Holly:
Another interesting thing about muskrat, which is muskratch.

Hannah:
Skritch. 

Rachel:
Skritch-scratch. 

Hannah:
Skritch-scratch. 

Announcer:
You know what that sound means. It's time for the Michigan DNR's Wild Talk podcast. Welcome to the Wild Talk podcast, where representatives from the DNR's Wildlife Division chew the fat and shoot the scat about all things habitat, feathers and fur. With insights, interviews and your questions answered on the air, you'll get a better picture of what's happening in the world of wildlife here in the great state of Michigan. 

Holly:
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Wild Talk. I'm Holly, and hosting with me today are Hannah and Rachel. 

Rachel:
Hello! 

Hannah:
Hey, everyone. 

Holly:
Hi ladies. Today, we'll be talking with Dan Kennedy Acting Wildlife Division Chief about the Recovering America's Wildlife Act. And you'll also want to tune in closely to this episode because we will be also revealing the winners of our new Wild Talk podcast coffee mugs, and you can find out how you can win one too.

Rachel:
We'll also be answering your questions from the Mailbag. And today we are shining the spotlight on Ondatra zibethicus, more commonly known as the common muskrat, which also bears the endearing nickname, the water rat. 

Hannah:
Muskrats are a familiar critter that can be found in wetlands and near waterways throughout most of North America. It is a large rodent and it is relatives with mice, voles and lemmings.

Holly:
The muskrat has dense glossy fur, a long rudder like tail and hind feet that are partially webbed and are larger than the front feet. These attributes help the muskrat to live and swim in the water with ease.

Rachel:
The muskrats eat mostly roots of aquatic vegetation, such as cattails, [inaudible 00:01:58], water lilies and pond weeds, but will occasionally come onto land to eat terrestrial plants.

Hannah:
In some areas muskrats will also eat freshwater clams, mussels, frogs, small fish, and crayfish. Occasionally on the banks of rivers, streams and lakes, you could find small piles of empty muscle shells and scattered food scraps left behind after they've been feeding. Muskrats will often create a bank den along shorelines that are above the water line. They will have multiple entrances, often hidden below the water surface, in marsh or wetland habitats where banks are not available they will build a lodge much like a beaver would, that's called a muskrat pushup or a muskrat lodge. And they use mud and aquatic plants like cattails and bulrush to create these structures. 

Rachel:
That sounds really homey. Another interesting thing about Muskrats, which is similar to other rodents. They can produce a lot of offspring. They can have up to three liters a year. Most of them are born between March and October while each litter contains four to eight young. 

Holly:
Yes, so lots of muskrat babies can be out and about. After a few weeks, young muskrats will venture from the nest and we'll start eating solid food after about four weeks, mink and raccoons will often pray upon muskrat, particularly young muskrats are quite vulnerable. Fox, eagles, hawks, and snapping turtles will also pray on muskrats. So later in this episode, we'll talk more about muskrats and ways that you can prevent damage on your private property from their tunneling habit near banks. And we'll also touch on upcoming harvest opportunities for muskrats occurring this fall and winter. Stay tuned. Next we'll be talking about our new 2020 deer regulations.

Announcer:
Pure Michigan hunt applications are on sale. Now, if you want your shot of what is considered Michigan's ultimate hunt, pick up a $5 application or two. There's no limit to the number you can buy. If you're one of the three lucky winners, you'll get a hunting prize package worth thousands, as well as licenses for elk, bear, spring and fall turkey, antlerless deer, and first pick in a managed waterfowl area for a reserved hunt. Purchase anywhere hunting licenses are sold or online at michigan.gov/pmh.

