Natural Resources

Cold weather and significant snowfall in November may seem unusual, but the National Weather Service says it’s not that atypical.

Dan Miller with the National Weather Service in Duluth says significant snowfall in November happens about 25 to 30 percent of the time.

 “I think we need to put a little bit of a perspective on it.  Yeah it’s a little early bit early and yeah it’s a lot colder than it was in October.  But really in the scheme of things this isn’t really that far off of the rails in terms of being wildly abnormal.”

Hunters registered more than ten thousand bucks in the northern district during opening weekend.  That’s down by about 12 percent compared to last year according to the DNR’s preliminary figures.

DNR Wildlife Biologist Jeremy Holtz says part of the decline is likely due to last winter’s taking a toll on the herd. 

The DNR's Chief Warden is cautioning hunters and others outdoors this weekend to be very wary of ice conditions.

The early cold has frozen over some lakes, but the conditions vary. Some lakes have not frozen over.
Warden Todd Schaller  says use extreme caution...

"....make sure they know the ice thickness before they venture(out), and to realize that ice is never considered 'safe'. It's always unpredictable..."

Schaller says the ice will vary by conditions...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is again taking comments on whether to add the northern long-eared bat to the endangered species list.  Some groups are questioning estimates of the bat’s fragility. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says populations of the northern long-eared bat are dropping precipitously due to the deadly fungal disease white nose syndrome.  It’s wiped out millions of bats in the eastern U.S. and was found to have spread to Wisconsin earlier this year. 

Many people gather firewood from fallen or dead trees on their own lands or from national forest or state-owned property.  In today’s Wildlife Matters, DNR Wildlife Biologist Jeremy Holtz says in some cases, managers may choose to leave those trees alone for the benefit of wildlife.  

Wisconsin’s third wolf hunt is probably nearing its end as hunters approach the season’s quota.

As of Wednesday a hundred and forty two wolves have been taken out of the total licensed quota of 150. 

But some opponents are crying foul, saying the hunt is overly aggressive toward the state’s wolf population.

Wisconsin state Director of the Humane Society Melissa Tedrowe says the population can’t sustain the harvest.

A nationwide project gathering enormous amounts of ecological data has a regional hub right here in the Northwoods. It's called NEON: the National Ecological Observatory Network.

The federally-funded NEON project is wrapping up the first of what could be 30 years collecting data on broad-scale ecological systems. 

The Northern Wisconsin and Upper Michigan region is one of about 20 nationwide where the research is focused. 

Hunters may want to do some extra scouting before the gun-deer season opens this Saturday. Deep snow conditions are likely to change how deer are moving around. 

DNR Wildlife Biologist Jeremy Holtz says snow on the ground will help hunters see and track deer, but several feet of snow could make it challenging to traverse the terrain.  He says it will also affect where the deer are to be found.

Forestry experts were on hand in Rhinelander last night to answer questions from the public about the emerald ash borer.

Though Oneida County has a relatively low abundance of ash trees, DNR Urban Forestry Coordinator Don Kissinger says the greatest impact will be in cities, where ash trees are some of the most popular to line streets and backyards. 

The Wisconsin 9-day gun deer hunt begins on Saturday. During the 2013 hunt, there were 8 gunshot wounds,  but none proved to be fatal. DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp says while incidents are unfortunate, it's important to remember there are hundreds of thousands of hunters in the woods. She says the department has worked hard to educate hunters ....