Minnesota’s firearms deer season begins a half-hour before sunrise on Saturday, Nov. 3, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources expects half a million hunters to participate. Some points to remember: . Hunters will have additional deer hunting opportunities because deer numbers continue to rebound across the state. Many areas now have populations at or above goal levels. . Hunters... READ MORE >
Wildlife researchers at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources are pleased to report that Minnesota bear hunters did not harvest any radio-collared research bears during this fall’s hunting season, which ran from Sept. 1 to Oct. 14. For the first time, none of the collared research bears were killed. Shooting a bear with a radio collar is legal, but has... READ MORE >
Small game license sales were down about four percent in 2017 compared to the previous year, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources annual small game survey. Results for 2017 include, by species: . Ducks: 63,426 hunters, representing a six percent decrease from 2016. Despite slightly fewer hunters, duck harvest increased 12 percent with 688,225 ducks harvested. Successful duck... READ MORE >
Deer: The animal An adult female white-tailed deer weigh about 145 lbs., and males weigh about 170 lbs. The biggest white-tailed deer recorded in Minnesota was a 500- pound buck. A whitetail’s home range is about one square mile. Deer hunting There are nearly 500,000 firearms deer hunters in Minnesota. Last year, 35 percent of Minnesota firearm hunters successfully harvested... READ MORE >
Celebrate Minnesota’s majestic North Shore and learn about its unique geology, climate and more. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Sugarloaf North Shore Stewardship Association are holding an annual open house at the Sugarloaf Cove Nature Center on Saturday, October 20, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The open house includes a series of scheduled naturalist talks... READ MORE >
Deer hunting is more than good business. For many, it’s a family tradition, part of Minnesota’s heritage. It is a way to get out and be active together in the great outdoors. Nearly half a million, or 12 percent, of Minnesotans (residents age 16 and older) participate in deer hunting, which is double the national average. Since 1998, our state... READ MORE >
Minnesota’s wolf population estimate was 2,655 wolves and 465 wolf packs during the winter of 2017-2018 within Minnesota’s wolf range, an estimate that is statistically unchanged from the previous winter, according to the Department of Natural Resources. “Subtle changes in wolf population numbers year to year indicate that Minnesota supports a healthy wolf population and the long-term trends demonstrate that... READ MORE >
A region-wide effort to better understand West Nile virus in ruffed grouse is getting under way in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. “In the Great Lakes region, West Nile virus has been found in a small number of grouse with no known population-level effects at this point,” said Charlotte Roy, grouse project leader with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “Still,... READ MORE >
A region-wide effort to better understand West Nile virus in ruffed grouse is getting under way in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. “In the Great Lakes region, West Nile virus has been found in a small number of grouse with no known population-level effects at this point,” said Charlotte Roy, grouse project leader with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “Still,... READ MORE >
Campers and other visitors planning to have campfires at state parks, state forests and other public lands managed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources need to be aware of new firewood rules beginning this year. New rules were needed, because quarantine boundaries instituted for gypsy moth and emerald ash borer made the former rules problematic. Under the new rules,... READ MORE >
