You’re alone in the comfort of your home, so naturally, you let one rip. No shame. But the smell of your own fart is taking over, and the stench is creeping up and suffocating you. Now you’re trapped in your own foul odor – this wasn’t expected! Why is this fart disgusting, when others pass without making their presence known?

Then, as if the heavens parted, the stench disappears. You look around, double-checking that no one is home, then go back to your normal life, safe from suffocation by flatulence.

Why did your fart smell like rotten eggs at the bottom of a New York City trash heap? Was it something you ate? Is there something wrong with you, internally? Do you have a superpower you didn’t know existed? Dr. Myron Brand, a gastroenterologist at Connecticut Gastroenterology Consultants, helps set the facts straight.

YOU. You have the power to control your own gruesome odor by what you eat – not all farts are created equal. Some smell like bitter alcohol, others smell like three-month-old expired broccoli, and many smell like the aforementioned rotten eggs.

“Smelly odor is not bad, it’s just a function of what you’re eating and what your bacteria is doing inside your gastrointestinal tract. Everyone is different,” Dr. Brand explains. “Foul smell just means the carbohydrates you consume are being malabsorbed – it’s fermented.”

Ironically, the healthier the food you eat, the worse the smell. Fiber-rich foods, such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and quinoa, boost gut bacteria, and in return cause you to naturally pass gas. Foods with high sulfur composition, such as red meat, milk, or plant-based proteins, are the culprits of producing the foul odor. When we feed the bacteria in our gut high-protein foods, they produce a sulfur gas, which makes your farts noxious, says Dr. Brand.

“The end product of fermentation in our gastrointestinal tract is gas – carbon dioxide, hydrogen, or methane. And it’s all made from bacteria fermentation.”

But hey, it’s a small price to pay for being healthy… or is it?

When the bacteria in your gut break down all that food into hydrogen sulfide, then you produce that ghastly rotten egg fart smell.

“Some people are methane producers, and some people are hydrogen sulfide producers – which causes flatulence to smell like rotten egg. It’s all a function of what you eat,” adds Dr. Brand, helpfully reminding you that eating a steady diet of cabbage and cheeseburgers is bad on virtually every level. The common thread between rotten eggs and farts is the sulfur; if you’ve ever been to natural springs that emit sulfurous gasses, you probably recognized the stench. It may be the only thing your butt, eggs, and natural hot springs have in common.

If you have to choose based solely on how much you’ll fart, Dr. Brand recommends going high-protein. “Proteins won’t cause a lot of gas, but carbohydrates will.”

There are more extreme measures you can take, too, though it’s important to understand that what works (or goes horribly wrong) for you may do the opposite in someone else. “As a doctor, you try to manipulate this occurrence with things like the FODMAP diet or probiotics,” Dr. Brand says, which is a science-y way of saying every person is different and it’s a bit of a guessing game as to which foods make one person rip silent-but-deadlies and another go about their day without emitting a hint of methane.

The low-FODMAP diet he mentions is one that limits certain types of carbohydrates that have a tendency to ferment in your gut and, as you now know, produce rancid gas. This diet is tough to follow, since it eliminates seemingly healthy foods like onions and asparagus, so it’s typically used only for people with serious gastrointestinal distress. If your flatulence is really an issue, work with a gastroenterologist or dietitian to pinpoint which carbohydrates are the cause of your discomfort or bloating. You can also check this quick primer on high-FODMAP foods vs. low-FODMAP foods, with low-FODMAP foods being the ones less likely to ferment.

Eh, not really, unless you surround yourself with people who judge you solely based on your farts, in which case you might want to rethink your friend group. You live in a symbiotic relationship with your gut bacteria – you have to feed them if you want to achieve optimal health. The average (healthy) person farts 10-20 times a day. So farting is normal.

If you continually drive people away with your potent superpower, though, it may be time to see a professional. Usually, though, a fart is a fart is a fart that won’t kill you. “Unless it’s excessive, because that’s a sign that you’re malabsorbing and not digesting carbohydrates,” you’re probably fine moving on with your life, Dr. Brand advises.

Nope. It just means you’re eating food and digesting it well – and there’s more room on the outside than on the inside.

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The term “Ribeye in the Sky” is thrown around loosely in regard to the Sandhill Crane. Supposedly this giant bird has the best tasting meat of all wild game and fortunately for us, we have secured a couple of breasts to try for ourselves. In this edition of Grillmaster Tips we teamed up with our good friend Kirk also known as Instagram’s @the_grill_revealer to find out once and for all if the Sandhill Crane can live up to its “Ribeye in the Sky” status.

Setting up your Big Green Egg or Kamado grill

Fire up your charcoal quickly with a JJGeorge Grill Torch and level it off at around 300 degrees. Throw a couple of soaked hickory chunks into the charcoal to give the meat a light smokey flavor.

We are going to cook the breasts indirectly on cedar planks, so install your plate setter or other method of indirect heat if your are not using a Kamado grill. Also, now is a good time to soak your cedar planks in water if you haven’t done so already.

Prep

Make sure to soak the breasts for 24-48 hours in a half vinegar and half water mixture to draw the blood out of the meat. Once this is done, rinse it off and dry with a paper towel. We have two one pound Crane breasts and we will be using the same cooking method for both. However, we are going to season and present them differently to see what pairs best with the Sandhill Crane meat.

Chimichurri Sandhill Crane Breast:

For our first breast we are going to cover it in extra virgin olive oil and generously dry rub it all over with Spiceology’s Moss rub created by Sasquatch BBQ. This all purpose herb rub has a delicious chimichurri flavor. While the crane is cooking we are making a homemade chimichurri sauce as a topper for the meat (sauce recipe below).

Chimichurri Sauce Recipe:

1/2 cup – finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

1/2 cup – olive oil

2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

* Combine all ingredients, stir well and set to side

Tennessee Smoke Sandhill Crane Breast with Truff Sauce:

For our second breast we are going to coat in olive oil and dry rub generously with Spiceology’s Tennessee Smoke inspired by Over the Fire Cooking’s Derek Wolf. No further prep is required as we will be topping this crane breast with Truff – Truffle infused hot sauce to give it a spicy and smoky flavor.

Cooking the Meat

Now that your Big Green Egg is at a stable temperature close to 300 degrees it is time to cook the meat. Place the seasoned crane breasts on your soaked cedar planks and place them on the grill. Cook indirectly for 30-45 minutes until the internal temperature of the breast reaches 120-125 degrees. Remove crane from grill and let the meat rest for 10 to 15 minutes to let the juices redistribute throughout the meat making it moist, tender, and delicious!

Slice and Serve

Now that your Sandhill Crane is perfectly cooked, it is time to slice it up, apply our sauce, and see how it tastes. We sliced our crane breast against grain and applied the chimichurri sauce to the breast with the herb based rub. We did the same for the Tennessee Smoke rubbed breast and topped it off with a drizzle of Truff sauce.

The Verdict

So on to the most important question… does Sandhill Crane live up to its nickname “The Ribeye in the Sky”? I must admit that we were very skeptical going into this thinking that the crane meat would taste like a large duck or goose breast… but boy were we wrong! It is tender, juicy and absolutely delicious! It is definitely more lean than a ribeye steak and the texture resembles that of a well cooked filet mignon. Although both versions of our dish were great, the consensus voted in favor of the Chimichurri breast as the Chimi sauce paired better with the flavor of the meat that the Truff did. We give Sandhill Crane a 10 out of 10 as far as wild game goes, as this is as good as it gets when cooking waterfowl.

