Welcome to the Wednesday edition of the newsletter. If you’re still with us, that means you’ve made it to the middle of yet another week.
With that said, let’s all take a minute to grab a coffee or whiskey and get this mid-week dispatch out the door.
Here's what's worth reading about this morning:
Get educated - Utah is the only state that requires a shed hunting course and it’s expanded this year 🧑🎓
Big changes in Mizzou - CWD is taking its toll and officials are making big changes to deer seasons 🤢
Illinois falls short - With 81K deer hitting the ground this year, the rifle harvest is slightly below last year’s numbers 🦌
Headless bucks - A quartet of headless bucks was found near Bridger and MT officials are hot on the trail 👮
Stagnant - Elk populations in Minnesota are stagnating and state biologists are looking into why 🕵️♀️
Alaskan carry-on - Watch as this hunter refuses to check his trophy ✈️
THE DWR EXPANDED THE REQUIREMENT THIS YEAR
PLANNING TO SHED HUNT IN UTAH IN THE NEW YEAR? YOU’LL NEED TO TAKE A COURSE FIRST
As we slowly inch away from open hunting seasons and the winter begins to deepen, many of us undoubtedly get the itch to get afield and try our hand at a slightly different type of hunt. Without a firearm or bow in hand, heading out into the wild in search of discarded bone is a favorite pastime of many, but if you happen to have the hills of Utah in your sights this year, you’ll need to complete the state’s free, but mandatory online ethics course.
The 2026 Antler Gathering Ethics Course, which is now live on the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources website, takes just about 30 minutes to complete and this year, is mandatory from January 1 through May 31—an expanded period approved in 2024 to better protect wildlife (previously February 1 to April 15)…
QUICK HITS // FROM AROUND THE WEB
Big changes headed for Missouri deer hunting, driven by spread of 100% fatal disease: Cases of chronic wasting disease, a naturally occurring protein that fatally damages a deer's nervous system, have spiked throughout Missouri over the past decade. Just six Missouri counties were considered at risk in 2012, and conservationists now estimate that 82 counties are at risk. Read the full story.
Several late deer hunting seasons soon open in Pennsylvania: Even though Pennsylvania’s rifle deer season ended on Dec. 13, there are still plenty of opportunities for hunters who are still looking for a buck or doe this winter. Read the full story.
Illinois hunters bag more than 81,000 deer in 2025 firearm season: Hunters in Illinois harvested a preliminary total of 81,225 deer during the seven-day 2025 Illinois firearm deer season, which concluded on December 7. Read the full story.
FWP investigating multiple deer left to waste: Game wardens are investigating multiple instances of poached animals left to waste across Montana toward the end of the general hunting season. In one incident, four whitetail bucks were dumped on Bureau of Land Management land between Bridger and Belfry. Read the full story.
The headless deer | Montana FWP
WVDNR highlights additional deer hunting opportunities following end of Buck Firearms Season: While the Buck Firearms Season is over, there are still several opportunities to hunt deer. The archery and crossbow season is still active through Wednesday, December 31. Muzzleloader deer season is open now until Sunday, December 21st. Read the full story.
Minnesota elk populations stagnate, researchers look into why: The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources limited the number of permits for hunting elk this year, following an aerial survey last winter that revealed lower than expected population numbers among the state's three wild herds. Read the full story.
VIDEO // SOME THINGS JUST HAVE TO BE SEEN
🦌 That’s some Alaskan-style carry-on right there. Watch as some lucky onlooker grabs some footage of this fella who isn’t willing to separate from his trophy.
That’s our type of dude right there…
QUOTABLES // WORDS TO LIVE BY
“One does not hunt in order to kill; on the contrary, one kills in order to have hunted… What he is after is having to win it, to conquer the surly brute through his own effort and skill with all the extras that this carries with it: the immersion in the countryside, the healthfulness of the exercise, the distraction from his job.”
— José Ortega y Gasset
HUMPDAY MEME // I FEEL ATTACKED
WANDERINGS // A SFW GLIMPSE OF OUR BROWSER HISTORY
This wouldn’t apply to my wife who promptly throws out, dismantles and packs away every sign of Christmas the following day, but for those looking to extend the life of your tree, here’s a few tips. Apparently the country of Latvia has a big-time man shortage (seriously) and women there are now hiring dudes by the hour to do manual labor and just generally take care of things. Where my single dudes at?? Not a question I can honestly say that I have pondered up until now, but would Walter White still be cooking up meth in 2025? And history’s most bizarre deaths that involve elephants.
EYE CANDY // PICTURES > WORDS
SHARE WITH FRIENDS // WE’LL SEND YOU COOL SH*T
It’s easy. Copy your link below and send it to your friends. If they sign up, you get free stuff.
Now, do it. (Please).
Oh, and one more thing…
