Delta Waterfowl Joins Partners to Advocate for Public Lands, Crane Season in Wisconsin

Delta staff and volunteers participated in Camo at the Capitol Lobby Day in Madison

BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA — Delta Waterfowl joined conservation partners from across Wisconsin for the 2026 Camo at the Capitol Lobby Day in Madison on Jan. 7 in support of two of their highest priorities in the Badger State — establishing a regulated hunting season for sandhill cranes and reauthorizing the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program before its expiration later this year.

Delta staff and volunteers joined roughly 75 other sportsmen and women from across Wisconsin representing partner groups, including Ducks Unlimited, Congressional Sportsman’s Foundation, Safari Club International, Wisconsin Waterfowl Association, Pheasants Forever and others to meet with lawmakers and their staffs. Hunting advocates were greeted by State Reps. Treig Pronschinske, Chanz Green, and Paul Tittl, before setting out for a day of meetings in the state capitol.

“Lawmakers in Wisconsin heard from hunters this week on two major priorities in the state,” said Cyrus Baird, Delta Waterfowl’s vice president of government affairs. “Establishing a hunting season for sandhill cranes is a science-backed, common-sense proposal which will provide additional hunting opportunities, and the reauthorization of the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program has broad, bipartisan support across the state and will keep Wisconsin’s sporting heritage strong for generations to come.”

The Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program is used to purchase and conserve suitable Wisconsin properties, opening them up as public lands for hunting, fishing, trapping, and other outdoor recreation.

While in Madison, Baird also testified on Jan. 6 before the Assembly Sporting Heritage Committee in support of Assembly Bill 117, the Assembly version of the legislation to establish a hunting season for sandhill cranes.

While hunters were meeting with legislators and their staff throughout the day on Jan. 7, the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Financial Institutions and Sporting Heritage voted 3-2 to pass Senate Bill 112, the Senate equivalent of Assembly Bill 117.

“We want to thank Committee Chairman Rob Stafsholt for his leadership on Senate Bill 112 and getting Wisconsin hunters one step closer to establishing a season for sandhill cranes,” Baird said.

Delta Waterfowl is The Duck Hunters Organization^TM, a leading conservation group founded in 1911 that uses science-based solutions to produce ducks, conserve prairie wetlands, and secure the future of waterfowl hunting in North America. Visit deltawaterfowl.org.