Thanks so much for reading and as always leave us a note below to let us know how we are doing, or what you would like us to do next. Happy Grilling!

– Team JJGeorge

Grill Torch $37.99Grill Tables $469Grill Covers $59.99B.B. Prime $419Ash Baskets $79.99

The average force of a human bite is calculated at 162 pounds per square inch (PSI), but this is nothing compared to some animals with the strongest bite force.

The animal bite force is a complicated topic, and regardless of whether you choose to quantify it in PSI (pounds per square inch), pounds of force, or newtons of force, you are likely to come across a wide range of values that disagree with one another.

In addition, it is difficult to conduct biting force tests, which are rarely a high priority for scientists studying animals.

If such is the case, how can we determine which species have the most powerful bites in the world?

We can obtain a reliable estimate of what an animal’s peak biting force could be thanks to the testing that certain scientists have conducted and the advanced computer modeling that has been done.

Several factors, including the size of the animal’s meal, its jaw muscles, its jawbone, and the amount of surface area covered by its teeth, all contribute to the force with which an animal may bite.

According to a study conducted by Brown University, the amount of force within a muscle depends on the degree to which it is stretched.

As a result, the amount of force contained within an animal’s bite is also dependent on the size of what it is biting.

Psi, or pounds per square inch, is the unit of measurement for bite force. To be more precise, it is referred to as pounds of force per square inch (lbf/in2) because it represents the pressure that results from one pound of force on an area of one square inch (6.5 square centimeters).

In other words, the amount of force the animal applies to its meal.

Does Bite Force Matter?

The animals with the strongest bite force are at an advantage in the wild. If you are a predator, having the ability to kill, incapacitate, or capture and hold prey by using huge levels of pressure when biting into it can be an advantage. Cracking up bones to access the marrow within them is also possible.

Herbivores are able to chew through tough foods such as bamboo, crunch through nuts and seeds, and help defend themselves against carnivores when they have stronger biting forces.

The strength of their jaws helps these creatures become effective hunters, which is why many of the animals with the strongest bite force are considered apex predators.

How Is Bite Force Calculated or Tested?

Utilizing a device such as a strain gauge or a bite meter is the most straightforward method for measuring the force of a bite.

The animal bites the device, which then measures the force. These scales are analogous to the electronic scales that individuals use to measure their weight.

You can’t just be pleasant to the animal and ask it to bite as hard as it can on some metal plate scale, nor is it easy to capture and handle many of the strongest creatures.

Nor can you ask the animal to bite as hard as it can. For example, doing this with sharks would be an extremely challenging endeavor.

When attempting to calculate the bite power of an animal, computer modeling and preliminary approximations can be of use.

Looking at what an animal is capable of doing is one of the things that can assist in determining how hard a bite will be.

It’s like how you power to scale your favorite superheroes by using their feats, but it’s much more accurate.

For instance, if you know that a certain animal can fracture the femur bone of an antelope, you can calculate the force required to achieve the same result.

This provides an accurate baseline minimum of the animal’s possible biting force, which one can use for comparison purposes.

Because of our comprehensive knowledge and extensive study of animal anatomy, we can employ computer modeling to assist in the calculation of biting force.

We can model and run simulations to determine a fairly accurate estimate of an animal’s bite force if we understand the correlation to skull size and shape and rough estimates of how much force jaw muscles are capable of exerting.

Furthermore, if we know how much force jaw muscles can exert.

What Factors Determines Bite Force?

There are several factors that go into determining animals with the strongest bite force.

Skull shape, bone density, plasticity, jaw muscle strength, nutrition, and tooth replacement are among the most important contributing factors.

The shape of the skull and jaw is essential when determining the amount of biting power.

The force applied is dispersed over a more controllable surface area when the jaw is smaller.

Sloped or inclined skulls provide superior leverage and better anchor points for the larger jaw muscles.

If you want to use a significant amount of force with any portion of your body, you must have robust enough bones to withstand the strain without breaking.

There are various creatures whose jaws can shatter or break bones, but when they do so, their own bones do not break.

There are a lot of different explanations for this, but the primary reason is that their jaw and skull bones are extremely dense, and their skulls have suitable angles for applying that force.

Both the skull and the jawbones have a significant capacity for plasticity. Scientists long believed that a T. rex could fracture its skull with a bite force that was likely as powerful as it had been.

Many animals, like the T. rex, have shock absorbers built into their skulls in the form of flexible joints.

These joints allow the skull and jaws to flex, preventing the force from rebounding on itself and causing injury.

The muscles in your jaw are responsible for your ability to open and close your mouth. While our jaw muscles did not evolve to be particularly robust, those of many other species did.

Having jaw and neck muscles that are both larger and stronger contributes to having a stronger bite power.

Along the path of evolution, every species has adapted and changed depending on available food sources.

Hunting is made safer and more effective by adaptations such as the ability to crush the skull of one’s victim like a jaguar does.

If they could only consume fruit or tender shoots, they would have a much more limited food selection than if they could chew through tough roots and shoots like gorillas.

These are some examples of animals that have naturally developed stronger jaws to accommodate the types of food that they eat.

The ability to replace teeth is essential for animals with the strongest bite force that gnaws through bone, although this is not always required.

There are species of sharks and crocodiles that, over the course of their lifetimes, lose hundreds or even thousands of teeth.

Suppose you want to be able to bite as forcefully as some of these animals do. In that case, you either need teeth that are extraordinarily durable or the ability to replace them in a short amount of time.

19 Animals with the Strongest Bite Force

1. Polar Bear (1,200 psi)

Polar bears are larger than their cousins, the grizzly bears, and reside in the Arctic region. Their diet consists mostly of large prey species.

These bears may weigh more than 1,200 pounds (544.31 kg), and their webbed paws allow them to excel as swimmers. They live in semi-aquatic environments.

Polar bears are among the animals with the strongest bite force, and they have a powerful bite that helps them to penetrate the thick skin, feathers, and fat of the prey they encounter in their natural habitat.

This allows them to hunt successfully. The majority of their diet consists of seals, whale carcasses, and whatever else they can get their teeth into.

2. Gorilla (1,300 psi)

The gorilla’s bite force is mostly determined by the thickness of its neck, even though gorillas are overly muscular.

Despite having extremely long and scary canine teeth, the largest ape species is a fairly quiet herbivore.

This is because they are critically endangered. Read this article to get an idea of the gorilla’s overall physical prowess.

Gorillas consume plants, although the majority of their food consists of tougher plant parts like roots, bamboo shoots, and other similar items.

They do not have to rely solely on young shoots and fruit because the force of their bite enables them to ground up and devour the many types of food.

3. Jaguar (1,500 psi)

Jaguars can deliver the most powerful bite of any of the great cats. They don’t bring their prey to the ground as other big cats do; instead, they strike by seizing their prey’s skull in their mouth and crushing it.

Their teeth and jaws are strong enough to break through the thick hide of caimans and the shells of turtles, and they can crush the heads of capybaras and other animals.