Holly:
At July's Natural Resources Commission meeting, 2020 deer regulations were finalized, and these regulation changes will provide additional opportunities and cost savings for hunters and also offer flexibility in how hunters pursue deer. Some of the important statewide changes to deer regulations are as follows. So deaf people now qualify to participate in the Liberty and Independence hunts, mentored youth age nine and younger, junior license holders, age 10 through 16, and also apprentice license holders are exempt from antler point restrictions in all seasons, all deer management units and under all licenses. And that includes both the regular and restricted tags on the deer combo license. So if you're hunting on any of those licenses, you have no antler point restrictions for all seasons. The statewide limit for private land antlerless license purchase is 10 per hunter. 

Holly:
So this gives opportunity for those who really want to manage abundant deer on their property to take a few more deer if the opportunity arises. And then hunters with disabilities may use baits during the Liberty and Independence hunts, and those hunters participating in those hunts may begin baiting five days before both hunts. And then of course you can bait during the hunts as well. So Hannah what's going on for regulations in the upper peninsula.

Hannah:
All right. So for the upper peninsula, our upper peninsula archers and select deer management units may pursue antlerless deer with their deer or deer combination license. Now the following deer management units continue to be closed to antlerless harvest during the archery seasons. And those are deer management unit 027, 031, 036, 042, 066, 127 and 131. Now some additional deer management units may be open or closed to antlerless harvest during our tree season based on the snowfall totals from the prior winter pending our biologists analysis. So please see the 2020 Hunting Digest for complete regulations when it becomes available later this month. Also in the upper peninsula antler point restrictions have been removed on the deer license in parts of deer management, 122, including areas outside the core chronic wasting disease surveillance area, just to make it a little more consistent. Rachel, I believe you have some updates for the lower peninsula regulations.

Rachel:
I do. So moving below the bridge, on the lower peninsula, these regulations were passed. In addition to the archery season, antlerless deer maybe taken on the deer or deer combo licenses during the firearm and muzzleloader seasons in all lower peninsula deer management units. Additionally, early and late antlerless seasons will be open in all lower peninsula, mainly in DMUs. And so therefore antlerless deer may be taken on deer or deer combo licenses during the early and late antlerless seasons. Also, the muzzleloader season in the Southern lower peninsula will be shortened by 10 days. And the late antlerless firearm season will begin the Monday after the muzzleloader season concludes in the lower peninsula.

Rachel:
Muzzleloaders can be used on public lands in zone three, during the late antlerless firearm season to take any deer with a valid tag. All legal firearms may be used during the muzzleloader season in the Southern lower peninsula and carcass movement restrictions will be scaled to areas affected by chronic wasting disease. So this aligns with movement restrictions to areas with the highest risk of CWD being observed. And lastly, they extended our tree season through January 31st, will continue for one more year in Wayne, Oakland and McComb counties. It had previously expired January 31st, 2020.

Holly:
Yes. So the 2020 Hunting Digest will have further information regarding these regulations. The digest is in the process of being finalized. Now that these regulations are set. So watch for the current digest to be available later this month at michigan.gov/dnrdigests. And you can always learn more about deer management and deer hunting at michigan.gov/deer. So stay tuned. Next up is our interview with acting chief Dan Kennedy.

Announcer:
People of all abilities can enjoy Michigan's wealth of natural and cultural resources. Find accessible recreation at state parks, hunting areas, trails, beaches, kayak launches, fishing piers, historic sites and more. No matter the time of year, you'll find inclusive opportunities all over the state visit michigan.gov/dnr accessibility and learn how everyone can enjoy Michigan's outdoors.

Holly:
Welcome back to Wild Talk, today we're talking with Dan Kennedy, our Wildlife Division Acting Chief. You might remember, Gosh, our very first episode, many moons ago, we spoke with our chief at the time Russ Mason. Russ has moved on to other adventures within the DNR, but Dan is here with us today. Our fearless leader, to talk to us a little bit about the Recovering America's Wildlife Act. And we'll also chat about his experiences in the chief rule during this crazy time, chiefing. Dan, can you tell us a little bit about your history with the DNR and also your current role with the wildlife division?

