Pennsylvania Mixed Bag: Early Bird Sports Expo coming Jan. 25-28 – Outdoor News
Bloomsburg, Pa. — The Early Bird Sports Expo will be held Jan. 25-28 at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds, 620 W. 3rd St. This will be the 35th year for the annual outdoors show started in 1988.
Exhibits again will be spread out across three buildings, all indoors. Parking is free. There is a $7 entry fee for anyone 13 and over; veterans and active military personnel are admitted free as well as children under 12.
Show hours are: 3- 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 26; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27; and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 28.
Warden Crimi Moves to Wyoming County
Dallas, Pa. — Lawrence Crimi recently assumed the role and responsibilities as the game warden in Wyoming County.
Crimi, who was assigned to Centre County upon graduating from the Game Commission’s training school in 2022, recently transferred to the Northeast Region, and assumed his duties on Dec. 9, 2023.
Crimi, a native of Peckville, Lackawanna County, is a 2011 graduate of Valley View High School and earned his bachelor’s degree in Conservation Law Enforcement from Unity College, Maine.
Winter Turkey Sighting Survey to Begin
Harrisburg — The Game Commission is asking for the public’s help finding turkey flocks to trap for ongoing turkey projects.
Beginning now, Pennsylvanians are encouraged to report the location of any turkey flocks they see. Information is being collected online from Jan. 15 to March 15.
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Visitors to that webpage will be asked to provide the date of the sighting, the location, and the type of land (public, private or unknown) where birds are seen, among other things.
Game Commission crews will visit sites to assess them for the potential to trap turkeys. Turkeys will not be moved; they’ll simply be leg banded and released on site. In four wildlife management units some also will be outfitted with GPS transmitters, then be released back on site, to be monitored over time.
Md. Deer Hunters End Decent Season
Annapolis, Md. — The Maryland Department of Natural Resources announced that hunters harvested 28,236 deer during the two-week firearms season from Nov. 25 through Dec. 9. The firearms season harvest was 3% lower than last year’s official count of 29,160 deer.
Hunters reported taking 12,002 antlered deer during the two-week season, which was similar to last year’s official total of 12,018. The antlerless harvest decreased 5% from 17,142 last year to 16,234 this year. Sika deer represented 501 of the total antlered harvest and 589 of the total antlerless harvest and was up 12% overall.
More than 2,700 deer were taken on the two Sundays during the season, representing nearly 10% of the total harvest. Deer hunting on Sunday is currently permitted on select Sundays in 20 of 23 counties.
Drought Watch Remains for 13 Counties, Franklin County Goes to Drought Warning
Harrisburg — The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced in late December after a meeting of the Commonwealth Drought Task Force that a drought watch will continue for 13 counties and a drought warning will continue for Clinton and York counties.
Franklin County has been elevated from a drought watch to drought warning.
Adams, Bucks, Cameron, Cumberland, Dauphin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Montgomery, Northampton, Perry, and Westmoreland counties remain in drought watch. Clinton and York counties will remain in drought warning. Franklin County is being moved to drought warning to support the efforts of water suppliers and their customers to conserve water.
Residents on drought warning are asked to reduce their individual water use by 10-15%, a reduction of 6-9 gallons of water per day.