Jaguars thrive in the jungles of both North and South America. They normally grow to have a body length of five to six feet (1.52 m to 1.82 m), a tail length of three feet (0.91 m), and a body weight of approximately 250 pounds (113.39 kg).

4. Hippopotamus (1,800 psi)

Hippos are one of the animals with the strongest bite force that is still alive.

They use the enormous canines and incisors on their upper and lower jaws to defend their young from potential threats and to fight with one another.

Hippos are the most lethal mammal in Africa, accounting for more human deaths than any other species each year. Hippos kill more people than any other animal.

The aggressive behavior of hippos is not limited to people. Even though they drink from the same bodies of water, hippos despise crocodiles, and they are capable of breaking the backbone of a crocodile that is ten feet long (3.04 meters).

5. American Alligator (2,150 psi)

The bite force of an alligator is commensurate with its size as the largest living reptile in North America.

They have the ability to snap their jaws shut extremely quickly, which allows them to either crush or bite their prey in half.

The extremely powerful jaw muscles responsible for closing the mouth contribute to the incredible strength of their jaws.

You can use your hands to keep their mouths closed since the muscles that allow them to open their mouths are laughably underdeveloped compared to other muscles in their bodies.

Fish, wading birds, turtles, and smaller animals make up the majority of an alligator’s diet.

6. Great White Shark (4,000 psi)

The Great White Shark is a must-mention on the list of animals with the strongest bite force for no other reason than the fact that its bite force was estimated rather than measured.

In a study conducted in 2008, X-rays and computer modeling served as a means to assess the amount of biting force that a white shark would have.

The study showed that a white shark with a length of 21 feet (6.40 meters) could exert a bite force of approximately 4,000 pounds per square inch, making it one of the living animals with the strongest bite force.

You can find White sharks in many different parts of the world, including the Pacific Ocean, the northeastern United States, Australia, and South Africa.

They are the top apex predators, with only larger white sharks and killer whales being their natural enemies.

7. Saltwater Crocodile (3,700 psi)

As the largest members of the crocodile family, saltwater crocodiles make the list of animals with the strongest bite force and can weigh up to one thousand pounds.

They also hold the record for having the most powerful bite of any animal in the world.

Saltwater crocodiles are among the most dangerous animals on the planet; each year, they are responsible for the deaths of between 3,000 and 5,000 people.

This category requires a 17-foot croc with a 3,700 PSI bite measured by a top scientist.

By extrapolating these findings, the same researcher predicted that prehistoric crocodiles of 40 feet in length would have had a bite force of 23,000 pounds per square inch (PSI).

We should count ourselves fortunate that these monstrosities became extinct millions of years ago. We have enough problems with the more manageable version that is still there today.

The raw power these animals exhibit is so astounding that it is nerve-racking to contemplate how scientists must have compared powerful previous extinct animals to what these animals are capable of.

The biting force of a Tyrannosaurus rex is around 8,000 pounds per square inch (PSI), whereas the bite force of a megalodon is roughly 40,000 PSI using the same methods that determined the great white’s present strength.

Regardless of how powerful an individual animal can be, there are still lethal dangers that face the great majority of animals on this planet.

Strength is not the only quality that might be a contributing factor to risk.

8. Lion (650 psi)

Lions have a higher biting force than mastiff dogs, despite the ferocious reputation that they have earned and the iconic position that they have achieved.

As a result of the fact that they hunt in packs, pinning their prey to the ground and suffocating it, they have never required a biting force that is as powerful as that of tigers and jaguars.

9. Nile Crocodile (3,000 – 5,000 psi)

A well-known biologist researched the Nile crocodile as well as other species that are closely related to it.

Using sensitive instruments, he determined the average amount of force that each member of the Order Crocodilia exerts with their bite.

The fact that the Nile crocodile specimen measured was only about 8 feet in length is a limitation of the study.

Considering that the typical length of a Nile crocodile is 16 feet, it stands to reason that their actual bite strength should measure at or above 3,000 PSI. This value is higher than that of the American alligator regarding bite power.

The Nile crocodile, which can weigh up to a whopping 500 pounds and is native to the areas around the Nile River’s banks, is the crocodile species considered the most dangerous in the entire world.

They are solely accountable for more assaults on people than any other species of crocodile in the world. The primary reason for this is that they are so fiercely territorial and hostile.

10. Bull Shark (478 psi)

Bull sharks have the most powerful bite of any other shark species when considering the overall size.

They can grow to a maximum length of nine feet and an average weight of about 800 pounds, which is significantly less than white sharks.

The maximum pressure that a white shark of a similar size might generate is around 360 PSI.

11. Black Piranha (72 psi)

You’re probably looking at the meager biting force of a black piranha, which is only 72 PSI, and wondering why we included it here in the first place.

Black piranhas can reach a maximum length of around one meter and an average maximum weight of about eight pounds (3.62 kg).

Their biting force of 72 PSI is enormous compared to their body weight, and researchers took this measurement from a fish that only weighed about 2 and a half pounds (1.13 kg).

12. Tasmanian Devil (200 psi)

When considering animal size, Tasmanian devils have the most powerful biting force of any mammal and are among the animals with the strongest bite force.

They weigh only 19.07 kilograms (20 pounds), but when they bite, they can produce 553 newtons of force. Their bite’s Bite Force Quotient (BFQ) is greater than any other living mammal.

13. Orcas (19,000 psi)

A killer whale’s bite force has no measurement record, but estimates put it around 19,000 pounds per square inch (psi).

This is mostly because they are so enormous, as they may weigh up to six tons (6096.28 kg) and grow to a length of nineteen feet and fourteen inches (9.14 m).

Because the majority of the data is from simulations, theories, and experiments conducted on whales in captivity, this topic did not earn a place on the list.

14. Tiger (1,050 psi)

The average weight of a Bengal Tiger is between 250 and 500 pounds (113.39 kg and 226.79 kg).

Although India and China are where you may find these large cats in the greatest numbers, they are considered endangered because of their stunning fur and the usage of their bodies in traditional Chinese medicine.

Their relatives in Siberia are considerably larger and can weigh almost a thousand pounds (453.59 kg).

Tigers are solitary hunters for the most part, and their huge biting force enables them to quickly take down their chosen prey, which are large animals such as deer and wild boar.

As soon as they clamp their jaws around the neck of their prey, the animal is rendered helpless and eventually dies of asphyxiation. Only a few animals with the strongest bite force can easily perform this feat.

15. Spotted Hyena (1,100 psi)

Hyena packs are good hunters and voracious scavengers that have no problem feeding on the remains of prey that other predators killed.

They are also engaged in never-ending competition with lions because both species hunt the same species of prey, occupy the same areas, and frequently steal food from one another.

They can break through heavy animal bones to get to the marrow inside because of the arched shape of their skulls and the massive jaw muscles they possess.

One of the reasons that hyenas survive well, even when there is a shortage of prey, is that they can utilize bones as an additional food source.

16. Grizzly Bear (1,000 to 1,200 psi)

The grizzly Bear that lives in North America is a powerful animal in every way. A typical individual is approximately seven feet tall (2.13 meters) and weighs around 800 pounds (362.87 kg).

These omnivorous animals consume anything from fruits and nuts to fish and even animals as huge as moose. They don’t discriminate when it comes to what they eat.

