Notes come from all around Chicago outdoors and beyond.
Rob Reichwald emailed, “Sightings in Elmhurst are becoming a normal occurrence.” He knows red foxes are one of my favorite mammals and this is one of the better photographs. “There is currently a family of four that roam our block,” he added. “It’s not uncommon to see them trotting in broad daylight.”
WOTW, the celebration of wild stories and photos around Chicago outdoors, runs most weeks in the special two-page outdoors section in the Sun-Times Sports Saturday. To make submissions, email BowmanOutside@gmail.com or contact me on Facebook (Dale Bowman), Twitter (@BowmanOutside) or Instagram (@BowmanOutside).
WILD TIMES
HUNTER SAFETY
Aug. 19 and 21: Mundelein, (847) 918-6145
Aug. 20-21: Ingleside, shawnfrey33@gmail.com
BLIND DRAWS
Today, July 24, and Sunday, July 25: Public waterfowl blind draws, most northern Illinois sites are today, Illinois River/Downstate sites on Sunday. Click here for details and specific site information.
ILLINOIS PERMITS/SEASONS
Aug. 1: Squirrel hunting opens
Aug. 1: Applications begin for free upland game permits
U.S. COAST GUARD AUXILIARY
Next Saturday, July 31: Weekend Navigator, Waukegan, Curt Schumacher, curts402@aol.com
SPEARING
Aug. 1: Deadline to apply for a sturgeon spearing tag for the Upriver Lakes (Poygan, Winneconne or Butte des Morts), only 500 will be selected.
DALE’S MAILBAG
“Are lake trout healthy to eat , they are very oily and spend most of there lives near the bottom in deep waters .” Jeff Kantor
A: The Illinois Department of Public Health does an annual fish advisory (dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/environmental-health-protection/toxicology/fish-advisories/map/lake-michigan-multicounty). They should be read as advisories: Heed the advice, don’t fear it. Many species have limitations on how much and how often to eat that is nowhere near what most people eat.
BIG NUMBER
4: Tree squirrel species in Illinois: fox, eastern gray, red and southern flying.
LAST WORD
“I talked to the parks person today, and he said it was about a 200-250 pound black bear. He’s said he’s gone to Canada and hunted bear before and is 100% sure what he saw was a bear. I feel very confident if he said it was a bear, it’s a bear.”
Godfrey Mayor Mike McCormick, in the Belleville News-Democrat, on the bear a Godfrey Parks employee spotted Monday Downstate. Click here for the full article.
