Early in the year, the Utah Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers was approached by Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) Big Game Coordinator, now Wildlife Section Chief Covy Jones to have a seat on the Elk Management Plan Committee to re-write the long-term strategic plan for elk management in the state. As a chapter, we’ve been working hard to increase engagement with the Division on critical issues such as this, and immediately accepted the seat at the table. We knew we had our work ...

On Election Day ballots will include Constitutional Amendment HCR-5014.  Voting “Yes” for this amendment to our State Constitution would give the Kansas Legislature direct authority over the management of fish and wildlife to the Legislature as opposed to KDWP professionals trained in the fish and wildlife management.  Supporters of the bill will argue this amendment creates a checks and balances to limit bureaucracy, however, KDWP’s internal checks and balances is the Wildlife Commission. ...

The Montana Land Board has approved acquiring a new piece of land to become a Wildlife Management Area. In a four-to-one vote, the board acquired more than 5,000 acres, at the base of the Big Snowy Mountains.Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has cited the lack of public access to the mountains as a primary factor for an elk population which is 900% over objective.Initially, the land belonged to Forrest Allen of Cody, Wyoming, and it was donated after his death in 2019 to a children's ...

More than 82,000 feral horses roam U.S. public lands, about four times as many as the land and water can sustain. Almost all of them live in Nevada, the most arid state in the union, where their impacts are almost unimaginable: desertification and massive loss of wildlife, ranging from pollinators and other insects to sage grouse, elk, mule deer and pronghorn. The Bureau of Land Management is doing what it can to address this crisis, but the agency finds itself in an impossible position ...

Ohio BHA helping to improve fishing access along Chagrin Riverby Jacob Pries and Dustin LindleyWhile many anglers in Ohio are getting their last casts in and perhaps embellishing their best fish stories of the season as the temperature drops, fishing for steelhead is just starting to heat up. Those hearty enough to brave the cold Erie tributaries along the north edge of Ohio will not prospect for gold, but for flashing steel cutting through the water, hunting elusive and powerful rainbow ...