Catch-and-Kill Order Instituted for Canadian fisheries 💀

If you’re still with us, that means you’ve made it to the middle of yet another week. We’ve added a few more sections to the newsletter as we continue to grow and keep all of you entertained for the best 5 minutes of your Wednesday and Friday mornings.

I hope y’all continue to enjoy what we put out there for you - be sure to let us know by participating in our surveys at the bottom of the email.

With that in mind, let’s all take a minute to grab a 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:

• Catch and destroy - Canadian province goes nuclear on bass/pickerel 💸

• NYS poacher brought down - State officials bring the boom in egregious poaching case 🚔

• Utah officials looking for help - A collared moose was illegally killed with a bow and officials want answers 🕵️

• Spring bear forever - Despite heavy pressure, Oregon’s spring bear hunt lives another year 🙌

• Bears in the attic- Family captures the moment a black bear exits their attic in search of food 🍯

IS A $500,000 FINE ENOUGH?
CANADIAN PROVINCE ISSUES CATCH-AND-KILL ORDER ON SMALLMOUTH BASS AND CHAIN PICKEREL IN AN EFFORT TO SAVE TROUT AND SALMON

The province of Nova Scotia is going on the offensive with some new fishing regs that are nothing to f*ck with. As part of a concerted effort to try and save salmon and trout species, particularly in the Margaree River watershed, officials are introducing a catch-and-kill order for smallmouth bass and chain pickerel.

After being introduced to the area back in the 1940s, the bass, in particular, have made their way from Lake Ainslie and into the Margaree and are wreaking havoc on prized Atlantic salmon. Given the hardy nature of both the pickerel and the smallies, they are comfortable in warmer water temperatures and will feast on both trout and salmon smolt during lower water periods when they are confined to smaller spaces. 

In an effort to protect these prized fish runs, Canadian officials have introduced incredibly strict policies and penalties they hope will encourage anglers to do the right thing. By issuing a catch-and-kill order, anglers that hook into either a smallmouth or a chain pickerel are required to kill the fish rather than release them back into the waterways.

🚔 Significant fines and revoked licenses for New York men after poaching two bucks in the North Country. The New York State of Environmental Conservation is laying the smack down on a pair of poachers in Jefferson County, New York.

"On Sept. 6, Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) arrested Jonathan M. Lille, 23, and Tyler S. Monica, 20, both of Adams, for unlawfully taking two deer in the towns of Henderson and Hounsfield on Dec. 30 and 31, 2023," according to the DEC.

They are accused of "the unlawful taking of big game, taking big game from a motor vehicle, taking big game from a highway, taking big game with the aid of artificial light, discharge of a firearm over a public highway, possessing a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle and taking big game during the closed season, all misdemeanor crimes," the DEC stated in a release.

The pair were well-known in the area for their late-night antics that included jack lighting and shooting deer during closed seasons. The two men both have prior violations and are facing up to $9,000 in fines and a license suspension of 5 years.

🕵️ Utah officials are looking for information regarding a poached cow moose in Wasatch County. A dead cow moose was recovered in Strawberry Valley earlier this month with wounds consistent with an archery kill. DWR biologists were alerted to the dead moose following a mortality signal emitted from the animal’s GPS collar.

Officials believe the incident occurred on September 2nd and stated that no attempts to salvage any of the meat had been made. A bull moose hunt was taking place at the time of the incident, but the antlerless (cow) moose hunt doesn't begin until Sept. 21. The carcass was also found in an area where it wouldn't be difficult to locate and retrieve it, the statement read.

Anyone with information regarding the illegal killing of this moose or any other wildlife is encouraged to report it to the DWR.

California nonprofit organizations encouraged to apply for fundraising hunting tags: Proceeds from the sale of these tags are returned to CDFW to fund projects that benefit bighorn sheep, deer, elk, and pronghorn antelope. Last year’s auctions raised more than $840,000 for the conservation and management of big game species. Read more at RBB.

Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries agents give numerous citations for dove hunting violations on opening weekend:  The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries cited 75 people during the opening weekend of dove season for alleged hunting violations across the state, and several citations were issued in SWLA. Read more at KPLC.

Permission slips available for white-tailed deer hunting on the National Elk Refuge:  Hunters holding a Type 3 or Type 8 white-tailed deer hunting license for the combined hunt area of 148, 150, 151, 152, 155 and 156 can hunt on the National Elk Refuge with a permission slip. Permission slips are unlimited, and hunters can obtain one at any time during the season through the Game and Fish website.  Read more at WGFD.

Nine Kansas lakes to adopt new hunting policies for upcoming season: On Tuesday morning, the Kansas City District Public Affairs Office announced that Kansas Lakes will adopt the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks public land’s updated hunting regulations this fall.  Read more at Fox4.

Wisconsin sees surge in archery and crossbow hunting as season opens: DNR Deer program specialist, Jeff Pritzl, says there's roughly 600,00 deer hunters in Wisconsin. More than half are participating in the archery and crossbow season, which started Saturday. Read more at Fox11.

Small Game Hunting Seasons Are Opening in NYS: State Department of Environmental Conservation Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said that new this year, the DEC has, “…expanded pheasant stocking programs in an effort to bolster small game hunter recruitment, retention, and reactivation and to provide greater opportunity for current pheasant hunters.” Read more at WRFA.

CONTROVERSY // ^{_{THIS WEEK’S SH*T DISTURBER}}

🙌 Despite pressure from anti-hunting groups, Oregon’s spring bear hunt remains. We’ve seen this unfold a few times before, and typically, speaking, it always ends up the same - with hunters on the losing end. Going the way of Washington State, who gave up their spring bear hunting dreams back in 2021 to animal rights activists, Oregon’s spring bear hunt is now under fire.

A coalition made up of both animal rights and environmental organizations are putting the pressure on Beaver State officials to shut down the spring bear hunting season altogether. 

"[Anti-hunting groups] are using these small, staff-recommended increases as a jumping off point to oppose our spring bear season," Amy Patrick, Policy Director for the Oregon Hunters Association said. "What they've chosen to do is submit a letter as part of public comment, and they have activated all of their folks so that there are hundreds and hundreds of form letters being flooded into the Commission with the same message."

Despite all of the letter writing, the commission ended up making a sound management decision. With about 44,000 bears in Oregon, the commission decided against touching the spring bear hunt and instead made a 2 percent increase in available tags and added a new bear hunt for youth hunters. Chalk this one up as a win for the good guys…for now. 

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

🧸 “Honey, I swear I hear something in the attic…” Watch the moment one Vermont family watches as a black bear emerges from the attic section above their deck. According to reports, the bruin was trying to get at their bird feeder.

🦃 Good old American ingenuity. Watch as one dude “Frankensteined” his decoy to fit around his bow for his new turkey season set up. Honestly, it seemed to do the trick…

CAMP TALK // ^{_{BEFORE YOU GO}}

We get a lot of questions and comments on here, and we figure it’s time to repay the favor. As part of our new Camp Talk section, we’re going to ask you, the reader, your opinion on some serious (and not so serious) topics to close out each newsletter.

Last week I asked, What are your thoughts on mixing drones and other tech with hunting?

To which you responded with:

1. I like to do it like grandad - I'm not a big fan of too much tech in the field. (45%)

2. It's cool, as long as it's used within reason (tied)

3. It's cheating (tied)

Here’s today’s question…

Oh, and one more thing…