From left to right: Edie Smith, IFW Director of Public Information and Education, Mike Richard, Sam Boothby, Phil Guimond and Mike Sawyer, IFW Recreational Safety Coordinator

GORHAM, Maine – Three of Maine’s longest-tenured hunter education instructors were recognized by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife for their efforts recently at a safety course held at Gorham Middle School.

Sam Boothby of Gorham, Phil Guimond of Gorham and Mike Richard of Old Orchard Beach each received plaques to commemorate their milestones. Boothby is in his 40^th year of hunter’s safety instruction, while Guimond has successfully certified 5,000 students and Richard has certified 3,000 students.

“This is an important part of what IF&W does,” said Michael Sawyer, the Department’s Recreational Safety Coordinator. “We have a track record of hunting in Maine being a very safe activity, and having knowledgeable and effective instructors is a big reason why.”

Boothby, a retired high school teacher, began teaching hunter’s safety courses in 1971 – 15 years before Maine started requiring the completion of a hunter’s safety course in order to purchase a hunting license in the state.

“I enjoy standing up and teaching,” said Boothby, who has certified 4,000 students through to hunting certification since 1986. “That’s what I was trained to do. You can get in these smaller groups and have a better hands-on approach to the material. We’re using more audio-visual (methods) now than ever before, but the message is still the same.”

That message, above all else, is about safety.

In both 2009 and 2010, Maine’s total reported hunting incidents were in single-digits with zero fatalities among the approximately 200,000 licensed hunters in the state. This past weekend – the opening weekend of the firearm season on white-tailed deer – not a single hunting incident was recorded.

The advent of the blaze-orange clothing requirement, the use of an any-deer permit system and the ethics taught during classroom instruction have been the most important factors in keeping people safe in Maine year after year.

In order to purchase a hunting license in Maine, a hunter must possess either a valid hunting license from a previous year or present proof of hunter education certification. For more information on hunter safety education, other recreational safety courses or to view a complete listing of available courses, please visit http://www.maine.gov/ifw/education/safety/index.htm.

DIF&W Commissioner Chandler Woodcock states, “We are proud at the Department of the progressive steps we are taking to grow our deer population. The lower number of doe permits, our increased initiatives with landowners addressing deer yard issues and our aggressive programs of predation control all address the fact that one of our priorities is to grow the deer herd in Maine.”

Woodcock also stated, “We have beautiful trophy bucks throughout Maine, and I hope to come out of the woods with one on Saturday!”

DIF&W deer biologist Lee Kantar added “to accomplish deer management objectives in 2011, we have set doe harvest numbers fairly low. By decreasing any-deer permits by 46 percent for the coming season, we hope to give a boost to deer numbers across the state for future growth.”

The 25-day regular firearms season on deer opens for Maine residents this Saturday, October 29th, and for non-residents the following Monday. The season ends on the Saturday following Thanksgiving (November 26th). Following this, the muzzleloader season will begin in statewide on November 28th and will end on December 3rd in Wildlife Management Districts (WMD) 1 through 11, 14, 19, 27 and 28. Elsewhere, the muzzleloader season will continue until December 10th. Crossbow archery season will coincide with modern firearms.

Hunters are allowed to take one antlered deer annually in Maine, although hunters with an any-deer permit are allowed to take either one antlered deer or one antlerless deer. A total of 26,390 any-deer (doe) permits have been issued for 2011, a sharp decrease from last season when more than 40,000 any-deer permits were handed out.

“It reflects the tremendous impact the harsh winters of 2008 and 2009 had on deer populations throughout the state and the significant winter mortality suffered by the herd in Maine,” Kantar said.

Kantar projects that roughly 4,800 antlerless deer will likely be harvested by hunters this fall. Antlered buck harvests should reach just under 12,000. In total Maine’s deer harvest will be down from 2010 and from previous years.

“This will be by design with the reduction in any-deer permits to help build the statewide population,” Kantar said. “Given all the information the Department uses to manage deer in Maine and the implementation of aerial surveys, it was determined the reduction in permits would be the best tactic for meeting wildlife management population objectives.

“In the end, hunters should expect a reduced statewide harvest but benefit down the road from increasing deer numbers for the coming years.”

For more information on deer hunting in Maine, or to view a complete summary of laws and regulations regarding hunting with firearms, visit www.mefishwildlife.com.

Led by the sons of Warden Service Pilot Daryl Gordon, who lost his life in the line of duty this winter, members of the Maine Warden Service participate in the Fourth Annual Fallen Officers Tribute Run from Vassalboro to Augusta recently.

AUGUSTA, Maine – Members of the Maine Warden Service participated in the Fourth Annual Fallen Officers Tribute Run recently. The 15-mile run started at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy in Vassalboro and finished at the Fallen Officers Memorial outside the State House in Augusta.

A total of 40 game wardens, friends and family members completed the run, which covers one mile for each Maine Game Warden who lost his life in the line of duty. Chaplain Kate Braestrup of the Maine Warden Service, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Commissioner Chandler Woodcock and Deputy Commissioner Andrea Erskine also attended a brief ceremony at the memorial which followed the run.

