Trapping permit draws scheduled at public sites in Illinois
Staff Report
October 13, 2026
Public drawings for trapping permits have been scheduled at several DNR sites this month.
Hunting
Land purchase opens pathway to public access at Illinois’ Orient Bottoms Fish and Wildlife Area
Anthony Candia
October 13, 2026
The Conservation Fund has purchased 346 acres in southern Illinois that will provide public access to the state’s newest fish and wildlife area while expanding opportunities for hunting, fishing and wildlife observation.
The acquisition
Illinois Mixed Bag: Three areas accepting trapping applications
Staff and News Reports
October 13, 2026
The trapping program will include three trappers at Big Bend, one trapper at Morrison-Rockwood and one trapper at Little Rock Creek. Applications will be accepted until the drawing at 10 a.m. Oct. 30. The drawing
Ralph Loos: Illinois Outdoor News’ Best Buck contest — two decades proving the biggest buck isn’t always the winner
Ralph Loos
October 13, 2026
I suppose it was inevitable. Give Illinois deer hunters a camera, a big buck and a good reason to create some friendly competition, and eventually somebody is going to turn it into a contest.
Commentary: Why some pheasants flush differently
Russ Mason
October 13, 2026
Put a pointer on a pheasant and the dog freezes.
Put a flushing dog into the same cover. The bird may explode from the grass seconds later.
Now change the pheasant. A wild
New rules expand options for managing Illinois deer damage
Tim Bunton
October 10, 2026
Illinois officials are emphasizing that updated rules regarding deer removal permits are designed to address specific landowner problems – not manage the state’s overall deer population.
DNR’s updated rules were approved by the Joint
CWD mail-in kits give Illinois deer hunters a pivotal role
Ralph Loos
October 9, 2026
Illinois deer hunters are now swinging a bigger sword in the state’s fight against chronic wasting disease, as DNR puts another piece of its revised management plan into action this season.
Introduced two years
Gretchen Steele: You don’t need a trophy to have a story to tell
Gretchen Steele
October 4, 2026
We take photographs of it, measure it, weigh it, rate it and then publish it. That isn’t inherently wrong. Throughout the years I have admired many trophy deer, pretty fish and memorable harvests.
How temperature changes cause the wind to move, and what that means to whitetail hunters
Outdoor News
October 2, 2026
Hunters across the country talk about thermals.
Out west, if you spend any time chasing mule deer or elk in the mountains, you will feel the air rush up the mountainside in the morning,
