Hunting and Fishing News Blog Articles

In a case that reads like a Hollywood movie script, Cody W. Davis plays the bad guy who is eventually apprehended and is fined a whopping $74,000 for poaching a 232-⅞” mule deer buck in New Mexico back in 2015. 

Tipped off by the Operation Game Thief hotline, New Mexico Game and Fish officers discovered a headless mule deer buck and shortly afterward the stashed trophy head with antlers intact. They set up 24/7 surveillance cameras and caught North Dakotan Cody W. Davis returning for the head and antlers four months later. Davis led the authorities on a wild goose chase while he dumped the poached buck’s head in the Rio Grande river where it was eventually recovered downstream of where Davis discarded it. Over 2,000 man hours, 25,000 miles and search warrants in two states culminated in a full confession from Davis, which he later appealed, thus the 2021 judgment. 

All told, Davis will be required to cough up $20,000 for the mule deer buck, and $54,000 to reimburse the state of New Mexico for the extensive investigation required in his case. I applaud New Mexico for the stiff fines, it’s about time a state took a hard line with poachers and hit them where it hurts, the pocketbook! 

This case is also an excellent example of anonymous reporting working to apprehend poachers. If you see something, say something! It’s our job as law abiding hunters to help protect the animals we love by helping bring poachers to justice. 

Imagine sitting atop a favorite glassing point and scouting for elk the old fashioned way when you hear a mechanical whirring noise and look up to witness an “unmanned aerial vehicle”, drone, buzzing over the landscape as its operator “scouts” from afar. 

Not cool! 

Currently Wyoming law is a tad ambiguous on the use of drones for scouting big game but a clarification is in the works to ensure that your honey hole won’t be defiled by drones remotely scouting, aka, harassing both wildlife and hunters.

“Aerial scouting and the use of aircraft to hunt or harass game animals is already illegal in Wyoming; a draft Wyoming House bill would add a paragraph of clarifying language. The paragraph includes the wording “unmanned aerial vehicles”.”
https://cowboystatedaily.com/

7,250, that’s how many Wyoming elk tags non-residents have had allocated to them since 1980 in the Cowboy State but that could be about to change! Wyoming elk numbers have skyrocketed in the eastern portion of the state, putting a strain on socially and biologically acceptable elk populations, where a lack of non-human apex predators, (wolves & grizzlies) allows the elk numbers to grow exponentially. 

Along with the recommendation, from the Wyoming Wildlife Taskforce, to eliminate the 7,250 allocation cap, comes a regionalizing of non-resident elk tags as well. 

“Recent Wyoming Game and Fish Department analysis concluded that regionalizing non-resident elk licenses would provide game managers more precise abilities to manage the elk populations across the state,” the taskforce’s recommendation letter said. “If implemented this measure could result in allocation of licenses in areas where additional elk harvest is needed and also provide additional options to manage hunter crowding.”

Oilcity.news/community/outdoors

An easy winter coupled with a mild spring and lots of moisture have netted a 6% increase in Wyoming Sage Grouse numbers as witnessed by spring lek counts in 2022. This good news comes on the heels of increased efforts to push for an ESA listing of these icons of the West and is a ray of much needed hope. 

Wyoming is home to almost 40% of the world’s Sage Grouse population and seeing an uptick in our numbers is a win for everyone involved in the bird’s struggles. That uptick is due in large part to the condition of the habitat the birds call home. With good habitat, adult Sage Grouse are virtually predator proof as very little recorded predation has been witnessed according to sources I interviewed for our recent Sage Grouse film https://youtu.be/pjGBwfk4g_A

Despite an upward trend in the grouse’s population here in Wyoming, an estimated 80% decline in population across the bird’s range has been observed over the past 50 years or so. There are a lot of factors involved in this but habitat loss and degradation via human impact and feral horses have made the big birds more vulnerable to nest predation by animals such as ravens, leading to the decline. 