Dan:
Sure. Holly, happy to do so. And thank you for the invitation to participate in this podcast, much appreciated. I've been with the department for 17 years, so I got my start as a temporary biologist working on the Landowner Incentive program 17 years ago, and that program was to restore habitat for threatened and endangered species. After that, I was reassigned to be the biologist at Rose Lake and worked on our public lands for a couple years with the staff out of Rose Lake. And then I moved on to be the endangered species coordinator. And I had been doing that job for about the last eight years. And then in ... I think it was December 30th of 2019, right around the new year, I was ... I put in for and was asked to be the acting chief. And that's what I've been doing for the last seven-ish months.

Holly:
What a crazy time to be acting chief of the division. And you couldn't have known when you said yes.

Dan:
No, so it was-

Holly:
That these kinds of challenges would be facing the division.

Dan:
It's probably the number one question I get from folks is, "So how's it acting? And, by the way, did you predict COVID-19 pandemic?" And of course the answer to that is no, but I do take a lot of pride in being the acting chief during these trying times and have tried to do my best to lead the division through this pandemic.

Holly:
I'd say have done a good job.

Dan:
Thank you.

Holly:
Yeah, but we are certainly not envious of your role right now, but we fully support you being our trustee leader during the apocalypse. So thanks Dan.

Dan:
There's some interesting sides to it, there's a singular focus to working on the COVID-19 pandemic versus trying to address 50 different things at the same time. So but the number one priority has been the health and safety of our staff and trying to put that at the forefront and always keeping that up front and that's what we've been trying to do. And then after that comes, trying to follow all of the guidelines that we've been outlined from the governor to do the important work that the wildlife division does.

Holly:
Well, we really appreciate all the effort you guys have been putting in to keeping us safe and making sure we can still do all that important work for wildlife. And our citizens here in Michigan who enjoy using our wildlife resources. So-

Hannah:
Yes, so much appreciated.

Dan:
Thank you.

Holly:
Also your transparency as well with staff and letting us know what we need to know when we need to know it. So appreciate that. And also as hunting seasons come up in the fall we're going to carry that transparency over to our stakeholders, make sure they know everything that's going on, everything that might affect them with the hunting season. So it's an important word. I think for the wildlife division right now, transparency.

Dan:
Agreed I'm 100% on board with that. And who knows what we can expect this fall, right? So if our Turkey license sales are any indicator, people are getting outside and enjoying the outdoors and I fully anticipate the same to happen this fall. So we might have our licensed sales, both for fishing and for hunting. We might see some pretty significant increases in the sale of those licenses. So yeah, we'll see what it brings and I'm excited to cross that bridge when we get there.

Holly:
So some of our listeners may have heard about a piece of legislation that's being brought forward right now, and that is RAWA or R-A-W-A, stands for Recovering America's Wildlife Act. And Dan you've been invested in this legislation for some time, and I believe you went to Washington DC to play an active role in this legislation. So we're hoping you could tell us more about it and give us an overview of what the legislation's for.

Dan:
Yeah, it was great. I enjoyed that experience. I got to work with the Association of Fish and Wildlife agencies for four months on the Recovering America's Wildlife Act campaign. And this legislation addresses an important need for wildlife conservation. And that's that, there's about one third of fish and wildlife species in the United States are vulnerable to becoming threatened or endangered. And about one fifth are at a risk of extinction unless we implement on the ground conservation. So, that includes species like the Monarch butterfly, migratory songbirds, salamanders, turtles and bats are some of the species that are at risk.

Holly:
Awesome. So this could have serious impact and be highly beneficial for some of these rare species. So specifically if this passes, this could be a lot of money allocated. Do we have a plan for how we're going to use these monies or what does this mean for conservation in Michigan?

