Wildlife Legislation
WEEK OF NOVEMBER 5, 2009
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WEEKLY WILDLIFE
NEWS Wildlife Legislation |
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WEEK OF NOVEMBER 5, 2009 |
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Emergency paddlefish rules to maintain fishing opportunities while reducing
harvest
Oklahoma is known for having the best paddlefish fishery in the
world, and emergency rules approved by the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation
Commission will help ensure the fishing in northeast Oklahoma is as good in the
future as it is now.
At its November meeting, the Commission approved the following
emergency rules for paddlefish angling:
* Paddlefish anglers will be required to immediately release all paddlefish
caught on Fridays and Mondays, statewide.
* When an angler keeps a paddlefish, they will be required to immediately record
the date and time of harvest of all paddlefish on their paddlefish permit.
* All snagging will be closed on the Grand River from the Hwy 412 bridge
upstream to the Markham Ferry (Lake Hudson) dam from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
year-round.
* The Spring River will be designated a paddlefish sanctuary and will be closed
to paddlefish angling by all methods from the Hwy 60 bridge upstream to the
Kansas state line.
All rules take effect Jan. 1, 2010.
According to Barry Bolton, chief of fisheries for the Oklahoma
Department of Wildlife Conservation, these rules were put in place to reduce the
harvest of paddlefish after two years of detailed data from the Department's
Paddlefish Research and Processing Center indicated that the fishery was being
supported primarily by the fish from the 1999 spawn. Female paddlefish must
generally reach eight to 10 years of age before they can reproduce, making the
huge fish sensitive to overharvest.
“These measures should reduce our harvest by as much as 30 percent
while still providing significant paddlefish angling opportunities, which can go
a long way in sustaining the species for anglers to enjoy for generations to
come,” Bolton said. “By establishing ‘catch-and-release' days on Fridays and
Mondays, anglers can still enjoy a long weekend of fishing, but they may take
home fewer fish than before depending on what days they fish. I am confident
this will have a long-lasting positive impact on our paddlefish fisheries and
future angling opportunities, while minimally impacting the fishing we enjoy
today.”
Prior to establishing the Paddlefish Research and Processing Center
at Twin Bridges State Park near northeast Oklahoma's City of Miami, the Wildlife
Department knew very little about the number of anglers fishing for paddlefish
each year. The Department also knew very little about the annual harvest numbers
of paddlefish, which is one of Oklahoma's largest fish and dates back to the
time of the dinosaurs. As a result, management of the fish proved challenging,
and data collection was a difficult and slow process, as fish generally had to
be killed by biologists in order for pertinent biological data to be collected.
The Research and Processing Center opened in the spring of 2008 and
offers anglers free processing of their paddlefish in exchange for biological
data and eggs collected from female fish that were going to be harvested by
anglers anyway. The data is used to help make important management decisions,
and eggs collected from fish are sold worldwide as caviar. Proceeds from egg
sales are then used to fund the paddlefish program in Oklahoma, which includes
management and projects to improve paddlefish angling opportunities, such as
access to prime fishing waters. Since its inception, the Research and Processing
Center has collected information from thousands of fish, far more than
biologists could survey without anglers' help.
The emergency rules come before a slate of town hall meetings and
public hearings to be held in 2010, where these rules and others are scheduled
for discussion before the Commission considers making the rules permanent.
The Commission also approved an emergency rule that allows licensed
aquaculture facilities to possess and grow diploid carp for human consumption,
for selling outside the state and for control of vegetation on their farms.
Diploids still may not be stocked in private waters of the state. Only
non-reproducing triploid carp can be stocked in private waters. The rule is
designed to limit reproduction of grass carp in Oklahoma's waters, which compete
with native fish species.
In other business, the Commission heard a presentation from Finley &
Cook, PLLC, including the results of the Department's fiscal year 2009 annual
financial audit. The independent audit, which also reviewed federal grant
programs, revealed no material findings. A clean audit report was rendered.
