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 Recent hot weather, low water prompts fish kills in southern Wisconsin; citizens asked to report dead fish to DNR
A long stretch of hot weather combined with a lack of precipitation has created low water and oxygen levels in many waterways, said Scot Stewart, DNR south central district fisheries supervisor. “As water temperatures go up, water is not able to hold as much oxygen, which fish need,” said Stewart. “Respiration by plants can reduce the amount of oxygen to levels lethal to fish. That’s when summer fish kills occur.” The four fish kills occurred in the Rock River in Dodge County, upstream from the Horicon dam; near Hustisford in Dodge County at the base of Lake Sinissippi; Beckman Mill Pond in Green County; and on the Yahara River below Lake Kegonsa in Dane County. The department estimates the Rock River kill caused the death of more than 500 fish, mostly carp, but a number of walleye also. The fish kill near Hustisford involved close to 2,000 fish, including a large number of walleye and channel catfish. The agency is still investigating the other two fish kills, said Stewart. “Unfortunately, fish kills due to hot weather and from other factors happen every summer around the state, and we encourage citizens to call the DNR as soon as they think they see one,” said Stewart. Stewart added that the sooner the DNR knows about a fish kill, the more accurate information staff can collect, which helps the department learn the exact causes. To report a potential fish kill, or if you see dead fish, please call the DNR Tip Line at 1-800-TIP-WDNR (1-800-847-9367). Read more here: For more information:
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Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Other News S726
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Other News S725
Learn to hunt deer at Buckhorn State Park: Opportunity is not just for kids
NECEDAH, Wis. -- Anyone 10 years old and older including novice adult hunters who have had an interest in hunting but weren’t sure how to give it a try are encouraged to consider a Learn-to-Hunt deer outing at Buckhorn State Park along the Castle Rock Flowage in Juneau County. Heather Wolf, Buckhorn State Park manager, says this is the 15th year the park has hosted a Learn to Hunt Deer Hunt program. “We have had 693 participants over the years. First time hunters and their chaperones have learned together at the workshop and have enjoyed their time spent in the woods,” Wolf said. To participate in the November 2012 hunt, search the Department of Natural Resources website for “Buckhorn,” and then click on the learn to deer hunt link on right column. Download the application form [PDF], complete it, and mail it to the address shown by August 10. There are two parts to the Learn to Hunt Deer at Buckhorn. First, a workshop is held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 8 or 9 at the LaValle Sportsman’s Club. Attendance by hunters and chaperones is mandatory. Second, the hunt occurs Nov. 3 and 4 at Buckhorn State Park and adjacent wildlife area. Applicants will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis and will be notified upon receipt of their applications. A chaperone must accompany each applicant. Applicants may select a chaperone (i.e., family or friend) or authorize Buckhorn staff to assign a qualified chaperone. This person will not be allowed to hunt or carry a firearm and must be at least 18 years old. The chaperone must have at least five years of deer hunting experience. The chaperone is necessary to ensure novice hunters get the complete hunting experience in a safe environment. Chaperones help hunters with firearm safety, deer identification, scouting, and field dressing, among other things. Successful applicants and their chaperones must attend a workshop in order to participate in the hunt. A hunting license is not required and back tags will be furnished. This is a bonus deer and will not preclude the harvest of a deer during the regular season. The bag limit will be one deer of either sex. Only shotguns will be permitted; muzzleloaders and rifles are not permitted. Chaperones also are needed, says Keith Warnke DNR Hunting and Shooting Sport Coordinator. “If you are a hunter and want to give back to the hunting heritage by getting a new hunter started, your skills are needed!” Warnke said.
