SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – In her January inaugural address, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem promised to restore the state's pheasant population and introduced a habitat restoration initiative that is getting mixed reviews.

To boost the number of pheasants, Noem created a bounty program that pays hunters and trappers $10 for the tail of every mammal defined as a pheasant nest predator, including raccoons, striped skunks, possums, badgers and red foxes.

South Dakota author Jerry Wilson criticized the Second Century Initiative in a letter to state newspapers. Wilson objects to the governor promoting the program as a "good way to get kids outside."

"Defining the 'family outdoor experience' as going out together as a family and trapping and killing fellow creatures, cutting off their tails for a $10 bounty and tossing their body away, there's something really wrong about that," he states.

Pheasant hunters spend about $130 million in South Dakota each year, but the pheasant population has been dropping, a problem blamed on shrinking habitat.

Noem, a pheasant hunter herself, allocated $500,000 for the initiative that will continue through August, or until the money is gone.

So far, more than 20,000 mammals considered pheasant predators have been killed, but Keith Fisk, program administrator at South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks, doesn't expect the bounty program to negatively affect their populations.

"So, those fur-bearer populations are extremely strong in South Dakota,” he states. “At the end of the day, if 50,000 of these nest predators get removed, it's not going to impact the population of those species in South Dakota at all."

A recent study of 132 countries documented the decline in biodiversity across the globe.

With that in mind, Wilson says he doesn't believe a taxpayer-funded program to kill native mammals in favor of a bird imported from China 100 years ago is appropriate.

"I'm all in favor of habitat restoration, but what bothers me is the idea that we should try to kill off as many of our native animals and upset the natural balance just in order to promote a money-making industry," he states.

So far, the tails of 16,000 raccoons, 3,300 striped skunks, 1,800 opossums, 146 badgers and 182 red foxes have been turned in to local Game, Fish and Parks offices.


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Some Hoosiers want Indiana lawmakers to rethink proposed legislation that would usurp existing local laws that prohibit retailers from selling puppies. Legislators listened to emotional testimony during a 3.5 hour hearing on the proposed law, which was revived from last year's session.

Dr. Scott Robinson, a physician and attorney who also founded a low-cost spay and neuter center in Indianapolis, told the Senate Agriculture Committee there's no mystery about House Bill 1412. Pet stores support the legislation because they're trying to keep themselves from being forced out of business.

"I've been involved in animal welfare for a long time, and I've seen over the years many wolves in sheep's clothing and that's what this is about," Robinson argued. "There's plenty of regulations that can be made to monitor puppy mills, but this is designed to usurp local control of communities and protect pet stores."

Robinson said the issue is not a Republican or Democrat problem -- regardless of party affiliation, people care about their animals. If passed, the bill will overturn bans on retail puppy sales in 21 Indiana communities. Proponents say the law would allow pet stores the option to sell puppies as long as the animals are from ethically sourced suppliers.

Lori Wilson, CEO of Uncle Bill's Pet Centers, who operates six stores throughout Indiana, supports the proposed legislation.

"We are very transparent. We're open door," she intoned. "Being USDA, you have to be open door, so we are very picky. I actually go to many of the kennels to make sure that they are exactly what we want them to be and need them to be, to be able to source humanely and ethically raised puppies."

Opponents say the bill lacks funding to support the agencies tasked with enforcing laws. This is not a budget year for Indiana lawmakers, so any funding to support the proposed mandate would not come before 2025.


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Researchers at Colorado State University are making headway in identifying how osteoarthritis progresses in horses, and their findings could one day also help people who develop the degenerative disease after injuring a knee, elbow or shoulder.

Lynn Pezzanite, doctor of veterinary medicine and assistant professor at Colorado State University, said the disease affects nearly eight in ten horses over age 15.

"It's the most common disorder affecting joints in horses, as well as in people, and one of the most common disorders that we treat overall in horses. It's one of the most common reasons horses present to a veterinarian," she said.

Pezzanite and her team are hoping to find markers of how osteoarthritis develops in horses by studying individual immune cells in joint fluid. Those markers may provide insights on how veterinarians can use gene therapies or other treatments at specific stages to slow the disease's progression.

Typically, people and animals only show signs of osteoarthritis at advanced stages, when they experience joint pain. Pezzanite believes information in immune cells might expose the disease much earlier, even before evidence appears on X-rays.

"Our goal with this work is to look at those very early stages in horses that have post-traumatic arthritis, so that we can determine that tipping point of when we should be intervening or not. And hopefully this will inform treatment in humans as well," she continued.

Pezzanite said people could benefit from this research if the immune markers can be translated across species. Physicians would have better information about when to intervene before full-blown osteoarthritis develops.

"If you're playing soccer and twist your knee, tear your ACL, we would potentially be able to take a sample of that joint fluid and know whether you're going to develop arthritis or not," she explained. "Which would allow us to be more aggressive in treatment of that joint."

Spring brings about migration season for birds, but home and workplace windows can often prevent them from getting to their final destination.

Wayne State University has been awarded a grant by The Detroit Zoological Society to conduct research on bird mortality from window strikes.

Ava Landraf, conservation and research coordinator with Detroit Bird Alliance, said more than half of the bird window strikes happen at low-rise and residential buildings, and not on skyscrapers as most would imagine.

"Most people don't know that bird-window collisions are the second highest cause of direct human-caused mortality of birds. And this is surpassed only by outdoor and feral cats," Landraf said.

The Smithsonian Institution finds many bird window strikes happen because of less darkness at night and an increase in artificial light caused by streetlights and lighted office buildings.

The research shows 33% of the world's population cannot see the Milky Way galaxy due to light pollution, and for birds that navigate using the stars, this hazy sky is having deadly results.

Landraf said Wayne State University faculty and students have had concerns about bird strikes over the years, but the opportunity to do something about it never materialized until they got this grant. She added it's scary to find a small number of dead birds around the campus, knowing there are many window strikes.

"A lot of the birds will hit a window, have that head trauma and then, fly off and then die later," Landraf said. "Even if they hit the window and they die right there, they're either picked up and eaten by a scavenger or the building caretakers just sweep the birds right up."

Based on the Detroit Bird Alliance's findings from tracking bird strikes, CollidEscape, an adhesive film that reduces reflections outside, was applied on the first- and second-floor windows of the university's Law School building as part of the research. She suggested people contact the Bird Alliance for other potential solutions, and also suggested checking the website birdmapper.org to see which areas experience more bird-window strikes around the world.


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