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Russ Mason

Commentary: Preservation is not conservation — the common public lands narrative problem

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

Today, most Americans understandably confuse conservation with preservation. That’s because virtually all media confuse the two perspectives and consistently mislabel preservationist organizations (e.g., Center for Biodiversity, Western Watersheds, Defenders of Wildlife) as conservation-focused.
Even the Humane Society of the United States – a decidedly anti-hunting, anti-fishing entity – has been called a conservation organization (perhaps because that’s how it refers to itself.) A recent example from the Sunday New York Times (May 31, 2026) is a good illustration.

Commentary: Preservation is not conservation — the common public lands narrative problem Read More »

Commentary: Fish and wildlife directors should serve natural resources, not politicians

Featured, Featured, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Home Page News, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Illinois, Michigan, National Fishing, National Hunting, Opinion, Opinion, Opinion, Wisconsin /

In Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, and Wisconsin, the Departments of Natural Resources are led by political appointees with little to no formal training or experience in fish and wildlife.
Nationally, about 60% of all Natural Resources Directors lack professional qualifications or experience. Nearly all serve in at-will positions appointed the sitting Governor. The most obvious problem with this growing trend is that policy can (and usually does) become vulnerable to short-term political agendas, partisan swings, and interest-group pressure.

Commentary: Fish and wildlife directors should serve natural resources, not politicians Read More »

Commentary: Top 10 conservation achievements of the 20th century

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

Without question, the 20th century stands as the most transformative era in the history of North American conservation. At its beginning, wildlife populations were collapsing, forests were vanishing, and the unregulated exploitation of natural resources were the rule, not the exception.
By its end, however, many game and non-game species had recovered, important and unique landscapes were protected, and conservation had become a defining public value.

Commentary: Top 10 conservation achievements of the 20th century Read More »

Commentary: When it comes to hunting and fishing issues, grass not always greener

Featured, Fishing, Hunting, Michigan, National Fishing, National Hunting, Opinion /

In Trout Bum, John Gierach wrote: “The trout are always rising in the pool just out of reach.”
This idea that “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence” likely resonates among most anglers. And it’s certainly popular among hunters who constantly compare units, counties, and even entire states, convinced that somewhere else holds more deer, bigger bucks, better age structure, or fewer restrictions.

Commentary: When it comes to hunting and fishing issues, grass not always greener Read More »

Overconfident fish? Eyes can be bigger than mouths

Featured, Featured, Features, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Home Page News, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, National Fishing, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin /

Any angler who’s ever caught a 3-inch fish on a 4-inch lure must have wondered what, if anything, the fish was thinking.
Spoiler alert: It all boils down to the fact that evolution is a numbers game. There’s a certain kind of confidence – bordering on what humans might call delusion – that runs deep in the animal kingdom.

Overconfident fish? Eyes can be bigger than mouths Read More »

Commentary: Fish and wildlife conservation should not be another popularity contest

Featured, Featured, Fishing, Fishing, Home Page News, Hunting, Hunting, Illinois, Michigan, National Fishing, National Hunting, Opinion, Opinion /

Fish and wildlife conservation operates at the intersection of science, public values, and politics. Tensions are unavoidable, but increasingly, it’s tipped too far towards popularity. When conservation becomes a contest for public approval rather than a science-based discipline grounded in ecology and long-term outcomes, both wildlife and ecosystems pay the price.

Commentary: Fish and wildlife conservation should not be another popularity contest Read More »

Early spring fly fishing is often an exercise in restraint, patience

Featured, Features, Fishing, Home Page News, Michigan, National Fishing /

The first few warm days of the year are enough to get me out on the water with a fly rod. It almost never works out as I hope, most likely because of my own impatience.
Early spring is a season of contradiction for warm-water fly anglers. The air softens, days lengthen, and the urge to fish returns – but beneath the surface, species like largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and bluegill are still governed by winter’s inertia.

Early spring fly fishing is often an exercise in restraint, patience Read More »

Commentary: Can reforming National Environmental Policy Act help fish and wildlife conservation?

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

Recently, the outdoor press has raised concerns about reforms the Trump administration has proposed to the National Environmental Policy Act. Mostly, articles have highlighted the potential for negative impacts to fish and wildlife conservation. Not surprisingly, the truth is more complicated.

Commentary: Can reforming National Environmental Policy Act help fish and wildlife conservation? Read More »

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