PORTAGE, WI - For decades, anglers have fished waters below the Wisconsin Dells Dam and in downstream Lake Wisconsin during a special autumn season for Wisconsin River sturgeon.

VIRGINIA BEACH - The Virginia Beach Fire Department says seven people were injured in a flash fire at an indoor shooting range.

NASHVILLE, TN - The 2008 U.S Open Turkey Calling Contest finals and championship, one of the most prestigious calling contests in the country, will take place at the Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World store, Opry Mills Mall in Nashville, Tennessee, Saturday, May 17th and Sunday, May 18th.

The U.S. Open Turkey Calling Championship qualifying rounds held at the Pearl, MS; Orlando, FL; Prattville, AL; Nashville and Sevierville, TN; Clarksville, IN; Springfield and St. Louis, MO and Charlotte, NC Bass Pro Shops store locations determined competitors for the finals in

CONCORD, NH - To protect the public from the possible consumption of contaminated shellfish, officials from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) and the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department have closed New Hampshire's Atlantic coastal waters, and the waters of Hampton/Seabrook Harbor, to the taking of all species of molluscan shellfish (mussels, clams and oysters) until further notice. This action is in response to elevated levels of Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning or PSP, commonly known as "red tide," detected in blue mussels collected from the Isles of Shoals and from Hampton/Seabrook Harbor.

HECTOR – For two centuries, the forests of Arkansas have ridden a pendulum. The woods that furnished food and building material for early residents were later logged heavily then overly protected against fire.

Today, the latest swing is involving the Oak Ecosystem Restoration Team, a partnership of several organizations and state and federal agencies working to improve the upland oak ecosystem of the state.

The West Virginia Muzzleloaders Association will host a benefit muzzleloader shoot near Beverly, Randolph County on Saturday, May 17, to benefit the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources’ Hunters Helping the Hungry (HHH) Program, according to Association President Stan Reed. 

            “We have held this event for years in order to benefit the very deserving Hunters Helping the Hungry Program,” said Reed.  “All entrance fee monies, donations, and silent auction funds will go toward the HHH Program. We encourage muzzleloaders and others from

MADISON – Migratory birds travel long distances between breeding and non-breeding sites, often resting and sometimes nesting along the way. International Migratory Bird Day on Saturday, May 10 will focus on the birds that make these fantastic journeys, the habitats on which they depend, and the people who are important to a successful journey.

International Migratory Bird Day is held each year on the second Saturday in May to draw attention to the plight of migratory birds that make incredible journeys between their summer and winter habitats.

Several West Virginia public school teams will compete in the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) 2008 National Archery Tournament on May 10, 2008, in the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Kentucky.  Teams from Cabell-Midland High School (Cabell County), Tucker County High School, and Ripley Middle School and Ripley High School (both from Jackson County) have registered to participate in the tournament. In addition, two individuals from John Marshall High School (Marshall County) and one individual from Cameron High School (Marshall County) have also registered to participate in the tournament. All these schools and individuals qualified to participate by meeting certain

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources aims to lure folks back into fishing this season through a combination of direct mail, digital billboard and radio advertising, and other outreach efforts.

The agency, which issued just under 1.4 million fishing licenses last year, recently mailed 40,000 reminder postcards to former anglers who did not purchase a 2007 fishing license last year. The postcard’s message urges these “lapsed” anglers to rediscover fishing and boating and purchase their license. The postcard campaign is being complimented by billboard

Nervous laughter and anticipation filled the morning air Monday as a swarm of hobby beekeepers and University of Montana researchers patiently waited for 1.5 million honeybees - yes, 1.5 million bees - to arrive at the designated pickup spot at Fort Missoula.

Joe Dunn, a first-time beekeeper from Stevensville confessed he was a little intimidated about working with bees, but was looking forward to learning from his brother, Nick, who has spent the past four summers as a hobby honey farmer.

The SC Department of Natural Resources is stocking approximately 25,000 marked American shad fry in the Broad River on Tuesday, May 6th with a majority of the stocking occurring upstream of the Columbia fishway. The stocking effort marks the beginning of a much larger scale restoration effort to stock millions of American shad fry per year in the Broad and Santee River systems. The shad fishery is the single most important finfish industry in South Carolina, but overfishing and spawning habitat degradation has taken its toll on the fishery.  Through restoration efforts, the SC Department of Natural Resources (DNR) hopes to revive the recreational fishery for American shad.

BEN AVERY SHOOTING FACILITY – Brady Ellison, 19, from Glendale, Arizona was pure gold in all three matches before a cheering hometown crowd during the final Olympic Archery Trials at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility on May 2-4.
  
Brady will be headed to Beijing, China this summer to represent the United States.
  
The nation’s finest archers gathered at the Arizona Game and Fish Department’ shooting facility to compete during this third and final round of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for

Birdwatchers, or "birders" as they prefer to be called these days, are heading outdoors in droves to celebrate spring and the return of migratory birds to the Centennial State.
 
