Hunters: Help feed hungry families, win prizes by donating deer

With Michigan’s firearm deer season drawing near and bow season underway, the DNR encourages hunters to help feed hungry families by donating deer to Michigan Sportsmen Against Hunger. Since 1991, this all-volunteer, nonprofit organization has worked to connect donors, wild game processors and charities like food banks, pantries and shelters that help feed those in need.

Michigan hunters donated enough deer last year to produce over 50,000 pounds of ground venison, providing more than 200,000 meals.

“This is great, but we know we can do better,” said Dean Hall, Michigan Sportsmen Against Hunger executive officer.

To help boost participation, MSAH is partnering for the second year with the DNR and Jay’s Sporting Goods to offer a special opportunity for hunters to donate deer taken in the first few days of the firearm season to local food banks.

Michigan Sportsmen Against Hunger will have a truck at the Jay’s location in Clare (8880 S. Clare Ave.) Saturday, Nov. 16, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 17, from noon to 4 p.m. Hunters who donate a legally taken deer during the event will have their names entered for a chance to win a $500 Jay’s Sporting goods gift certificate. Read more

Hunting

Michigan: Over 21 Million Fish Stocked in 2019

Brown trout, coho salmon, steelhead, walleye and nine other species and one hybrid were among the 21,281,411 fish stocked in Michigan’s public waters so far this year. These fish weighed a combined total of 311 tons.

DNR staff made 449 stocking trips to 857 stocking sites, including Great Lakes, inland lakes and rivers. Eighteen specialized stocking trucks traveled 106,000 miles over the course of 2,693 hours to get the job done.

The number and type of fish stocked varies depending on stocking requests, hatchery rearing assignments, and the source and temperature of each facility’s rearing water. Michigan has six state fish hatcheries and two cooperative hatcheries that together produce the species, strain and size of fish requested by fisheries managers. These fish are delivered at a specific time and location to ensure their survival and success.

Each hatchery stocked the following fish (details on weight and sites are available on the DNR’s website):

  • Harrietta State Fish Hatchery (west of Cadillac) stocked 916,630 brown and rainbow trout.
  • Marquette State Fish Hatchery (near Marquette) stocked 377,076 yearling lake trout, brook trout and splake (a hybrid of lake trout and brook trout).
  • Oden State Fish Hatchery (near Petoskey) stocked 647,699 brown and rainbow trout.
  • Platte River State Fish Hatchery (near Honor) stocked 3,090,753 fish that included yearling Atlantic and coho salmon, spring fingerling chinook salmon and walleye fry.
  • Thompson State Fish Hatchery (near Manistique) stocked 6,944,722 fish that included yearling steelhead, spring fingerling chinook salmon and walleye fry.
  • Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery (near Kalamazoo) stocked 6,233,314 fish that included yearling steelhead, spring fingerling chinook salmon, Great Lakes strain muskellunge, walleye fry and channel catfish obtained from the Ohio DNR.

A cooperative teaching hatchery at Lake Superior State University (in Sault Ste. Marie) stocked 19,894 Atlantic salmon. Read more

Fishing

Taurus 1911 Commander 9mm

Now Shipping!

(Miami, FL) – Taurus adds a new model to its popular 1911 Commander series with the introduction of the 1911 Commander 9mm Luger.

Built with the same key specifications and dimensions as the original 1911 Commander .45 ACP, the new model is chambered for 9mm Luger and offers additional capacity at nine rounds.

Since its introduction, the 1911 Commander has served as a reliable defensive handgun for shooters who favor the robust 1911-style construction, features, and full grip but prefer a shorter profile for daily or concealed carry. The all-steel slide and frame in matte black finish combined with the aggressively checkered grip delivers a substantive feel in the hand and the kind of durability that has made this handgun popular for those who demand dependability and reliability in their home defense or personal carry firearm. Read more

Firearms

Wildlife officials help restore desert bighorn sheep herds by relocating 50 sheep from Nevada to Utah

BEAVER — A small herd of desert bighorn sheep was released last Thursday and Friday in the Ranch Canyon area of the Mineral Mountains west of Beaver by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and other partnering organizations. The translocation creates a herd in a location that has been void of bighorn sheep for many years and is part of a long-term effort to fill vacant wild sheep habitat.