Of course the big picture is complex but all of my study and research for the above film indicate that we know how to fix the problem but for some reason have opted, in large part, to defer to more “research” and have mired ourselves in bureaucratic red tape while the grouse languish and spiral downward toward a possible ESA listing and all the impacts that carries with it. 

The Elk Management Citizen Advisory Group has made all of its recommendations open for public review and comment until Friday, October 14, 2022 at 5 p.m.

The 15 recommendations are broad and include a wide range of topics. If you’re a Montana elk hunter or plan to be, I would encourage you to provide your feedback ASAP. If you choose to abstain from this public process then you have no platform from which to complain later. Get involved or keep quiet, the choice is yours. 

Source Links: 

Sitting down to write this article, especially when I am citing a VERY well-written article by Gabriella Hoffman on the Townhall website, makes it tough to offer a deep perspective of my own on her subject matter. She nailed the complexities of what is going on, and I won’t try to rehash her article, as it stands for itself and is worth your time to read. What I will offer are a few thoughts on some of the crazy that stuck out from her opinion piece and encourage you as a reader to make your voice heard to your reps.  

The opposition to hunting is creative, I will give them that. They have actually been very creative for a long time and as part of that creativity, weaponized the court system in their favor. The part that really struck me as creative in this go-around was an initiative to deny Pittman Robertson dollars to Idaho and Montana because…they are hunting wolves. Creative, yes; a good argument, no. Those dollars work to keep habitat open for all species, including their beloved apex predators that are politically polarizing and tough to manage on top of that. Removing that money would be to the detriment of their cause as well.  

What really concerns me, though, is that there is an effort supported by some Republicans, the party that tends to hold 2A close to the heart, who are okay with getting rid of Pittman Robertson under the misinformed idea that it is “anti 2A.” Pittman Robertson fuels hunting, which in turn fuels shooting, which in turn brings more people to the gun store. That one is a head-scratcher, and if you live in one of the places that elected these legislators, I would really encourage you to let them know this is a BAD idea.    

Gabriella also nailed another thought—preservationist lines of thinking vs. conservationist lines of thinking. As a conservationist, I choose where to send my dollars. For instance, I know that we will never tear up the highways that run through some of my favorite mule deer migration routes. Where those two intersect is where I want to see fewer dead deer, antelope and elk on the side of the highway. The easiest way to do this is to fund more overpasses and underpasses with high fences directing the animals to use them. Wyoming has a place where I can put my money where my mouth is and donate to the cause every year. I can even get a cool license plate to match if I choose to go so far. My money, my choice, and we are conserving what we have and hopefully growing over time the mule deer population that has been hammered. 

The New Mexico Department of Game & Fish (NMG&F) is beginning to finalize the next four-year rule cycle beginning April 1st, 2023. Even though the deer and elk rule cycle will not be voted on by the Commission until October, not much is expected other than the passage of the muzzleloader rule. This effectively eliminates scopes from all of the muzzleloader hunts, thereby making them a primitive weapons hunt. This basically applies to all species.

 The Commission voted on and passed the exotics rule for the next four-year cycle with some minor shifts in licenses but again the major rule is the elimination of scopes on all muzzleloader hunts.

I applaud the NMG&F for standing up for all hunters and for trying to keep the status quo with the current split on the license structure, meaning 84 percent go to residents, 6 percent to non-residents and 10 percent to hunters hiring an outfitter. Especially for bighorn sheep hunters, (both Rockies and Deserts). There are some organizations that are attempting to circumvent this system by saying that the NMG&F has changed the rule to allow for more non-resident hunts. These organizations are spreading misinformation to the Game Commission which in turn has the potential to vote against the NMG&F on the next rule cycle. 

Because none of the current bighorn sheep ram hunts have more than five tags by individual hunt codes, the argument by the NMWF is that all of these tags should go to residents by following the 84/6/10 split. The way that the current structure is set up by the NMG&F is that all of the Rocky Mountain ram tags and the Desert ram tags are pooled into one hunt code for each. This creates a pool of 26 Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep ram tags and 24 for the desert sheep and the existing structure allows for the 84/6/10 spit. 

