Wednesday, May 14th, 2025

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Wednesday, May 14th, 2025

Breaking News for

Sportsmen Since 1968

Victor Skinner

Michigan groups angry that dog quota not raised for bear training season

Misconceptions about bear hunting contributed to the Michigan Natural Resources Commission’s rejection of a dog training proposal in April, but hound hunters aren’t giving up.
The NRC voted 3-3 in April on a compromise proposal aimed at expanding opportunities for hound hunters to train young dogs during the bear training season, effectively killing the measure. The compromise stemmed from a proposal in February to expand the current eight dog limit to 10 during the training season that raised concerns with Department of Natural Resources law enforcement.

Michigan groups angry that dog quota not raised for bear training season Read More »

Voter registration pitched at Michigan’s outdoor license dealers

Legislation to expand voter outreach to Michigan hunters, trappers, and anglers is moving through Lansing with the intent to get more to the polls.
“There’s a big push these days to get more folks access to the ballot box,” said Rep. Brad Paquette, R-Niles, who introduced House Bill 4136 in February. “We need to get more folks’ voices heard.”
HB 4136 would task the Michigan Department of State with providing voter registration applications to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to distribute to those who purchase a hunting, fishing, or trapping license.

Voter registration pitched at Michigan’s outdoor license dealers Read More »

Staffing for sea lamprey control program is back on track

The Great Lakes Fisheries Commission’s sea lamprey control program is back on track after federal job cuts had eliminated a dozen contracted workers at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“On the staffing, it does look like we’re getting things back on track,” Greg McClinchey, GLFC’s director of political and legislative affairs, told Michigan Outdoor News. “The hiring freeze on seasonal staff has now been lifted.”
The GLFC has for decades contracted with the USFWS to carry out chemical treatments in hundreds of Michigan rivers to kill invasive lamprey that consume up to 40 pounds of fish per year.

Staffing for sea lamprey control program is back on track Read More »

Vote on Michigan coyote season tabled as lawsuit plays out

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission on April 10 voted to table a proposal to reverse last year’s decision to close the coyote hunting season between April 15 and July 15.
The NRC decision in March 2024 reverted the coyote season structure to how it was before the state moved to year-round hunting eight years ago, prompting lawsuits from Michigan United Conservation Clubs and the Michigan Trappers and Predator Callers Association that were consolidated in Ingham County Circuit Court.

Vote on Michigan coyote season tabled as lawsuit plays out Read More »

New Michigan bills address trespass issues

Michigan lawmakers are considering legislation to address gaps in the state’s trespassing laws, with two bills offering different approaches to resolving ongoing issues.
State Rep. Curt VanderWall, R-Ludington, reintroduced legislation in March to allow the use of purple paint to designate private property boundaries, marking at least the third recent legislative session with the proposal.

New Michigan bills address trespass issues Read More »

Michigan Natural Resources Commission sets bear license quotas, tweaks rules

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission in March approved new bear hunting quotas and regulations for the next two-year regulation cycle.
Feedback from concerned hunters convinced Department of Natural Resources officials to reduce initial proposed license increases in the northern Lower Peninsula, resulting in five fewer licenses to produce a 17% reduction in the desired harvest.
“Basically, the license quotas for Red Oak and Baldwin (Bear Management Units) now are the same as the last two years,” DNR Bear Specialist Cody Norton told Michigan Outdoor News.

Michigan Natural Resources Commission sets bear license quotas, tweaks rules Read More »

Michigan commission reexamines its decision on coyote season closure

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission is poised to reverse its decision from last year that closed coyote hunting April 15 to July 15 amid an ongoing lawsuit that claims the change is illegal.
“The 2024 partial season closure was not a closure of science or management, it was a closure of fear and social assumptions,” Justin Tomei, policy and government affairs manager for Michigan United Conservation Clubs, told commissioners in March. “One of the department’s world-class biologists told us this was not about biological science.”

Michigan commission reexamines its decision on coyote season closure Read More »

Fed’s cuts magnifying invasive sea lamprey concerns for Great Lakes fisheries

The Great Lakes Fisheries Commission is reassessing its sea lamprey program for 2025 following federal layoffs at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that provides the manpower to control the invasive critters.
“We’re still assessing the full impact, so it’s a pretty fluid situation,” Greg McClinchey, the GLFC’s director of political and legislative affairs, told Michigan Outdoor News. “We’re working as fast as we can to come up with an approach and a strategy for the 2025 season.”

Fed’s cuts magnifying invasive sea lamprey concerns for Great Lakes fisheries Read More »

Suspect charged in theft cases from remote Michigan campgrounds

A Michigan Department of Natural Resources investigation resulted in criminal charges against a man that conservation officers allege they caught stealing from rustic campground pay pipes.
Conservation officers in June launched an investigation into suspected thefts from multiple primitive camp sites in Luce County, which use self-registrations deposited into locked metal pipes that are later recovered by DNR staff.

Suspect charged in theft cases from remote Michigan campgrounds Read More »

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