Tennessee Wildcast

The TWRA will soon change its license vendor, which might seem a bland issue to most. But, it’s a big change for sportsmen. You might even say historic. Your licenses will soon look different and your shopping experience much easier than ever with this change coming Halloween Day. TWRA’s Michael May and Alicia Cheasty do an excellent job explaining why the change in license vendors has them excited  and why you and our 1,200 license agents across Tennessee should enjoy the change that comes with advanced technology.

Join a return visit to Tennessee WildCast from Darrell (Bones) Bernd. Among many topics, Bones will discuss the excellent fish and fishing opportunities on our smaller waters (rivers and creeks) and give you a website location where you can get for free the single best book ever written about the fish (from minnows to muskies) that inhabit Tennessee. He will also give us a few fish Identification tips on some of the fish you are most likely to catch wading a stream.

You may be a parent who doesn’t know much about hunting or fishing, but you want  your kids to have the opportunity to see if the outdoors is for them. Or, you may be a female who hasn’t had the right opportunity to cast a fishing rod or shoot a rifle or shotgun. Could be you are one of our wounded soldiers who want to continue being active in the outdoors, or start learning about the sportsman’s life. Regardless of what category you may fall under, or others we aren’t thinking about here, join Donald Hosse on this week’s Tennessee WidCast and learn from an outreach pro how you, or someone you care about, might change can be given the opportunity to get outside with others who love the outdoors and want to share their knowledge and good fortune.

Don Crawford has helped get more than 40,000 youngsters across the state get interested in shooting archery in our schools, but  as you might expect he is also an archery buff himself and will give all of you a few hunting and safety tips as we approach the 2016 archery-only deer season. Don will also discuss the National Archery In The Schools Program that kids across Tennessee are loving. Join us and then maybe get your school or you kids joined introduced to NASP and perhaps a hobby for life.

Tennessee WildCast Hosts Doug Markham and Jason Harmon go solo together in this episode of TWRA's weekly podcast. Every now and again they forgo a guest and get listeners and viewers caught up on the current events of hunting and fishing. This week they pay special attention to changes in upcoming hunt seasons and also explain the various Social Media ways to interact with the agency. Hope you enjoy the show. Someone is going to win a TN WildCast T-Shirt!

Join Darrell (Bones) Bernd as he talks about what a creel clerk  does for TWRA. It's a great job and one very important to anglers. Why should you talk to a creel clerk? Watch this episode and find out, plus learn a little bit about how to tell one fish from another.

It’s great to get your Executive Director on air from time to time so that he can update everyone on the latest. That is exactly what Director Ed Carter does in this episode of Tennessee WildCast. From the budge that sportsmen help us create, to the latest news on Chronic Wasting Disease, great news about two properties benefitting sportsmen,  and a new licensing system that hunters, anglers, and boaters will soon be using.  You will enjoy our director. He is always willing to share agency news. 

There is a reason that Dekalb County Wildlife Officer Joe Fortner was chose as this year’s best TWRA officer. Joe spends and easy half-hour with us discussing the Caney Fork River, Center Hill Lake, the hunting in this rural county, and even gives us a good tip or two about what to expect when you visit a TWRA shooting Range. Before he became a county officer, Joe worked as the range manager at Stones River Shooting Range in Middle Tennessee. You will enjoy Joe and learn much from the son of Tony Fortner, the long-time officer of Williamson County.

Can you believe almost 700,000 Tennesseans (mostly youngsters) have taken and passed Hunter Education since the program began in the mid-1980s? We are looking to graduate many more in the years ahead and in this edition of Tennessee WildCast you will learn how to enroll in hunter education and also get some excellent safety tips.

Black bears once occupied all of Tennessee and while they are not as widespread as they once were, they are growing in numbers and are always an enjoyable topic of discussion. How much do black bears weigh? What do they like to eat—and no it's not just meat. Where are bears mostly found in Tennessee? Join us for this week’s Tennessee WildCast when Statewide Bear Coordinator Dan Gibbs shares a bunch of his black bear knowledge. 

Region 2 Manager  Tim Cleveland makes you want to get outside! Join Tim in a lively discussion about smallmouth fishing, small rivers and creeks, access to these waters, waterfowl crop updates on local wildlife management areas,  and much more. Then get your gear and go outdoors!

Mark Gudlin has been in his new position as the Chief of Wildlife and Forestry for several months now, but we finally got to catch up with him and learned a great deal about the state of the state of our big and small game animals. From elk and deer to cottontails and quail, you’ll learn much from Mark Gudlin on this edition of Tennessee WildCast.

The labels on life jackets, like the labels on so many items in our lives, often get ignored. But, those labels can mean much to you and your family when it comes to providing the best possible chance of overcoming the results of an accident. U.S. Coast Guard approved lifejackets are designed to provide buoyancy that will keep you afloat whenever and for whatever reason you enter the water. Join TWRA’s Statewide Boating Education Coordinator Betsy Woods as she discusses the importance of proper life jackets, the various kinds of jackets, determining which jackets are best for your particular outing, and much more

Fish Manager Todd St. John will talk with Doug and Jason about the excellent opportunities to catch all kinds of fish on the outstanding lakes found in Middle Tennessee. Todd will also discuss the future of Normandy Hatchery and an expansion that should provide millions of more fish and fishing opportunities in the years ahead.

TWRA’s Family Fishing Lakes are designed specifically, solely, completely, for fishing—whether you like bass, bluegill of catfish. West Tennessee has an abundance of our Family Fishing Lakes , including one where a nearly 17-pound largemouth was caught and released by TWRA during an electro-fishing survey not long ago. Learn more about these small impoundments from TWRA Fish Biologist Tim Broadbent. Then, head out with your family for a good chance of catching a great day of fishing and a guarantee of tranquility not always available on our larger public lakes.

Tennessee is one of the most boated states in the country and it is great fun, but every year the TWRA has to tell family members they have lost loved ones to a boating mishap. Boating Accident Investigator Matt Majors loves the water, but he he has worked many recovery efforts and had to endure the pain of family and friends waiting on words about their loved one. Matt will talk about how to stay safe on the water, but also discuss the tools he hates to use when a a tragic boating accidents occurs.

Some anglers are concerned about the future of crappie fishing on Kentucky Lake, others are asking questions about a contaminant warning on a portion of this famous reservoir, and yet others are worried about an invasion of Asian carp. Despite all this, TWRA fish biologist Tim Broadbent says the future of fishing in Kentucky Lake looks good and it should continue to have a reputation as one of the country’s best fishing destinations.

Meet Bill Cox, a member of the Tennessee Fish & Wildlife Commission. His love for the outdoors has helped guide him to become one of the 13-members of the commission that helps oversee the agency that manage the states 1,000+ species of fish and wildlife. As a representative of those who enjoy hunting, fishing, or just viewing our wildlife, Commissioner Cox is always working to improve outdoors opportunities.

Wouldn’t you love to catch a 200 pound sturgeon, or maybe one even bigger? The day is coming when someone will. Join Jason Henegar, Assistant Chief of TWRA’s Fish Division, as he discusses the future of Tennessee's Lake Sturgeon among other fishy topics on this week’s Tennessee WildCast.

Have you ever wondered how the guys on TV shoot and create the great outdoor programming hitting the airwaves these days? We will talk with Barry Cross, long time videographer and now TWRA Information Specialist for Region 2. We’ll get a few secrets of the trade, plus learn where to share your videos once you have a finished product.