Welcome to the Weekend Dispatch. Here are our top finds for March 12.
Moose can weigh up to 1,800 pounds and grow over 6 feet tall, making them the largest species of deer in the world. Photo by Kady Ouimette
01. Photographer pick: Kady Ouimette
A former soldier with a deep passion for nature, Kady Ouimette turned her combat boots in for a camera two years ago after being injured in the Canadian Armed Forces. Now she shares an office space with animals and photography is her new calling.
Ouimette specializes in photographing the biggest deer in the deer family. You can find her every morning and evening in the woods of East Coast Canada, camera in hand.
View all of her photos on Instagram at @kd.eastcoastphotography.
A herd of bull elk roams the fields of Point Reyes, California. A Photo by Hari Nandakumar | Unsplash
02. Article pick: Hunting is Conservation - Measuring the value of conservation
Despite much controversy, hunting does two main things for conservation: it acts as a funding source for agencies that help conserve habitat; and it helps control prey species who might otherwise have population explosions and create unbalanced ecosystems.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) is a combined effort by hundreds of thousands of conservationists — mostly hunters — to carry out meaningful, measurable, on-the-ground conservation work to ensure the future of elk and other wildlife. "Hunting is Conservation" breaks down all of their conservation projects (valued at more than $1.3 billion) and proves the true connection between hunting and conservation.
P.S. — RMEF is worth checking out. Learn more about them at rmef.org!
"Bowhunting Pressured Whitetails" by John and Chris Eberhart
03. Book pick: Bowhunting Pressured Whitetails
Co-author John Eberhart is one of the most well-known whitetail deer hunters in the world and has a long track record of taking big bucks in Michigan despite it being one of the most pressured deer hunting states in North America.
“Bowhunting Pressured Whitetails” offers game-changing knowledge about hunting mature bucks in pressured areas consistently. You’ll learn how to prepare hunting sites while leaving behind little-to-no evidence, how to scope out the best places using deer signs, how to use an ambush sling for increased shot opportunities and so much more.
The book was written specifically for bowhunting in pressured areas but includes advice so rich that it’s useful for all hunters anywhere. You can find the book online here.
An adult bull moose — with distinctive broad, palmate antlers — gets himself a cold drink. A Photo by Rebekah Blocker | Unsplash
04. Audio pick: Moose: The Giants of Sweden's Forests
Effects of climate change are hurting the long beloved moose of Sweden's forests. The cold weather creatures are facing rising temperatures and habitat loss, and calf growth is being stunted from lack of nutrition in their mother's milk.
This free documentary follows a "moose investigator" in Sweden who is determined to track the lives of the moose and learn how to help them, all while showing the world just how magnificent these giants are.