"Vermont Wild" Offers Humorous Tribute to Game Wardens

Saturday, 03/05/11 8:35am

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Peter Biello

Eric Nuse was a game warden in Vermont for thirty-two years, and during that time he’s had many close-encounters with Vermont’s wildlife. Those encounters were sometimes painful, sometimes heartwarming, and often they were very funny.
Former journalist Megan Price has written a book about Nuse’s more humorous adventures in Vermont’s wilderness. It’s called Vermont Wild. She speaks about it with VPR's Peter Biello.
Learn more about Vermont Wild. 

Conservation Pays

An op-ed piece by DU CEO Dale Hall, which appeared in the Feb. 22 edition of the Atlanta Journal Constitution

The Congress and Administration began in earnest their jousting over the budget last week when the president submitted his fiscal year 2012 proposal and the House of Representatives debated HR1, the bill to fund the remainder of fiscal year 2011. The debates surrounding these two actions will likely define the approach that will be used to reduce the massive budget deficit that all agree is crippling America's economic recovery. At Ducks Unlimited, we strongly urge budget cutting efforts that actually work to reduce the deficit. We do, however, believe that won't happen through political rhetoric, but rather through legitimate analysis of the costs and benefits of all programs.

I am extremely disappointed with the approach taken in HR1 to eliminate conservation programs, such as the North American Wetland Conservation Act (NAWCA) grants, that have proven successful at every level of analysis, including the amount of money returned to the federal treasury through taxes each year. For every federal dollar invested through this program, $3-$4 dollars of non-federal monies are secured as matching funds. This program alone has protected and conserved more than 25 million acres of essential habitat for migratory birds and also serves hundreds of non-game species. In addition, every year hunters, shooters, anglers and boaters pay special federal taxes that are returned to the federal treasury for specific conservation use. That amounts to about $1 billion each year going directly to the state fish and wildlife agencies to manage and conserve fish and wildlife in each of the states. Further, nearly $2 billion each year is secured through the sale of licenses to hunt and fish. Simply stated, the state fish and wildlife agencies could not exist without these two sources of funding, both voluntarily paid from the private sector.

Hunting and fishing is about an $80 billion per year industry. Billions of dollars per year – a net gain for the federal treasury - are returned through direct taxes paid by those who work in that industry: manufacturers, guides, outfitters, the hospitality sector, retail, and others who support getting hunters and anglers into the field. The father of modern conservation, Aldo Leopold wrote about the importance of the citizen conservationist nearly a century ago. Since that time, the cost of conservation has been freely carried on the shoulders of hunters and anglers. But the federal government needs to do its part.

The government's contribution to conservation each year is less than $5 billion. Yes, a fair amount more is appropriated to carry out laws and regulations to keep things from getting worse, but in the effort to improve and advance conservation, the federal government is not the leader in the funding of those efforts. The states and private conservationists are the leaders. For what federal taxpayers receive in return for their investment, and the small amount the government provides in partnership, these programs should be upheld.

Finding ways to reduce the massive federal deficit simply must be done. But in doing so, let's make sure to support those federal investments that pay for themselves several times over and be critical of those that are truly wasteful. Conservation has always, and continues to, pay for itself. Congress and the Administration should approach the budget challenge with facts and analysis, not a meat cleaver.

Tester announces members of MT Sportsmen’s Caucus advisory group

  From the Clark Fork Chronicle

Congratulations to Orion board members Gayle and Randy!

Thursday, February 10 2011 @ 10:19 AM MST

Contributed by: Admin

19 Montanans on panel ‘come from all walks of life’

by Andrea Helling

Senator Jon Tester today announced members of the Montana Sportsmen’s Advisory Panel, a group of sportsmen and women from across Montana who will provide input to Tester in his new role as the Chairman of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus.

Tester’s 19-member panel of Montanans will share their experiences as men and women actively engaged in hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities. Tester plans to use the group’s input to craft legislation aimed at protecting Montana’s and America’s outdoor heritage.

Tester plans to focus the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus on working to strengthen gun rights, remove wolves from the endangered species list, improve access to public land, and fight for clean water and healthy wildlife.

