Wisconsin Mixed Bag: George Meyer Memorial Saturday, May 2 at RiverStone Premier in Fort Atkinson

Madison — A memorial honoring George Meyer, former DNR secretary and former Wisconsin Wildlife Federation (WWF) executive director, will take place Saturday, May 2, at RiverStone Premier, 1905 Central Coast Lane, Fort Atkinson, beginning at noon with a social reception before the formal program.

Meyer’s family is asking that anyone attending at noon RSVP using a QR code on the WWF website. At 2 p.m. everyone is welcome to attend the story-telling session (open mic) and visitation with Meyer’s family.

A WWF fundraiser will run throughout, from noon to 5 p.m.

New Gun Store Opening in Merrill

Merrill, Wis. — Justin Gaiche, the owner of Chase Outdoors in Rothschild, has opened a new firearms store in Merrill called Just Guns. The new store location is across Hwy. 51 to the east of where the former Cimino’s gun store is located.

The address of Gaiche’s new shop is N265 Brandenberg Avenue. The phone number is (715) 539-9338. The shop is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

This newspaper reaches some readers on Saturday. Gaiche is running a two-day sale Friday and Saturday, April 24-25, with some big deals on Ruger, Smith and Wesson, Bergara, Winchester and Browning firearms. Product reps will be on hand for some brands to demonstrate their products. Gaiche also has lined up some give-aways for his sale.

MORE COVERAGE FROM WISCONSIN OUTDOOR NEWS: 

Wisconsin’s Lac du Flambeau closes more lakes to non-tribal members

25 arrested in second attack on Wisconsin’s Ridglan Farms dog facility

Wisconsin 3-year-old fires shot while turkey hunting, wounds two people

Next Wisconsin Coverts Project Workshop set for Aug. 6-9; Registration Deadline June 15

Woodruff, Wis. — One of the best deals a woodland owner can get these days is three free days of wildlife and land management learning at a Wisconsin Coverts Project workshop.

Coverts, an old English word for a dense thicket that provides shelter for wildlife, is sponsored by the Ruffed Grouse Society and UW-Madison Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology.  It provides basic principles of forest and wildlife management.

The workshop will run Aug. 6-9 at Kemp Natural Resources Station in Woodruff. The free workshop includes meals and lodging. Participants learn how to inventory and monitor wildlife, learn about state, federal and non-profit programs and activities that can assist landowners in managing land, and meet representatives of groups that can help people become good land stewards. Attendance is limited to 25 landowners. Apply by June 15.

The workshop is coordinated by Jamie Nack, senior extension wildlife outreach specialist and a wildlife biologist, and Scott Craven, emeritus professor of wildlife management.

“What I enjoy and appreciate the most about working with the landowners is their enthusiasm for learning and their efforts to actively manage private lands for the benefit of future generations of both people and wildlife,” Nack said.

The program has been operating since 1994 and more than 900 landowners, managing more than a million acres of land, have participated. Go to the Wisconsin Coverts Project website, or contact Nack by email at jlnack@wisc.edu or call (608) 265-8264.

— Tim Eisele

DNR Monitoring Manure Spill in Buffalo Co.

Madison — The Wisconsin DNR is responding to a manure spill in Buffalo County near the village of Waumandee that has impacted Danuser Creek, a Class 2 trout stream and a tributary to Waumandee Creek.

On April 19, an angler reached out to a local conservation warden and reported dead trout in Danuser Creek. DNR staff visited the site, confirmed the presence of dead trout in the stream, and discovered a drainage where recently applied manure was running off saturated farm fields.

The DNR continues to monitor the situation as the farm works to address the discharges. Farmers and agricultural producers should avoid spreading manure to saturated soils and during forecasted high-risk runoff periods.

Green Bay Walleye Tagging Study that Offers Reward Continues this Year

Madison — The DNR, together with Walleyes for Tomorrow, will continue the walleye reward tag study on Green Bay and its major tributaries that support a world-class walleye fishery. To better understand the fishery and gain estimates of walleye exploitation rates on this popular fishery, the DNR launched a reward tag study in spring of 2024.

The DNR will tag up to 5,000 walleyes with yellow floy tags and 400 red reward tags in the five major spawning areas around Green Bay (Sturgeon Bay and the Fox, Menominee, Oconto and Peshtigo rivers) this spring. Any reports of capturing or harvesting tagged walleyes will help guide walleye management throughout Green Bay and its tributaries.

Anglers may report all tagged walleyes to the DNR via email to DNRFHGBFish@wisconsin.gov, by calling (920) 662-5411, or by mail to: DNR Green Bay office, ATTN: Fisheries Biologist, 2984 Shawano Ave., Green Bay, WI 54313. Include tag number, tag color, species, length, location caught, date caught and if the fish was harvested or released. Red reward tags will say, “REWARD: $100.”

All red tags will have a valid reward date printed on the tag. Anglers who release red-tagged walleyes still receive the reward by sending in a close-up photo of the tag and number, and a second photo of the angler with the fish (tag visible). Anglers with a yellow or green tag will receive history of DNR encounters with that fish.