Two questions about the designation in 1965 by the Legislature of the walleye as the state fish:

One, why did it take so long?

And two — and more relevant to today's discussion — why was the walleye chosen instead of the crappie? Or, for that matter, the "sunfish,'' a catch-all term that in Minnesota includes green sunfish, orange-spotted ...Read more

As the weather warms up, Washington residents are sure to turn to water activities like boating, swimming, paddling and all sorts of water sports.

And this year, as the cost of gas soars, safety experts expect participation in affordable paddle sports to reach new heights.

With more people heading out on the water, boating safety experts are ...Read more

Idaho Department of Fish and Game euthanized two Island Park-area grizzly bears that had become habituated to human food and residential areas, the agency said in a news release Saturday.

The bears, an adult female and her male yearling cub, were captured and euthanized Saturday after pursuing food from human sources numerous times in recent ...Read more

Much like the acute wail of the common loon that resonates deeply with many Minnesotans and signals another summer, state wildlife managers have made the annual call out for conservation-minded volunteers to help watch for them.

The effort is one of the ongoing projects focused on loons and their well-being within the Nongame Wildlife Program ...Read more

LAKE WINNIBIGOSHISH, Minn. — Minnesota fishing-license sales last week were down more than 20% from a year ago, according to the Department of Natural Resources. But busy roads leading north from the Twin Cities on Friday indicated that boats aplenty would be on the water Saturday morning, when the state's inland angling season began.

That ...Read more

There is the mythic adventure of trekking to a mountain river, a fly rod in hand for catching wild trout. It is all taking place, of course, in a poetic setting in which nature talks to you.

Then there is the trout fishing that over 30,000 anglers, mostly in 200 lowland lakes on this side of the mountains, did on opening day for the fishing ...Read more

When paddlers of all means glide through the Mississippi River for a weekend of canoe races in early summer, they'll dip into an activity that has coursed through state waters for generations.

Canoe racing doesn't get the ink of other big-time sports like the Minnesota Twins or even related recreational pursuits like Boundary Waters adventures ...Read more

It’s been said that beer and the outdoors make a natural pairing, so it feels fitting that Colorado Parks and Wildlife decided to partner with alcohol makers statewide on a fundraising effort to celebrate its 125th anniversary. The best part? You can tap in all year long.

The agency, established in 1897 to help maintain and conserve the ...Read more

Boise residents woke up in a winter wonderland on Monday, with a May snowstorm dropping heavy flakes across the Treasure Valley in what experts say was a rare event.

The National Weather Service’s Boise office recorded 0.4 inches of snow at its office near the Boise Airport by 9 a.m., but meteorologist Spencer Tangen said the NWS had received...Read more

No matter an angler's skills, catching walleyes on the opener can be easy or challenging, depending in large part on the weather — not only the weather on opening day, but on days leading up to the season's first walleye outing.

Yet weather aside, anglers who expand their walleye knowledge and improve their fishing skills can more regularly ...Read more

A Florida couple got an unannounced visitor to their Naples home on April 27, and it came thirsty.

Jamie and Karyn Dobson, who recently moved to the Sunshine State from Chicago, heard an alarming noise that sounded like a car crash, they told Wink News.

Upon further investigation, they encountered a large alligator in their garage. The door ...Read more

The cool, cloudy spring that has prevailed statewide this year has implications for everyone from farmers to ... anglers. Perhaps especially anglers, including those who, on May 14, intend to open Minnesota's walleye and northern pike seasons in the northern third of the state.

In that region, will some of the state's best walleye lakes, ...Read more

Ticks have a thing for Mary Ritter, but the sentiment is unrequited.

She takes a summer hike, she gets ticks. She takes a winter hike and picks off ticks. She steps outside her Greensburg townhouse, goes back in and finds ticks.

"I must be some kind of tick magnet," she said. "I'd like to know if I have the wrong blood type or put out some ...Read more

I've owned various garages over the years that held various boats, but none of these structures was more hallowed than the first, a poor lighted edifice that featured the usual vestiges of workshop disarray: A broom in one corner, shovels and rakes scattered helter-skelter in another, a bench full of unreturned tools borrowed from friends, and a...Read more

Attempting to make the state's waters safer, proposals before legislators would require more Minnesotans to take a boater safety course before they could operate motorized boats and personal watercraft.

Currently, young people ages 12 to 17 must pass an online boater safety exam through the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Companion bills...Read more

Despite the arrival of avian influenza in Pennsylvania, there is no evidence the state's wild turkeys are infected a week before the one-day junior and mentored youth gobbler hunt April 23, and two weeks prior to the monthlong season that begins April 30.

Since the discovery weeks ago of a bald eagle found dead in Chester County from highly ...Read more