The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is going to start conducting random roadside checks in 2012. Conservation officers will inspect trailers, boats and other vehicles to help stop the spread of zebra mussels and other aquatic invasive species. More decontamination units and watercraft inspectors will also be deployed at infested lakes and rivers around the state.

For the past decade, volunteers at the National Eagle Center have been treating the birds to "Beach Day." The trip to the Mississippi River has become a weekly summertime tradition in Wabasha.

The Department of Natural Resources says the decline is a result of a smaller deer population and a windy opening weekend of the firearms season. Minnesota deer hunters harvested 192,300 deer during the 2011 season. That's 15,000 fewer deer than in 2010. The 2012 deer hunting season begins in September.

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and sheriff's officials are stepping up efforts to keep boaters safe on lakes statewide as the 4th of July approaches. The officials are taking part in a nationwide effort called Operation Dry Water, which highlights the dangers of boating under the influence (BUI).