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Patrick Durkin

Patrick Durkin
Outdoors writer/editor, weekly columnist for 17 Wisconsin newspapers, regular contributor to American Hunter magazine, and former editor of Deer & Deer Hunting magazine.

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Whitetail Deer

American Deer Camps: A Dying Tradition
Tom Heberlein never missed a deer camp from 1973 through 2019, but COVID-19 concerns caused him to break that streak in November 2020.
Heberlein, 75, stayed home rather than risk his health by confining himself with his buddies for five nights inside his northern Wisconsin shack along with a nine-hour, 550-mile roundtrip in a compact SUV. But the retired professor brushes off that disruption to his 47-year run as a camp regular and longtime boss...

Wildlife Management

Wisconsin’s Top Sturgeon Biologist Charged in Caviar Probe
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ top sturgeon biologist faces obstruction charges that allege he and his staff illegally funneled sturgeon eggs to local caviar processors during the annual sturgeon-spearing season on the Lake Winnebago system.
The DNR’s three-year internal investigation became public Feb. 10 when Ryan Koenigs, 36, was charged in Calumet County Circuit Court on one count of obstructing a conservation warden. The...

Big Game

Why Are Bucks Always Last in Line?
According to deer-hunting lore, wise bucks always stop and watch from secure cover before entering fields or large openings. These mature monarchs supposedly stay hidden to patiently monitor other deer in the field and let them feed into range of potential dangers.
In human terms, those bucks act much like a soldier in a foxhole who uses a stick to poke his helmet above the sandbags to draw enemy fire. Only after the buck sees does, fawns, and...

Policy & Legislation

Suspect Arrested for Burning Down Hunting Cabin
Last week we told you about how Brandon Butler’s cabin was burned. This is our follow up to that article.
The southeastern Missouri man arrested Jan. 16 for allegedly torching a cabin in retaliation for a poaching complaint has a 17-year criminal history. His rap sheet includes burglary, poaching, physical assault, and traffic violations. The convicted felon also served prison time for possessing a firearm and controlled drugs.
Corey J...

Habitat

Missouri Poacher Burns Down Landowner’s Cabin in Retaliation
Brandon Butler drove three and a half hours on Jan. 4 to see what remained of his hunting cabin. He then watched the still-flickering flames for five minutes before leaving the fire to its task and retracing his drive home.
He had seen enough. He knew a short, memorable chapter in his life was over. Every tangible part of those memories was now ash.
Butler, 41, lives in Columbia, Missouri. He cherished his cabin and 43 acres in the Ozarks of...

Wildlife Management

The Savage Murder of Warden Neil LaFave, Part 2
This is Part Two of a two-part series on the 1971 murder of Warden Neil LaFave. Part One covers how Brian Hussong decapitated LaFave and the historic investigation for his murder weapon. Part Two covers Hussong’s daring escape from prison and his 12 weeks spent hiding in the forest.
Wisconsin conservation warden Dale Morey slept with his loaded .38-caliber handgun beneath his pillow for three and a half months after the killer he helped...

Wildlife Management

The Savage Murder of Warden Neil LaFave, Part 1
This is Part One of a two-part series on the 1971 murder of Warden Neil LaFave. Part One covers how Brian Hussong decapitated LaFave and the historic investigation for his murder weapon. Part Two covers Hussong’s daring escape from prison and his 12 weeks spent hiding in the forest.
Brown County District Attorney Donald R. Zuidmulder knew who brutally murdered Neil L. LaFave on Sept. 24, 1971, at the Sensiba Wildlife Area northwest of Green...

Whitetail Deer

The Truth About “The Void” in a Deer’s Chest
No biologist, veterinarian, or medical professional believes the popular bowhunting claim that deer have dead space high in their chest.
That void, it’s said, lets a broadhead pass through with little harm to the deer if it just happens to exhale as the arrow hits, supposedly opening the space farther. MeatEater’s “consulting physician,” Dr. Alan Lazzara, calls that myth “deer hunting’s magic-bullet theory” for explaining unrecovered deer.
The...

Whitetail Deer

Playgrounds to Ponds: When Deer Die in Strange Places
I’m still waiting for two sticks of summer sausage from a buck that died in my driveway in November 2015. Something tells me the guy down the street forgot all about his promise to bring my reward for finding his bow kill.
Funny thing, gratitude: It’s abundant in the moment but fizzles faster than morning fog. Not only did I find that bow kill on my property, but I also found the bowhunter after backtracking the buck’s blood trail through two...

Wildlife Management

Is Killing More Deer the Answer to Reducing Tick Diseases?
Few flying, creeping, or crawling bugs freak people out more than ticks. These arachnids infect hundreds of thousands of Americans annually with more than 17 different devastating diseases and allergies.
So, wouldn’t it be great if we could shoot our way out of those problems? Whitetails especially are key hosts for several tick species, including Lone Star ticks, dog/wood ticks, and the infamous blacklegged tick, aka the “deer tick.”
Deer ticks...