Excerpt from ANISHINAABE MANOOMIN GENAWENIMAAJIG

February 6, 2026

Long-time Minnesota Environmental Leader and Treaty Rights Advocate Changes Worlds

GLIFWC sends condolences to family and friends of Ningokwad Binesi- Reginald Defoe Sr.

GLIFWC sends condolences to family and friends of Ningokwad Binesi- Reginald Defoe Sr. 

Off-reservation hunters are reminded that harvest registration is required by tribal conservation codes for many species. Hunters have multiple registration options for deer, bear, turkey, and cranes: in-person, at a tribal registration stations (see data.glifwc.org/registration for a map of locations), online (glifwc.nagfa.net/online), or by phone (844-234-5439). Swans must be registered in-person. The benefits of harvest registration are substantial, extending well beyond an exercise in indigenous sovereignty and self-regulation. 

With another early dagwaagin waawaashkeshi hunting season marked by warm temperatures in the 1837 and 1842 Ceded Territories, the deer harvest has gotten off to a relatively slow start in 2025. From the season opener on September 2 through October 29, Ojibwe off-reservation hunters registered 161 whitetails. Over the same period, 29 black bears, or makwag, were harvested. Tribal hunters have the option of registering their deer and bear in- person at tribal registration stations, with a GLIFWC conservation warden, or remotely using the online registration system.

Downloadable digital versions of off-reservation treaty harvest regulations are available at glifwc.org. These regulation summaries require minimal memory space and cellphone reception. Updated editions are due soon from the printer. “You can easily slip them in a backpack or pocket to have on hand if you need to brush up on any guidelines, especially when you’re sitting in a stand or a blind,” said Allie Carl GLIFWC’s furbearer biologist. 

In conjunction with partners from US Forest Service and University of Wisconsin-Madison, GLIFWC has been awarded nearly $690,000 for waabizheshiwag, or American marten, stewardship in Wisconsin and the surrounding Ceded Territories. The National Fish and Wildlife Federation apportioned the funds through the America Ecosystem Restoration Initiative (formerly known as America the Beautiful Challenge Grant). While waabizheshiwag are present in Wisconsin, their population numbers are low enough that they are both a tribally and state endangered species.