“Montanans grow up surrounded by the many outdoor recreational opportunities our state has to offer and we learn from an early age that it is also our job to make sure we strengthen that heritage for our kids and grandkids,” Tester said. “The Montanans on this panel come from all walks of life, and all of them are experts in working together to make sure the next generation has the opportunities to hunt, fish, camp and hike. I look forward to their advice on how we can move forward legislation to protect Montana’s rich outdoor heritage.”

....The following Montana hunters, anglers and outdoor enthusiasts will be part of Tester’s Montana Sportsmen’s Advisory Panel:

Gayle Joslin is a wildlife biologist and worked for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for 30 years. She is the secretary and founding board member of Orion—The Hunters Institute. Gayle is also the Issues Chair for the Helena Hunters and Anglers Association, an affiliate of the Montana Wildlife Federation. She has conducted Hunter Education Wildlife Identification courses and has taught riflery at Becoming an Outdoors Woman seminars.


...Randy Newberg currently is the host and producer of the critically acclaimed outdoor show On Your Own Adventures, a show focused on teaching hunters how to hunt on public lands, without guides. Newberg has been a committee chairman and board member for many conservation groups. He is currently Treasurer and past President of Orion the Hunters Institute. He is a co-founder of a local rod and gun club, Headwaters Fish and Game Association in Bozeman.

...Land Tawney is a 5th generation Montana who grew up with a fly rod and gun in hand. He served as the president of Hellgate Hunters and Anglers and Senior Manager of Sportsmen's leadership for the National Wildlife Federation. In addition he chairs the Private Land/Public Wildlife Council and serves as vice chair of the Phil Tawney Hunter Conservation Endowment.
...
Bill Geer has been a Fish and Wildlife professional for 38 years. He started as a project biologist on Georgetown Lake for fisheries research in 1973 for the Montana Fish and Game Department. In 1984, Geer became the Director of the Utah division of Wildlife Resources. Geer currently works at the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, is a board member of Hellgate Hunters and Anglers, and is a Community Councilman in Lolo.

read the full article
 

Shumlin defends Pete the Moose

Note - Read the Governor's quote closely. My take is although he says Pete should not be put down and he wishes to other moose and deer would not have to be killed. But he does not say they will not be put down. In the Free Press article he defers to the FWD on how to deal with the other captive cervids. This is (in much clearer language) what the Fish, Wildlife and Water Resources committee is saying it wants to do with the illegally captured herd at Nelson's facility.
The good news is Shumlin supports the Public Trust and returning management to Fish and Wildlife.

Montpelier, Vermont - February 10, 2011
Pete the Governor says Pete the Moose should live-- and so should all the other animals inside the hunting preserve in the Northeast Kingdom.
Pete the Moose lives inside a fence in Irasburg with other animals including elk, wild deer and moose.
Pete became a celebrity last year after wildlife officials considered removing or killing him. They feared he and other animals in the preserve might spread disease.
Now the Legislature is considering a bill that would save Pete the Moose from being killed. The governor wants the bill on his desk. He pledged Thursday to pardon Pete and all the other deer and moose that live inside the preserve.
"You know I think there has been a lesson for all of this which is don't take publicly owned wildlife and put it in private hands. I think the best way to solve this problem is to make sure it does not happen again. And let's let the existing wildlife at the farm continue to live," said Gov. Peter Shumlin, D-Vermont. "I would like to pardon them all."
The Legislature will continue to debate the bill. The governor says they would act quickly to pass a bill that prevents private citizens from owning wildlife.
Anson Tebbetts - WCAX News

Here is the press conference footage:

Will Shumlin also pardon Pete the Moose's pals?

By Terri Hallenbeck, Free Press Staff Writer

Whatever happens with the saga of Pete the Moose, the moose's life will be spared, that much state officials have made clear. But what about the other animals living in captivity with Pete? 

Gov. Peter Shumlin said Thursday at his weekly news conference that he would pardon them, too, before clarifying that he would defer details to wildlife scientists.

