The Black Warrior Retriever Club (BWRC) of Alabama has been selected to host the Master National Retriever Club's 2012 Master National event. This prestigious annual retriever hunt test event showcases the best hunting retrievers in North America.
BWRC partnered with the State Lands Division of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) and the Chamber of Commerce of Demopolis to secure local support and the test grounds of Forever Wild’s Field Trial Area, which was recently renamed by the Forever Wild Board of Trustees in recognition of the Conservation Department’s former Commissioner M. Barnett Lawley, and the vision he had for supporting this project.
Forever Wild’s field trial grounds are located at the former State Cattle Ranch, which is south of Greensboro in Hale County. The event will be held in the fall of 2012. The competitions are expected to have up to 500 retrievers entered.
source: Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Saturday, March 19, 2011
2011 Alabama Waterfowl Stamp Art Contest
A painting of ringed-neck ducks by Jim Denney of Alexander City, Ala., is the winner of the 2011 Alabama Waterfowl Stamp Art Contest. The artwork will be featured the 2012-2013 Alabama Waterfowl Stamp.
The contest is sponsored by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division (WFF), and is open to resident Alabama artists only.
Denney is flattered to have his artwork selected as the winner for the second time in as many entries. "It’s a big honor. There are some really good artists in this state," he said.
To learn more about ADCNR and the waterfowl stamp design competition visit www.outdooralabama.com
source: ADCNR
The contest is sponsored by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division (WFF), and is open to resident Alabama artists only.
Denney is flattered to have his artwork selected as the winner for the second time in as many entries. "It’s a big honor. There are some really good artists in this state," he said.
To learn more about ADCNR and the waterfowl stamp design competition visit www.outdooralabama.com
source: ADCNR
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Wildlife Artist Wins Ohio Habitat Stamp Competition
The artwork of Tom Morgan Crain of Branson, Missouri, won first place in this year's Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp Design Competition, sponsored by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife. Crain’s painting will appear on the Ohio wetlands habitat stamp issued in fall 2012.
The winning entry was selected from a field of 20 original paintings submitted by artists from 12 states including seven entries from Ohio. The competition was held on February 19 at the Ohio Ducks Unlimited annual banquet in Sandusky.
Approximately 25,000 Ohio wetland habitat stamps were purchased last year, according to the Division of Wildlife. Proceeds from stamp sales help fund vital wetland habitat restoration projects in Ohio. Such habitats are important to many resident wildlife species including state-endangered trumpeter swans, wetland birds, amphibians and numerous migratory species.
Visit the ODNR website at www.ohiodnr.com.
The winning entry was selected from a field of 20 original paintings submitted by artists from 12 states including seven entries from Ohio. The competition was held on February 19 at the Ohio Ducks Unlimited annual banquet in Sandusky.
Approximately 25,000 Ohio wetland habitat stamps were purchased last year, according to the Division of Wildlife. Proceeds from stamp sales help fund vital wetland habitat restoration projects in Ohio. Such habitats are important to many resident wildlife species including state-endangered trumpeter swans, wetland birds, amphibians and numerous migratory species.
Visit the ODNR website at www.ohiodnr.com.
Second Annual Kansas Hunting and Fishing Expo
The Second Annual Kansas Hunting and Fishing Expo will bring the outdoors inside the Flinthills Mall, 1656 Industrial Road in Emporia, on April 2 from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. and April 3 from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Seminars include a grilling demonstration, a concealed carry class offered during expo hours ($100 per person), and certified Boone & Crockett and Pope & Young scorers showing how to score big game and turkey mounts.
Door prizes will be given away, including a grill from Sears, a youth camouflage Matthews bow from JC Construction, a tent from Budweiser, and a gun from the Kansas Hunting and Fishing Expo. Throughout the day, there will be drawings for more donated prizes.
To learn more about this event, phone Tonya Carson at 785-366-3565 or email tstroda@hotmail.com, or go to Facebook and look under Southeastern Kansas Hunting and Fishing Expo.
source: Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Seminars include a grilling demonstration, a concealed carry class offered during expo hours ($100 per person), and certified Boone & Crockett and Pope & Young scorers showing how to score big game and turkey mounts.
