By David Maccar

And in wolf news on this side of the pond, Montana Rep. Denny Rehberg introduced two bills in Washington Wednesday to pull the gray wolf from the protection of federal endangered species status. Similar bills introduced have failed to advance in the past.

From this AP story via kivitv.com:
Lawmakers in Washington are renewing their push to legalize gray wolf hunting as they seek to curb the predators' growing population. Montana Rep. Denny Rehberg introduced two bills Wednesday to strip the gray wolf of federal endangered species protections.

By David Maccar

--Dave Maccar

A four-month investigation launched by a tip to the Maine Warden Service in the summer of 2010 lead to the execution of five search warrants this week targeting illegal hunting activities as far south as Pennsylvania.

The warrants, executed in a joint effort by the Maine Warden Service, the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the federal Fish and Wildlife Service, lead to the seizure of firearms, bows, arrows, ammo, venison, antlers and other items.

According to this story from examiner.com, four people were arrested and face various charges:
A four month long investigation lead to five search warrants being executed Monday, January 24th. The target of these searches… evidence into illegal hunting activities. The Maine Warden Service received a tip during the 2010 summer that individuals had killed a large number of deer above the legal bag limit. This prompted an investigation that confirmed these accusations. Information was gathered through December 2010 that not only uncovered illegal hunting in the state of Maine, but these same poachers carried their activities into the state of Pennsylvania as well. A joint investigation between the Maine Warden Service, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service led to the execution of search warrants on Monday.

By Chad Love

From this story in the Vancouver Sun:
Trophy hunting and habitat loss are putting B.C.'s cougar population at risk and provincial policies do not adequately protect the big cats, says a new report by three scientists from the Raincoast Conservation Foundation. The study was released Wednesday in anticipation of the province shortly publishing its first cougar management plan, which is under internal review. For now, the province has no central planning document for cougars and relies on hunting regulations to safeguard populations, the study says.

By Chad Love

A state-funded fishing museum in Georgia is a fascinating experience for some, but a symbol of waste for others.

From this story in the New York Times:
Every weekend, Michael Morris and his 2-year-old son, Jacob, visit this small town’s enormous new $14 million fishing museum. They watch bream and bass swim in aquarium-size tanks. They play with an interactive model of a fishing boat and try to catch fish on a computer simulation using a rod and reel connected to a video screen. And because the museum, the Go Fish Georgia Educational Center, is primarily financed by the state, their father-and-son outings costs only $5.