Wisconsin Mixed Bag: DNR to hire 10 new game wardens, accepting applications through May 7 – Outdoor News
Madison — The Wisconsin DNR expects to hire up to 10 game warden recruits this year and is accepting applications through May 7.
The recruits will begin training next January or April, depending on the applicant’s law enforcement experience. Applicants must be at least 21 years old and already have earned or be planning to earn at least 60 college credits within their first five years of being hired.
Applicants may learn more about the conservation warden career and the hiring process on the DNR warden recruitment web page or by watching a video on the DNR’s YouTube channel. To apply, visit Wisc.Jobs and search for Job ID 13900. Applicants do not need law enforcement experience to apply. Applicants may contact Mary Bisch at [email protected] with questions about the application process.
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Celebrate Sturgeon May 4 at Wild Rose
Madison — A free DNR open house on lake sturgeon will take place at the Wild Rose Fish Hatchery Education Center in Wild Rose from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 4. Visitors will learn more about the annual spring sturgeon spawn.
The open house will include activities for all ages, including making a spinner, casting instruction, fish identification and following the sturgeon migration to spawning areas. Visitors may tour the original 1908 hatchery and explore the modern operation, with the last tour departing at 2 p.m.
The Wild Rose hatchery raises brown trout, rainbow trout, coho and king salmon, Great Lakes spotted muskellunge, walleyes, and lake sturgeon.
CWD Confirmed in Waushara Co. Wild Deer
Madison — The first positive case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a wild deer has been confirmed in Waushara County. The deer was found dead in early February in the town of Wautoma and is within 10 miles of the Marquette and Portage county borders.
A deer baiting and feeding ban already in place for Waushara County will be renewed. Marquette and Portage counties have three-year baiting and feeding bans in place from earlier positives, so this detection will not impact those counties.
The deer was a 3-year-old buck and is the first confirmed wild CWD-positive deer in Waushara County. The DNR and the Waushara County Deer Advisory Council plan to host a public meeting, with details to be posted on the DNR’s hearings and meetings calendar.
Drawdowns Planned for Two Flowages at Navarino Wildlife Area
Madison — Work crews at the Navarino Wildlife Area near Clintonville will conduct a full drawdown on Hanson Flowage and 80-Acre Flowage beginning this spring, with water levels lowered slowly until full drawdown is achieved in mid-May ahead of construction and repairs this summer. The project will involve rebuilding the top, side slopes, and spillways of the dikes.
The drawdown 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 abundant food source for waterfowl, shorebirds, and other wildlife.
“With the lack of rain in the watershed, we saw very low water levels last summer. This ‘natural drawdown’ allowed us to see how the vegetation and wildlife responded,” said Jaqi Christopher, DNR wildlife biologist. “Shorebirds, cranes and other wildlife used the exposed mud flats and lush vegetation throughout the summer. The rains in early fall then flooded the vegetation, creating prime feeding grounds for migrating birds, muskrats and other wildlife.”
Once construction is complete, water levels will be slowly raised through late summer and fall.
Spongy Moth Spraying Planned at Six Sites
Madison — Spongy moth aerial spraying will take place at six DNR properties in Columbia, Marinette, Sauk, and Walworth counties this summer that have high-value trees. A total of 928 acres will be treated with an aerial spray of Foray, a bacterial insecticide containing Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki.
The sites and areas to be sprayed are: Columbia County, 101 acres at MacKenzie Center; Marinette County, 255 acres at 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 at Big Foot Beach State Park, and 49 acres at Kettle Moraine State Forest – Southern Unit.
The DNR intends to avoid spraying high-use properties over Memorial Day weekend if spraying has not occurred. Wisconsin’s first egg hatch was reported on the morning of April 17, making it likely that aerial treatments in southern counties will be completed well in advance of the Memorial Day weekend.
In 2023, Wisconsin saw a record amount of spongy moth defoliation over about 375,000 acres, mostly in northern Wisconsin.
$373,900 in Grants OK’d for 29 Projects
Madison — The State Building Commission approved 29 “friends group” projects for a total of $373,900 in Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Fund grants, leveraging $392,700 in matching contributions and $4.2 million in total project costs.
Each year, $500,000 from the Stewardship program is set aside for grants to friends groups and nonprofit conservation groups.
The projects listed by 24 groups include amphitheater work at Blue Mound State Park, pavilion work at Copper Falls State Park, Devil’s Lake State Park trail upgrades, Yellowstone State Park ADA kayak launch, and Lapham Peak new lodge building work.