“Learn to Hunt events are a great way to break into hunting. Novice hunters paired up with an experienced hunter will learn about conservation, safety, ethics, deer hunting tactics and firearm safety during a one-day workshop,” Warnke said. “Then, the novice hunters get a chance to experience a two-day November gun deer hunt.” Read more here: For more information:
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Thursday, June 14, 2012
Other News: S724
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Ruffed grouse numbers entering downside of population cycle
Ruffed grouse populations are known to boom and bust over a nine- to 11-year cycle, according to Brian Dhuey, wildlife surveys coordinator for the Department of Natural Resources. The index that Wisconsin uses to track ruffed grouse decreased 25 percent between 2011 and 2012. “While this is a bit of bad news for grouse hunters, it should not be too big of a surprise,” Dhuey said. “We were overdue for the expected downturn.” A roadside survey to monitor the number of breeding grouse has been conducted by staff from the DNR and U.S. Forest Service, tribal employees, and numerous grouse enthusiasts and volunteers since 1964. Surveyors begin 30 minutes before sun rise and drive along established routes, making 10 stops at assigned points and listening for four minutes for the distinctive “thump, thump, thump” drumming sounds made by male grouse. Results from this survey have helped DNR biologists monitor the cyclic population dynamics of ruffed grouse in the state. “Spring arrived early in Wisconsin in 2012, and conditions for the survey were rated ‘excellent’ on 60 percent of the routes. This was about the same as last year’s 62 percent and above the long-term average,” Dhuey said. The number of drums heard per stop was down 25 percent in 2012 from the previous year. Both of the primary regions for grouse in the state, the central and northern forest areas, showed declines of 21 and 26 percent respectively. The only area to show an increase was the southeast, where grouse exist in only isolated areas of suitable young forest habitat and are not common. The number of routes that showed a decline in the number of drums heard outpaced those that showed an increase by better than 2:1 margin. Results from the survey matched declines seen on two research areas, with the Sandhill Wildlife Area showing a decline of 11 percent and the Stone Lake Experimental Area showing a decline of 18 percent. Complete survey results can be found on the DNR website (search Wildlife Reports). “This drop in breeding grouse was not unexpected, as grouse populations tend to be at their peak in years ending in a 9 or 0 in Wisconsin. Last year we had an increase in grouse and were probably at the cyclic peak, a decline was inevitable,” Dhuey said. “Early weather conditions are excellent for nesting and brood rearing, if we can stay normal or above for temperatures and have a bit of dry weather, we should have a pretty good brood year. I would expect that hunters will see a decline in the number of birds they see afield this fall, but areas of good cover should still hold birds. In years with low grouse numbers, hunters who find success are generally those willing to explore new coverts, as grouse will tend to occupy only the best habitat available and may not be found in the same areas where hunters found them in recent years,” he said. For more information search for ruffed grouse hunting on the DNR website. Read more here: For more information:
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Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Other News: S723
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Grant boosts investigations into why bass are booming, walleye waning in some lakes
A consortium of researchers and fisheries biologists from the University of Wisconsin’s Madison and Stevens Point campuses and the Department of Natural Resources have received a $760,000 federal grant over five years to help investigate the shifting fish populations and tease out the most likely reasons behind the shift. Apple River Flowage largemouth “We’re excited to have a large-scale, collaborative research project underway to tackle our key questions and help inform our management decisions,” says Jon Hansen, one of the DNR fish biologists involved in the study and leader of DNR’s bass committee. “The issue is very complicated, and identifying the causes of these changes requires various approaches and the expertise that the different partners bring to the table.” Says Steve Carpenter, a UW-Madison limnologist and a principal investigator in the study, “At this point, we have nothing but hypotheses. Now we can get to work on gathering real information and figuring out which of the many hypotheses might be right.” The grant is funded by the U.S. Geological Survey and will be led at UW-Madison by Carpenter, at Stevens Point by Dan Isermann, and at the DNR by a team of DNR Bureau of Science Services researchers and Fisheries Management biologists. The work will build on, and draw data from, ongoing state efforts to adjust bass and walleye fishing regulations and attempt to determine how much anglers affect these populations. Bass are the fish Wisconsin anglers reported releasing most often in a 2006-07 statewide mail survey, with only 5.4 percent of bass harvested, while 30 percent of all walleye were harvested. “These traditional approaches (changing regulations and collecting data) are important to do, but if that is all we did, we’ve never be able to figure out what this is happening,” says John Lyons, the DNR fisheries researcher who assembled the collaborative research team. “We’d still be speculating. What this study will do is not necessarily provide the solution, but it will narrow down the explanations from 10 plausible reasons to two or three that are highly plausible, and which of our management tools could work.” Read more here: For more information:
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