According to urban legends, grizzly bears, one of the animals with the strongest bite force, can bite through bone, small trees, and even cast iron skillets with surprising ease.

17. Alligator Snapping Turtle (1,004 psi)

The alligator snapping turtle is not like other turtles in that it is not little, it is not cute, it is not slow, and it is not generally harmful.

Although they are shorter than the majority of the animals on our list of animals with the strongest bite force, averaging 26 inches in length, these little fellows are no laughing matter.

The bite force of an alligator snapping turtle is 1,004 pounds per square inch (PSI), which distinguishes it from the bite force of a typical snapping turtle.

Do you remember the enormous hippos that we discussed earlier? Even though this turtle is much smaller than the other mammal, its bite is still half as strong and considerably exceeds that of a human or, for that matter, your pet dog.

If you’re looking for a new shelled pet, it’s best to stick to the smaller species while you’re shopping around for one. This super-strong mouth could easily break off a finger or two.

18. Humboldt Squid (6,00psi)

A squid’s jaw isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when one imagines animals with the strongest bite force, so that’s understandable.

Squids are well-known for their peculiar structure, which consists of neither an internal nor an exterior skeleton.

Scientists estimate that this creature’s formidable beak possesses a biting force of over 6,000 pounds per square inch (PSI), although getting close to it is extremely risky and impossible.

This squid has eight tentacles, each with multiple suction cups to capture and immobilize its prey. As if it needed any extra assistance, this squid also has eight arms.

The powerful mouth muscles of these creatures then finish the job, leaving the other animals with no chance of survival.

19. Walrus (1,850psi)

How much damage could a giant floppy thing with an old man’s mustache actually do? A lot!

In spite of the fact that these goofy-looking critters appear to be soft and harmless, they consume a variety of different foods in addition to shellfish.

Walruses are one of animals with the strongest bite force and can kill seals and eat them very quickly. Their enormous tusks allow them to compete successfully against polar bears.

It is not simply the enormous size of a walrus’s tusks but also the strength of its mouth that makes it such a formidable opponent.

In a situation with a pressure of 1,850 PSI, seals do not have a chance of surviving.

If you ever think of a walrus as nothing more than a ball of fluff lounging around and collecting fish, keep in mind that it is perfectly capable of putting up a battle for its life if a polar bear comes knocking on its door.

The very mention of mule deer conjures up wild, western and romantic images of hunting some of the most untamed and unforgiving terrain this country has to offer. The hallowed grounds of Utah’s Henry Mountains, Colorado’s Gunnison Basin, Wyoming’s Grey and Salt River drainages, Idaho’s Bennett Hills, New Mexico’s Rio Chama, and of course, Arizona’s Kaibab Plateau and Strip regions have all produced some of the biggest bucks to ever walk the earth.

A wild and free atmosphere entails all; the summer months of a mule deer aren’t simply spent gorging on waist-tall grass in a high-mountain basin. Nor do the fall months find bucks rutting does in an endless sea of sage, cedars and bitterbrush. No, in this world of total freedom comes total responsibility; and as old as the sands of time, mule deer have always had to live with the fact that they are a species of prey. While there are many predators working against mule deer, their age-old enemies of the coyote, bobcat, mountain lion and wolf have mule deer on guard from the moment they’re born.

A Little History

In today’s age, one might think we have a handle on the predator-prey relationship of the mule deer and their many enemies. But nothing could be farther from the truth. In fact, after decades of biological studies across the West, the steps taken in predator management, quite frankly, have done anything but accelerate.

In the 70s and 80s, government trappers and wildlife biologists took their jobs very seriously. That is not to say today’s trappers and biologists don’t take their jobs with the same attitude…but the amount of red tape wasn’t as thick then, and it’s safe to say, the amount of common sense was more prevalent.

One of the Arizona Strip’s most famous government trappers was a man by the name of Edwin Ted Riggs. Ted first went to work as a government trapper in 1945 where he held a career for almost 32 years. Ted reports when he first began trapping northern Arizona, the predators were so bad it took him 5 years before he ever saw a deer. Ted took his job with the utmost of pride and seriousness and was, without question, an expert in predator control. To Ted, it wasn’t rocket science in what needed to be done to help the mule deer populations grow. Whenever we would slack off in controlling coyotes and lions, deer would get down to nothing, he said. But as soon as control was started, we would have large numbers within 5 years.

Fortunately, he worked in a time where 1080 poison was legal and it was used as needed. This allowed Ted to be extremely effective in his predator management of northern Arizona’s most notorious big buck country. Although 1080 was at his disposal, Ted never put poison out in the same areas every year. In fact, he only used it when the coyotes got ahead of his trapping efforts.

In a documented statement Ted made in 1993, he said: Since the government began to discourage trapping and began systematically cutting back on predator control, we have lost nearly all of our deer, and we’re losing our mountain sheep too. Up here [Virgin Mountains] where I used to see 12 or 14 sheep in a bunch, now you can hardly find a track. The last year I trapped, (the winter of 1988 and 89), the lions were so thick and so hungry they were eating nearly everything I caught. They even ate two of their own kind right out of my traps.

Arizona isn’t the only state to prove once predator control is put into place, mule deer rebound. From 2004 to 2012, Nevada recently conducted a study proving the same. In 2004, the Nevada Department Of Wildlife (NDOW), with the approval from the Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners, initiated Project 18 as part of NDOW’s Predation Management Plan. The goal of the project was simple, keep more deer on the mountain and increase hunting opportunities for Nevada sportsmen. Since NDOW does not do predator control, the USDA’s Wildlife Services Program in Nevada was asked to implement the project. One full-time wildlife specialist was hired to remove all coyotes and all mountain lions deemed a threat to mule deer within hunt unit 014 of Nevada. The results were astonishing.

Since the start of this management plan in 2004, an overwhelming 46 mountain lions and 1,158 coyotes have been removed from this one, extremely small hunting area. No western state has ever embarked on a mule deer protection project where one hunt unit was selected to remove all mountain lions and all coyotes over an 8-year period resulting in a 65 percent increase in mule deer and a 289 percent increase in hunters’ tags. Predator management works.

Time After Time

For decades, studies have been done all across the West and even into Canada to understand and scientifically prove that mule deer are the staple diet to many large predators. While coyotes are definitely one of mule deer’s major concerns, the mountain lion is, without question, a mule deer’s worse nightmare. But how much do muleys contribute to lion diets? The answer to that is geography. In 2010, a study was conducted in Southwestern Alberta, Canada to determine what the area’s lions were eating. Over the course of a winter, seven lions were darted, fixed with a GPS radio-collars, and set back into the wild. Throughout the summer and fall months of 2010, and on into September of 2011, a team of biologists faithfully, professionally, and accurately tracked the GPS clusters that were left by the lions involved in the study. What they came up with was hard evidence that the area’s mountain lions were indeed more focused on deer than any other prey species available to them. During this study, 159 kills were located. Of those, 72 percent were deer, 9 percent were moose, 4 percent were beaver, and 3 percent were elk. The remaining 12 percent was a mixture of bighorn sheep (2 percent), mountain goat (3 percent), porcupine (3 percent), geese (2 percent), and foxes and coyotes (2 percent).

