Madison – The Wisconsin DNR expects to hire up to 10 game warden recruits this year and is accepting applications through May 7.
Recruits will begin training in January or April next year, depending on the candidate’s law enforcement experience. Applicants must be at least 21 years aged and have already earned or plan to earn at least 60 credits within the first five years of employment.
Candidates can learn more about conservation ranger careers and the recruitment process on the website DNR Chief Recruitment Website or watching a movie on YouTube DNR canal. To apply, visit Wisc.Jobs and search for job ID 13900. Applicants do not need to have law enforcement experience to apply. Applicants may contact Mary Bisch at [email protected] with questions about the application process.
Green Bay is producing gigantic 56-inch muskies for Wisconsin anglers fishing for walleye
Warm water temperatures will greet Wisconsin anglers for the 2024 fishing opening
Celebrate Sturgeon on May 4 at Wild Rose
Madison – The DNR’s free lake sturgeon open house will be held at the Wild Rose Fish Hatchery Education Center from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, May 4. Visitors will learn more about the annual spring spawning of sturgeon.
The open days will include activities for all age groups, including: making a spinner, learning how to cast, identifying fish and tracking the migration of sturgeons to spawning grounds. Visitors can tour the original 1908 hatchery and learn about state-of-the-art operations. The last tour starts at 2:00 p.m
Wild Rose Hatchery raises brown trout, rainbow trout, coho and king salmon, Great Lakes spotted muskies, walleye and lake sturgeon.
CWD confirmed in Waushara Co. Wild Deer
Madison — The first positive case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) has been confirmed in a wild deer in Waushara County. The deer was found dead in early February in the town of Wautoma, 10 miles from the Marquette and Portage county lines.
Waushara County’s existing ban on abusing and feeding deer will be renewed. Marquette and Portage counties have three-year baiting and feeding bans in place due to previous positive results, so the detection will not impact those counties.
It was a 3-year-old deer and is the first wild deer confirmed to be infected with CWD in Waushara County. The DNR and the Waushara County Deer Advisory Council plan to hold a public meeting, details of which will be posted on the website Calendar of DNR hearings and meetings.
Drop planned for two flows in the Navarino Wildlife Area
Madison — Work crews at Navarino Wildlife Area near Clintonville will conduct full water withdrawals at the Hanson Flowage and 80-Acre Flowage starting this spring, with water levels slowly lowered until full withdrawals are reached in mid-May before construction and repairs this summer . The project will include the reconstruction of the summit, side slopes and embankment spillways.
A drain is necessary to complete construction, but it will also mimic a natural part of the wetland cycle. Exposing underwater areas to sunlight allows many seed-producing plants to grow, providing an copious food source for waterfowl, shorebirds and other wildlife.
“Due to the lack of rainfall in the catchment area last summer, we observed very low water levels. This “natural weakening” allowed us to see how vegetation and wildlife responded,” said Jaqi Christopher, DNR wildlife biologist. “Coastal birds, cranes and other wildlife took advantage of the exposed mudflats and lush vegetation throughout the summer. Early fall rains flooded the vegetation, creating perfect feeding grounds for migrating birds, muskrats and other wildlife.”
Once construction is completed, water levels will slowly rise until behind schedule summer and fall.
Planned spraying for sponge moths in six locations
Madison – This summer, aerial spraying of sponge moth will take place at six DNR properties in Columbia, Marinette, Sauk and Walworth counties that have high-value trees. A total of 928 acres will be aerial sprayed with Foray, a bacterial insecticide containing Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurtaki.
The locations and areas to be sprayed are: Columbia County, 101 acres at the MacKenzie Center; Marinette County, 255 acres in Governor Earl Peshtigo River State Forest; Sauk County, 212 acres at Devil’s Lake State Park and 187 acres at Mirror Lake State Park; Walworth County, 124 acres in Big Foot Beach State Park and 49 acres in Kettle Moraine State Forest – South Unit.
The DNR intends to avoid spraying high-use properties over Memorial Day weekend if no spraying has occurred. The first egg hatch in Wisconsin was reported on the morning of April 17, suggesting that aerial treatments in southern counties will end well before Memorial Day weekend.
In 2023, Wisconsin experienced record sponge moth defoliation across approximately 375,000 acres, primarily in northern Wisconsin.
$373,900 in grants awarded to 29 projects
Madison – The State Building Commission has approved 29 “friends group” projects totaling $373,900 in Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Fund grants, using $392,700 in matching contributions and $4.2 million in total project costs.
Each year, $500,000 from the Stewardship program goes toward grants to nonprofit friends and conservation groups.
Projects listed in the 24 groups include work on the amphitheater at Blue Mound State Park, work on the pavilions at Copper Falls State Park, trail improvements at Devil’s Lake State Park, ADA kayak launch at Yellowstone State Park and work on the modern lodge at Lapham Peak.
