Rattlesnake Safety Tips for Summer

Give snakes plenty of space

Rattlesnakes often strike fear in the hearts of people. But they shouldn’t. Knowing a little about the animal, and doing a few simple things — like keeping your distance and not harassing a snake — can go a long way to keeping you safe.

If you see a rattlesnake, give it plenty of space. And don’t harass it.

Kevin Wheeler, biologist with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, says rattlesnakes in Utah are on the move right now, looking for water and rodents after emerging from their dens in May.

Wheeler says the snakes will likely have to travel more to find food this year. “Drought conditions have reduced Utah’s rodent population,” he says, “so snakes will be roaming more, looking for rodents. Because the snakes will be active, there’s a greater chance you’ll see one in the wild this year.”

So, if you see a rattlesnake in the wild, what should you do? Read more

2018 Federal Duck Stamp Features A Big Change

Artwork for the 2018 Federal Junior duck stamp.

RW85, the 2018 Federal duck stamp.

On June 29, 2018, in Hanover, Md., the U.S. Department of the Interior will issue the $25 Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation stamp for the 2018-2019 waterfowl hunting season (RW85). The stamp is valid through June 30, 2019. The stamp features mallards by Robert Hautman of Delano, Minn. This is the third Federal stamp featuring Mr. Hautman’s winning artwork, (his other federal stamps are RW64 and RW68).

 

The First Day of Issue will take place at the Bass Pro Shop in Hanover. The event is free and open to the public. Check fws.gov for starting time and additional event information.

 

The 2018 stamp will be issued in three different formats: a pane of 20, an 85th Anniversary souvenir sheet of four and a self-adhesive single. This year will also see a BIG change for the stamp program. Read more

Canada Seeks to Reduce Lead in Fishing Tackle

An average Canadian angler can lose 11 to 15 jigs and sinkers per year while fishing due to snags and other reasons. This adds up to about 460 tonnes of lead jigs and sinkers lost every year into Canada’s lakes and waterways. This represents the most significant source of lead releases into Canadian waters.

Lead is a highly toxic metal that can cause detrimental effects to the nervous and reproductive system in humans. With respect to wildlife, the ingestion of small lead fishing sinkers and jigs is a major cause of death in breeding Common Loons in Canada, often exceeding the death rate caused by trauma, disease and entanglement in fishing gear. Ingesting them can lead to blindness, muscle paralysis, reduced ability to reproduce, seizures and death.

Alternatives

There are several viable non-lead sinkers and jigs available in the Canadian market. Anglers can use sinkers and jigs made from non-poisonous materials such as tin, bismuth, antimony, steel, brass, tungsten, terpene resin putty and polypropylene. These alternatives have minimal cost compared to overall fishing expenditures. Read more

Michigan DNR Seeks Environmentally Sensitive Lands for Habitat Restoration

Contact: Mike Parker, DNR conservation partners program specialist, 517-898-3293

Goal is to encourage more monarch butterflies, pheasants, ducks and grassland birds to frequent southern Michigan

Starting Monday, June 4, 2018, the United States Department of Agriculture will accept offers from rural landowners in 41 southern Michigan counties who want to voluntarily restore pollinator and wildlife habitat on their property. The solicitation is through the USDA Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE), Southern Michigan Pheasant and Monarch Recovery, in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Pheasants Forever, Inc.

“Any landowner in an eligible area is invited to visit their nearest Michigan USDA Service Center to learn about the Conservation Reserve Program and the pheasant and monarch recovery effort,” said DNR Director Keith Creagh. “We will accept up to 40,000 acres of environmentally sensitive land for the program, and work closely with the USDA, partners and landowners to improve wildlife habitat.”

SAFE is a federally funded voluntary program that assists agricultural producers and landowners with the cost of restoring, enhancing and protecting certain grasses, shrubs and trees to improve water quality, prevent soil erosion and reduce loss of wildlife habitat. In return, participants are provided annual rental payments, cost-share assistance and other financial incentives.

