Outdoors

The arrest of a Hmong-American in the shootings of eight hunters in northwest Wisconsin left some Hmong citizens in his hometown fearful of a backlash. "This is a very tragic event," Michael Yang, a Hmong activist, said. "This hurts all of us."
Tens of thousands of deer hunters hit the woods this past weekend for the opener of Minnesota's firearms deer season. Many of those hunters provided tissue samples from their deer, which will be tested for chronic wasting disease. The testing marks the third and final year of a statewide survey. DNR officials say this year, the testing has become much simpler.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says almost a half million hunters will try to get their deer during the hunting season. But more and more, landowners are saying "no" to hunting on their property.
Minnesota's first mourning dove hunt in nearly 60 years starts Sept. 1. Lawmakers reinstated the hunt in response to years of lobbying by hunters. Many people know the mourning dove by its plaintive call in the early morning or near sunset. But it's also the most popular game bird in the United States, and Minnesota hunters are excited about the chance to shoot doves.
Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch and Rep. Collin Peterson are suing the state of North Dakota over hunting restrictions. A North Dakota law passed last year restricts the first week of the waterfowl hunting season to North Dakota residents only. Hatch says the law discriminates against Minnesotans and other nonresidents.
A recent round of testing shows no sign of chronic wasting disease in Minnesota's wild deer herd. But there is an elk in northern Minnesota that's infected with CWD. The butchered meat is sitting in a hunter's freezer. He shot it in Colorado last month. Now, it's up to him whether to eat the meat. Colorado officials say no. Minnesota officials say it's his choice.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven will meet soon to discuss a dispute over hunting. North Dakota is restricting where and when people from out of state can hunt, and raising hunting license fees. That's angered many Minnesota hunters. But the changes are also upsetting a lot of North Dakota business owners.
Wisconsin finally opened its mourning dove hunting season Monday, after a two-year legal battle over whether it could begin. The season was first approved by the state Natural Resources Board, but animal protection groups successfully sued to stop the hunt. Hunters in Minnesota have been trying to establish a similar mourning dove season, so far without success. But they say the establishment of the hunt in Wisconsin bodes well for their efforts in Minnesota.
What deer hunters can expect in the way of new regulations and what they need to know about chronic wasting disease as Midmorning broadcasts from the Minnesota State Fair.
Cabela's outdoor stores have made it big by targeting a consumer traditionally ignored by retailers: the man who hates to shop.