Matters of Opinion

The summer of 2016 was unique to say the least. Coming out of what we would call a nice, mild winter, there was some indication that we might go into a bit of dry spell. The National Weather Service gave a 50:50 chance of being above or below average precipitation.

Fast forward to July and, depending on what part of the state you’re located, the prediction was likely true.

I’ve been in parts of the state that looked so dry that even the promise of some rain wouldn’t save the crops. Areas that featured grass up to a cow’s belly a couple of years ago now may have grass that’s only ankle high. Conversely, other parts of North Dakota were hit with severe thunderstorms, packing large hail that damaged homes, vehicles and crops.

Understanding the kind of energy it takes to damage structures, it’s certainly not a stretch to know that wildlife, especially upland game birds, were impacted in some of these storms that produced large hail and winds of 70 miles per hour.

While it’s never a good thing where these strong storms hit, we’re expecting the influence on pheasants, grouse and partridge to be localized. The fall hunting outlook on the whole still looks pretty good.

I’ve lived in North Dakota almost my entire life and have seen some dramatic changes during that time. It was a unique opportunity to view a moose in the wild when I was going to college. With some monitoring, research and conservative measures, the Game and Fish Department was able to increase that herd and subsequently held the state’s first moose season in 1977.

At that time, the moose stronghold was in the Turtle Mountain and Pembina Hills areas. Fast forward to 2016 and moose have spread west and are doing quite well. This year, for the first time, Game and Fish has made available more than 200 once-in-a-lifetime moose licenses.

The Department is conducting a moose study in northwestern North Dakota and early findings have shown pregnancy rates that would make a cattle rancher envious and twinning rates that would have them “green at the gills.”

Even so, a couple of groups have petitioned to have moose in North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan placed on the Endangered Species list. While we’re certainly not pleased with this action, we’re confident the information we have that shows expansion of the moose herd in North Dakota does not warrant any action for placement on the list.

Like many other outdoors-minded people across the state, we’ve enjoyed the summer months, but we’re now getting into the fall when opportunities seem endless, with a new hunting season opening almost every weekend, with some great fishing to enjoy as well.

Part of getting ready for the fall is doing some trap shooting, either in a league or on your own. One activity that’s growing in popularity is the North Dakota State High School Clay Target League. I was unable to attend the 2016 Clay Target League state tournament in Horace in June due to conflicts, but I understand from those I’ve talked to it was a tremendous event, with some great shooting by those young adults in attendance. Much like what has happened with the moose population in North Dakota, our agency is hoping to see this clay target league move west across the state to more schools.

There is never a shortage of activities to participate in during all of our seasons. You just have to take the time to do so. So get out this fall and enjoy the great North Dakota outdoors.