WACONIA, Minn. – As light drained from the sky, conservation officer Alexander Birdsall bumped along in his Silverado 2500, crisscrossing isolated farm fields and patrolling for trouble.

His focus west of town was “outlaw area,” as he called it. This time of year, shining deer and shooting from this stretch of gravel are common offenses, ...Read more

HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut hunters generate around $1.6 million in revenue for the state, yet despite relatively steady hunting license sales over the past few years, finding a hunting spot can still be a problem for many sportsmen.

According to the financial ranking site 247WallSt, Connecticut comes in at No. 45 on their list of states ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Forest Industries executive vice president Rick Horton gave me a strong counterpoint to the views expressed in my Oct. 31 column, which highlighted the charge by some retired Department of Natural Resources experts that the agency is managing the state’s wildlife management areas “to satisfy the logging industry.”...Read more

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina hunters are killing more black bears than ever as restrictions are eased on stalking and shooting the animals, a trend that concerns animal welfare groups but one that reflects state efforts to preserve the sport and keep the bear population in check.

Since 2000, sportsmen have killed more than 2,200 bears in ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Nearly 100 cases of chronic wasting disease were documented in Minnesota deer last year, the highest number on record and surpassing the previous high by about a third.

Since the first case of the neurodegenerative disease was confirmed here in 2002, about 400 deer have been catalogued with CWD, according to the Minnesota ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Recent license sales indicate about 14% of Minnesota deer hunters are women, with a larger portion — about 29% — of youth licenses going to girls.

More tellingly, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, about a third of all new hunters are females — a trend that, if it continues, might fill the license-sales gap ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — In the darkness before sunrise on Saturday morning peering out of my hunting perch, it was hard to believe I’d be able to spot a deer in my path.

I had never hunted before. Up until a couple months ago, I’d never even held a shotgun, much less fired one. But when I was asked to join the orange-clad ranks this past weekend ...Read more