Weekly conservation report

[Lee Borgersen]

Area Mn DNR Conservation Officer Weekly Reports..........

 - Sept. 18, 2018

District 9 - Brainerd area

  Hunter found baiting on archery opener - MnDNR CO Reports

Coservation Officer (CO) Jim Guida (Brainerd East) worked sport fishing and the archery deer opener. A hunter was contacted while archery hunting deer with the aid of bait and now faces archery equipment confiscation/forfeiture, loss of big-game hunting privileges, and a large fine. Guida also provided documentation to Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services of a recent gross misdemeanor DUI arrest.

CO Eric Sullivan (Pequot Lakes) spent time patrolling on ATV during the small-game opener. Enforcement action was taken for individuals transporting loaded firearms in a motor vehicle. With full foliage on the trees, grouse hunters were struggling to locate birds. A possible wolf depredation was also investigated.

CO Bob Mlynar (Aitkin) worked angling, boating, bear and ATV activity. Training requirements were completed and enforcement contacts included live well sorting (culling).

CO Patrick McGowan (Pine River) continued FTO training with a conservation officer candidate. McGowan patrolled for small-game hunters and ATV activity. Small-game hunters reported limited success with the heavy leaf coverage.

CO Scott Fitzgerald (CCSRA) reports checking small- and big-game hunters over the opening weekend. Calls in the SRA regarding dumped garbage were investigated and assistance was given to park staff on some park-related issues. Assistance was given to a local agency on a call for service and many outdoor law-related questions were answered.
 ATV activity was monitored and some fall anglers were checked.
 Calls of an injured juvenile eagle and an injured owl were taken and the birds were transported to the Garrison Animal Hospital for assessment and treatment. Fitzgerald also finished Step 1 FTO training with COC Hughes, who moved on to Step 2 training with another officer. Follow up was done on a call of a party living in the SRA illegally. TIP calls regarding a fishing and a big-game related case were investigated.

District 10 - Mille Lacs area

CO Gregory Verkuilen (Garrison) worked the small-game and archery deer opener, but the heat appeared to keep activity to a minimum. Water recreation was busy with a lot of people getting in the water and removing docks. Verkuilen also did some river patrol, issued car killed deer tags, and answered questions regarding next weekend’s duck season.


CO Dustie Speldrich (Willow River) worked on bear-hunting activities, illegal ATV activity, and wetlands violations throughout the week. Hunters are reporting low success rates for bears due to plentiful natural foods in the woods including acorns, plums, and other natural forages.

CO Dan Starr (Onamia) worked fires, bear hunting, small-game opener, early goose, ATVs, fall fishing, nuisance animal complaints, and assisted local law enforcement with numerous calls. Starr assisted with the removal of an unwanted person at Mille Lacs Kathio State Park. Intense heat hampered opening weekend for bow hunters.

CO Luke Croatt (Wealthwood) checked small-game and archery deer hunters over the weekend. Warm weather and a heavy mosquito hatch made deer hunting a bit tough. Most grouse hunters reported seeing few birds. A call for service on a possible wetland violation was also handled.

District 4 - Walker area

CO Randy Posner (Staples) reports working fishing enforcement this past week. Anglers are out and the fall bite is picking up. He checked bear hunters who report bear activity at baits has slowed. Posner also worked on AIS complaints reported by DNR inspectors, goose-hunting enforcement and a tip of afterhours shooting. He checked boats after sunset and found navigation light violations. A nuisance bear complaint was reported; area farmers report significant damage to cornfields by bears. The small-game and archery deer hunting opener went well.

CO Colleen Adam (Park Rapids Station) checked archery deer and bear hunting activity. She also responded to a call for assistance at a wildfire on the Heartland State Trail and followed up on squatter on state trail right-of-way. Adam checked an area reported to be receiving damage from ATVs near a wetland. She also is following up on an investigation into illegal nets placed on Boulder Lake in Hubbard County, which resulted in the loss of trophy class walleye. Anyone with information is asked to contact the TIP line at 1-800-652-9093.

CO Mark Mathy (Cass Lake) primarily worked on completing a background investigation for a CO applicant. Bear hunters were checked. A complaint of a new construction roadway filling a wetland and creek was investigated. Enforcement action was taken for failing to register a bear bait site, hunting bear in the wrong zone, failure to have a bear license in possession, and non-biodegradable material at a bear bait site.

District 11 - St. Cloud area

CO Caleb Silgjord (Sauk Centre) and COC Leah Kampa spent time during the week monitoring angling activity. They also took a complaint of a possible feeding ban violation and wrapped up a waterfowl investigation that resulted in enforcement action for wanton waste and unlawful deposit of garbage. While on patrol, Kampa and Silgjord conducted multiple ATV traffic stops with violations ranging from no headlights, juvenile without a helmet, failure to display registration and driving while impaired. A law and ethics presentation was provided to an area firearms safety class. Shore-fishing areas in the station were checked. One angler was found to be in possession of a smallmouth bass out of season.

CO Todd VanderWeyst (Paynesville) worked the small-game and archery deer opener. ATV activity in the area was monitored. VanderWeyst attempted to have his vehicle evaluated for safety purposes but was detoured back to Sauk Centre to aid neighboring agencies.

CO Frank Rezac (St. Cloud) reports checking anglers and small-game hunters. He also spoke at youth hunter education/firearms safety classes in South Haven and Rockville. Follow up was also done on a trespassing complaint.

CO Keith Bertram (Long Prairie) spent the week checking hunters and anglers. Enforcement action was taken for no blaze orange, toxic shot, an overlimit of northern pike, and various ATV violations. Several wetland violations were also addressed.

District 12 - Princeton area

CO Tony Musatov (Sauk Rapids) checked anglers and hunters. A hunting TIP call was investigated and an animal complaint handled. Follow up was done on a litter case.

CO Angela Londgren (Cambridge) checked bear baits, small-game and archery hunters, and anglers. Londgren also continues to work on a background investigation and followed up on wetland/public waters violations.

CO Mike Krauel (Mora) spent time checking goose hunters and small-game hunters. Krauel also checked anglers and boaters who were enjoying the last few days of hot weather. Enforcement action was taken for angling with extra lines, illegal tackle configurations, taking smallmouth bass out of season, and several ATV violations.

Aviation Section

Natural Resources (NR) Pilot Brad Maas (Brainerd) worked on helicopter maintenance and administrative tasks. He also continued working on the aerial fish stocking tank for the helicopter.

CO Pilot Jason Jensen (Brainerd) reports flying waterfowl recon flights for various officers across the state. Jensen documented a few possible wetland and aquatic vegetation violations during these recon flights. Jensen also completed night and tailwheel currency training flights.

Water Resource Enforcement Officers

WREO Robert Haberman (North Central) checked small-game hunters during the weekend. Extreme heat kept most deer hunters away for the opening season. AIS enforcement was worked along with ATV enforcement. Haberman also worked on wetland cases and public water cases.

WREO Leah Weyandt (Central) closed several wetland and public water cases this week. Landowners were compliant and restored their property to its previous condition. A Region 3 invasive species meeting was attended. Topics included aquatic and terrestrial invasive species identification issues and private landowner eradication of invasive species.