Col. Joel Wilkinson concluded the event with brief remarks commemorating the dedication of game wardens and their families.

For more information on this and other MDIF&W activities, please visit www.mefishwildlife.com or www.mainegamewarden.com, or check out the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mainefishwildlife.

From left to right: Warden Kris Barboza, wildlife biologist Judy Camuso, Norway-Paris Fish & Game Club President Glenn Huntley, MDIFW Commissioner Chandler Woodcock, fisheries biologist Francis Brautigam and Warden Norm Lewis.

SOUTH PARIS, Maine – Commissioner Chandler Woodcock of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife joined game wardens and biologists at a recent “Commissioner’s Forum” held at the new Norway-Paris Fish & Game Club building. Kris Barboza and Norm Lewis of the Maine Warden Service, wildlife biologist Judy Camuso and fisheries biologist Francis Brautigam joined the Commissioner at in the well-attended question-and-answer session with the public.

Commissioner Woodcock, who previously attended the club’s dedication of the new headquarters, also presented Club President Glenn Huntley with a signed, limited edition wildlife print for the building.

For more information on this and other MDIF&W activities, please visit www.mefishwildlife.com, or check out the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mainefishwildlife.

Waterfowl taken from the immediate vicinity of Mendall Marsh and from Orrington south to the southern tip of Verona Island may contain high levels of mercury.

The safe eating guidelines for waterfowl meat in the area are:

Children under the age of 8 and pregnant or nursing women should not eat any waterfowl meat taken from this area.

All others should not eat more than two waterfowl meals per month. One 8-ounce duck breast is considered one meal.

For more information on waterfowl hunting and mercury levels in the area, hunters are encouraged to call the MDIFW Bangor regional office at (207) 941-4474.

The booklet features a fresh new look, one that highlights Maine’s hunting and trapping heritage and the management work of Maine’s nationally-recognized wildlife biologists. Even in adding the quality of full-color photographs, informative articles about hunting and trapping in Maine, and the laws and regulations for safe and successful outdoor recreation, the publication of the booklet came at a significant cost-saving for MDIF&W.

The new booklet also features a user-friendly online experience. The entire booklet is available at http://www.eregulations.com/maine/hunting/ and can be searched page by page or downloaded in its entirety.

For more information on the new Maine Hunting and Trapping Booklet or any Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife programs, visit www.mefishwildlife.com or follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mainefishwildlife.

KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine – Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife biologists Judy Camuso and Lindsay Tudor recently joined Maine Audubon in recognizing landowners and volunteers instrumental in helping protect the endangered Piping Plover and its habitat.

There were more than 35 people who attended an event at the Kennebunkport Conservation Trust, held to honor the efforts of the people whose work led to a banner year for plover chicks on Maine’s beaches.

Members of Maine Audubon, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service were on hand. A new video – “Help Protect Maine’s Piping Plovers,” a joint effort between MDIFW and Maine Audubon — was unveiled during a short ceremony.

– TB

From left to right, Paul Mason, Seth Powers, Kim Bates, Colonel Joel Wilkinson, MDIFW Commissioner Chandler Woodcock and U.S. Marshal Noel March following the swearing in of Mason, Powers and Bates at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy this week./Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Photo

VASSALBORO, Maine – Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Commissioner Chandler Woodcock swore in three new members of the Maine Warden Service during a recent ceremony held at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy.

Paul Mason, Seth Powers and Kim Bates are the three newest game wardens. Mason previously served the Maine State Police, while Powers comes to the warden service from the Saco Police Department and Bates worked for the Farmington Police Department.

For more information on this and other MDIF&W activities, please visit www.mefishwildlife.com, or check out the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mainefishwildlife.

– TB

MDIFW black bear biologists Jen Vashon, left, and Randy Cross, with bear cubs ready to be released into the wild./Second Chance Wildlife, Inc. photo

NEW SHARON, Maine – Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife black bear biologists Jen Vashon and Randy Cross joined Second Chance Wildlife in returning three orphaned bear cubs to the Maine woods recently.

Second Chance Wildlife includes a 3-acre rehabilitation facility for black bears. The three cubs released near Ashland in mid-August were rescued when their mother was accidentally killed in Standish last spring. Three other cubs will remain at the facility through the upcoming winter.

For more information on this and other MDIF&W activities, please visit www.mefishwildlife.com, or check out the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mainefishwildlife.

Game warden Norm Lewis, center, and Commissioner Chandler Woodcock, right, talk to Ron Fournier of the University of Maine 4-H Camp and Learning Center at Bryant Pond. during a conservation camp visit./Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife photo

BRYANT POND, Maine – Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife game warden Norm Lewis, center, and Commissioner Chandler Woodcock, right, talk with Ron Fournier during a conservation camp at the University of Maine 4-H Camp and Learning Center at Bryant Pond recently.

The commissioner and other representatives from the Department spent the day with campers ages 10-13 on an archery range, discussing survival skills and participating in a hunter’s education course.

For more information on this and other MDIF&W activities, please visit www.mefishwildlife.com, or check out the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mainefishwildlife.