Eligible Michigan counties include Allegan, Arenac, Barry, Bay, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Clare, Clinton, Eaton, Genesee, Gladwin, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Huron, Ingham, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Kent, Lapeer, Lenawee, Livingston, Mecosta, Midland, Monroe, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, Ottawa, Saginaw, Sanilac, Shiawassee, St. Clair, St. Joseph, Tuscola, Van Buren and Washtenaw. Read more

NMMA Issues Condemnation of Tariffs on Canada, EU and Mexico

Following the announcement by U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross that Section 232 tariff exemptions for Canada, Mexico, and the European Union expired, resulting in a 25 percent tariff on steel and 10 percent tariff on aluminum, respectively, NMMA is sounding the alarm to the Trump Administration and Congress on the damage to the recreational boating industry.

NMMA President, Thom Dammrich, noted, “The decision to impose tariffs on major trading partners severely harms the $39 billion U.S. recreational boating industry and the 650,000 American workers it supports. Of the marine manufactures that build aluminum boats, the majority use domestic aluminum. The issue with these tariffs is not so much about having to pay higher prices for imported aluminum as it is about the drastic price increases our members are already experiencing from domestic aluminum mills and the severe blow to the competitive global market manufacturers depend on.”

Dammrich continued, “Simply put, these tariffs are a disaster for our industry. All types of recreational boats are on the retaliatory lists from both Canada and the EU. As a result, rather than protecting American manufacturing, these tariffs directly harm the entire recreational boating industry—one of our country’s enduring American-made industries. To make matters worse, Canada, Mexico, and the EU are the top three export markets for American-made marine products and in 2017 they accounted for nearly 70 percent of marine exports.” Read more

Canada Announces Retaliatory Tariffs to Include U.S. Built Boats

GW: Just the beginning of a new consumer-pays era!

The decision by the Trump Administration to implement 25 percent tariffs on steel and 10 percent tariffs on aluminum from Canada, the European Union and Mexico, has already ignited a trade war with both the EU, Mexico, and Canada. All three regions are top export markets for the U.S. recreational boating industry. Canada’s Department of Finance announced that in response to the U.S. tariffs, “Canada intends to impose surtaxes or similar trade-restrictive countermeasures against up to C$16.6 billion in imports of steel, aluminum, and other products from the U.S., representing the value of 2017 Canadian exports affected by the U.S. measures.  The Government is also considering whether additional measures may be required.” These retaliatory efforts include a 10 percent tariff on U.S. boats exported to Canada.

Canada’s countermeasures will take effect on July 1, 2018 and, according to Canada’s Department of Finance, will remain in place until the U.S. eliminates its trade-restrictive measures against Canada. The countermeasures will not apply to U.S. goods that are in transit to Canada on the day on which these countermeasures come into force. Read more

Bird Treaty Ruffles Feathers

By Glen Wunderlich

Recent news from Washington indicates the economy is growing at a rapid pace and that the country is deemed to be at full employment.  The Trump administration has eliminated encumbrances to progress, and in so doing, has ruffled the feathers of a gaggle of environmental groups that seek protection for migratory birds.  Recently filed litigation challenges the current Administration’s move to eliminate longstanding protections for waterfowl, raptors, and songbirds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) enacted over 100 years ago. 

 

At issue in the suit by the National Audubon Society v. Department of the Interior, is the claim that the Act’s prohibition on the killing or “taking” of migratory birds has long been understood to extend to incidental take from industrial activities — meaning unintentional but predictable and avoidable killing. Under the Administration’s revised interpretation, the MBTA’s protections will apply only to activities that purposefully kill birds. Any “incidental” take — no matter how inevitable or devastating the impact on birds — is now immune from enforcement under the law based on a memo issued by the U.S. Department of Interior of December 2017.

 

The government’s memorandum in question analyzes whether the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, 16 U.S.C. § 703 (“MBTA”), prohibits the accidental or “incidental” taking or killing of migratory birds. Unless permitted by regulation, the MBTA prohibits the “taking” and “killing” of migratory birds. “Incidental take” is take that results from an activity, but is not the purpose of that activity.

Interpreting the MBTA to apply to incidental or accidental actions hangs the sword of Damocles over a host of otherwise lawful and productive actions, threatening up to six months in jail and a $15,000 penalty for each and every bird injured or killed says the Interior Department.

Neither the plain language of the statute nor its legislative history support the notion that Congress intended to criminalize, with fines and potential jail time, otherwise lawful conduct that might incidentally result in the taking of one or more birds.  