The Commission also heard a presentation on the Department's Lake
Record Fish Program, which recognizes big fish caught from select reservoirs and
the anglers who catch them. The program was initiated Feb. 1, 2008, and
initially included 13 lakes across the state. Since then the program has grown
to include 38 lakes. The program is managed electronically, and a unique search
feature on the Wildlife Department's Web site at wildlifedepartment.com allows
users to search a range of lake record information, including the species of
lake records, the names of anglers who caught them and other facts such as what
bait and tackle was used to catch record fish from various lakes. Since the
program's inception, the lake records portion of the Web site has seen more than
63,000 hits and more than 350,000 page views, including viewers from 38 states
and 17 foreign countries.
The Commission also recognized Loren Damron, game warden supervisor
for the Wildlife Department, for 35 years of service; Steve Spade, hatchery
supervisor, for 30 years of service; and Dwight Luther, game warden stationed in
Creek and Okfuskee counties, for 25 years of service.
Richard Hatcher, director of the Wildlife Department, also
recognized Todd Craighead, information and education specialist for the
Department, for recently receiving the George Lewis Advocacy Award. This award
recognizes an Oklahoma City area resident with a disability who has performed
outstanding and notable feats to enhance the empowerment and/or employment of
individuals with disabilities by rising above his or her own disability and
encouraging others with disabilities to do the same. This individual displays
these principles through community involvement and in his or her area of
employment. This individual has also promoted overcoming social, attitudinal,
and environmental barriers to enhance the lives of all persons with disabilities
and shown good citizenship in his or her everyday activities.
The Wildlife Conservation Commission is the eight-member governing
board of the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. The Wildlife
Commission establishes state hunting and fishing regulations, sets policy for
the Wildlife Department and indirectly oversees all state fish and wildlife
conservation activities. Commission members are appointed by the governor and
confirmed by the Senate.
The next scheduled Commission meeting is set for 9 a.m. Dec. 7 at
the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation headquarters (auditorium),
located at the southwest corner of 18th and North Lincoln, Oklahoma City.
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Wildlife Department seeks public input for waterfowl stamp design winners
Oklahomans can help choose the artwork that will be printed on the
2010-11 Oklahoma waterfowl stamp by dropping by the Oklahoma Department of
Wildlife Conservation's office at the Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks to vote on
their favorite entry.
Every year wildlife artists from across the nation submit their
rendition of a specified waterfowl species to the Wildlife Department's duck
stamp design contest. In recent years the Wildlife Department has relied on
input from the public to help determine the winner, whose work is printed on the
Oklahoma waterfowl stamp the following year. This year, artwork was centered on
the ringneck duck (Aythya collaris), which is found across North America,
including Oklahoma's wooded ponds and lakes and is known for its ability to
plunge deeply into water. A powerful swimmer, the ringneck can forage to depths
of 40 feet in search of underwater food.
“This is a great opportunity to be a part of the contest,” said
Micah Holmes, information and education supervisor for the Wildlife Department.
“This is a stamp for sportsmen, so the sportsmen's input is important. This is
also a great opportunity to visit a unique Wildlife Department field office
based out of the Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks.”
Duck stamp sales help finance many projects that benefit ducks and
geese. Since the duck stamp program began in 1980, thousands of acres of
waterfowl habitat have been created through duck stamp revenues.
Along with public input, entries will be judged on anatomical
accuracy, artistic composition and suitability for printing.
The winning artist will receive a purchase award of $1,200. In the
past, the purchase award has been provided by NatureWorks, a Tulsa-based
conservation organization. Additionally, the winner and three honorable mentions
will appear in a future issue of Outdoor Oklahoma magazine.
A selection of waterfowl stamp art from previous years is currently
on display in the lobby of the Wildlife Department headquarters located at 1801
N. Lincoln, in Oklahoma City.
Prints of previous winning waterfowl artwork can be purchased at
http://www.wildlifedepartment.com/oklahomastampprogram.htm
.
More information about the annual duck stamp design contest,
including official rules, is available online at wildlifedepartment.com
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Quail season opens Nov. 14; conditions limit success of roadside surveys
After a mild summer with periodic, timely rainfall, biologists with
the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation are optimistic about the
upcoming quail season, which opens Nov. 14, statewide.
