Texas Fish & Game

Grapevine, TX – American Sportsman Shooting Center, home of the nation’s only indoor, live-fire cinema range, has announced a summer Youth Shooting Academy, presented by K-5 Arms Exchange, that will be conducted from July 20 – August 13, 2015.  Each weekly session will introduce and educate young shooters between the ages of 13 and 18 in basic rifle fundamentals, and safe gun handling. Students will learn from Sportsman Shooting Center’s experienced NRA certified instructors, utilizing modern indoor electronic range facilities.

A customer at Burkart’s Marina in Orange on Monday said he shot and killed an 11-foot alligator he believed was involved in a deadly attack on an Orange man Friday.

This is a Texas Redhead centipede.

A massive alligator, which is suspected in the disappearance of several dogs and cats in the area, was killed on Tuesday evening when it came out of the water and was found behind a house on Wingate Drive in Rayburn Country.

“It’s too big for a coyote,” Philip Oliveira said of the animal carcass he keeps frozen in a cooler on his back porch in Rockdale, Texas.

The 2015 trends in duck breeding Populations report released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) indicates another strong year for waterfowl populations. The report is based on surveys conducted in May and early June by USFWS, Canadian Wildlife Service, and several state agency biologists. Overall duck numbers in the survey area are statistically similar to last year and remain high. Total populations were estimated at 49.5 million breeding ducks in the surveyed area. This estimate represents an 1 percent increase from last year’s estimate of 49.2 million birds, and is 43 percent higher than the 1955-2014 long-term average.

Source: Ducks Unlimited

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When the temperatures get up there on these hot summer afternoons, take a look at what the Peoria, ILL Skarping Club does.

Skarping combines water skiing, fishing, and basketball to come up with a new sport.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I15u-PAID6c

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Yesterday was a day off, so naturally, I took the kids fishing. We were casting jigs to bridge pilings, and absolutely slamming striped bass. Within an hour there was a 31-incher and several 20-somethings in the fishbox, and we had thrown back dozens of shorts. All of the fish were oriented to two specific pilings, and since it was a sunny Sunday, there were several boats working them. Everyone pulled up-wind, drifted past, and filed by the pilings in a nice, orderly fashion. Most of us were catching plenty of fish—then came stupid.

If you have ever felt as though your head was going to explode when you reviewed the specs for a new tow vehicle, the Toyota Land Cruiser might just be the best choice for you.  You can get this sport vehicle one way, and that’s fine since it has the features that you would probably choose anyway.  I discovered this while researching tow ratings and equipment for a range of new vehicles.  They call it a mono-spec, a term that I have never heard before.

Applications for Texas Parks & Wildlife Department’s Drawn Hunts in more than 35 hunt categories on 95 areas throughout the state is now open. You’ll find affordable opportunities for whitetail, mule deer, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, exotics, turkey, alligator and more.

Intense police bodycam footage of a suspect drawing down on 2 police officers in Palestine, TX on May 31, 2015.  (details here)

This is how quick a life threatening altercation can happen (viewer discretion is advised):

I’m impressed how fast the officer drew his sidearm, activated his light and laser, and made his shots count.

Are you aware and fast enough to respond efficiently to a threat like this?

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Lots of folks have asked for my advice on choosing their first semi-auto defensive rifle.  I believe that every responsible, patriotic American should have the tools and training to defend themselves and others.  Here are my tips on choosing that defensive tool that some might foolishly label as an “assault weapon”.

U.S. intelligence agencies are considering whether to provide information, analysis and possibly tactical lessons to African governments about how to attack wildlife poaching networks, according to a top official.

A man who tried to suck venom from a decapitated snake (locally known as pathfinder) to boost his immunity against all poisons, died within half an hour of the attempt.

He has been identified as Musah Dzikpor, 53, a painter, resident at Aflao.

A source close to the deceased told the GNA that the deceased, who was passionate about traditional medicine, last Tuesday morning visited a friend who engaged a tractor on his farm at Ziome, a village near the Diamond Cement Factory.

He said while there, the tractor operator spotted a pathfinder entangled in the plough, but menacingly stretching to reach him, so he slashed off its head with a cutlass.

The source said as the villagers argued over who would take possession of the head of the snake, in view of the importance attached to it, therefore, Dzikpor went for it.

He said Dzikpor opened the mouth of the reptile and slot in his tongue to suck the poison but the reptile’s head still alive, plunged its fangs into his tongue.

The...

Cheaper than traditional pack animals like horses or mules and more flexible than ATVs, llamas are quickly making a name for themselves among hunters as an alternative way to get their kills out of the woods.

While the idea may sound ludicrous to some, hunters like Thomas Baumeister of Montana call the use of pack llamas one of the best-kept secrets in the backcountry…

Read full story on OutdoorHub.com

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HOUSTON (KHOU) — Recent rains and flooding have alligators moving into areas they usually avoid.

A little while back we talked about the proper way to call the Coast Guard on your VHF radio, and I mentioned then that having DSC active on your VHF is a great help. With DSC, when you call the coasties they automatically know your exact position, the type of boat you run, and what sort of special safety gear you may have onboard, if any. All radios built in the past decade have DSC capabilities—it’s a legal requirement. But for that DSC function to work, you have to take the time and effort to interface your VHF with your GPS. And this is where most of us fall flat.