Other News: S737

More than 20,000 apply for Wisconsin wolf hunting license

20,000 licenses applied for the first wolf hunt in WI in sixty years

photo c. WDNR ©2012

MADISON – A total of 20,272 people have submitted applications for the drawing for a gray wolf hunting or trapping license for Wisconsin’s first wolf season in more than 60 years. It is scheduled to begin Oct. 15. There were 19,788 applications from Wisconsin residents and 486 from non-residents.

The state Natural Resources Board approved a quota of up to 201wolves that could be harvested during the first season, 85 of which are reserved for Native American Indian tribes within the ceded territory of northern Wisconsin.

The Department of Natural Resources plans to issue 1,160 licenses for the 2012-13 season. Those permits will be awarded by random choice in a drawing that will be held this week. Successful applicants will be notified by letter and then be able to purchase a wolf harvest license for $100 for residents and $500 for nonresidents.

The DNR received nonresident applications from people in 38 other states from Maine to California and Alaska to Texas, with the largest numbers from Illinois (179) and Minnesota (102).

Applicants who are not successful in the drawing will be awarded a preference point toward future drawings.

Starting with the 2013-14 season, one half of available permits will be issued randomly among all permit applications and the second half will be issued through a cumulative preference point drawing.

Dane County Circuit Court Judge Peter Anderson last month temporarily blocked wolf hunters from using dogs or training dogs to hunt wolves while he considers the lawsuit. A DNR motion to dismiss the case is scheduled to be heard on Sept. 14.

As a result of this ruling, the Department of Natural Resources is advising people that the use of dogs for tracking and trailing of wolves is not authorized when hunting wolves under a wolf harvesting license. Also, the use of dogs for training to track or trail free ranging wolves is not authorized at this time. As this is a temporary injunction, the injunction on the use of dogs for wolf hunting and training could be lifted at a future date.

Read more here:

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

• Kurt Thiede, DNR Land Division administrator, 608-266-5833


• Bill Cosh, DNR spokesman, 608-267-2773

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2012 deer hunter wildlife survey begins

2012 Deer Hunter Survey time is here again. Trailcam photos are needed. See details below.

photo c. WDNR ©2012

MADISON -- The opening of the archery deer season on Sept. 15 marks the beginning of the 2012 Deer Hunter Wildlife Survey. Hunters can find survey instructions, record sightings, and view survey results online at the Wisconsin Deer Hunter Wildlife Survey page by searching for “deer hunter wildlife” on the Department of Natural Resources website dnr.wi.gov. A tally sheet is also available for times when hunters do not have access to a computer.

“Deer hunters often ask if there is a way they can tell the DNR what they are or are not seeing from their deer stand, this survey provides them with the means to do that” said Jes Rees, DNR wildlife survey technician.

Wildlife officials ask that hunters record all of their hunting activity throughout the deer season, even if no wildlife sightings were made during a hunt. The survey period ends January 2013. These observations have provided the DNR with an index to abundance for many wildlife species.

“With the recently released Deer Trustee report recommending more input from the hunting public on herd status, this tool provides the hunter with an excellent way to communicate their sightings,” Rees said. “All they need to do is record the date, number of hours, county, deer management unit, weather conditions, and the type and number of animals observed each day of deer hunting. Hunters can also enter their email address along with their observations and I will send them an email summary of their hunting activity at the end of the survey period.”

Many other states in the Midwest and around the country use these types of surveys to gather hunter input into deer and other wildlife abundance.

This is the fourth year of the survey and deer hunters are asked to report their field observations of a variety of wildlife species, hunting conditions and hours spent pursuing game. Thousands of observations are reported each year.

The Deer Hunter Wildlife Survey overlaps another citizen-participation survey. Operation Deer Watch started Aug. 1 and runs through Sept. 30. The primary objective of Operation Deer Watch is to determine trends in deer reproductive success by reporting does and fawns seen together during the late summer and early fall.