Ride horseback deep into grizzly country to hunt elk in October on this episode of Beyond the Grid by Eastmans’. Two giant public land go down in less than 48 hours!

The post Two Giants, Two Days! Elk Hunting with Grizzlies 4K appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

This wildlife conservation story features the most important bird you’ve probably never heard of. Sage grouse hunting has been a fixture of American culture since the earliest pioneers settled the West. This native upland game bird is the canary in the coal mine for the sagebrush landscape it calls home. Sagebrush habitat loss due to a variety of threats could place the sage grouse on the endangered species list affecting western public lands the size of Texas! Join Wingmen Todd Helms and Ike Eastman as they explore the story of the sage grouse. This film aims to open the eyes of the American public to an issue they are likely completely unaware of, but could have a real impact on their day to day lives. Get the full story. Releasing early 2023.

The post Texas-Sized Public Land At Risk! A Sage Grouse Conservation Story appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Wyoming Game and Fish Department has ramped up mandatory CWD testing across the state for mule deer, whitetail deer and elk in efforts to continue the tracking and study of Chronic Wasting Disease. There are now six mandatory CWD reporting areas across Wyoming.

Mandatory CWD Reporting Deer Hunt Units: 59, 60, 64, 65, 157, 171

WGFD is also requesting CWD samples from hunters who take deer (either species) in hunt units: 1-6, 59, 60, 64–66, 124, 130, 131, 134, 135, 138–146, 150–157, 165 and 171. 

Elk hunt units that have been selected for CWD sampling include: 7, 19, 33, 34, 41, 45, 47-49, 67–71, 75, 77–85, 88–91, 93, 95, 96, 102–105, 120 and 127. 

If you’ve ever drawn an elk tag in Wyoming, resident or non-resident you’ve probably received a small cardboard box from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department containing brucellosis sampling materials. DO NOT disregard this package and while you’re field dressing/quartering your elk this fall take a moment and fill that little vial with elk blood. You can either mail it in or drop it off at any Game and Fish office or elk blood collection site. Many times the latter will be at gas stations, look for the little signs. 

Wyoming Game and Fish relies almost exclusively on hunters to monitor the current status and spread of any possible brucellosis in our elk herds. Please do your part to help out. 

I have only failed once to participate in the sampling process when mailed a kit and it was simple forgetfulness. It is quick and easy and Wyoming will notify you of your test results if you mail your sample in. 

I nor anyone I know have ever found a brucellosis positive elk but that could all change quickly given the disease’s pestilential nature. In the end it is not something that keeps me up at night before going elk hunting or even consuming elk meat but if you’d like some food for thought Google it. I’ve also included some informative links below and the history and monitoring of the disease in Wyoming. 

At the crack of the rifle the big buck stumbled and went down hard but within seconds he was up and into the thick timber. My buddy had just shot the largest buck of his life but recovering the deer would put our tracking skills to the test. The year was 2013 and tracking dogs were not legal yet in Wyoming. If they had been we would have recovered the buck in minutes instead of hours. Our story ended well but it could have easily been the opposite. 

Wyoming legalized the use of tracking dogs for the recovery of wounded big game animals in 2019 and countless deer and elk have been recovered since then that otherwise would have been lost. This is especially true in areas where thick timber, brush and rugged terrain conceal game easily and hamper recovery efforts. 

It took awhile but tracking dogs are now legal in most western states with the exception of Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Arizona. United Blood Trackers.org has a comprehensive list of state regulations on tracking dog regulations, follow this link…https://www.unitedbloodtrackers.org/state-regulations/

If you find yourself in need of a blood tracking dog this fall, start by contacting the local game warden as they will most likely have a list of folks willing to render their trailing services. Some people will require a fee but a lot of folks offer their services free of charge as they like to know they are helping hunters and game animals. Just remember, gas money, tips and of course dog treats are always welcome. 