"Pete the governor hasn't issued any pardons yet, but I'm going to issue one for Pete the Moose," Shumlin said. "The best way to solve this problem is, let's make sure it doesn't happen again and let's let the existing wildlife at the farm continue to live. I would like to pardon them all."
Pete the governor might have gotten ahead of himself when it comes to the other, unnamed animals. Asked how the animals could continue to live in captivity, Shumlin said, "I'll defer to the biologists on some of your question."
More

Public Trust bill has first hearing in Montpelier

The VT House Fish, Wildlife and Water Resources Committee took testimony on H.91 to reverse the Nelson Amendment and restore the Public Trust of our wildlife resource. Everyone testifying in favor of the bill spoke with a united focused voice. Congratulations to all the individuals and leaders of the hunting/conservation and environmental groups.
Doug Nelson also testified and showed his true colors. He refused to agree to cooperating in solving the problems his facility poses to the health of Vermont's deer herd. Testimony was offered by the Fish and Wildlife Dept that his facility has never been in compliance with FWD or Ag rules in over 10 years. He brushed that off and said he is in compliance now and the Ag dept has agreed that he doesn't have to mark his animals as called for in the Ag rules he is currently under.
More testimony is scheduled to tomorrow (Wed the 9th) morning and again again on Friday.
Lots of press coverage by WCAX, FOX 22, Public Radio, Burlington Free Press, and Vt Digger.com

Margolis: Nelson scolds lawmakers in bid to "save Pete," and ...
By Jon Margolis
Photo of Eric Nuse. Eric Nuse, executive director of Orion — The Hunter's Institute, told the committee that legislation passed last year violated the Public Trust Doctrine. Photo by Josh Larkin. In response to anger from hunting groups ...
Vtdigger.org - http://vtdigger.org/

Will Vt. lawmakers change their minds about Pete the Moose?

The saga of Pete the Moose continues. The Legislature is revisiting a controversial deal that allowed the wild moose to live out his days on a Northeast Kingdom elk farm. More>>



Vermont: Pete the Moose's Life Is on the Line, Again
New York Times
... save Pete the Moose, who gained thousands of online fans but in the process gave the owner of a private game preserve ownership of a wild animal herd. ...
See all stories on this topic »

Lawmakers Re-Consider “Pete The Moose” Law
Vermont Public Radio
(Dillon) But for Eric Nuse that's exactly what's wrong with what the Legislature did last year. Nuse is executive director of Orion, an organization that ... 

The News-Herald : Breaking news coverage for Northern Ohio
Now, they're reconsidering because they say Vermont's wild animals belong to the state, not to any one person. Associated Press ...
hosted2.ap.org/.../id-e65d751ea0ed4abe882ef2dc43244295

Too much 'BBD' on TV these days

From the Great Falls Tribune, Randy Newberg is a founding board member of Orion:

Too much 'BBD' on TV these days

February 3, 2011

A noteworthy trend is developing in the outdoor media and it involves one of my favorite themes — the heavy emphasis on killing and the lack of emphasis placed on hunting.

No pulled punches here. Mostly it is an outdoor television industry problem of too much "big buck down" mentality brought to us by grinning red-necked yahoos who hoot and holler and high-five after even marginal shots on game.
They turn to the camera with a toothy grin and in a hoarse stage whisper summarize what we already have watched. A two- or three-day's growth of beard is a prerequisite — and they seem so barely able to contain themselves that I am surprised more of them don't wet themselves or fall out of their tree stands.
Along with this country bumpkin buffoonery comes an apparent lack of interest in the skills required to be a good hunter — we used to call it woodcraft — the art of tracking, of getting close to animals, of being comfortable and secure in the outdoors.
Almost all of these "hunters" are guided and they arrive at their stands on an ATV or some other conveyance that saves them from walking. They have watched the deer all summer long on one of several dozen trail cameras placed strategically around planted food plots that lure the deer in. They even have names for the deer.
Money of course is at the root of this — money and our nation's love affair with seeing ourselves on TV or Facebook or Twitter. The money comes from advertisers, product manufacturers who just can't seem to come up with the latest gimmick fast enough.
But, I digress.

.... "We all know that our freedom to hunt and fish depends on a healthy habitat," BCHA says on the group's website.