Furthermore, the break-down for the deer kills was comprised of the following: 50 percent were adults, 19 percent were yearlings, and 31 percent were young-of-the-year. Broken down by sex, 52 percent were bucks and 48 percent were does. While this study does not single out mountain lions for the annual death toll on mule deer, it does shed light to the fact that deer are a staple diet for mountain lions.

Rest assured, Canada is not the only place on earth where mountain lions take their toll on mule deer. In a twist of unbelievable fate, in my own backyard of southern Utah, a mountain lion killed not one absolutely giant buck, but two. All within two years and within spitting distance of each other. The area where this occurred is a desolate stretch of country that very few visit on an annual basis. To make matters worse, this country rarely sees snow, making it very difficult to hunt the lions that call the place home. In addition, there is no leg-hold trapping allowed which all cumulates into a recipe for a predator-rich environment.

Contrary to popular belief, lions and coyotes do not single out the young, sick, or afflicted. Truthfully, they instead prey on older age-class, solitary bucks. The unfortunate truth is that it’s easier to sneak up on one set of eyes and ears than a whole herd. This results in the trophy bucks being more on the radar than anything else.

Not a Spectator’s Sport

Aerial gunning, trapping, and hunting are all tactics implemented toward predator control in the West. However, studies are proving that sometimes enough, just isn’t enough. For someone who spends nearly 200 days a year in the field, I can tell you that in my travels, there are excessive predator numbers in nearly all the places I visit. Anti-hunters are constantly pushing our legislators and county officials to lift predator management policies. The state of California is a perfect example. Did you know it’s illegal to even have a mounted lion (taxidermy) in your possession in California? And forget about hunting them. It’s no wonder California’s big game numbers are plummeting and their trophy hunting is nearly non-existent anymore.

Personally, I have long been a fan of predator hunting. There’s nothing as fun during the winter months than to go out and call in coyotes and bobcats. And while this can be effective and alleviate some pressure on wintering deer, this is not the only time of the year when we should be out putting the hurt on predators. In fact, the late spring and early summer months are more crucial to give the newborn fawns a fighting chance at life.

Thankfully, there are a few conservation organizations out here in the West that have predator management high on the radar. Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, Mule Deer Foundation, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and a variety of trapping organizations, all support the act of predator management. In fact, some hold annual predator contest encouraging others to get out there and do their part. These contests can be a lot of fun and definitely help in smashing some predators annually. It’s these organizations and these events that need our support. After all, the legacy dies with the last generation that gets involved.

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In this article, we will discuss the best freshwater fish to eat and why they are so good for you. We’ll also cover some of the health risks associated with eating certain types of fish, and provide tips on how to select fresh fish at the grocery store.

There are a few types of fish that remain at the top of the list among fish enthusiasts’ list of favorites. However, some of them might be hard to locate and obtain. But that’s no reason not to try them, as those fish species are truly some of the most highly recommended freshwater fish for eating.

Best Freshwater Fish for Eating

Here, we’d like to talk about a few of our absolute favorite tasty freshwater fish and provide some practical advice on why they are the best freshwater fish for eating.

Salmon

Salmon is a well-known fish among many fish lovers. Salmon may be cooked in many ways and is actually one of the fish types you can find easily no matter where you are.

There’s a good chance that your local fish market or grocery store offers many types of salmon from which you can choose easily. And you can make a variety of meals with salmon and serve them to your friends and family.

Salmon is an anadromous fish, meaning it moves from freshwater, to saltwater, and returns for reproduction purposes. In many areas of the world, there are landlocked salmon that live their entire lives in freshwater, so salmon is considered both a freshwater and saltwater fish.

There are many ways you can eat salmon. It can be baked, roasted, fried, or even grilled.

Salmon works well even now in an air fryer. This adds diversity to a straightforward fish. It has plenty of Omega-3-rich fatty acids as well which is really good for your health overall.

Salmon has a moderate flavor, so you will not get any significant fish-type flavor, which is why it is often enjoyed by those with little experience consuming fish.

Trout

The well-liked freshwater fish, trout, is easy to prepare and has a delicious flavor.

There are several types of trout that are often consumed:

Rainbow trout, brown trout, cutthroat trout, brook trout (not technically a trout, but widely included in this group), lake trout, and other species of trout.

Roasted trout is one of the best trout dishes there is. However, it also tastes great when fried or grilled. Just make sure that you cut the trout into tiny chunks if you decide to fry it.

We recommend some brown rice and maybe some steaming or vegetables on the side when you’re ready to serve the trout. If you are camping, it is easy to place trout in some foil over a fire and have an incredibly meal while camping.

Pike

Another really tasty freshwater fish to cross off your list is the pike. Due to their preference for chilly water, they are more prevalent in northern states and regions.

As opposed to the majority of the other fish we’ve discussed here, you should expect a slightly fishy flavor from this fish.

The majority of people, however, use flavorful seasonings and inventive recipes to mask the fishiness. The fishy flavor will appeal to seafood lovers. When it comes to cooking pike, you may relish its rich flavors and flaky meat, so it’s quite adaptable.

Baking is the most typical method of preparing pike. The results from broiling or grilling these fish are rather good. A word of caution with pike: it’s bony, which means you want to take a bit of extra care when cleaning and eating. This is a fish where some local fish and wildlife may suggest not eating them based on water conditions.

Bluegill

Bluegill can be an exquisite choice if it is obtained in the proper environment. Bluegills are known for being some of the best tasting warm water fish species, but they taste can differ based on environment quite a bit. Bluegill in cold water vs hot water, in a lake, vs a pond, vs a river can all have some different flavors. This can make for some fun variation and experimenting.

Bluegill is most often fried, or cooked whole. Bluegill are small fish almost always less than 12 inches long, with a mild taste, firm meat, and it does not have a fishy taste.

Bass

Since the bass typically has a mild flavor, you can cook it pretty much however you like and still have a delicious meal.

Similar to bluegill, bass can have a slight note of sweet flavor. Although they don’t taste particularly fishy, you will detect some can detect a fishy flavor to them. Bass is such a commonly targeted sport fish, that is generally overlooked as a fish to consume, but in some regions, you’ll find this as a very common fish to eat.

Crappie

People who just love spending time fishing in the nearby river or pond frequently catch this species of fish. They are considered one of the easiest fish species to catch, which makes them a great fish to target for beginners or family.

Crappie have a mild and sweet flavor. The texture of the meat is flaky but firm, which some people find to be similar to lobster or crab.

While you can fry crappie, many fishermen will say that baking or grilling provides the best flavor.

There are many different ways to enjoy freshwater fish. These are just a few of the most common and best-tasting options that you’ll find.

Freshwater Drum

This fish is a bit of an acquired taste for some because it can have a muddy flavor.

This flavor is not present in all freshwater drums, however. If you catch one from clean water, you will be pleasantly surprised by its delicate and mild taste. The texture of its meat is also quite firm.

If you have never had freshwater drum before, baking is probably the best way to prepare it and get a feel for its flavor. You could also fry it or grill it if you’re feeling adventurous.

Catfish

Catfish is an extremely common and delicious freshwater fish to eat.

When it comes to taste, a smaller to medium-sized catfish is preferable, especially if you are worried about fishy flavors. The smaller the fish, the milder the taste will be.

