wildlife management

CFAES alum Alan Wentz receives Aldo Leopold wildlife award

W. Alan Wentz, PhD, who earned his bachelor’s degree in agricultural and biological conservation from Ohio State in 1969 and is a 1999 recipient of CFAES’ Distinguished Alumni Award, was recognized with the Aldo Leopold Memorial Award for distinguished service to wildlife conservation in Reno, Nevada, on Oct. 1 at the joint meeting of The Wildlife Society and American Fisheries Society.

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Helping people understand coyotes

Stan Gehrt has recent reason to howl. The scientist in CFAES’ School of Environment and Natural Resources, who has pioneered research on urban coyotes, was featured in the March edition of the National Wildlife Federation’s Ranger Rick magazine for children (“Coyotes in the City”); and was quoted in Newsweek magazine on Feb. 14 and April 26 (“Are Canada Goose Jackets Inhumane? The Controversy Explained” and “Coyotes Are New York’s Newest Immigrants,” respectively).

More information on Gehrt’s work is available on the website for his Chicago-based Urban Coyote Research Project.

Also check out CFAES’ Urban Coyotes: Conflict and Management fact sheet. (Photo: Getty Images.)

What do Americans think about wildlife?

By Mary Guiden, Science Writer and Senior Public Relations Specialist, Colorado State University

Abundant and healthy wildlife populations are a cultural and ecological treasure in the United States. Over time, however, decisions about how agencies manage wildlife have become highly contested: How should managers handle human-wildlife conflict, endangered species restoration, and predator control?

A new 50-state study called America’s Wildlife Values—the largest and first of its kind—describes individuals’ values toward wildlife across states. Leading the study were researchers from Colorado State and Ohio State, including Alia Dietsch and Jeremy Bruskotter of CFAES’ School of Environment and Natural Resources.

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‘So many snakes!’—and that’s a good thing

If you’ve been to the Lake Erie islands lately, you’ve probably seen Lake Erie watersnakes, which were brought back from the brink of extinction—to the benefit of the islands’ natural systems—by scientists and volunteers with CFAES’ Stone Laboratory.

Learn more in the video above and in our latest CFAES Story.

How to keep urban coyotes a respectful distance

What not to do if you see a coyote? Run back into your house, says CFAES scientist Stan Gehrt, an expert on urban coyotes, in a recent article in The Atlantic. “Over time, when you do that, coyotes learn they can make people disappear,” he says.

The article features a stylin’ way to coyote proof your dog (not shown). Read the full story. Then learn about Gehrt’s coyote research.

Details on deer disease in Ohio

In August, parts of Tuscarawas and Holmes counties in northern Ohio were declared Disease Surveillance Areas for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a fatal, easily spreadable illness of deer, elk, moose and caribou.

What does the declaration mean for deer farmers and deer hunters in those areas? What does the disease threat mean for Ohio hunters in general, including those who may travel to hunt in other states or in Canada?

Get answers to those questions in “Chronic Wasting Disease in White Tailed Deer,” a talk from 10:30-11 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 19, in the Gwynne Conservation Area at next week’s CFAES-sponsored Farm Science Review.

See the full Gwynne schedule. (Photo: White-tailed deer, Getty Images.)