A West Virginia preacher known for his handling of poisonous snakes has died after being bitten by a timber rattlesnake he was using during an outdoor religious service on Memorial Day. The Charleston Daily Mail reports that as a teenager, Mark Randall "Mack" Wolford, now 44, witnessed his father—also a snake-handling minister—die from a snakebite.
May 30, 2012
Colorado woman trampled by cow elk
A 60-year-old Estes Park, Colo. woman received injuries when she was trampled by a cow elk accompanied by a calf while walking near her apartment complex Tuesday. Residents were reminded to keep their distance from elk as calving season is underway. KMGH Denver.
Fashion meets customized DNA: Stingray skin sneakers
The Fashionista website claims this story will make the folks at PETA foam at the mouth. Normally, we'd say that's a good thing. But we're not sure what to think about Rayfish Footwear's new shoe designs made with the shagreen (skins) of genetically engineered stingrays. Customers can create their own design on an online template offering 29 skin patterns that will grow on stingrays using customized DNA. Prices start at $1,800.
Deer hoofs-in to Wisconsin manicure shop
The manager of Nails Only in Oshkosh, Wisc. may want to review her open door, walk-ins welcome policy after an injured and bleeding whitetail deer strolled into the busy shop yesterday, tried to leap through a window, and then sat on the floor until it was removed by authorities with Wisconsin DNR and the Oskosh PD. The Northwestern.
May 29, 2012
Minnesota angler found with 443 panfish over limit
A Minnesota Department of Natural Resources conservation officer investigating Chien Van Tran, 39, on Pelican Lake in Wright County April 4 found 134 sunfish and 19 crappies on his boat, and more in a freezer in his home, for a total of 413 sunfish and 30 crappies over the legal limit. Tran faces a maximum $3,000 fine, a year in jail, $2,015 in restitution, plus the loss of his fishing privileges for three years. Elk River Star-News and MDNR.
Cats add an unnatural, lethal dimension to the outdoors
A provocative treatise from Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette outdoors writer Mark Blazis about the staggering toll that roaming, outdoors cats have on songbirds. Minimally, Blazis notes, feral and domestic cats annually kill 100 million to 300 million birds in the US, with some estimates closer to 1 billion. We especially appreciate Clay Thompson's analogy, that house cats are an invasive species, like kudzu, except that kudzu doesn't murder millions of songbirds.
Pennsylvania group says fight for Sunday hunting not over
Despite the failure of a measure to establish Sunday hunting in Pennsylvania to move out of committee, a grassroots coalition of hunters says it plans to take its fight to the state's highest court no later than July. "We seek to re-establish hunting as a constitutional right and abolish the Sunday hunting ban at the same time," said Kathy Davis of Hunters United for Sunday Hunting. Bob Frye in the Tribune-Review.
Wounded vet gets a special hand from Florida tarpon angler
It was a weekend of ups and downs for angler Jack Wiseman, who took part in the Professional Tarpon Tournament Series at Boca Grande (Fla.) Pass as one of eight Wounded Warrior participants. Wiseman was fighting a tarpon Saturday morning when his prosthetic arm broke and was dragged away with the rod and reel. Another angler later hooked the same fish, with the rod—and Wiseman's hand—still attached. WINK News.
May 28, 2012
Black bears in Missouri? More than you may think!
Biologists from the Missouri Department of Conservation are into their third year of a comprehensive Black Bear Project, using trailcams and snare traps to count bruins and accumulate data. In two years, 108 bears have been collared, weighed, measured and recorded. How many more bruins call The Show Me State home? Kansas City Star.
Mountain lions responsible for Montana wolf deaths
A gray wolf found dead in Montana's Bitterroot Valley last week was the second this year—a the fourth since 2011—to be killed by mountain lions, according to state Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists. "I haven't heard of it happening anywhere else," said FWP's Liz Bradley. We wonder where the hypocrites from Defenders of Wlildlife, who rake in millions by misleading the public about the plight of wolves, will stand on this one. Anti-lion? Great Falls Tribune.
May 26, 2012
Was privy bear victim scared sh**less? 'It was already gone!'
A recovering Gordon Shurvell, the Canadian 65-year-old who survived a black bear attack as he took care of business in a remote Ontario camp's outhouse last week, was asked by reporters if the attack scared the "you know what" out of him. "It was already gone! I'd already done my business," he added. "All the defense I had is a...piece of [toilet] paper." Next time he uses the camp's facilities, Shurvell says he'll "put up with the stench and shut the door." CBC News.
Lawmakers move to name bison 'national mammal'
The National Bison Legacy Act was introduced in the Senate this week by lawmakers from Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota and Rhode Island. The largely symbolic measure would provide no added protections for an estimated 20,000 wild bison, but would declare it America's "national mammal." AP.