Door prizes will be given away, including a grill from Sears, a youth camouflage Matthews bow from JC Construction, a tent from Budweiser, and a gun from the Kansas Hunting and Fishing Expo. Throughout the day, there will be drawings for more donated prizes.
To learn more about this event, phone Tonya Carson at 785-366-3565 or email tstroda@hotmail.com, or go to Facebook and look under Southeastern Kansas Hunting and Fishing Expo.
source: Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
North Carolina Waterfowl Conservation Stamp - Print Chosen
Delaware artist Richard Clifton’s painting of a pair of Canada geese standing in a pasture was selected as the 2011 North Carolina Waterfowl Conservation Stamp and Print.
The painting, “Canadas in Pasture,” was unveiled at the 16th Annual East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival and the N.C. Decoy Carving Championships in Beaufort County during an evening preview reception on Feb. 11.
Clifton was one of more than 30 wildlife artists from 19 states and Mexico to submit entries for the fourth annual State of North Carolina Waterfowl Conservation Stamp Competition. In 2008, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission began partnering with the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild to conduct a nationwide competition open to the public.
This year, artists could submit portraits of redheads, brant, Canada geese, tundra swans or gadwalls.
Signed and numbered regular edition prints with mint stamps of the winning portrait will be available from the Commission on July 1 for $145. The stamp is $10.
Proceeds from sales of the print and stamps go to the Commission’s Waterfowl Fund, which generates revenue for the conservation of waterfowl habitat in North Carolina.
The N.C. Waterfowl Conservation Stamp and Print program, established in 1983 by the Commission, generates revenue for waterfowl conservation in the state, including acquiring and improving habitat. Proceeds from the sale of stamps and prints are designated for the Commission’s Waterfowl Fund.
The money is used to help North Carolina meet its financial obligations in implementing the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, the international agreement helping restore waterfowl populations throughout the continent. In addition, funds have been used to support waterfowl research and to buy equipment used to manage wetlands.
The East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival and North Carolina Decoy Carving Championships are annual highlights for Washington, which sits on the scenic Pamlico River in coastal North Carolina. The festival is sponsored by the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild, a 70-member group of local carvers and wildlife artists dedicated to providing educational activities associated with wildlife art and the preservation of eastern North Carolina’s wildlife heritage.
In addition to the more than 80 wildlife art exhibitors, the festival features many other wildlife-related events, including duck-carving competition divisions, retriever demonstrations, wildlife art and decoy auctions, a children’s decoy-painting contest and various waterfowl-calling contests.
source: North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
The painting, “Canadas in Pasture,” was unveiled at the 16th Annual East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival and the N.C. Decoy Carving Championships in Beaufort County during an evening preview reception on Feb. 11.
Clifton was one of more than 30 wildlife artists from 19 states and Mexico to submit entries for the fourth annual State of North Carolina Waterfowl Conservation Stamp Competition. In 2008, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission began partnering with the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild to conduct a nationwide competition open to the public.
This year, artists could submit portraits of redheads, brant, Canada geese, tundra swans or gadwalls.
Signed and numbered regular edition prints with mint stamps of the winning portrait will be available from the Commission on July 1 for $145. The stamp is $10.
Proceeds from sales of the print and stamps go to the Commission’s Waterfowl Fund, which generates revenue for the conservation of waterfowl habitat in North Carolina.
The N.C. Waterfowl Conservation Stamp and Print program, established in 1983 by the Commission, generates revenue for waterfowl conservation in the state, including acquiring and improving habitat. Proceeds from the sale of stamps and prints are designated for the Commission’s Waterfowl Fund.
The money is used to help North Carolina meet its financial obligations in implementing the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, the international agreement helping restore waterfowl populations throughout the continent. In addition, funds have been used to support waterfowl research and to buy equipment used to manage wetlands.
The East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival and North Carolina Decoy Carving Championships are annual highlights for Washington, which sits on the scenic Pamlico River in coastal North Carolina. The festival is sponsored by the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild, a 70-member group of local carvers and wildlife artists dedicated to providing educational activities associated with wildlife art and the preservation of eastern North Carolina’s wildlife heritage.
