Hunter Avoids Criminal Charges After Mistakenly Killing Colorado Wolf 🐺

I’m currently at the “it’s Thursday already?” phase of the workweek and am unsure as to whether or not that is a good thing as of yet.

With that in mind, let’s all take a minute to grab a coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and get this Thursday morning dispatch out the door.

Here's what's worth reading about today:

THE RIGHT CALL
HUNTER AVOIDS CRIMINAL CHARGES AFTER MISTAKENLY KILLING COLORADO WOLF

Unlawfully taking wolves in Colorado can carry jail time, fines exceeding six figures and multi-year or even lifetime suspensions of hunting privileges.

When making their announcement this week, CPW made it clear that it could very well have pursued those penalties, but instead opted for a more fair treatment considering the hunter’s conduct following the shot…

🎣 Pennsylvania Boy Reels in Piranha While Fishing for Bass. An 8-year-old Pennsylvania boy reeled in a lot more than he bargained for while bass fishing with his father at Ridley Park Lake last weekend. Hooking into what the young man obviously suspected to be a hog of a bass, the father-son duo were dumbfounded when the boy landed what turned out to be a two-pound red-bellied piranha.

Initially thinking the fish was an unusually large bluegill, it was the boy that immediately recognized the fish as a sharp-toothed piranha. That identification was later confirmed by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission who stated that the fish ended up there by someone illegally dumping what was likely an unwanted pet into the lake. Officials went on to say that it was a unique experience for the boy, as it would have been highly unlikely that the piranha would have survived the upcoming winter season.

🐊 Paddleboarder Fights Off Gator to Save Woman who was Attacked at Silver Springs. A woman was attacked by a nearly 10-foot alligator last weekend while she was wading in the water in Florida’s Silver River. Mike Head, who was paddleboarding nearby with his family, heard screams and paddled over to help.

According to Head, he spotted the gator approaching the woman when suddenly it took off “like a missile” and grabbed the woman. Rushing to her rescue, Head used his paddle to hit the gator who was, at this point, firmly affixed to the victim’s arm. He was soon able to drive the gator way and, along with help from another boater, improvised a tourniquet with a rope to help stop the bleeding.

The woman, who has since been identified as 58-year-old Dina Spann, suffered severe damage to her right arm in the attack, leaving doctors no choice but to amputate below the elbow.

Spann is now recovering and is reported to be in good spirits. Contracted trappers later captured and removed a 9-foot-8-inch alligator late on Sunday, allowing officials to reopen the Silver River to the public.

🐺 Montana Proposes Tighter Wolf Hunt Limits Near Yellowstone After Population Overcount. When it comes to wolf hunting in the great state of Montana, nothing quite beats the state’s Region 3. Bordering Yellowstone National Park, it is by far the state’s most popular hunting area and draws about 40% of hunters and hunter days.

Despite the popularity, the Region’s Fish and Wildlife Commissioner Susan Kirby Brooke is proposing tighter limits ahead of the Aug. 19 commission meeting. She is now seeking to reduce the per-hunter bag limit in Region 3 from the statewide 15 to just five wolves, and restricting hunters in the two units immediately north of Yellowstone (313 and 316) to one wolf each.

These changes come after Montana FWP admitted that they believe they might have overshot previous wolf populations by about 370 animals. Public comments on the proposed Region 3 amendments are being accepted through Aug. 12.

🦈 Always be on the lookout for those bull sharks. Watch as this guy gets the surprise of a lifetime while chasing some grouper.

I would have bull sharted my damn pants on this one…

🦖 The Nazi Jurassic Park Hunting Reserves : I always had an envy for the earliest people of the Americas. Sure, their life expectancy was probably atrociously low, and they were constantly on the brink of starvation, but they got to hunt some damn cool animals—mammoths, cave bears, steppe bison, and the like. My fascination with the Clovis, Folsom, and even earlier cultures and their relationship with the megafauna of the Pleistocene only grew when I found a creek that would often wash out arrowheads, spear points, and bones and teeth from these long-gone animals for anyone to find. Then again, I’m a history nerd who also hunts.

At a certain point, I thought this fascination was unique until I heard similar thoughts or comments from others, including many who do not hunt. These statements led me to a conclusion that there must be some innate and universal desire for man to be on untamed, virgin hunting grounds like this continent’s first settlers were. In fact, I later learned that even the top-echelon of the Nazis dreamed of hunting idyllic forests teaming with extinct species, and they tried their hardest to make it a reality. Read the full story.

🐯 Tiger, Tiger, in the Night:  Deeply rutted pads and a cleft across the right forefoot distinguished the prints of the eldest cat. The toes were also exceptionally long. By February 1929, the tigers -— by their sign an old female and her grown cub -— had killed at least four dozen people over three years. Women cutting wheat in the field were saved only when one of the beasts was spotted and the alarm raised. The tigers retreated into the jungle. 

A couple of days later, hunter Jim Corbett was shown to a ravine where a cow had been killed the previous night. The spoor led into thick cover, where he spied the protruding leg of the luckless cow short yards ahead. Suddenly it jerked. The big cats were there, feeding!   Read the full story.

🌴 South Florida Then and Now : We launched before dawn from the Lorelei in Islamorada. The run into Florida Bay felt endless, a long push into the silence of the mangroves. No markers, no channel signs, just open water and flat light. I had no idea where we were. But Camp Walker, my guide, did. He threaded the skiff through the backcountry with a certainty that only comes from years on this water. We arrived in position without a word.

And then—tarpon.

A fish rolled, 100 yards off the bow, a faint shimmer of silver. Then another, off the port side. Camp carefully lifted the engine, grabbed the push pole, and climbed onto the platform. The skiff came to rest in silence, the water slick as mercury, and we began the slow, quiet stalk. Read the full story.

Oh, and one more thing…