Aug. 19, 2024



header


*Minnesota DNR News
*




*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
*

Aug. 19, 2024




*For more information:* <[email protected]>

Contact the DNR Information Center
by email  <[email protected]>or call 888-646-6367.





In This Issue

* DNR Fish and Wildlife Almanac [ #link_1491411839600 ]
* Hunters asked not to shoot ear-tagged, radio-collared research bears [ #link_1491411977526 ]
* Redwood Falls man is DNR’s 2023 volunteer firearms safety instructor of the year [ #link_1491412003165 ]
* Groundwater Atlas of Hubbard County released; public workshop announced [ #link_1 ]

________________________________________________________________________



DNR Fish and Wildlife Almanac

"A weekly list of news briefs about fish, wildlife, and habitat management."

*Pheasants Forever, Minnesota DNR join forces to get new hunters into fields and forests *

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Pheasants Forever invite Minnesota hunters to join the Hunter Mentor Challenge and take someone hunting who has never hunted or hasn’t hunted for a few years.

After their hunt, participating Minnesota hunters and their mentees will have the chance to win a limited-edition Pheasants Forever prize.

The program is open to all types of hunting in Minnesota that are legal and in-season — including, but not limited to, pheasants, grouse, waterfowl, deer, squirrels, and wild turkey (applies to fall and spring turkey seasons). Experienced hunters can invite a new hunter of any age, if they have the proper license/tag necessary and either hunter’s safety or apprentice hunter validation.

Participation is simple: hunters visit the Minnesota DNR page on the Pheasants Forever website and take the pledge [ [link removed] ] (pheasantsforever.org/mndnr). After taking the pledge, hunters are asked to bring a novice or returning hunter on a hunt during upcoming hunting seasons and snap a picture or short video during the hunting trip. The last step is to submit contact information, a short summary of their hunt and a photo or video on the submission page to be entered for prize giveaways. All online entries must be received by June 30, 2025.

The Minnesota DNR has helpful information for new hunters and experienced hunters who would like to share their skills with new hunters. To learn more, visit the Minnesota DNR take a friend hunting webpage [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/gohunting/take-friend-hunting.html).

*Reminder: Deer lottery application deadline is Sept. 5*

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reminds firearm and muzzleloader hunters who want to harvest antlerless deer in a deer permit area designated as antlerless permit lottery this hunting season to purchase their license by Thursday, Sept. 5. Hunters who purchase their license on or before this date are automatically entered into the lottery for the deer permit area or special hunt area they declare.

Successful applicants will receive a postcard in the mail authorizing them to take an antlerless deer using their regular license in that antlerless permit lottery area. No application is needed to take antlerless deer in permit areas with either sex, two-deer limit, three-deer limit or five-deer limit designations. Hunters are reminded that DPAs 235 and 251 went from either-sex to lottery this year.

Hunters who want to participate in special firearm or muzzleloader deer hunts also need to apply for permits that are issued through a lottery. That application deadline is also Sept. 5. More information and details about how to apply for special hunts are available on the Minnesota DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/hunting/deer/special-deer-hunts.html).

More information about designations and regulations for deer permit areas, as well as details about special hunt opportunities, are available on the Minnesota DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/hunting/deer) and in the 2024 Minnesota Hunting and Trapping Regulations Handbook, available online and in print wherever Minnesota DNR licenses are sold.

*Minnesota DNR webinars focus on North Shore fishing, orienteering*

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources invites people interested in wildlife and outdoor skills to check out the summer program schedule for the Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship Series.

In a webinar on Wednesday, Aug. 21, angling expert Jason Swingen will talk about fishing the North Shore of Lake Superior — including what’s needed to get started and tips for fishing for steelhead, pink salmon or coaster brook trout.

In a webinar on Wednesday, Aug. 28, Minnesota Orienteering Club members will discuss the basics of map and compass use and will share some great tips on orienteering and how to participate in this exciting outdoor activity.

The Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship Series webinars are free and offered year-round, though registration is required. Visit the Outdoor Skills and Stewardship webpage of the Minnesota DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/discover) for the registration portal, more information about upcoming webinars and recordings of past webinars.

