Mississippi Man Slapped with $77K in Fines for Headlighting Deer and Shooting Someone’s Cat 🐱

As we continue to slowly but surely inch back towards the weekend, let’s all take a minute to grab a coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and get into what this beautiful Tuesday has to offer.

Here's what's worth reading about so far this week:

GUY WAS ON A TEAR
MISSISSIPPI MAN SLAPPED WITH $77K IN FINES FOR HEADLIGHTING DEER AND SHOOTING SOMEONE’S CAT

It was a cold night in January of 2025 when Mississippi conservation officers noticed that the dark fields of Madison County held a light that simply did not belong. 

Rather than the pale sweep of a truck turning around on a gravel road well after dark, what officers spotted that night was the hard, deliberate beam of a man who had already decided the rules no longer applied. When Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks officers and Madison County deputies finally closed in, they found 24-year-old William Langston Jr. of Brandon in the act of headlighting deer. 

What they recovered that night — and what the months of investigation that followed would uncover — painted a portrait of something colder than simple lawbreaking…

🙅 New Report Says One in Four Hunters Will Sit Out the 2026 Season. A new Southwick Associates survey of more than 28,000 hunters across 20 states found that one out of every four hunters does not plan to hunt in 2026. The top reasons given were fewer places to hunt (38%), friends or family losing interest (28%), and hunting spots being too far from home (25%). Work schedules were a major limiting factor for 83% of those sitting out, while younger hunters (34 and under) specifically pointed to the rising costs of gear, ammo, leases, and travel.

Among those skipping the season, many said they would redirect that time into other outdoor activities that felt easier, less restricted, and closer to home, which included camping and fishing with family, golfing or field sports with friends. The survey, funded by a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Multistate Conservation Grant, also found that the core motivations for those who still hunt remain harvesting meat, enjoying the outdoors, time with family and friends, and simple relaxation.

🥼 Biologist Says Yellowstone Has Dozens More Wolverines Than Officially Reported. A veteran biologist with nearly 50 years of experience studying wolverines in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem says the elusive animals are far more numerous than official National Park Service figures suggest. Jim Halfpenny reports at least 31 verified wolverines in the last five years and 83 confirmed individuals since 1990, based strictly on positive evidence such as photos, DNA, collars, and tracked animals — a stark contrast to the Park Service’s older count of just seven documented wolverines from 2006–2009. He credits better technology, citizen-scientist photos, and long-term tracking for revealing a slowly increasing population, particularly in the park’s northeast and southeast corners.

Halfpenny also pushed back against the wolverine’s longstanding “demon of the north” reputation, noting that real animals average only about 30 pounds and three feet long, rarely confront grizzlies, and are more curious than vicious. He highlighted a rare 2022 sighting of a dozen wolverines together in southeast Yellowstone that he believes represents a multi-generational family group occupying the same favorable habitat first noted back in 1871. With traditional trapping and radio-collaring largely ended, Halfpenny now urges visitors to photograph every possible wolverine encounter so the next chapter of their recovery can be built on hard evidence.

🎉 After 25 Years, North Carolina Will Hunt Its Restored Elk Herd. North Carolina will hold its first legal elk hunt in 2027 under a new state law signed by Gov. Josh Stein. The tightly controlled program, managed by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, will issue just two nontransferable permits: one awarded through a resident-only raffle ($20 tickets, max 30 per person) and one sold via auction by a nonprofit conservation group, with proceeds earmarked for elk conservation and management. The current herd, reintroduced to the Great Smoky Mountains in 2001, now numbers roughly 250 animals, mostly in Haywood, Jackson, and Swain counties. The season will run Oct. 1–Nov. 1, and any harvested elk must be reported and presented to the Commission.

Supporters, including bill co-sponsor Rep. Brian Turner, frame the hunt as a conservation tool that generates dedicated funding while remaining extremely limited. As of right now, the law does not lock in future hunts as the Commission must report back by March 2028 on revenue raised and whether or not the program should continue.

🐐 You boys need a beer? Watch as these two mountain goats cautiously approach the campfire to see what’s happening.

Talk about a unique wildlife viewing opportunity.…

Oh, and one more thing…