Then there is On Your Own Adventures, an outdoor TV program produced by Montanans Randy Newberg and Will Holmes in conjunction with Warm Springs Productions. That show airs on Outdoor Channel. It is the only hunting TV show dedicated exclusively to non-guided hunting.
"Any hunt you see on our show is a hunt you can do," its producers say.
The first season of "On Your Own Adventures" was filmed in 2008 and began airing in July, 2009. All episodes are based in the United States, with most of them on public lands in the West.
The first season has 12 episodes, in locations including Montana, Colorado, New Mexico and Iowa. Species hunted are elk, mule deer, whitetail deer, antelope, bear and turkey.

read more

Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact Bill H.53 Introduced in VT

H.53 An act relating to the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact sponsored by retired Warden Rep. Robert Lewis has been introduced in the VT House. This bill should be supported by all hunters, anglers and trappers in Vermont.


Below is my post from Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact

I feel it is time Vermont and other states that are not part of this compact get on-board. There is no excuse for not presenting a united front against poaching. Suspensions of the right to hunt and fish has always been our best deterrent to those tempted to violate. But with neighboring states close by our repeat violators have no problem "legally" hunting will waiting out their Vermont suspensions. We could also easily become a destination state for out of state violators as more states clamp down an sign the compact.

The following comes from The Outdoor Wire:

Pennsylvania Game Commission Praises Enactment Of Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact Bill

Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Carl G. Roe praised Gov. Edward G. Rendell for signing Senate Bill 1200 into law, which clears the way for Pennsylvania to join the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact (IWVC). 

"We are one step closer to banding with 37 other states in a united front against convicted poachers, who steal from all citizens, most especially, law-abiding hunters," Roe said. "Once we complete the administrative step to join the compact, someone who has lost his or her hunting license privileges in one state for a poaching conviction will lose those hunting license privileges in Pennsylvania, as well as in all states that are members of the compact.

"In addition, individuals convicted of poaching here in Pennsylvania will lose their ability to lawfully hunt in the 37 other states who are members of the IWVC."| For More...

From the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership newsletter "The Square Dealer"

A newly approved easement incentive allows for an increased pace of private, voluntary land conservation. Photo courtesy of USDA.gov.

 

Conservation Friendly Tax Incentive Gets New Life

After a yearlong lapse that left many important conservation donations in limbo, Congress renewed an enhanced tax incentive for easements that increased private land conservation to more than 1 million acres per year. Renewed a week before Christmas, the incentive will be in effect through Dec. 31, 2011, and retroactive to Jan. 1, 2010. That gives a full year to work on getting landowners to donate easements to this program. 
By helping landowners deduct the full value of their contributions, this easement incentive allows for an increased pace of private, voluntary land conservation. Such programs are especially important since America loses land to development at a rate of 1.5 million acres per year. Game species like whitetail deer and turkeys that often rely on wildlife habitat on private lands, especially in the eastern half of the United States, will greatly benefit from this renewed effort to encourage landowners to conserve lands.
A broad coalition of sportsmen, outdoors enthusiasts, farmers, ranchers and national conservation groups, including the Land Trust Alliance and the TRCP, worked together to renew the incentive and will push to make it permanent in the 112th Congress.
The enhanced incentive, which applies to a landowner’s federal income tax, includes the following incentives:
• Raises from 30 percent of their income in any year to 50 percent the deduction landowners can take for donating voluntary conservation agreements;
• Allows farmers and ranchers to deduct up to 100 percent of their incomes; and
• Increases the number of years over which a donor can take deductions from six to 16.
Landowners interested in conserving their land under this provision should contact a land trust in their community.
 

H.91 Restoring the Public Trust of Wildlife introduced in VT House

H.91 which repeals the Nelson Amendment and restores the Public Trust Doctrine in Vermont has been introduced in the House of Representatives. Led by Rep David Deen and Kate Webb and cosponsored by 33 other Representatives.