Dan:
The Recovering America's Wildlife Act is the solution to that problem. So there's a lot of different fish and wildlife species that are at risk right now. And so the bipartisan legislation that was introduced by representative Dingell and Fortenberry would dedicate $1.3 billion, billion with a B. So $1.3 billion per state led conservation efforts and $97.5 million to tribal nations to recover and sustain healthy fish and wildlife populations. So if this is passed, it would be the most significant new investment in wildlife conservation in more than a generation. And this groundbreaking legislation would help ensure that future generations can enjoy the same abundant fish and wildlife and outdoor recreation opportunities that we do today.

Holly:
That seems like something we all can support. So this is beneficial for our ecosystems, specifically, our rare and endangered species, our water access, overall plant and ecosystem health. We benefit economically from it. There are so many types of benefits that can come from a piece of legislation like this.

Dan:
Yeah. And I think a new important thing that we've always known, but we typically didn't highlight in the past, but there'd be a lot of jobs that would be created through the passage of this bill. So there'd be a lot of people that we could put on the ground and get working to work on these different types of projects to ... whether it's invasive species removal or working on different restoring natural communities across the state. There would be a lot of jobs that would be created from the passage of Recovering America's Wildlife Act.

Holly:
One of the things I think our department has been criticized about is our work for wildlife tends to be slanted a lot more toward the game species side. And I think RAWA provides some awesome opportunities to be more holistic in the management of wildlife for the benefit of all Michiganders. So for me, that's what makes RAWA really exciting is that, it's not just deer and turkey and bear and it's broadening our scope for wildlife management.

Dan:
Yeah. So I would say that our core function is still providing recreational opportunities around hunting. And so those species are still critically important to meeting our mission. It's just that a lot of other wildlife species, funding for helping those species has been underfunded. And so to me, it's definitely not an either or, it's an and. We are going to continue to focus on the efforts that we put forward, through using our Game and Fish fund and our Pittman Robertson funding to focus on a lot of the game species that we have responsibilities for managing. Now, if Recovering America's Wildlife Act passes, we'll have a similar funding source, but it would be focused on species other than our traditional hunted species. So that flexibility gives the division and other partners across the state of Michigan, a lot of extra flexibility to do really good on the ground wildlife conservation.

Holly:
So this money specifically ... who will this money go to? Can anybody apply for RAWA funds or will it be automatically be allocated to our different stakeholder groups or different national organizations? I guess I'm just wondering the distribution of these funds.

Dan:
Great question. The money comes to the States. So Michigan is ... if the legislation passes as is, Michigan would receive right around $28 million in federal funds. Now we would be required to have a 25% match. So that bumps it up to be right around 36, $37 million total go into conservation, including the match. So the money would be funneled through the state, but it's our intention. We're trying to figure out what portion of money gets sent out to all of our partners, because we can't implement all of that ourselves. In Southern Michigan, we own about 4% of the land, so there's a lot of other important conservation partners that we'll have to engage and figure out granting process to get them involved and get them active in implementing the Recovering America's Wildlife Act. What that looks like we don't know right now, but I know that we have a team actively working on Michigan strategy, how we would want to spend that money and then how much the department spends on our priority projects. And then how much we share out to conservation partners to implement other priority projects.

Holly:
So what's the status of this legislation? Where is it at right now?

Dan:
First, before I answer, I wanted to share with everybody a little bit of background, because I'm not sure folks know that there are a lot of conservation organizations engaged in the Recovering America's Wildlife Act campaign. So there are conservation organizations from across the country engaged at the national level on Recovering America's Wildlife Act, some of those groups include fishing and hunting organizations like the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, the National Turkey Federation and Trout Unlimited. There's also other organizations like the National wildlife Federation, Audubon Society and Tribal Nations. So it's a really impressive group of conservation partners that have come together to help inform this. And so with that said that group, I kind of labeled the national coalition.