As my soon to be wife and I drove a road known to locals as “Red Grade” we were engaged in conversation and I was only half paying attention to the road due to our slow speed. As we rounded a sharp bend we both noticed a grayish-brown figure standing next to the road. Dismissing it as a mule deer it took a moment for what we were seeing to register. The animal quickly moved off with a fluid, swinging, gait… upright! 

The speed, albeit slow, of our vehicle had us on the spot the creature stood in the blink of an eye and the forest was quite open in that place but when we stopped to inspect the strange animal it was nowhere to be seen. This was quite unlike mule deer that inhabit that mountain range which normally stand and watch approaching vehicles, especially in the summer. 

“What was that?” my bride to be asked.

“Squatch!” 

“Whether the mustangs are wild or feral is a matter of debate. In general terms, animals are considered wild if they’re native to the landscape and untamed. The term “feral” refers to animals that aren’t native to the landscape – those that have escaped captivity or been abandoned to live in the wild — and their descendants.”

https://cowboystatedaily.com/2022/08/17/mustangs-vs-muleys-wild-horses-out-competing-mule-deer-for-food-water/?fs=e&s=cl

The fact is, that left unchecked and unmanaged, feral horses out compete mule deer and pronghorn for precious resources, plain and simple. In an era of mule deer decline and plummeting pronghorn populations that is quite simply unacceptable. The horses on the landscape of the West are not native and if they have a traceable bloodline it begins and ends with the Spanish Conquistadors. Most feral horses destroying today’s habitat are simply animals that have been recklessly abandoned to eke out a pitiful existence on their own. 

The real crux of the feral horse dilemma is that there is no winner. Overpopulated horses destroy precious habitat that ultimately hurts native ungulates, sage grouse, and other denizens of the sagebrush ecosystem including the horses themselves. I have witnessed this first hand on hunts for sage grouse, antelope and mule deer. Trampled springs and water holes that no longer provide sustenance for anything, decimated sagebrush that will likely never recover from horses eating it to death and sickly, malnourished horses that are shadows of what they could be under the human care they deserve. 

This Eastmans’ review features the new 3D Elevation Exaggeration tool inside the onX hunt desktop platform. It’s a powerful new tool that will make e-scouting even easier, especially in terrain with subtle elevation features. Brandon Mason breaks down how he uses the tool to his advantage on specific hunts.

The post OnX Exaggerated 3D Maps appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Bow hunt elk in the September rut with Eastmans’ Dan Pickar. With the help of horses, Dan heads deep into the backcountry to hunt from a drop camp. The action picks up quickly on this public land hunt. Dan is able to use his experience to close the deal on this episode of Beyond the Grid by Eastmans’.

The post Facing Off with a Giant! Bow Hunting Backcountry Bulls in Grizzly Country appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

“Thank you for taking time to listen to me about my son Tyler and his Wyoming Preference Points. Tyler and I have hunted Wyoming since he was 14 and have been buying mule deer points together for 9 years and were looking forward to drawing in 2021. Tyler died January 19, 2021. I have made several requests to Wyoming to transfer Tyler’s points to his wife, back to me or another family member and they are very clear that this is not allowed under current regulations.  

Pursuing this further with Senator Lummis’ office they referred me to Representative Cyrus Western from Sheridan that had sponsored a Bill to make these very changes in 2021 (https://wyoleg.gov/Legislation/2021/HB0130) but the legislative session ended before it could get traction.  

I have spoken to Cyrus and he is willing to re-submit the Bill in the 2023 Session that begins in January and welcomed me to work on public opinion in support of the Bill. Unfortunately, under current regulations Tyler’s points will be wiped out as he did not buy a point for 2020 or 2021.  This Bill will fix that and make preference points transferable to family members which supports more hunting in Wyoming by hunters that have taken time and spent money to invest in the opportunity of drawing a tag.

