A while back – quite a while ago, as a matter of fact, I wrote:
This blog is is something I had wanted to do for a while. Back then it seemed to me as well as some of my friends and colleagues, that when it comes to wild life issues, the perspective comes from either the ‘hook and bullet’ crowd, or the extreme environmentalist. That still holds true, although I think extreme environmentalism is getting stronger and more ‘mainstream’ every day.
I had hoped to straddle that divide, but don’t think I have, or can. Neither of the two extremes seem to make sense to me. Originally, I had hoped I would be posting ‘guest’ blogs from time to time, but that hasn’t happened, so I might as well just forget about it.
As for me, I’m still the same person I was, just a couple of years older . . .
I am retired from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, now called the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (I guess trees are not a natural resource). I’m a Biologist with an MSc, and was a Biologist for the Ministry. I worked on many projects including helping to write the guidelines used to maintain ecological integrity to forest ecosystems when areas are planned for harvest, renewal and maintenance. I was also integral to re-introducing elk back to Ontario.
In addition to my former ‘day job’, I’ve been writing on outdoor subject matter for magazines and newspapers for over 40 years. I’m a columnist for Ontario Out of Doors magazine.
Interestingly (at least to me) the magazine once asked me to blog, but then declined to go with it because some of my personal views don’t sit well with their owner and publisher. So be assured this blog is a true reflection of what I think, not what I’m paid to write. And I don’t get paid a cent for this blog.
If you have anything you’d like to see this blog address – given what little I’ve provided – let me know, and I’ll see what I can do.
By the way, unless it says otherwise, all the photos that appear on these posts were taken by me, unless they include me (I seldom do selfies). They are embedded with my copyright, so shouldn’t be copied and used without my permission. Although they are in low-res in the posts, most were taken as a NEF (RAW) image, so are available in high resolution in whatever format you might want (e.g., jpg, TIFF).
Thanks!
That was an update from my original ‘About’ page, which is gone as far as I know.
Time brings changes. I quit blogging for several months as a couple of big projects (getting a paper published about deer and moose in a scientific journal and writing up a forest management plan for our property) left my writer side completely exhausted. But I decided to try again, and maybe go off on other tangents, at least from time to time.
I don’t know what I’ll be writing about in the future, but if you have any suggestions, or questions, I’ll be more than happy to see what I can do in regard to a response. Hopefully, I’ll provide at least a bit of entertainment for some .
Enjoy!
wildlifeperspectives 
Hey Bruce, What do you know about porcupines? I moved to Nipigon in 1990 and noticed an abundance of porkys all over the place. Now, I can’t remember the last time that I’ve seen one. Although fishers are around, I wouldn’t say that they are very common. Could a disease be responsible for their disappearance?
Sam
I don’t know a whole lot about porcupines, although I do like them, unlike many. My wife raised one (and released it later) after its mother had been shot by a cottager. A few years ago, a friend of mine shot a dozen or so when they insisted on chewing on his hunt camp – after that, he has seldom seen one. I do know they have a slow rate of reproduction (only one young per year). And as you note, fishers do eat them. They are also quite secretive in that they will spend a long period of time, at least in winter, close to their den. We’ve been keeping tabs on one this winter and it hasn’t strayed, as far as we can tell, more than 20 m from it’s den (eats in a jack pine, then goes back to its hideaway). I mention this as it suggests to me they could be more numerous than we think if that’s how they behave (at least when the snow is deep). My wife (a licensed wildlife rehabilitator) thinks porcupines MIGHT be susceptible to tularemia, but isn’t positive. Other than that, we don’t know of any diseases that might be doing in the porcupine population.
On Tue, Mar 17, 2015 at 5:58 PM, wildlifeperspectives wrote:
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I clicked the like button but it was not a 100% like. I would appreciate if you had a name and some indication of where you lived. I assume southern Ontario but it could be down town Thunder Bay or even Toronto. How about Minaki or Hornepayne?
My name is Bruce Ranta and I live in the City of Kenora.
Very good. Thank you Bruce. I lived in Kenora from 1964 to 1973 and know the area well. I look forward to reading the rest of your blog.
Bruce, you haven’t posted anything since June. Writter’s cramp?
I just can’t seem to get motivated. There’s not much traffic on my blog and it didn’t seem to be generating much interest. I also had a HUGE project on moose and deer that was finally finished. It’s a paper for the journal Alces and will be published within days. Once that was out of the way, I took an assessment of what is going on in my life and …..I don’t know. I’m close to giving up writing completely. Life is short and I seem to be running on empty…..
Hi Bruce, are you still involved with the elk committee? This year, I got trail cam photos of 3 elk in one of the areas that I hunt near North Branch (north of Stratton). Logging activity on both private and Crown land has eliminated a lot of upland mixed wood forests in the area. I’m not sure if elk habitat protection was considered in the latest FMP, but the area where these elk that I photographed is allocated for harvest and there aren’t a lot of large stands remaining in the area, Although the original elk were released near Cameron Lake, they have dispersed to surrounding areas; including North Branch. It goes without saying that if elk numbers are to increase, they need suitable places to live.
There is no longer an elk committee but Murray English and I still monitor the elk herd and report our findings to the OFAH on a regular basis. I would certainly appreciate a little more info: e.g., age/sex of the animals and a bit more on location (I won’t divulge the info in a way that might be problematic to the elk or your hunting grounds). I doubt if elk were a consideration in the FMP and once approved it’s hard to do much, especially as elk are not an MNRF priority in the Fort. On the other hand, the elk don’t need a lot of heavy cover – they are doing great in southeastern Alberta on the bald ass prairie. Poaching is the big problem here as is legal but unregulated/unlicensed hunting. Plus wolves and bears. At any rate, yes I’m interested, still involved with elk and will do what I can to ensure they stay on the radar of hunter’s and others.
I should have included my email: it’s rantabr@gmail.com.