Report: Hunting drives more economic value than Starbucks and McDonald's👊

The weekend might not be here yet, but your favorite dispatch from the great outdoors is. 

So grab your coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and let's get caught up on the outdoor news and views from the past few days. 

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

• Cash on the dash - Turns out hunting provides BIG economic value 🤑

• Will someone think of the wolves?? - Controversy continues in Colorado 🐺

• Tragic timing - 81-year-old duck hunter drowns retrieving decoys 🙏

• Bear hunting a go in Maryland - Despite the opposition, the hunt goes on 👊

• Incredible capture - Biologists record invasive Python swallowing an adult deer whole for the first time 😳

SPREAD THE GOOD WORD
HUNTING DRIVES MORE ECONOMIC VALUE THAN STARBUCKS AND MCDONALD’S

While my grandad certainly did things on the cheap when it came to chasing whitetails, things have certainly changed over the last few decades and today, hunting is BIG business.

With more gadgets and gear than any of us can possibly imagine (or need), the hunting industry has exploded - perhaps not in overall participation - but most definitely in overall spend. According to a report put out by the good folks over at the Sportsmen’s Alliance, hunters opened their wallets to the tune of $45.2 billion (with a B!) to purchase equipment, licenses, trips, and other hunting-related expenses.

“It’s important that people—the general public, and state and federal legislators—understand that America’s hunters and sport shooters are an incredibly important force when it comes to our national, state, and local economies, as well as providing an outsized share of conservation funding at both the state and federal levels,” President and CEO of the Sportsmen’s Alliance, Evan Heusinkveld, said in a press release.

🐺 Colorado officials host conflict mitigation meetings as ranchers and wildlife groups call for pause in wolf reintroduction. Well, if you thought things were going to calm down in Colorado after state officials successfully rounded up the Copper Creek wolf pack last month, think again. 

In an attempt to calm the emotional flare ups from both sides, Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced that they will be hosting several trainings this fall in an attempt to teach ranchers about nonlethal mitigation strategies when it comes to wolves. These events, set to take place across four Colorado counties, will review wolf depredation investigations, range riding, hazing, compensation for livestock killings, funding programs, carcass management and the use of livestock protection dogs.

The announcement of these workshops comes after the agency also announced that they had no plans of delaying the reintroduction of an additional 15 wolves, which is slated to begin as early as December, despite having removed animals from the landscape just last month.

Since then, petitions from a group of 26 livestock and stockgrower organizations in opposition of the upcoming reintroduction have been hurled at the agency, along with some support from wildlife advocate groups including the Sierra Club.

While the two groups ultimately are in opposition to one another on many issues regarding wolves, delaying the reintroduction of additional wolves seems to be a point of agreement - at least for now.

🙏 Police identify 81-year-old Utah man who drowned while duck hunting. A couple of old hunting buddies had their sights set to the skies above the Ambassador Duck Club northwest of the Salt Lake City International Airport on a recent hunting trip when disaster suddenly struck. 

The two men, Vince Badger, 70, and Kenneth Hill, 81, were outside of their boat retrieving duck decoys when Badger found his old friend face-down in the cold water. Badger dragged Hill’s lifeless body to a nearby island where he attempted CPR, but was unable to resuscitate. 

Authorities arrived on the scene and pronounced Hill dead before airlifting his hunting partner to dry land for medical evaluation.

"The deceased body was later recovered. A dog and boat belonging to the deceased was turned over to family. The investigation is ongoing but alcohol appears to be a contributing factor," the sheriff's office stated.

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DWR recommends updates to deer management plan, hunt strategies research and other items: The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is proposing an updated mule deer management plan and is also recommending the implementation of some new hunt strategies for a research study, as well as a few other items. Read more at Utah DWR.

Maryland’s bear-hunting season opens with gusto, and concern:  changes would affect hunting licenses for animals including deer, elk, pronghorn, moose and black bear through the 2025-29 big game season. Read more at KKTV.com

Virginia board votes to reject changes to hound hunting regulations: Regulations guiding hunting, one of Virginia’s oldest traditions, will remain unchanged after the Board of Wildlife Resources voted 6-3 against two proposals to update the state’s right to retrieve law. Read more at Virginia Mercury.

How science-based hunting is protecting Utah wildlife: Since 2019, Utah’s struggling deer populations prompted state limitations on the number of issued hunting permits. This year, however, the state released an increase in permits for the first time in six years. Read more at BYU Universe.

Washington State Officials To Present Possible New Bear, Cougar Hunting Frameworks To Commission: The agency is pretty comfortable with instituting the more adaptive approach to bruin seasons it has drummed up after deep dives into bear density, habitat and population modeling, but will look to the citizen panel for a little more certainty on that and three mountain lion hunting options before proceeding with rulemaking on them late this coming winter for next year’s hunts. Read more at NW Sportsman Magazine.

What you need to know before Maine's youth deer hunt this weekend: The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife says the youth hunt is "all about mentorship, memories, and a meaningful investment in Maine's hunting future. There's no greater feeling than sharing your passion for the outdoors with tomorrow's conservationists!" Read more at WMTW.

Texas PWD forecasts strong season for white-tailed deer hunting: “It is set up to be a great season for hunters to have a real good opportunity, whether it be a mature buck or perhaps a quality middle-aged buck in some other parts of the state where the age classes may not be as older as in some parts such as South Texas,” said Blaise Korzekwa, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) White-tailed Deer Program leader. Read more at Texas Farm Bureau.

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HOUSTON FLORIDA, WE’VE GOT A PROBLEM
SCIENTIST PHOTOGRAPHS BURMESE PYTHON SWALLOWING A WHITETAIL DEER WHOLE

Wildlife biologist and science coordinator for the Conservancy of South Florida, Ian Bartoszek has been chasing large serpents for the last 12 years of his career. Coming across some pretty crazy sightings and snakes, it was one recent encounter that truly made his jaw drop.

Working through the heat of the python breeding season, he and his research partner Ian Easterling had been tracking a large male, hoping he would lead them to a large breeding female. As with all pythons and other invasives here in the Sunshine State, the goal is to remove these destructive snakes from the landscape and one sure-fire way to do that is by targeting large breeding females.

Using telemetry equipment to track their male snake, the pair rounded a corner and where they encountered a large breeding female feeding on a whitetail deer. As the shock and excitement filled the air, the two men gathered their composure and broke out their photography and video equipment. According to the researchers, many biologists have long believed that pythons were feeding on fully-grown whitetail deer in the Everglades, but no one had ever recorded such an event taking place.

Serving as a moment of validation for biologists everywhere, Bartoszek and his team are hopeful that their recent discovery will aid in the message of awareness of these impressive, yet incredibly destructive invasive snakes.

“This just reinforces what we know,” says Bartoszek. “And if anybody’s on the fence about what these animals are doing in South Florida, they are clearly eating their way through the food web of the Everglades. And that includes whitetail deer.”

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🦘 Don’t pet the ‘Roo! I’ve made a lot of bad decisions in my life and, fortunately, trying to pet a kangaroo isn’t one of them. Watch as one lady attempts to give one a little pet and gets attacked in the process.

🧻 How am I supposed to put with that stuff going on? A coyote down in Frisco, Texas served to remind a group of golfers that they were in his backyard and not the other way around as he proceeded to wipe his hind end across the beautifully manicured green.

Oh, and one more thing…