###

________________________________________________________________________



Hunters asked not to shoot ear-tagged, radio-collared research bears

Collared bears provide important management data 

The Minnesota bear hunting season opens Sunday, Sept. 1, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is once again asking hunters to avoid shooting marked research bears. These bears are marked with distinctively large, colorful ear tags and wear radio collars.

Researchers with the Minnesota DNR are monitoring 48 radio-collared black bears across the state, especially in bear hunting zones 27, 45, and parts of the no-quota zone. Most of the radio-collared bears live in or near the Chippewa National Forest, Camp Ripley Military Reserve, the Pillsbury State Forest, and the Brainerd/Baxter area. However, the bears also range widely from these sites. 

“We ask hunters to avoid shooting these valuable research bears,” said Andy Tri, Minnesota DNR bear research scientist. “These collared bears give us much of the data we use in bear management and are most valuable to us when they are collared for multiple years. Thank you to hunters who have opted to not take collared bears in past years and hunters who will choose to not harvest collared bears this season.”

A key to the research is looking at year-to-year changes in natural food supplies and how those changes affect individual bears in terms of their habitat use, physical condition, denning, reproduction and interactions with people. This research is not designed to evaluate mortality from hunting. Trapping new bears every year to replace the ones killed cannot substitute for long-term data on individual bears.

All the collars the Minnesota DNR uses in this research have GPS units. The GPS coordinates are either uploaded to a satellite or stored in the collar and downloaded by Minnesota DNR researchers when they visit the bears in their dens. Each bear provides several thousand data points per year.

The bear’s coat often hides the collar, especially in the fall, and most of the collars are black. But all collared bears have large (3 x 2 inch), colorful ear tags. The tags should be plainly visible on trail cam photos or when a bear is at a bait. Example photos of collared bears with ear tags and a summary of pertinent research findings can be found online under the link “Importance of Radio-collared Bears” on the Minnesota DNR bear management page [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/hunting/bear).

Minnesota DNR officials recognize hunters might not be able to see a radio collar or ear tags in some situations. For this reason, taking a bear with a radio collar is legal; however, pausing briefly to get a clear view of the bear’s head would reveal whether it has large ear tags, which indicates that it is collared. 

Most collared bears have a small, implanted heart monitor under the skin on the left side of the chest. It looks like a small, silver capsule that is approximately the width of a paper clip. This contains valuable information stored in memory. Hunters who take a collared bear and find this device while skinning the bear are asked to submit it with the collar.

Hunters may see bears with very small ear tags (1 x 1/4 inch). These bears are not collared and may be part of other ongoing research projects. It is legal to take a bear with small ear tags. These bears can be treated as any other bear, but please call the Minnesota DNR to report the tags.

The Minnesota DNR asks any hunters who do shoot a collared or ear-tagged bear to call the Minnesota DNR Wildlife Research Office in Grand Rapids at 218-328-8879 or 218-328-8874 to report it and coordinate the pickup or drop off of the collar and heart monitor, if applicable.

###

________________________________________________________________________



Redwood Falls man is DNR’s 2023 volunteer firearms safety instructor of the year

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has named Jerry Ludwig, of Redwood Falls, as the 2023 volunteer firearms safety instructor of the year.

Ludwig has been a volunteer instructor since the early 2000s, having certified more than 750 students in firearms safety. He’s a veteran shooting sports enthusiast who actively recruits new instructors, a shooting coach, and a volunteer who’s especially devoted to getting youth involved in the outdoors.

“The most rewarding part, for me, is when the kids earn their certificate for completing firearms safety, and then show it to their parents,” Ludwig said. “The kids are smiling; the parents are smiling. It’s just a great accomplishment for the kids, and it’s one of those big first steps in growing up.”

CO Luke Gutzwiller, who was stationed in Redwood Falls before transferring recently to Montevideo, nominated Ludwig for the award, writing, in part, “To say Jerry is active in his community is an understatement.” Among his many roles is volunteering with his local Pheasants Forever chapter (he was the longtime youth coordinator), coaching 4-H shooting and high school trap teams, and helping kids build wood duck and blue bird houses.

