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Jeff Mulhollem

Notes off a soiled cuff: Troubling genetics in Pennsylvania’s elk herd?

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, Opinion, Pennsylvania /

At the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s April 10-11 meeting, Commissioner Dennis Fredericks, of Washington County, asked agency elk biologist Jeremy Banfield if he is concerned about a century of inbreeding affecting the elk herd, with no new genes coming in from other elk populations.
“Do you ever worry about genetic diversity?” Fredericks said. “I mean, 1,400 elk, year after year after year after year of breeding … are you concerned at all about it?”

Notes off a soiled cuff: Troubling genetics in Pennsylvania’s elk herd? Read More »

Pennsylvania’s elk herd, and hunting it provides, growing

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, Nature Page & Night Sky, News, Pennsylvania /

The news released by the Pennsylvania Game Commission about the state’s elk herd and elk hunting at the agency’s April 10-11 meeting was all positive.
First, according to Jeremy Banfield, commission elk biologist, the herd is growing – slowly but steadily. 

Pennsylvania’s elk herd, and hunting it provides, growing Read More »

Pennsylvania Game Commission allots 12% more doe tags

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, News, Pennsylvania /

The Pennsylvania Game Commission announced at its April 11 meeting that 1,469,000 antlerless deer licenses will be allocated statewide for 2026-27, which is 12% more than the 1,312,000 antlerless licenses allocated for 2025-26.
In a presentation to the game commissioners April 10, commission Deer and Elk Section Supervisor David Stainbrook noted that more does need to be harvested to reach management goals in many wildlife management units, especially with chronic wasting disease spreading in the state.

Pennsylvania Game Commission allots 12% more doe tags Read More »

Notes off a soiled cuff: Will Pennsylvania lawmakers dip into Game Commission’s reserve fund?

Featured, Fishing, Hunting, Opinion, Pennsylvania /

Watching and listening to Sen. Greg Rothman question Steve Smith, Pennsylvania Game Commission executive director, about the agency’s humongous reserve fund at a recent Senate hearing was almost painful.
With Pennsylvania facing a projected structural budget deficit of approximately $4.8 billion to $6 billion for the 2025-26 or 2026-27 fiscal years – and Game Commission leaders unable to articulate a plan for the money – you can see where this is going.

Notes off a soiled cuff: Will Pennsylvania lawmakers dip into Game Commission’s reserve fund? Read More »

Pennsylvania Game Commission’s financial reserve is questioned by senator

8 Comments / Discussions, Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, News, Pennsylvania /

The Pennsylvania Game Commission’s gigantic fiscal reserve was again a topic of conversation at a Senate Game and Fisheries Committee hearing March 17.
At the session held to hear the Game and Fish & Boat commissions’ annual reports, Sen. Greg Rothman, committee chairman, asked Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith if he had plans to spend the money.

Pennsylvania Game Commission’s financial reserve is questioned by senator Read More »

Notes off a soiled cuff: Problem with the Pennsylvania’s fishing summary cover? And an amazing turnaround for the Little Juniata

Featured, Fishing, National Fishing, Opinion, Pennsylvania /

Because I’ve lived relatively near the Little Juniata my entire life, and because I fished the river coursing through Pennsylvania’s Blair and Huntingdon counties so many times over the years, I’ve long been aware of what an awesome wild trout fishery it has become over the last 50 years.
Long, wide, scenic and almost entirely open to the public – and amazingly productive – it’s like no other wild trout stream I’m aware of in the state except the upper Delaware.

Notes off a soiled cuff: Problem with the Pennsylvania’s fishing summary cover? And an amazing turnaround for the Little Juniata Read More »

Notes off a soiled cuff: Assessing a huge problem with ‘forever chemicals’ in Pennsylvania waters

Featured, Fishing, Home Page News, National Fishing, Nature Page & Night Sky, Opinion, Pennsylvania /

Just before this issue’s deadline, when the state Department of Environmental Protection, the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Fish & Boat Commission issued a “Do Not Eat” advisory for all species of fish living in two streams because of PFOS (forever chemicals), we thought we knew which streams were tainted.
Because in a recent edition of Outdoor News, you’ll likely recall, we had the headline, “PF&BC is monitoring PFAS at hatchery,” atop a story reporting on concerns about forever chemicals being detected in waters feeding a Fish & Boat Commission hatchery in Centre County. But it turns out we were jumping to conclusions.

Notes off a soiled cuff: Assessing a huge problem with ‘forever chemicals’ in Pennsylvania waters Read More »

Penn State study shows some pesticides slip beneath riparian buffers into streams

Featured, Home Page News, National News, Nature Page & Night Sky, News, Pennsylvania /

Pesticides can harm aquatic ecosystems and human health, so scientists need to understand how they move from farm fields into streams.
A management tool commonly implemented is riparian buffers – strips of vegetation, like shrubs or grasses, bordering streams – that the U.S. Department of Agriculture advises can reduce the amount of nutrients, sediment and pesticides getting into waterways. But it’s unclear how effective buffers actually are at stopping pesticides from entering streams, according to a multidisciplinary team at Penn State.

Penn State study shows some pesticides slip beneath riparian buffers into streams Read More »

Notes off a soiled cuff: Plenty of mixed opinions about Pennsylvania’s deer herd

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, Opinion, Pennsylvania /

In watching the town hall meeting held Feb. 11 at the Great American Outdoor Show focused on crop damage by deer (see this story), I was struck – as I always am – by the contrast in the way deer are viewed by farmers, hunters and politicians here … And how the Pennsylvania Game Commission increasingly is caught in the middle between its hunter clients and the farmers who powerful elected officials insist the agency help.

Notes off a soiled cuff: Plenty of mixed opinions about Pennsylvania’s deer herd Read More »

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