Wildlife

An outbreak of often-fatal epizootic hemorrhagic disease afflicted more than 500 white-tailed deer in Indiana’s Allen, Porter and Wabash counties last summer.

Pheasants Forever provides a program that works hand-in-hand with farmers to combine wildlife habitat with farming profitability.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service unveiled a new easement option that offers long-term protection of the land and ensures timely transfer of ownership to qualified producers.

Illinois State Conservationist Tammy Willis announced a statewide funding opportunity for the Conservation Stewardship Program funded by the Inflation Reduction Act.

Marshall, Putnam and Stark counties in Illinois have been approved for funding to address damages from tornados and severe storms.

Illinois soybean farmers will now have additional assistance with evaluating field data to better implement practices that benefit the environment.

Fall fieldwork is near completion for Berkeley Boehne after some much-needed rain slowed tillage for some of his fields.

USDA announced that one Illinois county will be accepting applications for the Emergency Conservation Program and two Illinois counties are accepting applications for the Emergency Forest Restoration Program.

Jim Fulton heard concerns about nitrogen leaving cropland and related water quality problems and decided to do something about it after hearing about constructed wetlands.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a $1.5 billion investment for 92 partner-driven conservation projects, including one in Illinois and Indiana, through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program.

Farmers for Soil Health empowers farmers to lead the charge in sustainability, putting real money directly into their hands to drive change where it matters most — at the farm level.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin issuing more than $2.14 billion in payments to eligible agricultural producers and landowners — providing much needed support through key conservation and safety net programs.

What a great harvest we had, huge crop and great weather to harvest in. Aside from the dusty road conditions, I do not recall an easier harvest ever.

Farmers and ranchers are leading the way in climate-smart practices that reduce emissions, enrich the soil and protect our water and air, all while producing more food, fiber and renewable fuel than ever before.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced up to $7.7 billion in assistance for fiscal year 2025 to help agricultural and forestry producers adopt conservation practices on working lands.

Richard Lyons of Harvel is the recipient of the 2024 Illinois Leopold Conservation Award.

A new Land Use Change Initiative is leading efforts to resolve inconsistencies in definitions, metrics and methodologies for quantifying land use change.

I hope you readers saw the recent AgriNews article on sheep grazing under solar farms. Land stays in production while generating electricity for the grid and cash for shepherds while saving on mowing and spraying costs.

In a recent letter to congressional leadership, more than 500 agricultural groups called for the passage of a new farm bill.

Three central Illinois farm families were honored for their conservation agriculture efforts.

There’s not a day that goes by, when farmers aren’t thinking about how to leave the land better than we found it.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that agricultural producers and private landowners can sign up for the general Conservation Reserve Program through March 29.

The Endangered Species Act turned 50 years old late last month. Signed by President Richard Nixon in 1973, the legislation was expansive and controversial.

An exploding population of hard-to-eradicate “super pigs” in Canada is threatening to spill south of the border, and northern states like Minnesota, North Dakota and Montana are taking steps to stop the invasion.

Animal welfare advocates filed a lawsuit seeking to invalidate Wisconsin’s new wolf management plan, accusing state wildlife officials of violating the state’s open meetings law and disregarding comments from wolf researchers and supporters.

November was Native American Heritage Month, and the theme of this year’s event was “Indigenous Foods: The Intersection Between Land, Food and Culture.”

A lack of snow and warm temperatures that suppressed deer movement led to a lackluster opening weekend of Wisconsin’s nine-day gun season, with hunters killing thousands fewer deer than last year.

The Kauffman family has been raising and selling turkeys for 90 years, but the family started the farming operation many years prior to that near Waterman.

How do you get a group of excited fourth-graders to pay attention and learn something about bird migration? You teach them to fly.

Tammy Willis, state conservationist, announced the first application cutoff period for fiscal year 2023 Agricultural Conservation Easement Program wetland reserve easements of Dec. 1.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service in Indiana is investing up to $1.25 million in a Wetland Reserve Enhancement Partnership project.

Legislation to keep an animal tranquilizer accessible for its intended use by veterinarians but criminalize it in combination with other drugs was approved by the Pennsylvania state House. The bill was sent to the state Senate on a vote of 169-34.

Lincoln Land Community College dedicated its newest learning space, 2.1 acres of land at 2320 West Lake Shore Drive, now known as West Lake Nature Grove.

A new constructed wetland and restored wetland site in Livingston County was among the stops as part of the Mississippi River Network’s River Days of Action.

Two years ago, a Marshall County farm field looked like most of Illinois’ 12 million acres of tile-drained cropland. But a local contractor moved over 6,000 cubic yards of earth to create a smart wetland.

Indiana Farm Bureau members celebrated Earth Day, acknowledging the importance of land and the measures farmers take to protect it.

State Conservationist Ivan Dozier announced the submission deadline for Conservation Stewardship Program applications to be considered for funding in fiscal year 2023 is Feb. 3.

Illinois has to step up its game in protecting its environment. Last year, the state enacted the Climate & Equitable Jobs Act, which was a big step forward.

Two major farmland auctions recently attracted capacity crowds, with bidders coming from as far away as Florida and Tennessee. Schrader Real Estate and Auction Company marketed both farms and conducted the live auctions.

Ivan Dozier, Illinois state conservationist, announced the application period for the fiscal year 2023 Agricultural Conservation Easement Program — Wetland Reserve Easements.

The weather in November has been surprising. The warmer temperatures have been really nice. We had a chance to complete many of the projects on our fall to-do list. Harvest around us is going strong and it is a pleasure to see the combines in the field.

State Conservationist Ivan Dozier announced that the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service will offer Regional Conservation Partnership Program funding for the Working Lands, Water and Wildlife Partnership throughout Illinois.

Lifelong Montgomery County farmer, Sugar Creek steward and conservation cropping innovator Kenny Cain received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hoosier Environmental Council at the 2022 Greening the Statehouse event in Westfield.

It’s a given that wetlands provide “nature’s kidney” for reducing nutrient losses into waterways and provides wildlife habitat, but a unique project in northern Livingston County took those benefits to another level.

As a young Farm Bureau member, I knew what was happening in my local community. I would occasionally hear about the issues at the Georgia state house or in Congress.

Emerging opportunities for carbon markets and carbon sequestration have caught the attention of a wide range of specialists with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.

A pair of ospreys that nested near live electrical lines atop a northern Indiana utility pole now have a safer home thanks to a utility crew that moved their nest.

The students and ag teachers, those are the two things Kent Weber will miss when he retires from teaching at Seneca Township High School at the end of the school year.

Dec. 1, 1981-May 2, 2022 are important dates in the life of Blake Roderick, retiring executive director of Pike-Scott Farm Bureau. These dates of Blake’s employment as manager are important; however, the dash between the dates tells the story.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources issued updated public recommendations regarding wild birds and the EA H5N1 strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza currently impacting some wild and domestic bird species.