CO Matt Loftness, who is stationed in Marshall and has worked for years with Ludwig, said: “He is always willing to listen to the students with any questions they have and answer and help with a big smile. He is always willing to assist if he’s available – you never have to ask twice.”

More than 4,000 volunteer instructors teach DNR firearms safety courses across the state. Since the firearms safety program began in 1955, more than 1.3 million students have been certified. DNR firearms safety certification is required of anyone born after Dec. 31, 1979 to buy a hunting license in Minnesota. Youth age 11 and older can attend a firearms safety certification course and receive their certificate, which becomes valid at age 12.

For more information on the dates and locations of available safety courses, and to sign up for alerts when new classes are added, see the DNR's website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/safety/firearms).

###

________________________________________________________________________



Groundwater Atlas of Hubbard County released; public workshop announced

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has published the Groundwater Atlas of Hubbard County. It covers groundwater conditions and sensitivity to pollution, expanding on the geologic atlas previously produced by the Minnesota Geological Survey.

Atlas content helps people identify viable water sources, evaluate supply, understand recharge sources and flow, manage groundwater sustainability, guide well and septic system construction decisions, provide wellhead protection for public water supply, and assess pollution sensitivity.

The atlas is available:


* *Online*: The report [ [link removed] ] (files.dnr.state.mn.us/waters/groundwater_section/
mapping/cga/c41_hubbard/hubb-report.pdf) is available in PDF format. Oversized PDFs of the water chemistry [ [link removed] ] (files.dnr.state.mn.us/waters/groundwater_section/
mapping/cga/c41_hubbard/hubb-plate7.pdf) and hydrogeologic cross section maps (A–A′ through D–D′ [ [link removed] ] (files.dnr.state.mn.us/waters/groundwater_section/
mapping/cga/c41_hubbard/hubb-plate8.pdf) and E–E′ through H–H′ [ [link removed] ] (files.dnr.state.mn.us/waters/groundwater_section/
mapping/cga/c41_hubbard/hubb-plate9.pdf)) are also offered. Geographic information system (GIS) files [ [link removed] ] (files.dnr.state.mn.us/waters/groundwater_section/
mapping/cga/c41_hubbard/c41b-met.html), including the associated metadata and an ArcMap file, can be downloaded for use.
* *In print*: Copies can be purchased [ [link removed] ] (dnr.oceangrafix.com/shop/minnesota/p/hubbard-c-41-hydrogeology-kit) online from OceanGrafix (877-562-4278).

The public is invited to join a groundwater atlas workshop about the findings in this new atlas. It will be held from 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 11 at Northwoods Bank of Minnesota, 1200 1st St E, Park Rapids. The event will also be livestreamed.

Pre-registration by Friday, Sept. 6 is highly recommended. Contact DNR Hydrogeologist Nick Budde at 651-259-5072 or [email protected] <[email protected]?subject=Hubbard%20County%20Workshop> with questions or to register for the in-person or livestream workshop.

The County Atlas Program is funded, in part, by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources. A full description of the program and completed and planned atlas products are available on the DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/groundwatermapping).

###





________________________________________________________________________

minnesota department of natural resources [ [link removed] ]

*Minnesota Department of Natural Resources  |  mndnr.gov [ [link removed] ] *

Email us: [email protected]  |  Call 651-296-6157 or 888-646-6367

Follow us on Facebook [ [link removed] ]   Follow us on Twitter [ [link removed] ]   Follow us on Instagram [ [link removed] ]   Find us on LinkedIn [ [link removed] ]   Follow us on YouTube [ [link removed] ]

SUBSCRIBER SERVICES:

Manage Preferences [ [link removed] ] | Unsubscribe [ [link removed] ] | Help [ [link removed] ]  |  Sign-up for DNR e-mail lists [ [link removed] ]


________________________________________________________________________

This email was sent to [email protected] using GovDelivery Communications Cloud GovDelivery logo [ [link removed] ]
body .abe-column-block { min-height: 5px; } table.gd_combo_table img {margin-left:10px; margin-right:10px;} table.gd_combo_table div.govd_image_display img, table.gd_combo_table td.gd_combo_image_cell img {margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px;}