In addition to the more than 80 wildlife art exhibitors, the festival features many other wildlife-related events, including duck-carving competition divisions, retriever demonstrations, wildlife art and decoy auctions, a children’s decoy-painting contest and various waterfowl-calling contests.
source: North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
2011 Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Program
The hunting and fishing industries, as well as recreational shooters, hunters, boaters, and anglers, continue to fund conservation across the nation.
Program funds come from excise taxes paid by manufacturers, producers, and importers on sporting firearms, ammunition, archery equipment, fishing equipment and tackle, and electric outboard motors. Recreational boaters also contribute to the program through fuel taxes on motorboats and small engines.
The Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Program apportionment for 2011 totals more than $384 million, of which more than $79 million is for hunter education and safety programs.
Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Program funding is available to all 50 states, the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. One-half of the 11 percent excise tax on bows, arrows, and archery equipment and 10 percent excise tax on handguns, pistols, and revolvers make up the funding for hunter education programs. The other one-half of the excise tax are for wildlife restoration purposes, including the 11 percent excise tax on firearms and ammunition.
Each state or territory receives a Wildlife Restoration Program apportionment derived from a formula that incorporates its total land area and number of paid hunting license holders. Each state or territory may not receive more than 5 percent or less than one-half of 1 percent of the total apportionment. Fish and wildlife agencies use these funds to manage wildlife populations, conduct habitat research, acquire wildlife habitat, enhance wildlife habitat, and public hunting access, carry out surveys and inventories, administer hunter education programs, and construct and maintain shooting and archery ranges.
For more information on the goals and accomplishments of these programs and for individual State, Commonwealth, and territorial funding allocations, visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program Web site at: http://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/
Program funds come from excise taxes paid by manufacturers, producers, and importers on sporting firearms, ammunition, archery equipment, fishing equipment and tackle, and electric outboard motors. Recreational boaters also contribute to the program through fuel taxes on motorboats and small engines.
The Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Program apportionment for 2011 totals more than $384 million, of which more than $79 million is for hunter education and safety programs.
Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Program funding is available to all 50 states, the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. One-half of the 11 percent excise tax on bows, arrows, and archery equipment and 10 percent excise tax on handguns, pistols, and revolvers make up the funding for hunter education programs. The other one-half of the excise tax are for wildlife restoration purposes, including the 11 percent excise tax on firearms and ammunition.
Each state or territory receives a Wildlife Restoration Program apportionment derived from a formula that incorporates its total land area and number of paid hunting license holders. Each state or territory may not receive more than 5 percent or less than one-half of 1 percent of the total apportionment. Fish and wildlife agencies use these funds to manage wildlife populations, conduct habitat research, acquire wildlife habitat, enhance wildlife habitat, and public hunting access, carry out surveys and inventories, administer hunter education programs, and construct and maintain shooting and archery ranges.
For more information on the goals and accomplishments of these programs and for individual State, Commonwealth, and territorial funding allocations, visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program Web site at: http://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/
West Virginia Winter Waterfowl Survey
Wildlife biologists counted 5,044 ducks and 6,147 Canada geese during the annual mid-winter waterfowl survey in early January, according to Steve Wilson, Waterfowl Biologist for the Wildlife Resources Section of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources.
The 10-year average has been artificially high since the record numbers in 2001. Now that the 2001 numbers are no longer included in the average, the percent above average figures for 2011 are more significant. The increase was not unexpected due to the amount of snow and cold weather that occurred in December.
Canada geese, mallards and black ducks were the most commonly observed species in the 2011 survey. Other waterfowl observed included canvasback, scaup, ring-necked duck, redhead, bufflehead, wood duck, mergansers and snow geese. Thirteen bald eagles, two golden eagles and eleven unidentified eagles were also observed.
The survey was conducted on January 5, 6, and 7, 2011, and included portions of the Kanawha, Ohio, Shenandoah and New rivers as well as Tygart and Bluestone lakes.
source: West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
The 10-year average has been artificially high since the record numbers in 2001. Now that the 2001 numbers are no longer included in the average, the percent above average figures for 2011 are more significant. The increase was not unexpected due to the amount of snow and cold weather that occurred in December.
