Anti-hunting groups’ attempt to pass two bills to permanently ban wolf in Minnesota comes up short when both bills expired.

Tests on more than 750 ducks shot by Minnesota hunters this fall have turned up no signs of the kind of bird flu that devastated the Midwest poultry industry earlier this year.

Wildlife managers in the upper Midwest expect the first results next week from tests that could provide an early warning on whether ducks flying south for the winter are carrying the deadly kind of bird flu that devastated the region's poultry earlier this year.

The Department of Natural Resources says its pheasant index, as measured by roadside counts, is 33 percent higher than it was last year. The DNR says its August roadside survey calculated 40.7 pheasants per 100 miles of roadside driven.

The Minnesota dentist whose killing of Cecil the lion sparked a global backlash emerged for an interview in which he disputed some accounts of the hunt, expressed agitation at the animosity directed at those close to him and said he would be back at work within days.

Police and animal control officers are warning pet owners in the Bloomington area about a rash of coyote attacks on small dogs.

The latest population surveys show no significant change in Minnesota's wolf population during the past three winters. Although the new estimate of 2,221 wolves is lower than the previous winter's 2,423.

The Minnesota Zoo's grizzly bear exhibit has reopened after one of the bears shattered a glass enclosure pane.

A grizzly bear exhibit at the Minnesota Zoo is temporarily closed after one of the bears picked up a basketball-sized rock and shattered a barrier.

This season, there were 268 teams and 8,600 participants, shooting at 165 ranges across the state. Hundreds of interested students were turned away, due to limited time and space at the local clubs.