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DNR News Releases

Archive by tag: bearReturn

Iowa’s furharvest season began Nov. 4

• 11/7/2023 11:54:00 AM
• View Count 4335

Iowa trappers can expect to find good numbers of furbearers statewide during the 2023-24 season, that began on Nov. 4.

Learn to Hunt program opens registration for beginner fur harvesting workshop

• 10/24/2023 1:22:00 PM
• View Count 4428

ST. CHARLES, Iowa - The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering a program to teach skills needed to trap furbearers to anyone who has little to no trapping experience.

Learn to Hunt program opens registration for beginner fur harvesting workshops

• 7/5/2023 12:12:00 PM
• View Count 2800

DES MOINES - The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering a program to teach skills needed to trap furbearers to anyone who has little to no trapping experience.

Midwest black bear population may start calling parts of Iowa home down the road

• 5/9/2023 2:04:00 PM
• View Count 7665

There’s a pretty good chance that, in the next several weeks, Northeast Iowa will be visited by a few wandering black bears coming down from Minnesota and Wisconsin ahead of the breeding season. It’s been an annual occurrence in this region each spring since 2014.

Dubuque residents encouraged to secure garbage, remove pet food and bird feeders to avoid encountering wandering black bear

• 5/19/2022 3:17:00 PM
• View Count 1198

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is working with the City of Dubuque, the Dubuque County Conservation Board and the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Department to monitor the movements of the black bear that has been seen in northeast Dubuque since early May.

North Bear Creek Wildlife Area - Home to legendary wildlife, top trout stream and unique plants

• 6/16/2021 8:54:00 AM
• View Count 4280

Troy Anderson’s phone rang just as he was walking the most recent acquisition to North Bear Creek Wildlife Area. The caller from Florida wanted to know about the deer population on North Bear and if he should put in for a tag in that nonresident hunting zone or should look elsewhere.

Midwest black bear population likely to expand into parts of Iowa in the not too distant future

• 5/11/2021 1:17:00 PM
• View Count 6672

There’s a pretty good chance that, in the next several weeks, Northeast Iowa will be visited by a few wandering black bears coming down from Minnesota and Wisconsin ahead of the breeding season. It’s been an annual occurrence in this region each spring since 2014.

Hunting seasons begin closing soon

• 12/29/2020 11:35:00 AM
• View Count 2712

Hunting seasons will begin closing soon, starting with pheasant, archery turkey and deer seasons, and late muzzleloader deer season on Jan. 10. The staggered goose seasons begin closing in the north zone first on Jan. 9, followed by the south zone on Jan. 16, and the Missouri River zone on Jan. 23.

Iowa’s trapping season starts Nov. 7

• 10/27/2020 2:27:00 PM
• View Count 2849

Iowa trappers can expect to find good numbers of furbearers available statewide when the season begins on November 7.  

Learn to Hunt program opens registration for virtual trapping workshop

• 10/6/2020 1:38:00 PM
• View Count 4232

DES MOINES - The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering a free virtual workshop to teach skills needed to trap furbearers in Iowa.

Storm knocks out power to Timber Ridge Mobile Home Park causing bypass

• 8/11/2020 7:47:00 PM
• View Count 1623

SHELLSBURG, Iowa - Monday’s strong thunderstorm knocked out power at Timber Ridge Mobile Home Park, in eastern Benton County, and caused structural damage to most of the homes in the park.

Iowa’s furbearer season begins Nov. 2

• 10/22/2019 3:43:00 PM
• View Count 6029

Furharvesters take note: the outlook is pretty decent for most of the commonly targeted species ahead of Iowa’s furbearer hunting and trapping season.

DNR traces fish kill to Poweshiek County poultry operation

• 9/19/2019 6:48:00 AM
• View Count 2151

MALCOM—DNR staff spent two days in the field looking for the source of a fish kill on Little Bear Creek one mile west of Malcom.

Manure release from Clinton County dairy

• 4/26/2019 12:45:00 PM
• View Count 2266

CHARLOTTE – Late Wednesday, DNR investigated a complaint about manure overflowing north of Charlotte, about 15 miles northwest of Clinton.

Annual spring wildlife survey underway

• 4/3/2018 1:11:00 PM
• View Count 3253

Ordinarily, a slow-moving vehicle at night in the Iowa countryside spotlighting deer, raccoons or coyotes would send Iowans to their phone, speed-dialing their local conservation officer, but in this case, it may be the officer doing the shining.

Seasons Begin Closing January 10

• 1/2/2018 12:49:00 PM
• View Count 4380

Iowa’s 2017 hunting season begin closing in January.

Iowa’s furbearer season begins Nov. 4

• 10/31/2017 11:38:00 AM
• View Count 8456

Iowa’s furbearer season opens Nov. 4, and the outlook for 2017 is good as populations are stable to increasing statewide.

DNR seeking comments on furbearer, waterfowl and falconry regulations prior to drafting rules

• 10/30/2017 8:59:00 AM
• View Count 4070

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is accepting public comments on 2018 furbearer, waterfowl and falconry regulations, from Nov. 1-8.

Annual spring wildlife survey underway

• 4/4/2017 12:41:00 PM
• View Count 3673

Ordinarily, a slow moving vehicle at night in the Iowa countryside spotlighting deer, raccoons or coyotes would send Iowans to their phone, speed-dialing their local conservation officer, but in this case, it may be the officer doing the shining.

Hunting seasons starting to close

• 1/3/2017 12:18:00 PM
• View Count 4723

Iowa’s pheasant, late muzzleloader and archery deer, and archery fall turkey seasons close on Jan. 10.  Furbearer seasons, squirrel, quail, partridge and grouse remain open until Jan. 31.

Iowa furbearer season begins November 5

• 10/25/2016 12:28:00 PM
• View Count 12134

Iowa fur harvesters will find good numbers of raccoons, muskrats, beaver, coyotes, bobcats, river otters and mink when the furbearer trapping and hunting season opens on Nov. 5.

DNR traced red color in Cherokee County stream to cattle feedlot

• 10/13/2016 2:11:00 PM
• View Count 3612

LARRABEE - DNR investigators tracked down red color in Bear Creek about four miles west of Larrabee to runoff from an earthen basin at a cattle feedlot owned by Nathan Tentinger of Tentinger Farms.

Black Bear Killed on Allamakee County Highway

• 6/27/2016 11:11:00 AM
• View Count 6804

DES MOINES – A young black bear was struck and killed by a truck Friday evening on Highway 76 near the Yellow River Forest in southeast Allamakee County.

2016 Small Game & Upland Hunting Seasons

• 5/3/2016 1:19:00 PM
• View Count 5827

2016 small game and upland hunting seasons have been posted.

Iowa's Popular Furbearer Season Opens Nov 7

• 11/3/2015 7:53:00 AM
• View Count 4945

Iowa is at the top of another national list, ranking in the top five in the country for the number of furharvesters.

Cooperation builds lasting results at North Bear Creek

• 1/26/2015 5:48:00 AM
• View Count 5604

When the hit film A River Runs Through It was released in 1992, it helped rejuvenate local economies and waterways in northeast Iowa, as the beauty and skill showcased so vividly in the film helped inspire more than half a million trips to trout streams, injecting more than $14 million into Iowa’s economy every year.

Four Animals You Didn’t Know Lived In Iowa

• 1/7/2015 4:04:00 AM
• View Count 81832

Before Europeans began settling in Iowa, our landscape looked much different – not just the vista views of prairies and oak savannas, but the wildlife that called it home. You’d be hard pressed to find many elk, bison, black bear or lynx in the Iowa wild today, but not that long ago, they roamed our state.