Canada geese, mallards and black ducks were the most commonly observed species in the 2011 survey. Other waterfowl observed included canvasback, scaup, ring-necked duck, redhead, bufflehead, wood duck, mergansers and snow geese. Thirteen bald eagles, two golden eagles and eleven unidentified eagles were also observed.
The survey was conducted on January 5, 6, and 7, 2011, and included portions of the Kanawha, Ohio, Shenandoah and New rivers as well as Tygart and Bluestone lakes.
source: West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Virginia Bear, Deer, Turkey Hunting Harvest Data
Wildlife biologists with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) have compiled preliminary figures for deer, turkey, and bear harvests for the 2010-11 fall/winter hunting seasons.
According to VDGIF, white-tailed deer, bear and wild turkey harvests all declined this year from the previous year. Exceptional acorn crops across the state coupled with other environmental conditions both this year and last as well as management actions to meet population objectives all factored into fluctuations in populations and harvest trends. The harvest figures continue to indicate that good hunting is available across the Commonwealth for these popular game species.
WHITE-TAILED DEER
During the past deer season 219,797 deer were reported killed by hunters in Virginia. This total included 95,543 antlered bucks, 19,191 button bucks, and 105,063 does (47.8%). The fall 2010 deer kill total was 15% lower than the 259,147 deer reported killed last year. It is 3% lower than the last 10 year average of 227,430.
BLACK BEAR
During the 2010-11 bear seasons 2,221 bears were reported killed during the archery, muzzleloader, and firearms seasons. The 2010 harvest was a 3.6% decrease from last year's kill of 2,304, but similar to the 2008 harvest of 2,204 bears. In 2010, bears were harvested in 69 counties with successful bear hunters coming from 18 states other than Virginia. Equaling the average over the last five years, female bears, or sows, represented 39% of the 2010 harvest, which was less than the 42% sows in the 2009 harvest.
FALL WILD TURKEY
In Virginia, 2,687 turkeys were harvested during the 2010-2011 fall turkey season. This harvest was 24% below last year's reported kill of 3,538 birds. The harvest declined 34% in counties west of the Blue Ridge Mountains (1,664 last year versus 1,102 this year). Counties east of the Blue Ridge Mountains decreased 15 percent (1,874 vs. 1,585). Bedford led all counties with a harvest of 92 birds. Most of the harvest was reported on private lands.
According to VDGIF, white-tailed deer, bear and wild turkey harvests all declined this year from the previous year. Exceptional acorn crops across the state coupled with other environmental conditions both this year and last as well as management actions to meet population objectives all factored into fluctuations in populations and harvest trends. The harvest figures continue to indicate that good hunting is available across the Commonwealth for these popular game species.
WHITE-TAILED DEER
During the past deer season 219,797 deer were reported killed by hunters in Virginia. This total included 95,543 antlered bucks, 19,191 button bucks, and 105,063 does (47.8%). The fall 2010 deer kill total was 15% lower than the 259,147 deer reported killed last year. It is 3% lower than the last 10 year average of 227,430.
BLACK BEAR
During the 2010-11 bear seasons 2,221 bears were reported killed during the archery, muzzleloader, and firearms seasons. The 2010 harvest was a 3.6% decrease from last year's kill of 2,304, but similar to the 2008 harvest of 2,204 bears. In 2010, bears were harvested in 69 counties with successful bear hunters coming from 18 states other than Virginia. Equaling the average over the last five years, female bears, or sows, represented 39% of the 2010 harvest, which was less than the 42% sows in the 2009 harvest.
FALL WILD TURKEY
In Virginia, 2,687 turkeys were harvested during the 2010-2011 fall turkey season. This harvest was 24% below last year's reported kill of 3,538 birds. The harvest declined 34% in counties west of the Blue Ridge Mountains (1,664 last year versus 1,102 this year). Counties east of the Blue Ridge Mountains decreased 15 percent (1,874 vs. 1,585). Bedford led all counties with a harvest of 92 birds. Most of the harvest was reported on private lands.
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