According to the Association of Colorado Field Ornithologists, 487 species of birds have been documented in Colorado.  That puts the state seventh on the list of which states have the most bird species.  California (637) and Texas (632) are the top two.   What makes Colorado unique is that it does not have an ocean coast line that harbors shore birds.
 

VERNAL — Birds called loons are visiting Utah right now.

Loons visit the state twice each year. In the spring they migrate from the south as they move north to breeding areas in Canada and the northern edge of the United States. During the fall, they return to the warmer waters in the south.
     
Most of the loons that visit Utah are common loons, but occasionally other loon species are also seen.

CHEYENNE-- In the day to day management of Wyoming's game animals, wildlife managers must take a number of factors into consideration when establishing hunting seasons, license quotas and looking after the well-being of the game herds.

Such things as hunter success, habitat condition, winter loss and more can all affect the numbers of animals in a given population. One such factor that comes into play in Wyoming from time to time is disease. One well known disease problem wildlife managers have dealt with recently is the pneumonia outbreak that hit the Whiskey Mountain bighorn sheep herd in

April showers have brought May flowers to Kansas state parks, and with flowers come warm weather and more outdoor events. Many of the highlights of state park events are OK Kids Days. This May, several state parks will conduct events specifically for youth. These events provide opportunities for kids across Kansas to experience various outdoor activities, from birdwatching to fishing clinics. For many, this is an introduction to the outdoors. For others, it is a rekindling of outdoor interests.

State parks planning combined OK Kids Days and Free Park Entrance Days in May include

Representatives from the Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) will hold five meetings in May to discuss proposed changes to waterfowl hunting in the northeast region of the state.   Potential property hunting regulation changes to affect restricted access, limited hunting through reservations, hunting hours restrictions, and mandatory check out will be discussed for the following State Wildlife Areas:  Jackson Lake, Jean K. Tool, Brush, Atwood, Overland Trail, Bravo, and Red Lion.  Potential regulation changes to allow waterfowl hunting from boats will be discussed for Jackson and Jumbo Reservoirs.

 

May 1, 2008, Alexandria, Va. — Yesterday, a federal judge approved a settlement agreement between the Department of Interior and environmental groups to regulate the use of off-road vehicles (ORV) in Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area. This settlement took place despite the efforts of the Negotiated Rulemaking Committee, of which the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) is a member, to develop a long-term ORV management plan acceptable to all the stakeholders. The terms of the settlement are extensive and they put in place protections for shorebirds that far exceed protections used at other national seashores and outlined in species recovery plans. The settlement terms will have a negative impact on the

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA– Virtual anglers from around the world are attempting to hook more than $7.3 million in cash and prizes, and an Alamo, California, student has hooked $100,000 in the third of seven fantasy fishing tournaments that will continue through mid-August.

John Yandell, III, 18, a San Francisco-area high school senior attending De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif., took first place and reeled in $100,000 in the third tournament of the FLW Fantasy Fishing online game by selecting 10 professional bass anglers whom he thought would weigh in the heaviest catches of largemouth bass at the National Guard Open, a premier stop on the Wal-Mart

CONCORD, N.H. -- A search for a missing 58-year-old kayaker from Vermont will continue today on the Connecticut River in Piermont, N.H. On Thursday, May 1, 2008, Robert Swantak of Bradford, Vermont, set out in his kayak on the Waits River in Bradford, Vermont, and then onto the Connecticut River in Piermont, N.H. for an afternoon of fiddlehead picking. Vermont and New Hampshire authorities were notified in the evening of May 1 that Swantak had not returned from his river trip.

New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Conservation Officers, Vermont State Police, Vermont Fish and Wildlife game wardens and the New Hampshire State Police helicopter searched the

BRINKLEY – Arkansas Game and Fish Commission fisheries biologists confirmed a breeding population of northern snakehead, an invasive species from Asia, in Lee County on April 28.

The population was discovered when a farmer found an unusual fish wiggling along a gravel farm road near a ditch and contacted the AGFC regional office in Brinkley. AGFC Fisheries Management Biologist Lee Holt identified the fish as the invasive species that recently made national headlines. Since the confirmation, fisheries biologists have worked to establish how far the population has spread and to control the population.

Louisville, Kentucky -- The National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) will conduct the largest archery tournament in US history May 9 and 10, 2008 at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center.

NASP President Roy Grimes has received confirmation of almost 3000 entrants from twenty two states and 175 schools. The previous record for the largest archery tournament was set by NASP in 2006 at 2,192.

NASP was started in 22 pilot schools in Kentucky in 2002. The program quickly spread to 45 other

OLYMPIA-A California sea lion captured yesterday for relocation from the Columbia River died today during a health examination at a Tacoma zoo.

The animal, a 1,454-pound adult male being held temporarily at the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium (PDZA), failed to resume breathing after being anesthetized for the examination. A team that included an Oregon veterinarian, a state marine mammal biologist and a federal animal-care expert had concluded the health exam and were attempting to bring the animal out of anesthesia when the death occurred.