Are we hunting mule deer or what? Catalina officials renege... 🤡

Well, we've made it to the middle of yet another week. With that in mind, let's all take a minute to grab your coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and get another mid-week dispatch out the door.

Here's what's worth reading about so far this week:

• Cancelled mixer? - Catalina Island officials renege on mule deer cull 🤡

• I didn't need that arm anyways- Swiss tourist saws his arm off during bear attack 🔪

• Canadian takeover- CWD shows up in 5th Canadian province 🧟

• One love - Jamaican farmers lamenting over deer imports 🇯🇲

• Joe Exotic, but for bears - Self-proclaimed bear wrangler charged in Florida 🐅

Thanks for following along. Don't forget to tell your friends.

NO MIXER?
CATALINA ISLAND OFFICIALS FLIP-FLOP ON MULE DEER CULL

After announcing a plan to blast ~1,500 mule deer from helicopters late last year, the Catalina Island Conservancy is suddenly thinking of reneging on the deal. 

After months of protests and community outrage, the conservancy is now saying they just might, maybe, sorta, be kind of interested in exploring other options. After some harsh calls from an LA County Supervisor, whose previous comments were originally dismissed like last season’s trail cam pics, the conservancy has stated that they might now take some of them into consideration.

The supervisor came to the table with a number of non-lethal suggestions including relocation and, you guessed it, sterilization. While the supervisor did recognize that all of her ideas were far from perfect, she implored the conservancy to reconsider the decision of a complete cull.

While the Karens protestors are momentarily breathing a sigh of relief, the decision to stop the cull could have far worse consequences than cleaning out a few deer. Deer on Catalina Island are believed to be responsible for the decimation of vegetation native to the island such as manzanita and island scrub oak. According to scientists, they are moving into residential areas as well, grazing on both garden greenery and trash cans.

🔪 Self-amputation: A Swiss tourist took matters into his own hands after sticking his arm into a bear cage at a sanctuary in Thailand last month. Against anyone's better judgement, the man decided to try his hand (literally) at feeding an Asian black bear. It didn't take long before the bear wanted more than just an appetizer, biting down on the man's arm and refusing to let go. While the man wrestled with the 300-pound animal, he retrieved his pocket knife and made yet another incredible decision. Rather than using the knife to deter the bear, he instead used it to sever his own arm stating that he'd 'rather not' have to harm the bear in the process. He was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery.

5️⃣ Not-so-lucky #5: British Columbia becomes the fifth Canadian province to detect chronic wasting disease in deer. A hunter-harvested mule deer buck and a whitetail doe that was killed in a vehicle collision both came back with positive test results.

🚔 Poaching investigations: Two separate poaching investigations kicked off this month as authorities asked the public for help. In a retroactive case, officials in Wisconsin are looking for help in solving the illegal killing of two collared cow elk that took place in the fall of 2022. Authorities received the mortality signal from both collars, prompting the investigation which has since not yielded any fruitful information.

In Idaho, a cow elk was found dead on January 21st in the southwestern region of the state. A witness observed two men in camo fleeing the scene on a side-by-side. Idaho fish and game is asking the public to come forward with any information that might aid in identifying the individuals.

🇯🇲 Eh, mon! We got a problem wit dem deer: Farmers in Portland Parish on the north eastern side of Jamaica are growing weary of an ever-expanding deer population. Originally brought to the island to be used as a tourist attraction in the 80's, six captive deer were released during Hurricane Gilbert in 1988. Since then, populations have been growing and decimating farmers crops in the process. With biologists tracking the illegal sale of deer on social media, they warn that the continued damage to crops will ultimately come at a cost to consumers.

HE’LL NEVER FINANCIALLY RECOVER FROM THIS
SELF-PROCLAIMED FLORIDA BEAR TRAINER CHARGED AFTER KODIAK CUBS ESCAPE

The plot continues to thicken in a peculiar case of Floridian transplants. It’s been over a month since a sheriff’s deputy picked up a pair of out-of-state illegals (no, not that kind), on a Florida highway. Responding to a call from concerned motorists on a highway in Florida’s panhandle region, deputy Amanda Baliel came upon a pair of friendly kodiak brown bears wandering aimlessly on the highway in the early morning hours.

Motorists reported that the bears seemed friendly, but noted that they were not bears typically found in the region (read: they weren’t black bears). The deputy’s body cam footage, which was released last week, has since made its rounds on the internet, capturing the attention of many, including officials at Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).

While the footage shows the friendly demeanor of the bears, officials had bigger questions that had not yet been answered – like how two brown bears ended up 4,000 miles away from their home range...

VIDEO // ^{_{SOME THINGS JUST HAVE TO BE SEEN}}

🏕️ Camping out: Iowa deputy frees 8-point buck entangled in hammock.

📸 No photos, please: Enraged elk sends potential photographers running from dining terrace.