(ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Aug. 26, 2009) -- Hundreds of hunting and fishing groups representing millions of America’s conservationists and anglers, outfitters, guides, lodge owners and others have asked Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Director Bob Abbey to protect from mining 1.1 million acres of federal fish and wildlife habitat near Bristol Bay, Alaska.

Scientists recently discovered wild young Atlantic salmon in New
York’s Salmon River, a tributary to Lake Ontario. This is the first time
in more than a century that salmon produced naturally in the wild have
been found in what was once New York’s premier salmon stream. Forty-one
wild Atlantic salmon were collected in June and July. All of the salmon were
less than 1 year old and measured between 2 and 2 1/2 inches.

"This discovery suggests that, after many years of reproductive

Last fall, a Georgia deer hunter shot and killed a cougar as it walked by his tree stand. He reported his kill to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, after which the body of the cat was brought to the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study in Athens, Georgia, for necropsy. Genetic testing revealed that the young, healthy mature male was a resident member of the south Florida remnant population of critically endangered Florida panthers.

In a decision that could have far-reaching implications for management of national forest roadless areas and important fish and wildlife habitat, a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed a 9th District Court judge’s ruling that the Bush administration unlawfully repealed the national roadless rule when it established a short-lived rule that enabled development of state-specific plans for roadless area management. The District Court’s 2006 ruling enjoined the state petitions rule and reinstated the 2001 roadless rule.