New Report Shows Waterfowl Hunting's Contribution to U.S. Economy
from ESPN
Waterfowl hunters spent $900 million on a variety of goods and services from food, transportation, guns and decoys to hunting dogs, clothing and other incidental expenses in 2006, according to a new report issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. These trip and equipment-related expenditures generated more than $2.3 billion in total economic output for 2006, which resulted in $157 million in federal and state tax revenues, supported more than 27,000 jobs, and generated more than $8.5 million in employment income. More

Texas Dove Hunting Could See 'Liberal' Changes
from the Houston Chronicle
Texas’ half-million or so wingshooters could see substantially liberalized dove-hunting rules — a longer season, larger bag limit, earlier opening day in the South Zone — if federal wildlife officials give anticipated approval to modifications in regulatory frameworks governing migratory game-bird hunting. More

Trekking around the World for Turkeys
from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune
A onetime duck and pheasant hunter, Gary Detjen still chases things with wings. But not so much anymore in autumn, when waterfowl arrow south from Manitoba and Saskatchewan, and florid roosters catapult skyward from cattail marshes. Instead, Detjen is now a man of a different season -- and has been for nearly two decades. Ever since he hunted his first wild turkey. More

Kilgore Hunter Opens Season with 12-Foot Alligator
from the Tyler Morning Telegraph
Jimmy Ellison's first foray into alligator hunting was supposed to have been last year in south Louisiana. That trip was wiped out by Hurricane Ike. The Kilgore resident got a second chance last week in Rusk County, and as luck would have it he probably couldn't have done any better and made it any easier anywhere else in the world. Ellison shot a 12-foot-1 alligator weighing 540 pounds. More

TP&W Picking Bad Time to Seek Fee Increase
from The Dallas Morning News
Texas Parks and Wildlife is asking for what the department describes as a "modest" 5 percent across-the-board increase in fees. But according to the author of this article, like everyone else, the department should find way to tighten belt. More

Parks and Wildlife Looking for Additional Dove Leases
from the North Texas e-News
Attention landowners: Looking for some extra money and got a weedy field not in production or being rested this fall? Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Public Dove Hunting Program is not only an opportunity for hunters, but it is also an opportunity for landowners to make some extra money by leasing the hunting rights for dove and other small game to TPWD. More

Eastern Turkeys Offer Hunters a Less Expensive Option
from The Dallas Morning News
Spring turkey hunting can be frustrating or easy, but it's fun either way. The reintroduction of eastern turkeys into the Texas mix has opened the potential for spring hunting to sportsmen who can't afford hunting leases or package hunts. More

Southern Africa: Sustainable Hunting?
from the Pulitzer Center
Over the last 15 years, the trophy hunting industry has soared in southern Africa, creating economic incentives for cattle ranchers to raise wild game and restore their land to a semi-natural state, which can also benefit native plants and less charismatic wildlife, like insects, reptiles, and amphibians. Indeed, conservation groups like the International Rhino Foundation in Zimbabwe and the World Wildlife Fund in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa have worked hard to convince small private game ranchers to drop their fences in order to provide large enough regions to support sustainable rhino populations. More

When is a "Humane Society" Not a "Humane Society?"
from the Center for Consumer Freedom
If you’re still under the impression that the Humane Society of the United States is an umbrella group for local pet shelters, think again. According to its most recent tax return (filed in November 2008), HSUS devoted less than 4 percent of its massive $91.5 million budget to hands-on dog and cat shelters in 2007. More