Fifty-one bighorns were captured from a healthy herd in Nevada via a helicopter and were then transported to Utah. The bighorn sheep were taken from expanding Nevada sheep populations that were nearing carrying capacity, which is the maximum number of sheep that could be supported by the habitat in the area. This made it possible for the extra sheep to be translocated to the stark, rocky landscape of the Mineral Mountains. Read more

Wildlife

CZ-USA Introduces New All-Terrain Series of Shotguns

Kansas City, KS – Several of CZ-USA’s most popular shotguns are now available in the new All-Terrain Series, which features an OD Green Cerakote finish and walnut stock for the best in all-season durability and elegant design. Likewise, four break barrel models feature an innovative patent-pending earth magnet design to keep shotgun shells in place when bird hunters are most active in the field.

Perfect for chasing every species from doves and ducks to turkey and grouse, the new All-Terrain Series includes the semi-auto 1012 and break barrel Bobwhite G2, Drake, Redhead Premier and Upland Ultralight models. Barrels and receivers feature an OD Green Cerakote finish that delivers the ultimate in durability no matter how nasty the elements get. Whether you’re hunkered down in a duck blind or traipsing through the timber, the All-Terrain Series shotguns are built to take whatever abuse gets thrown their way. Paired with a walnut stock and forend, the series combines rugged dependability with a stunning look that’s anything but
ostentatious. Read more

Firearms

Michigan: Deer Movement in Studies Provide Insight into CWD Spread

A colorful map shows deer movements in the Upper Peninsula.By EMMA KUKUK
Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Since wildlife researchers first detected chronic wasting disease in Colorado in the 1960s, it has emerged as a growing concern for the nation’s wildlife agencies and hunters.

The disease is a fatal nervous system malady found in animals from the Cervidae family, which includes deer, moose and elk. It attacks the brain of infected animals, creating small lesions. There is no cure for CWD – it is 100% fatal in all animals that contract it.

Though the disorder affects several species, its impact on deer is of special concern. In states where CWD is established, it diminishes the health of deer and causes long-term population decline.

In Michigan, this disease challenges not only the foundation of wildlife conservation, but the state’s long-standing hunting traditions.

Wildlife agencies investigating CWD have found that deer movement is key to disease spread. Understanding deer movement is therefore vital to making the most of CWD management strategies. Read more

Wildlife

Primary Arms Closes Glocktober With Grey Ghost Precision Pistol Giveaway

Final Week of Glocktober Event

Features Grey Ghost Precision Combat Pistol Compact valued at $1,499.99

Built for Superior Precision with Match Fitment and Enhanced Ergonomics

Coincides with Primary Arms Halloween Sale

HOUSTON, TEXAS – Primary Arms has begun their final Glocktober giveaway event. Straight from the Grey Ghost Precision workshop, the Combat Pistol Compact embodies the spirit of a custom Glock with an innovative, original design. With exacting fitment, the Grey Ghost CPC ensures superior precision for both concealment and competition.

Enter now on the Primary Arms Blog, the Grey Ghost Giveaway features the new Grey Ghost Precision Combat Pistol Compact. This unique pistol is inspired by the ingenious design of the Glock 19 and has compatibility with gen 3 parts. Beyond that, this pistol adds its own suite of premium features that make for a compelling sidearm. A contoured, performance-cut frame enhances the user’s grip and control over the pistol while firing, and the slide comes ready to mount either a Leupold DeltaPoint Pro or Trijicon RMR. In addition, every GGP Combat Pistol comes with a custom soft case, which provides storage protection for the pistol as well as pouches for two additional magazines. Read more

Firearms

Michigan DNR Shooting Ranges Extend Hours for Hunters

Ranges open every day Oct. 30-Nov. 18

We’re offering extended shooting hours at the DNR ranges (except the Dansville range) on the weekends prior to Nov. 15 to help hunters prepare for the firearm deer season.

