Patrick Durkin
Biologists Unravel the Mysterious Case of the Hanging Fawn
Jerry Hamm easily explains how he happened to see a dead white-tailed fawn hanging upside down 15 feet up a red oak, its hips wedged into...
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Patrick Durkin
- May 20
- 4 min
Strutting Gobbler Elbows into Father, Daughter Hunt
Sensing excitement in the elbow-shot to my ribs, I leaned closer to my daughter Leah to better hear her whispers. “They’re moving our...
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Patrick Durkin
- May 14
- 5 min
Gordon Lightfoot: Sailor, Voyager, Legendary Singer/Songwriter
The audience packing the Grand Theatre in Wausau, Wisconsin, rose to its feet when Gordon Lightfoot took the stage at age 83 on June 15,...
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Patrick Durkin
- May 5
- 4 min
Migrating Bluejays Disrupt the Best-Planned Turkey Hunt
The Department of Natural Resources questions a random sampling of turkey hunters each summer to learn important stuff like how often...
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Patrick Durkin
- Apr 26
- 5 min
Wakeboats, Deer Hunting Dominate Wisconsin's Annual Hearings
A tsunami of opposition to wakeboard boats swept through Wisconsin’s statewide conservation hearings in mid-April, with 62% of voters...
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Patrick Durkin
- Apr 22
- 4 min
Record Wisconsin Sturgeon of April 2012 Still Measures Up
As Wisconsin biologists tracked the nation’s largest lake-sturgeon spawning run in April, they knew they wouldn’t see the record female...
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Patrick Durkin
- Apr 13
- 4 min
Flashback to First Turkey, First Turkey Hunt in April 1990
I smirked when pulling the Oshkosh Northwestern’s April 15, 1990, outdoors page from a folder in my filing cabinets a few days ago. Over...
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Patrick Durkin
- Apr 8
- 5 min
Wisconsin's Deer Herd Faces Mounting Challenges
Few Wisconsin hunters noticed they had one less opportunity to share their thoughts on deer hunting and deer management this spring....
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Patrick Durkin
- Apr 1
- 4 min
Menasha Man Relaunches Springtime Sturgeon Patrol
Fish pirates have largely vanished from the Fox and Wolf rivers in recent decades, but spawning sturgeon from the Winnebago System’s big...
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Patrick Durkin
- Mar 25
- 5 min
On Wisconsin! Conservation Funding Requires Leadership
For a state ranking fifth nationally in licensed hunters and sixth in licensed anglers while generating $8.7 billion and 89,000 jobs in...
385 views3 comments
Patrick Durkin
- Mar 16
- 4 min
Wisconsin Bobcats Faring Well, Boosting License Sales
Wisconsin’s bobcat population has grown steadily this century, expanding its range and numbers while triggering explosive interest among...
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Patrick Durkin
- Mar 11
- 4 min
Impatience Pays: Hole Hoppers Put More Crappies on Ice
Someday I’ll prove that a patient man who plants himself atop an ice hole and persists will outfish those who forever hop one hole to the...
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Patrick Durkin
- Mar 4
- 4 min
Wisconsin Fish Advisories Offer Safe, Practical Eating Advice
Let’s compliment the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for the large, bold-faced “Choose Wisely” headline on the state’s...
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Patrick Durkin
- Feb 25
- 4 min
Ice-Spearing for Pike Offers Same Guarantee as Tip-Up Fishing: None
MENOMINEE, Mich. — If you’re strapping ice-creepers to your boots and heading out to catch a quick meal of northern pike from an Upper...
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Patrick Durkin
- Feb 19
- 4 min
Wisconsin Finds CWD in Record 31 Counties During 2022 Deer Hunts
Wisconsin found chronic wasting disease in a record 31 counties during 2022’s deer seasons — including newcomers Buffalo, Langlade and...
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Patrick Durkin
- Feb 11
- 4 min
Spain Researchers Document World’s Oldest ‘Trophy Room’
Researchers who studied a cave complex in Spain recently concluded that Neanderthal hunters likely turned one of the chambers into the...
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Patrick Durkin
- Feb 3
- 4 min
Icefishing in 1959 Had Many Charms and Challenges
An old, retired Northwoods bunny cop seldom disagrees when reading my columns about hunting, fishing and other conservation matters. But...
330 views0 comments
Patrick Durkin
- Jan 28
- 5 min
Wisconsin’s New Wolf Plan Mirrors Other Plans Here and Near
One year after a federal judge in California put the Great Lakes’ gray wolves back on the endangered species list, many Wisconsin hunters...
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Patrick Durkin
- Jan 22
- 4 min
Retired Wildlife Professor Ponders CWD’s Impact on Deer Hunting
Deer hunting in Wisconsin was simpler in 2000, when we mostly argued about baiters, antlerless quotas, buck-to-doe ratios, and whether...
988 views1 comment
Patrick Durkin
- Jan 14
- 4 min
Pelican River Forest Plan Deserves a Public Resolution
One wonders about the legitimacy of our Legislature when a lone senator or representative can conceal their identity while blocking...
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