And although mange can and does kill bears, the Game Commission says there is no evidence that populations are declining because of it. Still, bears increasingly susceptible to mange in Pennsylvania suffer in the wild, so agency has launched an extensive study.
Whole deer may not be brought into Pennsylvania from any state with CWD.
The plan proposes regulatory changes and new actions to minimize the risk of CWD entering or spreading in New York state, the DEC says.
Although the Game Commission does not formally survey coyote population, it does gauge complaints and calls from the public, which have been on the rise.
The 2018-19 waterfowl seasons are very similar to those selected in 2017-18. However, hunters will enjoy longer seasons for doves, woodcock, and other “webless” migratory game bird species this year.
Somerset WPRA will be reopened to either-sex pheasant hunting and will be eligible for game-farm pheasant releases.
Permitted for years for deer and bear in special regulations areas, semiautomatic slug guns get statewide approval.
Turkeys are coming through a relatively mild winter, and they again had a tremendous acorn crop last fall to help them with winter survival. And a light fall harvest sparked by greater supplies of fall foods and fewer hunters afield also has helped kindle increased expectations for the spring hunt.
Hunters harvested 3,438 bears in the 2017 seasons, with the archery harvest of 493 bears and the extended season harvest of 1,083 bears setting records for those seasons. Overall, 48 weighed 500 pounds or more, including 14 600 pounds or more and two 700 pounds or more.
Eagle releases highlight rehabilitators’ mission.
The overall deer harvest was also up 10 percent, to nearly 370,000, with bowhunters accounting for about a third of the harvest.
(Image courtesy of Pennsylvania Game Commission)Two bald eagles in York County, Pa., rose to social media fame four years ago after being featured on the state online eagle feed. Liberty and Freedom, as they were named by fans, quickly attracted a devoted following among wildlife lovers, who have watched, transfixed, as the eagle cam turned into a soap opera this…
YORK, Pa. — In the 1990s, John Wolfe lost the right to carry a gun. But Wolfe bought hunting licenses for many years without running into a problem. Wolfe used a shotgun that he bought when he was about 18 to shoot a nearly 11-inch turkey. Then one December morning in 2014, Wolfe decided to go hunting before work. He…
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — Two bald eagles with their talons locked were rescued from a Pennsylvania river. Pennsylvania Game Commission says in a recent Facebook post that a woman and her 11-year-old daughter saw the two mature, males eagles floating along the banks of the Susquehanna River near Bloomsburg and contacted police. Columbia County Game Warden Rick Deiterich says the eagles…
Special rules now apply in parts of Lancaster, Lebanon and Berks counties.
National Archery in the Schools Program State Tournament expected to draw close to 1,000 participants from more than 45 schools across the state.
In response to the Lancaster County deer, which was the first CWD-positive test result in Lancaster County, the Pennsylvania Game Commission plans to announce a new Disease Management Area that will be established on Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. at the agency’s headquarters.
PITTSBURGH — Sometimes smell is the first sense suggesting what’s just up the road, and it’s never a pretty sight. Most road-killed animals are still disposed of the old-fashioned way – something eats them, occasionally becoming the next meal of opportunity for yet another hungry omnivore. But in modern society, someone has to clean up the biggest road-kill hazards, and…
HARRISBURG, Pa. — The agency that oversees hunting in Pennsylvania is getting a closer look from the state auditor general’s office. Democratic Auditor General Eugene DePasquale on Tuesday announced his office will be conducting the Game Commission’s first performance audit in nearly a decade. The review includes revenue sources, how the commission is spending money and whether it’s following applicable…
Survey responses showed there was support for using semi-automatic guns for furbearers and groundhogs, but not for big game.
Pennsylvania hunters may get chance to hunt doves in managed fields.
Modifications would include implementing a new four-day extended black bear firearms season in WMUs 4A and 5A and increasing from four days to six days the length of the extended black bear firearms season in WMU 3A.
The Game Commission historically has permitted the use of semiautomatic shotguns for deer and bear seasons within its special regulations areas near Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. The preliminarily approved proposal would extend this authorization to the remainder of the Commonwealth, as well as permit semiautomatic shotguns using single-projectile ammunition for elk hunting.
Matthew Schnupp is the new director for the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Bureau of Wildlife Management. Schnupp, who for 10 years served as chief wildlife biologist and research liaison for the 825,000-acre King Ranch, in Kingsville, Texas, started in the position Monday, Jan. 29. Schnupp fills a position left vacant when former bureau director Wayne Laroche was appointed the agency’s special assistant for…
Final CWD test results from the 2017-18 deer seasons will be released when available.
Field officers with a diverse set of duties need a better name than the antiquated and single-focused term “game warden.”
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