Oct. 26-27, Nov. 2-3 and Nov. 9-10:

  • Ortonville and Pontiac Lake will be open 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
  • Rose Lake and Sharonville will be open 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

The ranges will be open every day Oct. 30 through Nov. 18, including Veterans’ Day. The weekday shooting hours are 10 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at Ortonville and Pontiac Lake, and 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at Rose Lake and Sharonville.

DNR shooting ranges ?

Firearms

Michigan: DNR Reports CWD-Positive Deer

A 2-year-old, hunter-harvested doe from Hamilton Township, in Gratiot County, Michigan, recently tested positive for chronic wasting disease – the second confirmed CWD-positive wild deer from that county. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said that tissue samples were sent to the Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for confirmation.

Gratiot County’s first CWD-positive deer was discovered in late 2018. CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer, elk and moose. To date, the disease also has been confirmed in Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent and Montcalm counties.

“When we find CWD a few townships over from a prior detection in the same county, it becomes increasingly important to discover if and where additional cases might be within that county,” said DNR deer and elk specialist Chad Stewart. “In light of this new detection, we ask hunters in southeastern Gratiot and southwestern Saginaw counties, especially, to have their deer tested this year.”

Nearby deer check stations and drop boxes are available at the DNR field office in St. Charles, McNabb Park in Ithaca and Bellingar Packing in Ashley.

“The DNR sets surveillance goals – basically, a number of deer tested in a particular area – to understand the scale of infection in the local deer herd,” Stewart said. “The closer we come to meeting these goals, the better we can learn about where chronic wasting disease exists in Michigan. That’s why we encourage hunters to get deer tested, especially in areas where we haven’t yet met surveillance goals.”

CWD is not common among deer in Michigan, and the Department of Natural Resources encourages hunters to assist in disease surveillance.

Stewart said some of easiest ways hunters can help address CWD are to keep hunting throughout the remaining deer seasons, dispose of leftover parts in the trash and, if possible, take additional does in the Lower Peninsula’s CWD areas.

Deer check stations and drop boxes will be open throughout the deer hunting seasons, while the DNR Wildlife Disease Laboratory and partner Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory will continue processing and testing deer as hunting seasons continue. For check station locations and hours, visit Michigan.gov/DeerCheck. Read more

Hunting, Wildlife

Federal’s Custom Shop for Ammunition Launches Online

ANOKA, Minnesota –  – Federal is proud to introduce its new online custom-loaded ammunition shop. Customers can choose from several different specialized shotshell and centerfire rifle offerings, with a wide selection of the best bullets from Federal, Nosler, Sierra, Berger, Barnes and more. In addition, custom TSS Shotshells for turkey, waterfowl and upland game can be ordered. Orders are shipped direct to consumer.

“The Federal Custom Shop is an all-new way to deliver your preference of the perfect centerfire rifle or shotgun load built by our ammunition experts,” said Federal Ammunition President Jason Vanderbrink.

For example, at the time of the launch, centerfire rifle shooters can choose numerous bullets and from more than 10 different cartridges including 6.5-284 Norma, 257 Weatherby, 243 Winchester, 257 Roberts +P, 6.5 Creedmoor and more. Shotshell customers can custom order a large variety of loads including 10-gauge and 28-gauge. Shotgun Loads with unique payload sizes or loaded in 2-3/4 hulls for a lower recoil benefit are also possible. A lot of ammunition options exist at Federal’s Custom Shop that will appeal to customer personal preferences. However, the long list of options will change as the shop grows.

“If it’s not in Federal’s vast catalog as factory-loaded ammo, we may have it listed on our website as a load we will custom hand-load for you. We now have a specific selection of rifle and TSS shotshell loads that we will build on-demand, per order.” Vanderbrink said. “For example, Barnes 120-grain Tipped TSX in 6.5-284 Norma and 28-gauge TSS turkey loads aren’t products we list in our catalog, but you can certainly order them through our Custom Shop.”

Each Custom Shop round is painstakingly handloaded to order by our team of expert engineers in our state-of-the-art reloading workshop. These veteran craftsmen combine the best components with extra quality checks at every stage for the most consistent velocity, accuracy and overall performance. Loads are then hand-checked for final inspection and cleaned before being custom-packed in durable packaging signed by the engineer that hand-loaded it. Read more

Ammunition
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