Dan:
So there's a national coalition of organizations and they try to ... they're still trying to implement two different strategies. One of them is continue to work on this standalone bill, the bill that I was referencing earlier that was introduced to the house over a year ago that has over 180 co-sponsors. And so their strategy there is that that bill has passed out of the houses natural resource committee and is potentially up for a vote on the house floor. And then the second side of that is to get a sister bill introduced into the Senate. And so there's action that that coalition is working on trying to get a similar bill introduced into the Senate, which hasn't happened yet. And they're hopeful that that would happen after Labor Day. The second strategy is with some of the infrastructure stimulus package conversations that are going on.

Dan:
The Recovering America's Wildlife Act was slightly modified. So there were a few changes. There was a five year time limit put on it. There was some of the match requirements were removed and a few other changes were made, but that was added in to the house's Move It Forward Act, which is the infrastructure stimulus package that came out of the house a couple of weeks ago. So the Recovering America's Wildlife Act with a few changes, made it into the house's stimulus package. Exactly whether or not the Senate decides to pick that up or not is uncertain, but we're hopeful that the amendment to that house stimulus package was the only bipartisan amendment package that was added. So hopefully the Senate will look at that and say, "Hey, that's something that has bipartisan support, we should consider including it."

Holly:
Well, that's fantastic. I'm glad to hear that it's slowly but steadily still moving forward, hopefully. Besides being part of some of these conservation organizations that are super active in the legislation how are some ways that people can show their support for the legislation?

Dan:
Yeah, so I think the number one ask of people who ... people or organizations, so whether you're an individual who would just like just show support or whether you're part of a different conservation organization or any organization, and you want to show your support, right now the most important thing is to reach out to your senator and let them know that you support Recovering America's Wildlife Act. And some people get a little bit overwhelmed with that ask, and don't know what that means, but it's not that difficult. You can just simply email, one of the staffers that oversees environmental policy and just say, "Hey, I support Recovering America's Wildlife Act." Or, you could do a phone call to the office and just say, "Hey, I'd like to let Senator so and so know that I support Recovering America's Wildlife Act that would like to see her or him move that through the Senate."

Dan:
And then lastly, you can even schedule an in district visit. So there's three ways you can do it. You can simply email, you can do a phone call, or if you work for an organization that maybe has a relationship with the senator's office, you can ask for an in person visit and schedule an appointment and let them know that you support Recovering America's Wildlife Act. The important component of an in person visit is to make sure you have a Y ... have that Y written out pretty well, so that you can articulate the reasons for yourself. 

Holly:
So if folks wanted to look at the Recovering America's Wildlife Act legislation, a little more closely or peruse through our wildlife action plan where can people go to learn more about those two?

Dan:
One website that I have bookmarked that I check all the time is the congress.gov. You can go to congress.gov and look at any piece of legislation. And so this one is, I would go to congress.gov, on that website, you get to look at the legislation itself, how many people have co-sponsored and whether or not your house representative has co-sponsored already or not. So if your representative has not co-sponsored yet, that might be another outlet to reach out to them and say, "Hey, will you please support Recovering America's Wildlife Act?" The other two websites I go for Recovering America's Wildlife Act is one called the Alliance for America's Fish and Wildlife, which is run out of APWA, the Association for Fish and Wildlife Agencies. 

Dan:
And then the other lead partner at this effort at the national level is the National Wildlife Federation. And so they also have an excellent website on Recovering America's Wildlife Act, for Michigan's Wildlife Action Plan, the Michigan DNR has a website that not only includes a link to the Michigan wildlife action plan, but also to a few important fact sheets on the Recovering America's Wildlife Act.

Holly:
Fantastic. And we'll be sure to link all those great resources in our show notes for folks, so that you can easily find those and check those out.

Hannah:
Yeah. Thank you so much for joining us today, Dan, we really appreciate the insights and the updates on Recovering America's Wildlife Act, for our listeners don't go anywhere, next up we will answer your questions from the Mailbag.

Announcer:
Is it time to renew the license plate on your car or truck? When that moment arrives, show your support for Michigan elk and conservation, by getting the Wildlife Habitat plate at the Secretary of State. 2018 was the hundredth year since the reintroduction of elk to the state of Michigan. And while the elk have been here for over a century, this plate is only available for a limited time. So don't miss out visit mi.gov/elk and click on the license plate for more information.