There are many different ways to cook catfish. One popular way is to fry it, but you could also bake it, or even grill it.

No matter how you choose to prepare it, be sure to remove the skin and any dark meat before cooking as this can make the taste quite strong.

Perch

Perch is a mild-tasting fish that is popular among fishermen and seafood-lovers alike. It has a delicate flavor with firm, white flesh.

One of the best things about perch is that it can be cooked in many different ways and still taste great.

Cusk

Cusk is a freshwater fish that is lesser known but definitely worth trying.

This type of fish is frequently compared to cod, haddock, or pollock because they have a very similar taste and appearance. They are whitefish with rather large flakes. They also have a moist texture and a delicate flavor which makes them perfect for people who are not fans of fishy tastes.

Cusk is a great option for people who want to try something new but don’t want to stray too far from what they’re used to. It is versatile and can be used in many different recipes.

If you want to try cusk, it is best to baked, grilled, or poached.

Final Thoughts

There are many different freshwater fish to choose from if you want to add fish to your diet. These are just some of the best options available. Not only are these fish best for eating, but you can also try different recipes and have an amazing lunch or dinner with your family and friends.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Fish From Freshwater Have Parasites?

Fish in freshwater are parasitized by a variety of cestodes (tapeworms) as well as trematodes (flukes). However, one tapeworm is Ligula, which has various life stages that are parasitic on fish, crustaceans, and birds in order. In most cases, fully cooking fish prevents the passing of any parasites.

Can You Acquire Worms Via Fish Consumption?

When a person consumes fish that is infected with the worm Diphyllobothrium latum, such as undercooked or raw fish, they may become infected with fish tapeworms. They key is to fully cook your fish. Fish tapeworm is the most frequently used name for the worm. This particular species of tapeworm develops in raw fish-eating big animals and small aquatic organisms as victims. This generally can be fixed easily without long lasting effects.

What Types Of Freshwater Fish Are Unsafe To Eat?

Do some research on the best freshwater fish in your area to find out what’s available and what would be the best option for you and your family. Some local areas have populations of fish that may not be safe to consume, or contain contaminants that can be harmful to your health. A simple search on the local fish and wildlife organization will likely supply you with all the needed information.

Have you ever landed a fish you’ve never caught before then sat there staring at in the net wondering how you’re supposed to lift it up for the picture, or even how to release it?

WHY IS THERE A PROPER WAY TO HOLD FISH?

Holding a fish properly isn’t just for the benefit of the fish, it also keeps the angler safe. All fish, toothless or not, have defence mechanisms built-in. Whether its a bass with an effectively sharp dorsal fin, or walleye, pike, and muskie with their teeth, all fish can pose a threat to you as the angler. But- with proper holds there is little to no concern in handling them for a photo, releasing them, or even putting them into the live well if you’re planning on keeping them.

Times have changed, and our education towards fishing as our resource has also changed. With the growing recognition of CPR (Catch, Photo, and Release) lodge owners are embracing it. Some lodges won’t even post photos of fish being held improperly, so your trophy fish may not be shared or celebrated as it should be!

The reason lodges and fishing pages don’t post improper holds in photos is that in order for CPR to be successful, fish handling has to be done properly.

Have no fear!

Learning how to hold fish is certainly better done with hands-on practice. But this article will give you the bare-bones, easy to remember approach on handling each fish species that dwell in Sunset Country’s waters! To read more about why, scroll to the bottom of the article!

UNHOOKING FISH

Once you have the fish in the net, take a breath! Having the fish in the net keeps it wet, lively and breathing, giving you time to organize yourself. Pliers are optional and certainly encouraged.

By using pliers you can keep your bare hands free of the hooks and any hazards on the fish, ie, prickly spines. Once you’ve successfully unhooked the fish, take the lure out of the net, taking the time to secure it back onto the rod will keep the workspace even safer. So long as the fishes head is underwater in the net, you can remove rushing from the picture, that’s how mistakes are made.

Once you have hooks clear of the net and away from where you’ll be posing, get the camera out before you even think about lifting the fish out of the water. This way you’re all set for a couple of photos, and a seamless release- which you can capture on camera too!

HOW TO HOLD DIFFERENT SPECIES

Not all fish were created equally which means you’ll hold some of them differently than others. Don’t let this discourage you, all holds are simple and effective.

BASS

Both bass species are one of the few you won’t get much flack for holding vertically. They are also one of the easiest to hold because they can be “lipped,” or held directly from the mouth.

Like all larger fish of each species though, some extra care is required for heavier ones and the fish certainly won’t complain about having some extra help staying healthy.

Here are a couple of hold examples for bass:

This vertical hold is perfectly safe for this bass. They aren’t cranking its jaw and forcing the head to hold the body on an angle, it’s just straight up and down. This hold is also acceptable for crappie, largemouth bass, perch and other small panfish like sunfish.

The horizontal hold below is an excellent example of how to support a larger bass, crappie, or even perch. It also adds a different angle and makes it easier to take horizontal photos, instead of only verticals!

WALLEYE

Similar to bass, you can hold smaller walleye vertically without causing any harm, but you certainly do NOT want to “lip” them as they have some impressive teeth.

Below, Jeff Gustafson explains how the gill plate hold on walleye whether horizontally or vertically helps with catch and release as well as making your photographs look better!

NORTHERN PIKE AND MUSKIE

Perhaps the most intimidating of our fish species in Sunset Country is the Esox family of northern pike and muskie. It’s important to understand how to handle pike because they are especially common in these waters and odds are you’ll be unhooking a lot of them.

All fish deserve our respect, but perhaps the species requiring the most special care is the muskie. These fish grow LARGE. Which means they are especially subject to weight-bearing in the wrong places if held improperly. They may be the apex predator in the water, but when they are removed from their environment the saying “the bigger they are the harder they fall” is very much relevant.

The gill hold is very important to understand for holding pike and muskie. Not only will it protect the fish, but it’ll also protect you and your hands. If done properly, no gloves are necessary.

Here are the steps to make it simple:

1. Following the gill line to the bottom of the pike or muskies head, slide your index finger inside and underneath the jaw of the fish (much like you watched in the walleye video above)

2. Once you know you’re tight to the bottom of the fishes mouth and away from the gills, allow the rest of your fingers to slide in as well next to your index finger

3. Keeping your thumb outside of the mouth in the notch of the bottom jaw, you’ll be able to clamp down onto your index and other fingers inside the mouth of the fish.

4. Once their head is securely in your hands, lift them out of the net and support them horizontally by securing your other hand under their belly like the photos above.

LAKE TROUT/BROOK TROUT

Depending on the trout’s size and species, gill hold may or may not be acceptable. Large lake trout can be held by the gills with their weight supported, but a hold that will give you a more secure hold on their powerful tail may be mistaken for playing air guitar.

This “guitar hold” works for brook trout as well. Using your dominant hand (seems to work best for most) wrap your hand around their tail, with your other hand support the space between their pectoral (front) fins. Tucking your hands underneath will assure your fish looks great, but will also stop you from accidentally strangling the fish. The photo above shows both options for the non-dominant hand, the angler on the left is choosing to wrap her hands around, but keeping control of them not to choke or injure the fish. The angler on the right is tucking her hands below the fish, simply supporting the weight.