Pair responsible for 2011 SoCal wildfire get prison time
One of two men who started a fire that scorched 22 square miles of mountainous back-country between Warner Springs and Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in Southern California last summer was sentenced Wednesday to six years in state prison. Jesse James Durbin pleaded guilty to an arson charge, as did co-defendant Jeremy Joseph Ortiz, who was sentenced earlier this month to a six-year term. North County Times.
May 25, 2012
Campfire kittycat turns out to be a fox, and rabid
Some friends in the Maple Park neighborhood of Hooversville, Pa. were enjoying libations around a bonfire Saturday night when a grey cat showed up. Except it wasn't a cat; it was a grey fox. And rabid. "I guess he went to push it out of the way so it wasn't rubbing against his leg," said Glenn Wisel. "The next thing somebody hollered they got bit. Then a bunch of people went and got guns and went after it and they finally did catch up with it." WJAC-TV.
New Zealand angler boats wild pig
Bob Monteith was trout fishing with friends on Northern New Zealand's 238-square mile Lake Taupo when they encountered a hunting dog in hot pursuit of a wild sow—more than 200 yards offshore. The fishermen managed to lasso the 80-pound hog, haul it aboard and quickly dispatch it, adding chops and roasts to a 3-day catch. Rotorua Daily Post.
Authorities: Gator shooting by angler not self defense
A fisherman who said he fatally shot an 11-foot alligator after being attacked could have to pay $5,300 after wardens concluded he was not threatened by the reptile. Patrick Miller and Keyon Ivory told authorities they were fishing in the Trinity River near the Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge May 9 when the alligator came at their two-person boat, prompting both men to jump out and one of them to shoot it. Ft. Worth Star-Telegram.
Daily Caller announces 'Great Gun Giveaway'
The Daily Caller website, founded by conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, has announced a promotion in which a 9mm FMK Model 9C1 will be given to a lucky (and eligible) entrant each week between now and Election Day. The contest is coordinated through the website's "Guns and Gear" section, where firearms news and product reviews appear regularly. Some decidedly liberal websites are predictably demonizing the whole idea.
Tranquilized bear tumbles from tree, again
'Tis the season, and the year, for tranquilized bears to fall from trees into waiting tarps below, and to be photographed in mid-air. This time it occurred in Steamboat Springs, Colo., where a sedated young bruin became wedged between branches and firefighters attempted to lower it with a rope. When the bear's ankle slipped through the knot, it went into free-fall mode. Video and more photos at Steamboat Today.
13-foot Hilton Head gator had stomach full of stuff
Judging from the stomach contents of the 13-foot nuisance alligator trapped and killed Monday from Jarvis Creek Park on South Carolina's Hilton Head Island, the big reptile wasn't picky about what it ate. Trappers who opened the gator's stomach found 53 fishing lures, a half-pound of lead sinkers, a soccer ball, two baseballs, one tennis ball and two other balls, two turtles, a beer can, a four-foot gator and 48 rocks. Digest that. The Island Packet.
May 24, 2012
Wanted: Airport bird chaser. Salary: $76K
Are you an unemployed or underpaid wildlife biologist who wouldn't mind moving to Florida? Well, have we got a job for you! After two major bird-airplane collisions at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, federal aviation officials are requiring Broward County to hire a full-time bird-chaser to keep birds from fowlng up flights. And with a starting salary of $76,252, it sure beats some state agency offerings. S. Florida Sun Sentinel.
Mushrooms picked illegally weren't for sauté
Five people in their 20s cited for picking mushrooms from posted pasture land on the Allapattah Flats Wildlife Management Area in Martin County, Fla. have each been charged with removal of plant life from state lands, a misdemeanor. Sheriff's Detective Joe Passanesi said the five indicated they were gathering the mushrooms "for consumption," but didn't state they were searching for psilocybin mushrooms, despite a sheriff's report indicating they were "picked from cattle excrement." Palm Beach Post.
Groups file intent to sue USFS to force lead ammo ban
Environmental activist groups have filed notification of intent to sue the U.S. Forest Service in an effort to ban the use of lead-core ammunition by hunters in the Kaibab National Forest north of Arizona's Grand Canyon, within the habitat of the endangered California condor. The groups, including the Sierra Club, Grand Canyon Wildlands Council and Center for Biological Diversity, contend that bullet fragments in gutpiles left behind by hunters are responsible for condor deaths. Arizona Daily Sun.
May 23, 2012
Bear attacks Canuck in campground privy
A Winnipeg man is recovering from injuries he received Saturday when a black bear dragged him from an Ontario campground outhouse and slashed and bit him repeatedly before a friend intervened to shoot and kill the attacking bruin. Gordon Shurvell, 65, was back home late Tuesday night after being treated and released from a hospital in northwestern Ontario. "He was on the john... pulled right from the outhouse," said his son, Dan Shurvell. Brandon Sun.