Holly:
Welcome back. Now, it's time for us to answer your questions from the Mailbag.

Announcer:
One, two, three.

Hannah:
All right. So first up from our Mailbag, I got a question from Jerry asking about where to apply for an antlerless deer license. You can apply online and michigan.gov/dnrlicenses or anywhere licenses are sold. The application period for antlerless deer will be open through August 15th. Drawing results will be posted August 30th at michigan.gov/deer. And any leftover licenses will be sold on a first come first serve basis. Beginning September 8th at 10:00 AM. Now the leftover licenses that will be sold on September 8th also includes the deer management units with unlimited antlerless deer licenses available. So you won't see those in the license system for purchase because they're unlimited quotas. So there'll be available just on sale over the counter, September 8th. An individual may purchase up to a season limit of 10 private land antlerless deer licenses statewide.

Rachel:
I received a question from Lauren. Lauren was planning on taking hunter education this summer to become a licensed hunter this fall, however, all in-person classes and field days have now been canceled or postponed. So what can they do to be able to hunt this fall? Currently, all in-person recreational classes in addition to the Hunter safety courses, all of these classes have been suspended until further notice. Student's interested in obtaining their Hunter Education Safety Certificate currently have two options. Option one, a person who does not have a Hunter Safety Certificate and is 10 years of age or older may purchase a base apprentice license. An apprentice hunter may purchase this license for two licenses before you must successfully complete a hunter safety course. And if you do purchase the apprentice license, there are additional licenses required to hunt big game or waterfall. You can learn more about the apprentice license or see these regulations regarding the license in the current hunting digest.

Rachel:
The other option new hunters have is to take the hunter education course online at michigan.gov/recreationalsafety. And I think we can put a link to that in the show notes. But typically upon completing these online courses, students would receive a voucher to get them into a field day where they can experience day firearm handling, with these in person classes, being prohibited, students can complete the online hunter education course, and then they will receive a temporary hunter safety certificate instead of a field day voucher. This temporary certificate will allow you to purchase your licenses through the rest of the year, but it will expire December 31st, 2020. In order to receive your official Hunter Education Safety certificate, the standard orange card, the student will need to complete a field day when these classes resume. This is a fluid situation and it does have the potential to change, so to stay up to date with the most current regulations and cancellations, it's best to subscribe to the DNR news email update.

Holly:
I had an email from Tom that said, "I haven't been able to find Hunting Digests in stores this year. Why is that?" Well, Tom you're right, that Hunting Digests are just a little bit harder to find this year. It's possible that the store that you usually find your hunting digests at may not have copies this year. So we've had to cut back quite a bit due to budget limitations on the number of hunting digests that we print. So, first of all, our retailers are getting fewer Hunter Digests and then also we've had some delayed mailings and things like that. So it's been an odd year for Hunting Digests. That being said, our digests are always available online at michigan.gov/dnrdigests. They're posted just as soon as they're finished and they're available there for people to access. And the great thing about accessing your digest online is that you can either print it at home on your computer, which means you don't have to leave the house at all, or you can save your digest to your phone. 

Holly:
And this is really awesome because when you're out in the field, most of us carry our phones with us all the time, just in case of an emergency or whatever. So you can save that digest right to your phone, have it handy for that moment when you need to look up, whether you can take this sort of duck or what time hunting hours end. So having it on your phone is really handy. You don't need internet connections, just a PDF that you saved to your phone and super handy to have with you. I have all the digests on both of my phones, my work phone, and my personal phone. And I refer to them often. So you may want to do the same. So as we zip this segment to a close, remember if you have questions about wildlife or hunting, you can call 517 284 wild or email DNR-wildlife@michigan.gov. Your question could be featured on our next Mailbag.

