Alaska Bear Hunter Contracts Rare 'Seal Finger' Infection from Brown Bear 🦭

In the event that the weekend wasn’t quite long enough for you, here’s to hoping that your favorite dispatch from the outdoor world can give you 5-or-so minutes to prep yourself for yet another week.

So, without further ado, let’s grab that coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and get caught up on the outdoor news and views from the past few days. 

Here's what's worth reading about today:

A MEDICAL FIRST
ALASKA BEAR HUNTER CONTRACTS RARE ‘SEAL FINGER’ INFECTION FROM BROWN BEAR

In what’s being touted as a medical first, a 29-year-old hunter from Anchorage, Alaska, contracted a rare bacterial infection known as "Seal Finger" not from a seal, but from skinning a brown bear on the Alaska Peninsula. 

The story began in September 2024, when a notably healthy man in his late 20s embarked on a brown bear hunt near Ivanof Bay on the Alaska Peninsula. While skinning the animal, he did something that many of us do and sustained a laceration on his left pinkie finger. According to a bulletin released last week by the epidemiology section of the Alaska Division of Public Health, his hand and knife had also come into contact with the bear's mouth, though there was no reported exposure to the intestinal tract.

Thinking nothing initially of the knick on his finger, it wasn’t until seven days later that the hunter sought care at an urgent care clinic in Anchorage, presenting redness, painful swelling, and aching over the proximal interphalangeal joint in his pinkie finger…

Wisconsin DNR opens 2026 elk season applications, hunters say the hunt would be a "dream": For the third year in a row, there will be increased opportunity to pursue elk within the Central Elk Management Zone (formerly Black River Elk Range), as additional bull elk and antlerless harvest authorizations will be available through the state licensing system. Read the full story.

Proposal would make it easier for CT farmers to hunt black bears: Although black bear hunting is not legal in Connecticut, a law passed in 2023 allows farmers to apply for a hunting permit if they can prove bears are threatening or damaging their crops or livestock. Read the full story.

Iowa DNR to hold public meetings to hear suggestions on possible hunting rule changes: Between March 2-5, the Iowa DNR will host a series of public meetings in communities across Iowa. During those meetings, DNR staff plan to share more about the last hunting season. Read the full story.

Mobs Of Elk Leave National Elk Refuge Near Jackson With ‘False Sense Of Early Spring': With what locals say is an unprecedentedly mild winter, elk are bailing out of the National Elk Refuge near Jackson, apparently thinking it's spring already. Read the full story.

Michigan's new coyote hunting season set to begin next week: Michigan's new coyote hunting and trapping season is set to begin next week. The season will start Monday, March 2, and will run for over seven months, until Oct. 14. Read the full story.

Hunting grouse in Ohio could become even more severely restricted: The protracted decline in the state’s ruffed grouse population likely prompted the Ohio Division of Wildlife to seek hunting limits unimaginable a generation ago when the bird was common in southeastern Ohio. Read the full story.

😲 Hell hath no fury like a mom trying to save her baby. Watch as this trail cam footage captures a doe frantically stomping a bobcat that is trying to dine on her fawn.

Unfortunately it wasn’t enough…

Dazzle, the Karelian Bear Dog, gave a good 13 years of service to the Nevada Dept of Wildlife. She helped hazed around 200 bears during her career, working to reinforce a natural fear of humans in Nevada bruins after her parents kick started to program back in 2001.

Thanks for your service 🫡

📸 : @nevadawildlife

Oh, and one more thing…