With a mild winter void of long-lasting snow and ice storms, the
quail population was expected to have good carryover into the 2009 nesting
season. Weather during the nesting season for the most part was favorable, and
reports have been positive, with more quail being observed than have been in
years. Above-average rainfall led to lush vegetation, which can be good for
quail reproductive success but challenging for conducting roadside survey
counts. This year, composite results from roadside surveys conducted during
August and October show a decrease from surveys done in 2008 and remain below
the long-term average.
Each year, Wildlife Department employees run 83 routes in every
county in the state except Oklahoma and Tulsa counties. Each route is 20 miles,
and some larger counties like Beaver, Ellis, LeFlore, McCurtain, Osage,
Pittsburg, and Roger Mills, have two routes. The survey provides an index of
annual population fluctuations. Observers count the number of quail observed
and classify the size of the young birds in broods to provide an index of quail
abundance (number seen/20 mile route) and reproductive success.
To conduct the surveys, biologists drive county roads and record the
number of quail they see. Spotting quail in dry years with sparse vegetation is
much easier than spotting them in years when the vegetation is green, thick and
abundant. Not only is it harder to see quail in lush vegetation, counts are also
made more difficult by the fact that quail may not use roadside ditches as much
when so much other cover is readily available.
Additionally, during the October survey period, survey conditions
were generally poor with much of the state receiving precipitation nearly
everyday and many of the remaining survey days being heavily overcast.
“These factors may have contributed to lower numbers of quail being
seen on roadside surveys,” said Doug Schoeling, upland game biologist for the
Wildlife Department.
The full survey report is available online at wildlifedepartment.com.
According to Schoeling, the true test of how well the quail did this
nesting season will come when the season opens and hunters take to the field
with their dogs.
Quail season opens Nov. 14 and runs through Feb. 15. Opportunities
for public quail hunting exist statewide, but perhaps none offer better chances
than hunting quail on wildlife management areas in western Oklahoma.
To hunt quail, hunters need a hunting license and, if their hunting
license was purchased prior to July 1, a fishing and hunting legacy permit.
Licenses purchased after July 1 have the cost of the legacy permit included in
the purchase price.
For more information about quail hunting, log on to the Wildlife
Department's Web site at wildlifedepartment.com.
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Fall offers
different approach to turkey hunting
With the excitement of deer season and the onset of seasons for
several other species, such as quail which opens Nov. 14, hunters may overlook
the unique opportunity to hunt turkeys this fall.
With generous bag limits and the chance to harvest a turkey with a
firearm, the fall turkey season opens doors for sportsmen to get serious about
gobbler hunting or to take a more opportunistic approach and watch for them
while participating in deer season. Regardless, a wild turkey dinner during the
holidays is sure to be worth a hunter's efforts.
During the fall and winter, turkeys can often be found foraging for
acorns and other seeds. One method successfully used by hunters to harvest fall
turkeys is to break up a flock and, while waiting in the general area from which
they departed, use lost calls to draw the group back together. In the fall,
hunters can use a range of calls, such as lost calls, purrs and the kee kee run.
Fall turkey hunting opportunities includes an archery season that
opened Oct. 1 and runs through Jan. 15 and a fall gun season that opened Oct. 31
and runs through Nov. 20. Depending on which county they're hunting, sportsmen
can harvest one turkey of either sex or just one tom. Additionally, some
counties are closed to fall firearms turkey and others are restricted to shotgun
hunting only. Seasons on public lands may vary from statewide season dates. For
complete season dates and regulations, consult page 28 of the current “Oklahoma
Hunting Guide” or log on to wildlifedepartment.com.
To hunt wild turkeys during the fall, residents must have a hunting
license and, if their hunting license was purchased prior to July 1, a fishing
and hunting legacy permit. Additionally, they must obtain a turkey license for
each turkey to be hunted, unless otherwise exempt. Non-residents must possess a
non-resident annual hunting license and a turkey license for each bird hunted,
unless exempt.
All fall turkey hunters must conspicuously wear either a head
covering or an outer garment above the waistline consisting of hunter orange
while hunting during any deer season in any open hunting area.
For more information about turkey hunting in Oklahoma, including
information about the state's spring turkey season which runs from April 6 to
May 6 annually, log on to wildlifedepartment.com.
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