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Ralph Loos

New report shows CWD spikes again in Illinois

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

Deer hunters in Illinois expecting a new high mark for confirmed CWD cases got what they expected from the DNR’s 2024-25 Surveillance and Management Report.
The report, released Aug. 22 and based on findings between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025, reveals that 539 CWD-positive deer were identified from 12,444 deer samples collected statewide. Significant increases have been the norm the past few years, after several years of cases staying steady in double-digits.

New report shows CWD spikes again in Illinois Read More »

Catfish, bass stockings keep Braidwood Lake hot in Will County, Ill.

Illinois, Lake Profile, Lake Profile /

Balancing and “beefing” – that’s DNR’s challenge when managing the Braidwood Lake fishery.
Catfish are still king, for the most part. And DNR continued its efforts last year, choosing to stock 23,000 blue catfish – 5,000 more blue cats than it stocked in 2023. But the agency also stocked more than 60,000 largemouth bass in 2024.

Catfish, bass stockings keep Braidwood Lake hot in Will County, Ill. Read More »

Ralph Loos: Making deer hunting ‘easier’ strategy is missing a vital piece in Illinois

Featured, Hunting, Illinois, National Hunting, Opinion /

If you think it’s a bit early for us to spend our ink on the Illinois deer season, you should wipe that dust off your calendar, or at least drive by your local gridiron.
My indication that bowhunters among us should be stretching and strategizing has always been the site of football players stretching and strategizing. Today, my internal calendar has a flashing message. We are less than six weeks out from archery hunting.

Ralph Loos: Making deer hunting ‘easier’ strategy is missing a vital piece in Illinois Read More »

Challenges facing lesser scaup show restoration needs in Pool 19 of the Mississippi River

Featured, Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, Hunting, Illinois, Iowa, National Hunting, National News, News, News /

Pool 19 of the Mississippi River has long been a refueling stop for diving ducks migrating up and down the portion of the Flyway that touches Illinois and neighboring states.
It’s also an ongoing focal point for Illinois Natural History Survey ecologists, biologists and waterfowl scientists from universities and other agencies who’ve been working on improving food sources and habitats in the pool, a 46-mile stretch of the river between Gladstone, Illinois, and Lock and Dam 19 at Keokuk, Iowa.

Challenges facing lesser scaup show restoration needs in Pool 19 of the Mississippi River Read More »

Illinois DNR sets 10 CWD meetings to share updates with the public

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

Hunters killed 18,309 deer in the state’s 21 CWD counties during the 2023-24 season, lending creed to the Illinois DNR’s contention that harvests in affected areas have remained consistent – the 5-year average harvest for the same counties stands at just below 18,000.
But now there is new math to consider. Because there are now 25 CWD counties.

Illinois DNR sets 10 CWD meetings to share updates with the public Read More »

Ralph Loos: Will disappearing gray foxes be next success story in Illinois? Trapping, hunting seasons officially close

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

It can hardly be called a secret, because intentions of wildlife managers have been clear for some time now – in fact, these very pages in recent months have reported multiple times on what was sure to happen in regards to the gray fox.
Things are now official: Trapping and hunting seasons for the predator have officially been taken off the books in Illinois.

Ralph Loos: Will disappearing gray foxes be next success story in Illinois? Trapping, hunting seasons officially close Read More »

Mill Creek boosted by channel cat, muskie stockings in eastern Illinois

Illinois, Lake Profile, Lake Profile /

The effort to thin out Mill Creek Lake’s bass population in order to boost size structure in the species appears to be working – even if gradually so.
There have been no recent sampling reports on the lake, but late-summer fishing tournaments held on Mill Creek in 2024 revealed a number of larger bass being boated.

Mill Creek boosted by channel cat, muskie stockings in eastern Illinois Read More »

Ralph Loos: Program encouraging Illinois youth to explore beyond hunting and fishing

Featured, Fishing, Hunting, Illinois, Nature Page & Night Sky, Opinion /

Around here, we dedicate a lot of our time and space to youth hunting and fishing – hardly an issue flies off our press without a few photos of an Illinois kid holding a bass or kneeling over a wild turkey.
It’s an unspoken strategy: these youngsters are future readers of this publication. If we want Illinois Outdoor News to survive and thrive, we will need these kids. And don’t think we are alone in this forward-thinking approach.

Ralph Loos: Program encouraging Illinois youth to explore beyond hunting and fishing Read More »

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