The weekend might not be here just yet, but your favorite dispatch from the great outdoors is.
So grab your coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and let's get caught up on the outdoor news and views from the past 24-or-so hours.
Here's what's worth reading about today:
Quite the operation - Texas buyer goes down in massive Montana eagle poaching ring 🦅
Baited - Pa. is seriously considering expanding hunting over bait 🍎
Wolf cuts - Wyoming proposes slashing available wolf tags in half ✂️
One buck rule - Michigan’s Natural Resource commission makes the state’s new one buck rule official 🦌
Self-inflicted - A Texas hunter accidentally shoots himself after being attacked by a hog 🐗
Oh hell no - These fellas are in immediate need of a bigger boat 🦈
QUITE THE OPERATION
TEXAS BUYER GETS PROBATION AND $77,500 RESTITUTION IN FLATHEAD EAGLE TRAFFICKING RING
Well, if you're going to run one of the largest documented raptor slaughter operations in modern U.S. history, which included baiting deer carcasses, blasting thousands of protected birds out of the sky, and FedExing the tails and mounts across the country for cash, you’d better have a damn good buyer on the other end keeping the lights on.
Enter 71-year-old John Patrick Butler of Humble, Texas.
Butler was not a hunter but a key figure in a multi-year conspiracy that federal investigators say devastated raptor populations on the Flathead Indian Reservation. Court records show he paid hundreds to thousands of dollars per bird or set of feathers via PayPal and other online transfers. In exchange, co-defendants shipped eagle parts, including tails and full mounts, through the U.S. mail from Montana to his home in Texas…
QUICK HITS // FROM AROUND THE WEB
Dates set for next black bear hunting season in Louisiana: The season would be from Dec. 5-20 in all of the Black Bear Management areas in Louisiana. This is a change over last year, where the season was held in areas 1, 2 and 4. Read the full story.
Hunting Over Bait Could Expand in Pennsylvania to Control Deer Numbers: State Rep. Thomas Mehaffie III, R-Dauphin, introduced House Bill 2440, which would give the Pennsylvania Game Commission the authority to allow baiting on private property to attract deer in an attempt to address overpopulation concerns in some areas. Read the full story.
Indiana Hunters Easily Hit Bobcat Trapping Season Quota: The Indiana Department of Natural Resources closed its bobcat trapping season early, after hunters reached the statewide quota. The season was scheduled to run from November 8 – January 31, or until the quota of 250 bobcats was reached. That was achieved after just a few weeks of trapping. Read the full story.
Wyoming Game and Fish proposes cutting wolf hunting season in half: The proposal comes following a population decline caused by canine distemper virus. The population fell from 163 wolves to 132 wolves in the trophy game management area, or the part of northwest Wyoming where wolf hunting is regulated. The department’s objective for the area is 160 wolves. Read the full story.
Michigan Natural Resources Commission passes one buck rule, eliminates firearm restrictions: After a nine-and-a-half-hour meeting, the Natural Resources Commission (NRC) voted to pass a new hunting rule that limits hunters to one buck per season in the lower peninsula. The previous number was two, as the goal is to protect the buck population and even out the buck-to-doe ratio. Read the full story.
Man accidentally shoots himself while hog hunting in Texas, police say: The man told police he had been hog hunting, was attacked by a hog, and inadvertently discharged his firearm, resulting in an injury, Teague PD said. Read the full story.
Constitutional right to hunt and fish proposed for Colorado ballot: Colorado voters may well get the chance to weigh in this November on creating a constitutional right to hunt and fish, which proponents say is necessary to protect outdoor sporting activities from an ongoing onslaught of anti-hunting efforts. Read the full story.
Minnesota large-scale elk study is underway: The Minnesota DNR began a large-scale elk research study in January to improve our understanding of baseline elk population dynamics (e.g., pregnancy rates, survival rates of adults vs. calves, survival rates of males vs. females, causes of mortality and movement amongst herds), as well as how elk use the landscape among seasons and years. This past winter we were able to put GPS trackers (either collars or ear tags) on 28 elk. Read the full story.
VIDEO // SOME THINGS JUST HAVE TO BE SEEN
🦈 The moment you realize you might need a bigger boat. Watch as these fellas get approached by one massive great white.
Excuse the language, they’re Aussies…
WEEKEND MEME // TELL HIM ABOUT YOUR MORNING ROUTINE
WANDERINGS // A SFW GLIMPSE OF OUR BROWSER HISTORY
Teenage preacher, ambulance driver, park ranger and a few other odd day jobs some of your favorite writers held while putting pen to paper. I’m loving hearing about these three teenagers (yes, teenagers) participating in the World Series of birding. World got you down lately? It’s never too late to turn to some classic sea shanties. Apparently these seafaring songs still have a ton of psychological benefits. And a few standout American beers that held their own at the World Beer Cup.
EYE CANDY // PICTURES > WORDS
The pull of the weekend.
📸 by: @marialovely_
Oh, and one more thing…