Subject: Fish and wildlife; management of wildlife

Statement of purpose: This bill proposes to declare that the fish and wildlife of Vermont are held in trust by the state for the benefit of the citizens of Vermont and shall not be reduced to private ownership. The bill would also declare that the fish and wildlife of Vermont are owned and controlled by the state in its sovereign capacity as the trustee for the citizens of the state. The bill would repeal the regulatory authority of the agency of agriculture, food and markets over the wild cervidae at a captive cervidae farm in Irasburg. Regulatory authority over the wild cervidae at the Irasburg facility would be transferred to the department of fish and wildlife. In addition, the bill would make permanent the transfer to the fish and wildlife board of regulatory authorityover the state deer herd by repealing the reversion of such authority to the general assembly.

Read the whole bill

Guest opinion: Conservationists must again battle bad, old ideas about public lands

Guest opinion: Conservationists must again battle bad, old ideas about public lands
By JIM POSEWITZ The Billings Gazette | Posted: Saturday, January 15, 2011 12:00 am


It was once said that bad ideas die with the people who hold them. If only that were true. In viewing the opening of the Montana Legislature, it is apparent that the anti-conservation, anti-environment, anti-public land and anti-wildlife philosophy of Montana's most notorious politician is vigorously alive in 2011.
By way of refresher, William A. Clark was our U.S. senator from 1901-1907. At the time, it was a position filled through vote of the state Legislature. For Clark, it was “... a position he had initially purchased with bundles of crisp $100 bills handed out to legislators in monogrammed envelopes — W.A.C. stamped on the fold, $10,000 per vote,” according to Tim Egan in “The Big Burn,” published in 2009. Clark's defense at the time was, “I never bought a man who was not for sale.”
The prize then, as it is now, was privatization and commercialization of natural resources. Clark and conservatives like Idaho's Sen. Weldon Heyburn and “Uncle Joe” Cannon of Illinois championed privatizing all of America. Their opponents believed that in America some natural resources were best shared. Their names are less eroded by time: Gifford Pinchot, George Bird Grinnell, and Theodore Roosevelt.

Montana's public land legacy

In order to protect forests and wildlife, Roosevelt, Pinchot, and Grinnell created the Boone and Crockett Club to introduce the sporting code and conservation to a nation.
In 1891 they lobbied a bill through Congress to allow presidents to reserve unclaimed land as forest reserves. When Roosevelt got to be president he used that authority — with vigor. In response, Clark, Weldon, Cannon and other anti-conservation conservatives attached a “rider” to an appropriations bill to prohibit the president from creating any new forest reserves in six western states — including Montana. In the seven days he had to either sign or veto the bill, Roosevelt added 16 million acres of national forest reserves in the states that Clark and his allies sought to reserve for the corporate robber barons. For Montana, those seven days meant the Big Hole, the Big Belts, the Little Rockies, the Cabinets, the Lewis and Clark and the Custer national forests. A couple of years later Grinnell led the fight to add Glacier Park to the list of protected places.
The battle between exploitation and conservation has persisted through the century that followed, generally with pseudo-conservatives attacking conservation budgets, vilifying those carrying the conservation message, and purging progressive political thought from their own political ranks. We are only one year away from the 100th anniversary of Republican Party bosses denying Theodore Roosevelt the nomination as their party's presidential candidate in 1912. As the years passed we have responded to Reagan's “Sage Brush Rebellion,” Interior Secretary James Watt's effort to “bomb” the Bob Marshall Wilderness with oil exploration, and numerous other attempts to sell off our public lands or diminish their protection.
Welcome to the 2011 Montana legislative session and its promise to: privatize and commercialize our
/read more:

New President of Boone and Crockett Club – Ben B. Wallace

Boone and Crockett Club

MISSOULA, Mont.--(Ammoland.com)- A hunter, attorney, banker and businessman from Corpus Christi, Texas, Ben B. Wallace has been elected to serve as president of America’s oldest conservation organization, the Boone and Crockett Club.
Theodore Roosevelt founded Boone and Crockett Club in 1887. Its mission includes promoting conservation and management of wildlife and their habitats, upholding the highest standards of fair-chase sportsmanship and maintaining records of native North American big game species.
Wallace becomes the Club’s 29th president, following the tenure of Lowell E. Baier.
Wallace has served as a club officer and as a member of various committees. He also is active in Pope and Young Club, Lone Star Bow Hunter’s Association, American Hunting Club, International Game and Fish Association, Texas Wildlife Association, National Rifle Association and Ducks Unlimited.
The following is a statement issued by Wallace regarding his vision and direction for Boone and Crockett Club:
“As the 29th president of the nation’s first national conservation organization, it is my responsibility to ensure efforts to address the major conservation and hunting heritage challenges the Boone and Crockett Club and our partners have been working on are carried through to completion and to set the course for the future.
These challenges are clearly delineated in “Wildlife for the 21st Century: III,” the recommendations submitted to the Obama Administration as a result of the 2008 Whitehouse Conference on North American Wildlife Policy.
read more:

