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Articles written by Travis Lau


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  • Firearms Deer Season To Begin Nov. 30

    Travis Lau, PA Game Commission|Nov 27, 2024

    For Pennsylvania hunters, the real action starts one day later, on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, when the statewide firearms deer season begins. No other single point of the hunting calendar draws as much participation. Opening day, which falls on Nov. 30 this year, will put more than half a million hunters in the woods, all looking to bring home healthy venison to fill their freezers. It’s about more than just that, though. For many families – those who hunt from camps and those who hunt closer to home – the deer opener is an event, a cha...

  • State Game Lands Campfire Ban Lifted

    Travis Lau, PA Game Commission|Nov 27, 2024

    With recent rains reducing the threat of wildfire, the Pennsylvania Game Commission is lifting the temporary ban on building fires on state game lands. While camping on state game lands is prohibited, regulations allow game lands users to build small fires for cooking or warming purposes. However, with much of the state under drought conditions and wildfires popping up, the Game Commission on Nov. 5 enacted a temporary ban on game lands campfires. Conditions have improved since, allowing for the ban to be lifted. The state Department of...

  • Game Commission Updates Public On CWD Surveillance And Research

    Travis Lau, PA Game Commission|Aug 22, 2024

    The 2023-24 deer seasons ended months ago as did the busiest time for chronic wasting disease (CWD) surveillance. CWD, a fatal neurological disease, is a threat to both white-tailed deer and elk and has been detected within the wild deer population in several areas of Pennsylvania. While the most intense efforts revolve around Pennsylvania’s deer hunting seasons, monitoring for CWD is a year-round endeavor. The public can view the results of these efforts on the CWD Surveillance Dashboard available online at https://pgcdatac...

  • Volunteers Needed To Count Pennsylvania's Birds

    Travis Lau, PA Game Commission|Jun 27, 2024

    Those birds you see in the backyard, around camp, while hiking or otherwise outside? They’re more important than you think. Reporting your observations of them is, too. The Game Commission, together with Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, is conducting the third Pennsylvania Bird Atlas in state history. Between now and February 2029, it will document what birds live in Pennsylvania, where and in what numbers. “The atlas will provide a snapshot of the population status and distribution of birds in the Commonwealth,” Game Commission Ornithologist Sean...

  • Public Asked To Report Turkeys

    Travis Lau, PA Game Commission|Jun 27, 2024

    The Pennsylvania Game Commission is seeking input from the public in surveying wild turkeys this summer. The Annual Pennsylvania Wild Turkey Sighting Survey runs July 1 through Aug. 31. Public participation is important for turkey population management. Survey data allow the agency to determine total wild turkey productivity and compare long-term reproductive success within Pennsylvania and across states, as this is a standard methodology used across the country. Data also are used in the turkey population model to track population trends....

  • CWD Changes For 2024-25 Seasons

    Travis Lau, Pa Game Comission|Jun 20, 2024

    The Pennsylvania Game Commission today announced the expansion of several Chronic Wasting Disease Management Areas (DMAs) due to new detections of the disease. Disease Management Area 2 (DMA 2) will expand following the detection of CWD in several road-killed deer along the eastern boundary. The boundary will generally expand east to state Route 94, east along U.S. Route 30, and north along the west shore of the Susquehanna River to meet the current boundary. DMA 2 is located in southcentral Pennsylvania and includes all or portions of Adams,...

  • New Hunting and Furtaker License for 2024-25 Season Begin July 1

    Travis Lau, Pa Game Commission|Jun 20, 2024

    Hunting and furtaker licenses for the 2023-24 license year will expire June 30, and hunters will need new licenses for the 2024-25 license year to begin July 1. New licenses go on sale Monday, June 24, and hunters no longer need to purchase a general license before getting an antlerless deer license – they can be purchased at the same time, anywhere licenses are sold. This year, when licenses go on sale at 8 a.m. on June 24, antlerless deer licenses will be available for only three Wildlife Management Units where demand is highest – WMUs 1B,...