With soaring ammunition costs and shortages of cartridges on store shelves making headlines in recent months, more shooters have begun reloading their own ammunition, results from a national survey show.
According to the poll from ShooterSurvey.com and HunterSurvey.com poll, about one in four respondents -- slightly more than 26 percent -- said they reload.
Not surprisingly, saving money was the top reason cited by survey respondents. A closer look at the top reasons for reloading:
• To save money: 86 percent.
• To improve accuracy: 72 percent.
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• To obtain rounds difficult to find in stores: 34 percent.
• To reduce waste: 28 percent.
• Other: 11 percent.
Reasons cited in the "other" category included reloading for fun, relaxation and enjoyment. Respondents could check more than one reason.
Among the types of ammunition reloaded, rifle led the way with 79 percent, followed by 60 percent who assemble handgun cartridges and 28 percent loading shotgun shells. Some people who reload do so with multiple types of ammunition.
Outdoors enthusiasts are encouraged to participate in monthly surveys at HunterSurvey.com, ShooterSurvey.com and/or AnglerSurvey.com. Each month, participants who complete the survey are entered into a drawing for one of five $100 gift certificates to the sporting goods retailer of their choice.
-- Herald staff report
Taking their lead from President Obama's January inauguration and State of the Union speeches, a coalition of 10 groups representing millions of anglers, hunters, scientists and conservationists from all across the country have asked the Obama administration "to develop and implement climate change adaptation strategies that support the resiliency of fish and wildlife populations."
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In a letter to the president, the coalition said outdoors enthusiasts and conservation advocates across the country recognize the compelling need to address the adverse impacts of climate change. Anglers and hunters who spend a lot of time in the field are among the first to truly grasp the impacts of climate change, the groups said, and they understand its devastating potential if steps aren't taken to help fish and game populations deal with the challenges it presents.
"Because of the time we spend in the woods, fields, lakes and rivers, changes in weather patterns are not an abstraction to us," the letter said. "This past year alone, we saw iconic rivers such as the Yampa in Colorado and Madison in Montana closed to fishing due to high water temperatures. Likewise, we saw droughts in the Midwest dry up duck marshes, and wildfires of uncommon intensity burn more than 9 million acres of game habitat."
Signing the letter were representatives from the American Fisheries Society, American Fly Fishing Trade Association, Bass Anglers Sportsmen Society, Ducks Unlimited, Izaak Walton League of America, Quail Forever, Pheasants Forever, Trout Unlimited and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership's Wildlife Management Institute.
-- Herald staff report
Ask the DNR
Q. I've seen a number of Minnesota vehicles with loon license plates on them. How popular are the plates and how is the money generated by their sales used?
A. The loon plate, since its introduction in 2005, has been the most popular critical habitat plate. Today in Minnesota, there are 107,059 critical habitat license plates on the roads, 30,867 of which are the loon design.
The money from the sale of these plates goes to buy and manage land that is important for public use. Sometimes the land is for hunting, hiking, wildlife watching or all of the above. These lands will be preserved for their unique qualities and for a valuable public purpose.
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-- Lori Naumann
Naumann is an information officer for the DNR's Nongame Wildlife program.