First Hunt, Delta Waterfowl's Mentored Hunting Program

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Welcome to Delta Waterfowl's “First Hunt” program. Here you'll find a collection of videos and handbooks specifically created for first-time hunters and their mentors. This is your gateway to the storied tradition of waterfowl hunting. Enjoy.

Message from Delta President Rob Olson

Few things as a waterfowler will give you more long-term satisfaction than passing on our hunting heritage to your son or daughter, friend or family member. Even the young kid down the street you barely even know.
At Delta, we take immense pride in mentoring new waterfowlers. I personally derive more pleasure watching a complete novice shoot his or her first duck than actually hunting myself. Ear-to-ear grins tend to make a mentor's small sacrifices completely worthwhile.
Read More

Note from Eric:  Many states have recently adopted Apprentice hunting licenses that allow non-hunters to try hunting with a licensed hunter. For busy people these new laws reduce the upfront commitment traditionally required before they can see if they like hunting and want to pursue it further. Key to the success are quality mentors that number one are willing to step forward and then know how to run a fun, safe and compelling hunt. The materials put together by Delta Waterfowl is a great model for duck hunting and could be a template for other type hunts. Check out the great support materials available for downloading at First Hunt
I'd be interested in other programs that offer training materials for mentors and apprentices. If you know of any please share in the comment section below.
Thanks!

Dan Ashe Nominated as Fish & Wildlife Service Director

From the Wildife Management Institute website:

Dan Ashe Nominated as Fish & Wildlife Service Director

Monday, 20 December 2010 12:58

On December 3, President Obama formally nominated Dan Ashe to be the next Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  Currently serving as Deputy Director, Ashe has been the science advisor to the Director, Chief of the National Wildlife Refuge System and Assistant Director for External Affairs. continue reading

Michigan National Forest proposed ban on firearms hunting

Orion has signed on to this letter distributed to the American Wildlife Conservation Partners member organizations  by the Ruffed Grouse Society.

Lee Evison, Forest Planner

Huron-Manistee National Forest

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to the Forest Plan for the Huron-Manistee National Forest.  These comments are generated by a review of the Federal Register notice of 28 December 2010.

The wildlife conservation organizations listed below represent the interests of millions of hunter conservationists across the nation.  We strongly urge the Huron-Manistee National Forest to select the No-Action alternative and, thereby, continue to allow firearm hunting on all Semiprimitive Nonmotorized Management Areas and the Nordhouse Dunes Primitive Area.

Language from the Circuit Court decision that prompted the development of the SEIS suggesting that nonhunters who recreate on lands open to public hunting should be able to do so “without ducking the occasional gunshot” demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of what transpires as hunters venture afield.  In addition, the decision ignores the many decades of harmonious coexistence between hunters and other recreationists on public lands throughout Michigan and across America. 

The proposal to discriminate against sportsmen and women by eliminating their opportunity to pursue their passion in the relatively secluded nature of the areas identified in the SEIS is inappropriate and unnecessary.  The opportunity to hunt with a firearm exists for only approximately 5 months annually in Michigan and substantial hunter activity occurs literally for only a handful of days each year in association with the gun deer season (mid November) and several weekends during other popular seasons. 

As our nation works to introduce a greater proportion of our citizens to the outdoors, it would be counterproductive to create artificial barriers to do so by establishing zones where well-supported and long-practiced recreational uses are no longer allowed.  We strongly urge the Huron-Manistee National Forest to aid in sustaining our hunting heritage by selecting the No-Action Alternative as outlined in the SEIS.

Thank you for your time.