DON’T FEEL CONFIDENT YET?

Like with all things learning, practice really does make perfect. You can’t be expected to learn these perfectly the first time. The holds covered above are all focused on what will give you the most confidence, but you may find other proper ways to handle fish.

If you’d like to learn more about these holds, you could consider hiring an independent fishing guide for the day. Be clear with your intent to learn more, guides will be more than willing to help educate you on fish holds, tactics, techniques and even how to land them easier!

Here’s more on why it’s important to learn: Let’s say a large fish is held vertically, that large fish has until this point lived its life suspended horizontally almost weightlessly in water. Being hoisted by its jaw or gills (which acts as lungs for the fish) puts a tremendous amount of pressure not only on those areas, but it’s internal organs that have never felt gravity quite like this before. Larger fish held vertically poses a risk to their organs tearing from place and ultimately causing a delayed death after release.

PLAN YOUR TRIP

You’ve mastered landing countless fish, now you want to go for some true trophies! In Sunset Country you can go for walleye, muskie, northern pike, smallmouth and largemouth bass, perch, crappie, lake trout and brook trout.

If you don’t know where to begin, you can search by the species listed above, or check our Accommodation Finder and use filters such as drive-in, fully guided fishing, wheelchair accessible, fly-in outposts, and more!

You can also order our FREE Travel Guide including a pull-out map of the region and our lodges here. Feel free to call us at the Sunset Country office 1-800-665-7567 as well.

A figure 4 deadfall trap is one of the easiest primitive traps, and all you really need is a few sticks, a sharp knife, and bait.

There’s no cordage or complicated snare knots, just the simple tension of a few sticks holding a big rock in position, just waiting for the right animal to trigger it.

In its simplest form, a figure 4 trap starts with just three sticks, each about 8 inches long and 1 1/2 inches in diameter. From there, each stick can be carved into a simple tension deadfall trap that comes together without any cordage or snares.

The weight of the rock pushes down on the sticks, and if the notches are crafted right, this creates tension that holds the whole deadfall trap together. It’s a precarious balance though, and all it takes is the tiniest touch on the baited end and the whole structure comes crashing down…ideally mashing your prey.

Figure four traps are wonderful if you live in an area with an abundance of large, flat-ish rocks like my home in Vermont. These types of deadfall traps are best suited to small game, such as squirrels or possibly raccoon if you find (and can move) a big enough stone.

How to Make a Figure 4 Trap

I’m starting with three pieces of dry white pine, split like kindling. The straight grain makes carving much easier, but really any branch you can find in the woods will work.

This deadfall trap has three pieces, and for simplicity, I’ll refer to them as the vertical piece, diagonal piece and trigger piece. I’ve added a 4th piece to extend the trigger deeper under the rock and lashed it together with a bit of twine, but that piece is unnecessary I found.

The vertical piece is the easiest to carve, so start there. It’s basically just a stick with a pointed end. The point isn’t carved on all sides, just two of the faces, so it comes to a long linear point at one end.

The base end remains flat because that’s going to rest on the ground, or more specifically, another flat rock placed on the ground. Otherwise, the heavy rock pressing down on top would just drive it into the ground like a stake. Even a small-ish flat rock, maybe 4” in diameter prevents this, and also makes it easier to set the trap with a flat surface as a work area.

Here’s the vertical piece set into the figure 4 trap. All it needs to do is hook into the notch on the diagonal piece.

One more important thing to note about this first piece…the sides need to be squared off. This is important, as you’ll see later, since it allows the trigger piece to hook onto this stick.

Carving the Diagonal Piece

Next up is the diagonal piece, which is a bit more complicated, and has carved portions on both ends. The top comes to a rounded point where it will support the rock, and underneath it has a small notch for holding the vertical stick in place.

Start by rounding off the top end, and then notching into the stick about 2 inches below that. The notch should have a bit of a hook to it, which will help keep the vertical piece in place when they’re connected.

Carve the bottom of that same stick into a point, working just two sides so you have a long seam to hook into the 3rd piece (trigger piece).

Here’s what the diagonal piece should look like when finished:

Carving the Deadfall Trap Trigger

The final piece is the trigger stick or the horizontal piece in the figure 4 trap. This piece is the most complex because it needs to support the diagonal piece and hook onto the vertical piece. It hooks onto the side of the vertical piece, which is what creates the trigger tension.

Downward force from the weight of the rock above is pressuring the diagonal piece and trying to pull the trigger piece backward. It’s notched and hooked around the vertical piece, which is what holds the whole deadfall trap together until it’s tripped.

As I mentioned earlier, the vertical piece needs to be squared off so that the trigger piece can hook onto it. This is why…

Start by carving a notch at the back of the stick for the diagonal piece to rest against to tension the trap. Be sure to leave enough wood at the end that it won’t break out at the end when under stress. About an inch should do.

This notch should fit nicely into the bottom of your diagonal stick, and hook it in there with a bit of tension. Test the shape against your diagonal stick. This is the first of 3 different carved sections on the trigger stick.

Next, go to the other end and carve it into a narrow point to hold the bait. In my case, I’m using peanut butter, and more practically in the woods you might be using a tiny piece of meat or fruit and you’d need a sharp point to stick it to the trigger stick.

This is the most open-ended part of the whole trap, and really you can make it look like just about anything you’d like. Something small, so the animal has to nudge it a bit when they try to take the bait works best.

I could also imagine an alternate configuration where this trigger end is just a thin shelf to support some kind of seed or nut. It really depends on the bait you’re using, and how you want to dangle it out there.

Once you have that notch and the trigger point finished, place the pieces in figure 4 position to figure out where the side trip notch needs to be placed. This will vary a bit, based on the size of your wood and how you’ve carved the notches up to this point, but it should be about half way up the side of the trigger stick.

Carve the trigger notch out square so that the trigger stick hooks around the vertical stick. The finished trigger stick should look like this:

When I made this, I was concerned that my trigger stick was too short. As you can see, the side notch is about 2/3rds down the side of my stick and there’s not much trigger past the vertical stick on the figure 4.

I took another stick and lashed it together to extend the trigger further under the rock. In hindsight, that was completely unnecessary and the short trigger would work just as well.

I had a particularly long rock, so this trigger extension really gets the bait far underneath it. That’s totally optional, and actually limits the prey I can catch by putting the bait in a very small space.

A shorter trigger might mean catching something like a raccoon, but this long trigger placed far under limits the trap a bit. Luckily, I was targeting a tiny red squirrel that the best squirrel traps I could find hadn’t yet managed to catch. He was fun to watch, but when he took up residence inside the ceiling of my house we had to make other arrangements.

Be careful, of course, to check any local restrictions on trapping if you plan to deploy your deadfall trap. Also be aware that the trap will crush anything that trips it…including children, pets or toes.

If you do catch small game, try out any of these squirrel recipes. We really enjoyed traditional Brunswick stew, and country fried squirrel with gravy is a great breakfast.

All in all, the whole deadfall trap took me about half an hour to carve, sitting at the picnic table in our yard while the kids played nearby with their Tonka trucks. I don’t have a smartphone you see, so that means I get fun project time anytime the kids are self-entertaining. This, I can tell you, was a much more satisfying way to spend a few quiet minutes than scrolling Instagram.

