Pennsylvania Mixed Bag: New park manager at Little Buffalo State Park

Harrisburg — The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources recently announced the appointment of Jim Eckert as the manager Little Buffalo State Park in Perry County, which includes the 88-acre Holman Lake.

Eckert an Economy, Beaver County, native, holds an associate degree in criminal justice from Beaver County Community College, an associate degree in park and recreation management from Butler Community College, and an undergraduate degree in park and resource management from Slippery Rock University.

MORE COVERAGE FROM PENNSYLVANIA OUTDOOR NEWS:

Pennsylvania Game Commission opts for Saturday after Thanksgiving deer opener

Data center in Pennsylvania seeks approval to discharge cooling water into Susquehanna River

Two sportsmen’s clubs in Pennsylvania with long history of feeding deer in winter told to stop

Lancaster Farmer Hershey Gets Leopold Award

Harrisburg — Jim Hershey, of Elizabethtown, recently was selected as the Pennsylvania Leopold Conservation Award recipient.

The $10,000 award honors farmers and forestland owners who go above and beyond in their management of soil health, water quality, and wildlife habitat on working land. Hershey, a farmer from Lancaster County, was revealed as the award recipient at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in Harrisburg on Jan. 12.

Sand County Foundation and national sponsor American Farmland Trust present Leopold Conservation Awards to private landowners in 28 states. In Pennsylvania, the award is presented with The Heinz Endowments, Horizon Farm Credit and Pennsylvania Farm Bureau.

Farmers in Northeast Face ‘Ticking’ Time Bomb

Binghampton, N.Y. — Finding one tick on your body is scary enough – tick-borne diseases are serious – but what if you found more than 10 on yourself in just one month?

That’s the plight of some farmers as the threat of ticks and tickborne diseases grows, according to new research featuring experts at Binghamton University, State University of New York.

New research led by Mandy Roome, associate director of the Tick-borne Disease Center at Binghamton University, State University of New York, reveals that farmers and outdoor workers in the northeast are facing an escalating threat of tick-borne diseases, which could be devastating to their livelihoods.

Shaver’s Creek Celebrates 50 Years

Petersburg, Pa. — Nestled up in the mountains, not far from the Penn State University Park campus, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center has been connecting the Penn State community and its neighbors to nature since 1976.

In 2026, as it embarks on its 50th year as a place of discovery, Shaver’s Creek is inviting the community to celebrate with a series of events and activities that honor the center’s history and future, including a t-shirt design contest, an open house, festivals and more.

Md.’s Primitive Deer Hunt Days Set Feb. 2-4

Annapolis, Md. — Maryland’s annual primitive deer hunt will be open Feb. 2-4 statewide. Hunters may use primitive bows or muzzleloaders to hunt antlered and antlerless sika and white-tailed deer during these three days.

Primitive hunting devices are defined as long bows, recurve bows, flintlock, or sidelock percussion muzzleloaders. Hunters may not use compound bows, crossbows, drawlocks, and telescopic or other electronic aiming devices. However, fiber optic sights are permitted on otherwise legal primitive bows or muzzleloaders.

Seedlings for Schools Program Starts Feb. 2

Harrisburg — The Pennsylvania Game Commission recently announced that its 2026 Seedlings for Schools program starts on Feb. 2, with plant product distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. According to the agency, the seedling are available to all Pennsylvania Schools with children from kindergarten to 12th grade.

Seedlings for Schools is a partnership program of the Game Commission’s Howard Nursery and the Wildlife for Everyone Foundation. Since the Seedlings for Schools initiative began in 2008, 1.8 million seedlings were dispersed statewide to all counties of the commonwealth.

Seedlings are grown and shipped from the Game Commission’s Howard Nursery in Centre County. The Seedlings for Schools program provides students the experience as caretakers of the environment while having fun in the outdoor classroom. To order online, go to https://bit.ly/4sL3F6g