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Outdoor

Grouse priority area siting tool launches

Pennsylvania’s state bird, the ruffed grouse, has suffered dramatic population losses due to the statewide scarcity of young forests and large-scale West Nile virus die-offs. To offset those losses, the Pennsylvania Game Commission has created a tool to identify prime grouse recovery areas. “The Game Commission recognizes that all conservation partners must work smarter, not just harder, to restore the King of Thunder,” said Lisa Williams, the agency grouse biologist who identified West Nile’s role in Pennsylvania’s grouse-population collapse. “It’s not enough to simply ...

Take the plunge!

Where have all the Vikings gone? The majestic Polar Bear may not be indigenous to our area, but there is one local, rare, species acclimated to the Allegheny tundra that appears to be threatened to near extinction. It is the brave and fearless Nordic Warriors of the Winterfest Polar ...

The ever-changing forest

None of the deer hunters I spoke with this fall said anything about noticing more deer this year. Very few complained, and none loudly. What a relief. But there were more deer this year in the areas I frequent than there have been in some years. The problem facing hunters is that not enough ...

DEP follows up on oil spill

The Department of Environmental Protection will continue to investigate the spill that created a visible sheen Saturday on the Allegheny River at Starbrick. According to DEP Community Relations Coordinator Tom Decker, an investigator will visit the scene on Tuesday. Not a lot of detail ...

Starbrick VFD responds to weekend oil spill

Some oil reached the Allegheny River in Starbrick Saturday morning as a result of a spill. Starbrick Volunteer Fire Department responded to the report around 11:30 a.m., according to Chief Kirk Faust. Responders discovered a sheen of oil in a ditch along the railroad tracks behind ...

‘Phil 1, Elk 0’ …

Phil Herrnberger has learned a lot since he answered a question about the score of an elk he shot in Colorado. “Phil 1, Elk 0.” At the time, he didn’t know anything about determining a score for a trophy rack. Now, as an Official Measurer for both the Boone and Crockett Club and ...