It was a fun skill to practice, long in advance of being in a wilderness survival situation where I needed to harvest food with minimal equipment. Even lacking a knife, this trap could be made by carving with a sharp rock. It’d take a lot longer, but you could make it happen if you had to.

For me, it’s nice to know I have that skill under my belt, and now I’m looking forward to learning other types of traps.

More Bushcraft Skills

Looking for more bushcraft skills tutorials? Read on my friends…

• How to Clean & Gut a Groundhog
• How to Clean a Squirrel in Under a Minute
• Making Fatwax (Animal Fat Salve)
• How to Render Squirrel Fat (for Cookies!)
• How to Process Soil into Clay for Pottery
• How to Make Primitive Arrows

It seems that the wood duck’s survival strategies include behaving far differently than typical dabblers, thereby eluding hunters who cling to conventional tactics. Woodies show far greater ambivalence toward decoy spreads, they’re less tolerant of habitats near civilization, and their haphazard use of creeks and river systems complicates scouting efforts. However, with the right plan, ample opportunities exist to bag these strikingly handsome, challenging ducks. Here are five tricks.

Scout Covertly The best places to find wood ducks include beaver ponds, sloughs, forested backwaters and oak-lined portions of creeks. In the southern United States, flooded timber and swamps along river systems are especially productive.

Your goal is not only to find the birds, but to avoid detection. Wood ducks are known to vanish when disturbed, even if not by gunfire. So, approach suspected haunts with caution and use your ears. Woodies tend to be especially vocal on the water, and their contented squeals and chuckles are all the confirmation you need to plan a hunt. Their preferred habitats provide an advantage in this regard, as the surrounding trees allow you to creep along creeks and swamps while remaining hidden.

Tailor the Spread Finding the ‘X’ is critical, as decoying passing wood ducks (i.e. running traffic) can prove a frustrating endeavor. Wood ducks will decoy, but they’re not wont to do so well outside the vicinities of their intended destinations. Set up where the woodies want to be, and use your decoys to fine-tune their approach.

A small spread of about a dozen decoys is typically all that’s required. Don’t bother with a traditional ‘U’ or ‘J’ formation, as woodies frequently buzz the decoys without circling or regard to wind direction.

However, do ensure your spread consists mostly or entirely of wood duck decoys. While most dabblers will decoy to mallards, wood ducks much prefer to flock to their own species. I like to place a dozen woodie decoys upwind of the blind, with a spinning-wing decoy or small jerk rig in between. Motion is critical, both for visibility’s sake and because decoys amidst slack water scream fraudulence to wood ducks.

As a final touch, I position wood duck decoys closer to cover than I do mallards. I believe it’s a more natural setup, but it’s a fine line, as decoys hugging the shoreline are less visible.

Call ’Em In (Yes, you can) Rarely I’ve witnessed fairly distant wood ducks turn and coast in on cupped wings to calling. Far more often they maintain course, but if one time out of 50 calling wood ducks works, why wouldn’t you keep a dedicated squeal call on your lanyard?

Ideally, of course, you are where the wood ducks want to be. In that event, crisp chatter simply lets the wood ducks know where you are.

There is one time, however, that wood ducks respond to calling better than mallards: when they’re on the water. Woodies frequently paddle in like aquatic turkeys to squeals and chuckles. Once they’re lured in range, just stand and flush them from the water for a sporting shot.

Jump-Shoot Midday Wood ducks are among the most susceptible species to jump-shooting, particularly at midday as they loaf along forested creeks. Quietly walk or canoe the creek, readying yourself at every bend for unseen birds.

If you have a partner, all the better. Position him or her downstream, as wood ducks tend to follow the water as they flee an approaching hunter, thereby providing superb pass shooting.

Limit Pressure For whatever reason, many hunters like to invite several buddies for early season wood duck hunts. If your goal is shooting a few wood ducks and moving on to mallards for the remainder of autumn, by all means take advantage of the opportunity. However, know your spot won’t likely produce thereafter. Wood ducks are extremely sensitive to pressure.

The smarter approach is inviting one buddy, shooting a couple drakes and sneaking out. Thus your honeyhole is preserved and you aren’t back to square one.

Jennifer Kuroda started a not-for-profit organization called the Illinois Bobcat Foundation after the state opened the season on the bobcat. Since then, she’s been an outspoken critic of the practice. Kuroda says she understands that bobcats are one of the most adaptable mammals on the continent, but that’s besides the point.

“There’s definitely not any concern for the status of bobcats in the United States right now,” she said. “But do we need to hunt them?”

For the past seven years Kuroda has lined up for one of the bobcat hunting permits Illinois issues each year — with plans to leave it unused and possibly save at least one of the wildcats.

“I have applied for a permit not to use since the very beginning, and I’ve never received one,” said Kuroda. “So the odds are unlikely, but I still feel it’s a method for me to be involved and have a voice in the conservation of bobcats.”

Wildcat

The bobcat is a medium-sized lynx with a short bobbed tail, hence the name, and dense brown-gray fur along its back, with a whitish underside speckled with black. That makes it prized by hunters and trappers of furbearers. The best pelts can fetch hundreds of dollars, with pelts from the western U.S. typically going for a higher premium than those from the east.

Viorel Popescu is an associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Ohio University in Athens, where he researches quantitative wildlife ecology and lately, bobcat populations. He says that habitat destruction coupled with the fur trade led to a decline in bobcat populations by the 1850s throughout the Midwest.

“They were never in danger of extinction,” said Popescu. “But they had been extirpated from several Midwest states like Ohio, Indiana, Illinois.”

The bobcat is not a federally endangered species. They’re one of the most widely distributed, medium-sized mammals in the country, second only to the raccoon. Popescu adds that today the lynx’s range spans nearly the entire United States, and parts of Canada and Mexico.

Still, a handful of states, including Indiana and Ohio, continue to ban bobcat hunting. Indiana, for example, shot down a 2019 proposal to open a season for the lynx. That same year, California officials closed their bobcat season until further notice.

Popescu says that although bobcat populations were able to return to Midwestern states, arriving at any official count or estimate of the total existing population is complicated by the cryptic nature of the species.

“And the estimates of total numbers of bobcats are really unknown,” he said. “What we know for sure are some very localized densities from very focused studies.”

Open season

Currently there is no population estimate of the number of bobcats in Illinois, and the whole northeast quadrant of the state is off limits to bobcat trappers and hunters. Some counties are cut right down the middle, where hunting is allowed on one side but not the other.

Similarly, Oklahoma does not have a solid number to point at when it comes to bobcat populations. Jerrod Davis, a senior biologist with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, says that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

“If you have a very accurate estimate of how many animals you have in a state, you have a problem,” said Davis.

For others, that’s a cause for concern.

Laura Nirenberg founded the Center for Wildlife Ethics in Indiana and has been executive director for three decades. She’d like to to keep bobcat season closed in the state, even though just across the state line in Illinois, it’s allowed. She says that the self-reported sightings don’t necessarily translate to verifiable proof.

“I can’t tell you how many times people see a stray dog and say that they’ve got a coyote. My point is they’re not trained,” said Nirenberg. “Their intentions might be pure, they might want to help the bobcat and or the department, but that doesn’t mean that the information being gathered is valid.”