“This is something that is a good reminder of the strength and power of a bear,” a bear biologist said. “But it's not something that should prevent people from thinking they can safely recreate in Vermont's forests.”
Wildlife advocates in Vermont said state officials should conduct DNA sampling to determine whether wolves, or coyote-wolf hybrids, are widely present in the state and deserve protection.
Last year, state officials recorded 650 bear incidents in Vermont. This year, there have been 700 and counting.
Vermont Fish & Wildlife should consider the interests and safety of the public, as well as the welfare of coyotes, and adopt a 21st-century policy on coyote hunting.
The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department confirmed the presence of the small whorled pogonia — a species previously thought to be extinct in Vermont since 1902 — on conservation land in the Winooski Valley Park District.
All of the new members are hunters, according to a press release from Gov. Phil Scott’s office. Wildlife advocates have recently sought more diversity in the backgrounds of board members, who make decisions about hunting and wildlife policies in the state.
Damon Dyer, 31, of Tunbridge is scheduled to be arraigned June 29 in Orange Superior Court on one count of cruelty to animals following an investigation by the Vermont Warden Service into the April shooting death of an 11-year-old German shepherd.
In a new project launching this weekend, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets and the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department are collaborating to find lone star ticks on wild turkeys.
This woeful situation is not without significant costs. With nearly 1,000 Vermont species designated as species of greatest conservation need, the extreme institutional bias at Fish & Wildlife detracts from delivering on meeting the challenges presented by those species.
Vermont Fish & Wildlife officials said they typically recommend that Vermonters take down bird feeders by April 1, but that this year’s predicted warmer weather through March “will stimulate more bears to emerge from their dens.”
A new study, published in the journal of Ecological Applications, revealed that some federally endangered species along the Connecticut River exist primarily outside of conserved areas, putting their continued existence at risk.
Vermont Fish & Wildlife announced the eagle’s removal from the list Thursday. The pesticide DDT, as well as illegal hunting, contributed to the raptor’s population decline in the mid-20th century.
“Bats are a very important part of our natural world, and now, more than ever, they need our help,” said Alyssa Bennett, a small mammals biologist with the state agency.
The governor’s office will begin looking for a replacement for Fish and Wildlife commissioner Louis Porter in the next several weeks.