I realize it’s most likely too late for Tyler’s points but am hoping this change can and will benefit others in the future. ” – N. Jones via email

Colorado Parks and Wildlife is in the process of considering changes to policies and regulations that could potentially impact how big game hunting licenses are distributed in the state. Some of the topics being considered are resident and non-resident elk and deer license allocation, preference points, weighted points, and Over-the-Counter (OTC) elk licenses. This process began a-while ago with Phase 1 below, collecting feedback from hunters. Phase 2 was recently completed, and then this unofficial License Distribution Workshop was scheduled so CPW members could update/educate the Commissioners on the status of issues being considered. Phase 3 will occur next month when the Commission considers potential changes/solutions.

During this License Distribution Workshop, CPW members updated/educated the Commissioners on the following topics:

The Commission is considering whether any changes are warranted and if so, whether changes should be implemented incrementally or all-at-once (before 2023 Big Game season). This was a 4:56 minute Virtual Meeting with no public comments.

I imagine if you currently apply for licenses and/or hunt Colorado you are already aware of our more pressing issues. From a hunter’s perspective, many of our limited draw hunts require massive amounts of preference point to draw, and point creep is exacerbating this problem. Also, many residents are dissatisfied with how many licenses are set aside for landowners, youths, and non-residents. If you decide to hunt an Over-the Counter (OTC) unit to avoid all that, you’ll likely encounter overcrowding. 

This review features the MAGVIEW magnetic spotting scope and binocular attachments. Eastmans’ Dan Pickar tests them out on an early season scouting trip for elk. Using your phone’s camera grid makes it simple and quick to attach your phone to snap photos and videos.

The post Easy Digiscoping! Magnetic Mount by MAGVIEW appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

By harrycollinsphotography

With fall just around the corner and the velvet antlers getting ever harder, the pieces are beginning to fall into place giving us a better outlook on what this hunting season may in fact hold for those of us who intend to head afield in the Cowboy State. 

Coming off a very mild winter, wet spring and damp warm summer, things tend to be looking up for the big game herds in Wyoming for this fall’s hunt. The elk herds in Wyoming continue to fare very well in most regions, while the mule deer herds continue to struggle as expected. Wyoming’s antelope herds look to be somewhat of a mixed bag for this fall as drought conditions have finally eased statewide in comparison to the past few years. 

Elk hunters in Wyoming should see very solid results this fall on good to large bulls. With a very robust elk herd on the map, Wyoming continues to deliver a very solid elk hunting experience for those lucky enough to have a tag in their pocket for the fall season. Elk numbers in Wyoming should be as good as ever this fall with trophy quality about as good as it gets. The bulls in the higher elevations should be of very good quality with plenty of bulls to choose from this year as our elk herds have continued to expand in most areas of the state. The elk hunting in the more arid portions of the state should be solid with herd numbers near the Game and Fish objective levels. The good moisture levels seen this spring and summer should have the bull quality at a much higher level than the past few years have seen with some elk herds possibly even moving back into some of the more traditional ranges after being displaced by the drastic drought conditions of the past few years. Overall, I would put the elk hunting forecast level in Wyoming at a very solid “A-” for the 2022 hunting season. 

As good as the elk forecast is, the mule deer outlook is so often the other side of the coin and this year should be no different. With mule deer numbers in a drastic decline statewide, the deer in Wyoming and the entire West for that matter continue to struggle. With numbers down drastically, the moisture levels and habitat improvements should actually have buck quality and antler growth on the upside for this fall, particularly when compared to the past few years. The largest bright spot should be the high-country bucks on the western side of the state who have stood to benefit the most from a mild winter and wet summer. Last year was a very solid season for high-country buck deer and this year should be even better, as the drastic winters of 2016 and 2017 are now, finally, five years behind us. The deer in the more arid portions of the state continue to struggle with numbers and quality. Although, I do expect this year to be better than last for bucks in the lower elevations, these hunts will still lack in quality and abundance again this year. In a nutshell, deer hunting in the Regions of G, H and K should be much improved, along with hunt areas 141 and 130. The remaining general regions and hunt areas should be about the same as last year. As a summary, I would grade the mule deer hunting in Wyoming this fall to be a very shaky “C-” at this point in time.