Tackle Wildfire Crisis in Montana

Photo courtesy of David Nikonow.

EDGEFIELD, S.C. — The National Wild Turkey Federation has teamed up with the USDA Forest Service in Montana’s Bitterroot National Forest to conduct forest restoration amid what has been deemed a wildfire crisis. The restoration is part of the NWTF’s Big Sky Forestry Initiative and the Forest Service’s Wildfire Crisis Strategy.

The ongoing project, known as the Stevensville West Central Fuels Reduction project, encompasses approximately eight miles of Forest Service boundary in Montana’s Bitterroot Valley, stretching between the Sharrot and Silverthorn Watershed in the north and the Sweathouse Watershed in the south.

The wildfire crisis has emerged as a significant concern in the western regions, primarily attributed to factors such as deteriorating forest health caused by overgrown forests, a warming climate and unprecedented drought conditions. In this project area, the absence of beneficial low-intensity fires over an extended period has led to the rapid increase of Douglas fir and other conifers, which has in turn, outcompeted and crowded out the ponderosa pine. This situation has escalated the risk of wildfires in the region and resulted in a decline in wildlife habitat diversity, underscoring the critical importance of the ongoing restoration project. Read more

Wildlife

Evaluate Your Yard This Summer

Native plants are always good additions to any yard, and sunflowers brighten any location where they are planted; plus, birds like American Goldfinches will forage on the plants and the seed heads as they grow, mature, and dry (new photo by Paul Konrad).
If you are looking for a good perennial to add to a garden space, Bee Balm comes in a variety of colors, but emphasize red flowering plants, which are most attractive to hummingbirds (red flowers produce nectar with a higher sugar content).
Red Hot Poker plants are among the variety of “hummingbird plants” that flower well under drier conditions.

It’s a great time to take a second look at your yard with birds in mind now that the summer growing season has provided what may be the peak of greenery in your trees, shrubs, garden, and lawn, and while many of your flowering plants are in bloom as part of a succession of plants in flower – with more on the way. Take it all in, and at the same time, remember your spring flowering trees and the birds that were attracted, and think about the flowers that have attracted the most hummingbirds. Remember the tall grasses and flowering plants that provided winter and early spring forage and cover for birds, and consider how you can improve and expand on your successes. Read more

Wildlife

Viking Invasion Is Coming!

The Aviara looks like a Scandinavian design, but in fact it’s built in Tennessee by Mastercraft, a well-known wakeboat builder.

The “Next Big Thing” in recreational powerboats is apparently the Scandinavian or Nordic style, sort of a modern Viking longboat, with high freeboard, vertical or reversed bow, sharp deadrise or “V” at the transom and lots of power based on the new class of jumbo outboards. Most also have a double-stepped bottom and a relatively narrow beam, tapered in more of linear shape than the typical broad-beamed USA design.

The boats are distinguished by lots of speed for a given amount of horsepower, great fuel economy and also by an impressive ability to zip smoothly through waves that would knock your teeth out in a conventional hull.

Most also have “modular” design, which means you can opt for anything from no seats at all to enough seats to turn the boat into a commuter bus. And most have bunks for at least two tucked into the console, as well as some sort of head arrangement. Pilothouse designs, with air conditioning, are also typical on the larger models, 25’ and up.

The Quarken wins the prize for the best name–it’s reminiscent of the legendary Kraken of Nordic lore.

The boats were mostly a thing in Europe until the last couple of years, but now at least two U.S. firms are building models in the genre. Wellcraft’s 355 and Mastercraft’s Aviara line are both in this playbook—you’d never know they are U.S.A. built had the companies not ‘fessed up. Read more

Fishing

Yamaha Unleashes the 2024 YXZ1000R SS

Yamaha Motor Corp., USA, the pioneer in delivering the industry’s first and only direct-connection pure-sport Side-by-Side (SxS), announces enhancements to the 2024 YXZ1000R and YXZ1000R SS (Sport Shift), highlighted by a new 6-speed transmission and all-new Yamaha Auto-Shift Technology in the SS variant. Assembled in Yamaha’s state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Newnan, Georgia, the new YXZ1000R lineup raises the bar in terms of capability, comfort, and versatility, promising unforgettable off-road adventures for pure-sport SxS enthusiasts across the country.

The highlight of the 2024 YXZ1000R SS is Yamaha’s exclusive Auto-Shift Technology, featuring three modes of direct-connection, conveniently accessible via a dash-mounted dial. This groundbreaking technology provides automatic-transmission drivers with the pure sport experience while offering the flexibility of switching to manual gear selection for an unparalleled direct-connection driving experience. The new 6-gear, close-ratio transmission is designed to excel during low-speed operation on various terrains, ensuring the vehicle stays within the ideal powerband without compromising high-speed performance. Furthermore, the enhanced transmission boosts clutch durability, delivers smoother engagement, and optimizes the overall driving experience. The new YXZ1000R SS also showcases increased accessory integration with a higher electrical output and added accessory ports and plugs.

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General
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