The government’s position on the Act’s intention relates to the early 1900s, when commercial killing for feathers to adorn ladies’ fancy hats had had taken its toll on many bird species.  As a result of commercial hunting, several species, such as the Labrador Ducks, Great Auks, Passenger Pigeons, Carolina Parakeets, and Heath Hens were extinct or nearly so by the end of the 19th century.

The government’s assertion is that neither the plain language of the statute nor its legislative history, support the notion that Congress intended to criminalize, with fines and potential jail time, otherwise lawful conduct that might incidentally result in the taking of one or more birds.

Said Mike Parr, President of American Bird Conservancy, “The new policy makes it much harder to protect birds from major bird traps — threats like oil pits, wind turbines, and communication towers in bird migration hotspots.”

Should we then give up driving cars in an effort to protect birds or four-legged animals – let alone humans – from inevitable, yet incidental, deaths?  No doubt, progress has its cost and the question of where to draw the line is now on the table.

Everglades National Park and Florida FWC to Expand Python Removal Efforts

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Everglades National Park and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) are partnering together to expand efforts to remove Burmese pythons from within the park. The partnership will expand the park’s Python Removal Authorized Agent Program by allowing paid FWC contractors to remove pythons in Everglades National Park. The expansion will triple the maximum allowed number of participants in the park from 40 to 120, allow FWC contractors to use firearms or other humane methods to euthanize pythons in the wild, and qualify additional trained NPS personnel to live capture and turn in pythons. The purpose of this controlled invasive species management program remains to remove invasive pythons and other invasive species from the wild and advance research in methods to control pythons.

The Park is working closely with the FWC on the terms of the agreement which would allow FWC contractors to engage in python removals in the park, potentially as early as July 2018.

“We are excited to partner with FWC on invasive species management and are certain this partnership will increase python removals within our park,” said Everglades National Park Superintendent Pedro Ramos. “We worked hard in planning this expansion to ensure it won’t harm the park and its exceptional resources.” Read more

Ruger Introduces New Scout Rifle and 77/17 Configurations

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE: RGR) is excited to introduce two new model configurations: the Ruger® Scout Rifle chambered in .450 Bushmaster, and the Ruger 77/17® chambered in .17 WSM.

A frequent request from hunters, the Scout Rifle chambered in .450 Bushmaster features a stainless steel finish and a lightweight synthetic stock. Combining the versatility of the Scout Rifle with the powerful knockdown capability of the .450 Bushmaster cartridge, this new rifle delivers the accuracy and reliability customers have come to appreciate and expect from Ruger® rifles.

Following on the heels of the successful reintroduction of the 77-Series bolt-action rifles, Ruger is also introducing the 77/17 chambered in .17 WSM with a 20″ blued alloy steel barrel and American walnut stock. Flat shooting and superbly accurate, this rifle also features an improved trigger pull over previous 77/17 WSM models.

“These two additions to proven Ruger platforms will benefit a wide variety of shooters,” said Ruger President and CEO, Chris Killoy. “Both rifles are examples of how we at Ruger listen to our customers and work hard to deliver on their requests.” Read more

Starline Kicks Off American Summer Giveaway to Help Veterans

SEDALIA, MO – Starline Brass has recently kicked off an exciting new promotion – The American Summer Giveaway. Starline is giving away two amazing reloading prize packs to two lucky winners. Enter to win at www.starlinebrass.com/giveaway orhttps://www.facebook.com/StarlineBrass/.

What’s even better? Starline is donating $1 for every unique entry in the giveaway and $1 for every order received during the promotion period to America’s Mighty Warriors, an organization that honors the sacrifices of our troops and the fallen and their families by providing programs that improve quality of life, resiliency and recovery.

The first reloading prize pack includes a Dillon XL650 Progressive Reloading Machine, 8 lbs of Hodgdon Powder of the winner’s choice, 500 Sierra Bullets of the winner’s choice and 500 Starline cases of the winner’s choice.

The second reloading prize pack includes a RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Kit, RCBS Charge Master, RCBS Universal Case Prep Center, 8 lbs of Hodgdon Powder of the winner’s choice, 500 Sierra Bullets of the winner’s choice and 500 Starline cases of the winner’s choice.

Enter to win one of these two amazing reloading prize packs at www.starlinebrass.com/giveaway or https://www.facebook.com/StarlineBrass/. Read more

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