Holly:
Now is your opportunity to win a Wild Talk podcast mug. As a thank you to our listeners, we'll be giving away a mug or to every episode.

Hannah:
Our July mug winners are Krista O'Grady and Logan McGrady. Christa and Logan, congratulations. You want to check your emails? We'll be getting in touch with you soon. They answered our July question of what bird goes by the nicknames of thunder pumper and water belcher? The answer was the American bittern. Congratulations, Kristin and Logan.

Holly:
One of my very favorite birds. They're so cool. 

Hannah:
I wonder where those names came from.

Holly:
They're obviously about the sounds that they make, but it's such an interesting word choice.

Rachel:
Weird names. Yeah. So strange. To be entered into the drawing this month, test your wildlife knowledge and answer our wildlife quiz question. So this month's question is, what is the purpose of the vomeronasal or Jacobson's organ in snakes? 

Holly:
All right, think on it. And then email your name and answer to us at DNR-wildlife at Michigan.gov to be entered for a chance to win a mug. Be sure to include the subject line as "mug me" and submit your answers by August 15th. We'll announce winners on next month's podcast. So be sure to listen in, to see if you've won and for the next quiz question. Good luck everybody. Now, back to your regularly scheduled podcast.

Hannah:
Earlier in this episode, we talked a little bit about muskrat biology and talked about how they like to den in banks of water bodies. Most certainly this can be problematic for some landowners as their extensive tunneling system can cause shorelines to collapse or cave in. Sometimes injuries can result for people or livestock. I think Holly might have some personal insights. 

Holly:
Yes, I do. I know from personal experience that muskrat holes can be quite perilous. So two years ago on Father's Day, my dad and I went for a hike at Wetsel State Park. And on the way out on the trail, I noticed this big muskrat hole and I told dad, "Hey, watch out. There's a muskrat hole." We both veered around it, but on the way back on the same trail, I wasn't paying attention. And I stepped in that very same muskrat hole and I sprained my ankle.

Rachel:
Yikes.

Holly:
So beware of the muskrat or just make sure you're looking where you're watching and not looking up at the birds like I probably was.

Rachel:
Well, there are different methods you can use to try to discourage the muskrats from your area. Habitat modification may make the area less appealing to muskrats, placing fencing under docks or decks or porches to keep muskrats from tunneling underneath is probably going to be helpful. Also, placing rocks or rip rap on riverbanks or shorelines can prevent tunneling.

Hannah:
Yeah. And if habitat modifications don't help discourage muskrats or mitigate the damage, there are also removal options available. 

Holly:
Yes, many Michigan fur harvesters enjoy trapping for muskrats throughout the winter. Muskrats can be during the open muskrat trapping season with your valid Michigan fur harvester license. The 2020 muskrat trapping season in zone one, the upper peninsula is open October 25th through March 1st. In zone two, the Northern lower it's open November 1st through March 1st and in zone three in the Southern lower, you can trap muskrats from November 10th to March 1st.

Rachel:
To find detailed muskrat trapping information and regulations, check out the 2020 Fair Harvester digest available at michigan.gov/trapping.

Hannah:
And if it's not legal to conduct trapping activities in your area, or you need the muskrats removed outside of the open harvest season, you might consider contacting a wildlife damage and nuisance control business for removal services. So those folks have been licensed through the DNR. They have their permit to be able to remove wildlife ... certain wildlife species, including muskrats from private property. And we have a listing of those folks on our website, and we'll be sure to include that in the show notes.

Holly:
Yeah. That additional information on how to handle those conflicts and a list of permitted wildlife nuisance control companies can be found at michigan.gov/wildlife. Thanks for joining us this episode, we'll see you in September.

Announcer:
This has been the Wild Talk podcast, your monthly podcast airing the first of each month and offering insights into the world of wildlife across the state of Michigan. You can reach the wildlife division at 517-284-9453 or DNR-wildlife@michigan.gov.