Trail Camera Photos Wanted

The wildlife surveys program is also interested in photographs of rare or endangered species hunters may have captured on their trail cameras. Photos can be emailed to DNR Wildlife Management. This information will help document their existence and location within the state. Trail camera photos can be viewed in our online trail camera gallery on Shutterfly.com.

Questions about the Wisconsin Deer Hunter Wildlife Survey, accessing the tally sheet, reporting your observation, or the results of the survey, can be referred to Jes Rees at 608-221-6360.

Read more here:

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

• Jes Rees at 608-221-6360

Other News S729

Fishing in the Neighborhood program reels in new anglers High schoolers, buying fishing licenses These high schoolers, shown buying fishing licenses, have been recruited as “fishing buddies” to help younger kids fish with the Club de Pesca offered by Centro Hispano of Dane County and partners. photo courtesy WDNR ©2012 MADISON – Smiles shared, fish caught, and new licenses bought are testimony to the growing success of a partnership to introduce fishing to Wisconsin’s growing number of Latino and Hmong youngsters, state fisheries officials say. “Our goals are to welcome new people into the community of anglers, to help them establish a relationship with the resource and adopt Wisconsin’s tradition of stewardship,” says Theresa Stabo, Department of Natural Resources aquatic resources education director. “We’re very excited that our Fishing in the Neighborhood program is growing and that partner groups are getting important recognition and funding to expand their local efforts.” Centro Hispano of Dane County, one of the partnering groups, recently received a $30,000 grant from the national Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation (exit DNR) for its bilingual fishing club, Club de Pesca. Centro Hispano Executive Director Kent Craig says the organization is very excited about the national grant and the ongoing relationship with DNR and other program partners. “What we’re hoping is to see young people get more opportunity to spend time on water fishing and learning more science,” he says. “In addition to expanding the program, we’re hoping to develop a replicable, culturally competent curriculum for offering fishing clubs in Latino communities.” DNR has long trained volunteer instructors in how to start their own fishing clubs for youngsters and others new to fishing. In recent years, DNR has focused more attention on working with partners to help start fishing clubs within minority communities, as was successfully done at the Urban Ecology Center in Milwaukee and the Boys & Girls Club in Madison. This year, DNR has provided angler education training to college interns and is paying them stipends to work with five different youth organizations that serve low-income people of color. Andrea “Tess” Arenas at the UW-Madison Office of Service Learning and Community Based Research recruited the interns and identified organizations willing to partner with the state and supervise the interns. Interns have been placed at five community centers: Centro Hispano of Dane County, Boys & Girls Club of Dane County, Urban League of Greater Madison, Hmong Assistance Association in La Crosse, and the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe in Odanah. DNR is providing fishing equipment for the interns to use with the youngsters. The interns recruit members for the clubs, instruct the youngsters in basic fishing techniques, set up fishing trips and bring in guest speakers to talk to the participants about aquatic resources topics. In addition to a stipend, they earn college credit for their work. DNR pays for the costs of the clubs through the Sport Fish Restoration money it receives from the federal government from an excise tax on the sale of fishing equipment. Madison South Rotary Foundation provided additional funding for the Madison groups. It’s welcome seed money, says Centro Hispano’s Craig. “We wouldn’t have a program without the DNR,” he says. “Getting the national RBFF grant shows it was a wise investment.” Stabo says that DNR’s Fishing in the Neighborhood initiative recognizes that Latino and Hmong immigrants represent the fast-growing segments of Wisconsin’s population. “We want club members and their families to see fishing as a good choice for weekend or after-school activities, once summer ends and everyone is back at school.” Club de Pesca shows how the program seeks to make fishing a good choice by tailoring it to a specific culture. “Having a program which is free, based at a known agency and run by bilingual staff makes fishing much more accessible to the Latino community,” says Jannet Arenas, the intern who is leading the Centro Hispano program. Organizations interested in learning more about how to start a fishing club for new anglers, including Latino and Hmong organizations can contact Theresa Stabo at 608-266-2272. Read more here: For more information: Theresa Stabo - 608-266-2272 Tess Arenas, UW - 608-890-0876