Stripe Bass Survey; Fishing for Stripers; EHD Outbreak in SJ; Tips for Heading Afield
Friday, October 22, 2010
HUNTING AND FISHING
compiled by CNBNews.net
Stripe Bass Survey
During the fall of 2009 the NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife biologists had the
opportunity to collect striped bass biological samples on the party boat F/V Queen Mary and during several fishing tournaments throughout the state.
These types of sampling, in addition to the Division's field surveys, are valuable components of New Jersey's striped bass research and the coastwide assessment of the striped bass resource.
To view the results and learn more about the striped bass resource, see biologist Heather Corbett's feature article athttp://www.njfishandwildlife.com/artstrpbass10.htm on the division's web site.
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Fishing for Stripers in Cape May
by Richard Degener
CAPE MAY - Maryland resident Joel Goron got to the beach before sunrise, hoping that he would land a striped bass during his two-day mini-vacation.
Goron, 47, of Laurel, Md., caught plenty of small bluefish, but no stripers, after spending last Thursday and Friday here at Poverty Beach.
Stripers are notoriously picky about what they eat, but his lure was probably not the problem. Nor was the weather. Strong northwest winds were creating turbulent, murky waters, which stripers love and use to their advantage as they prey on disoriented baitfish and dislodged shellfish.
The real problem was probably that the ocean temperature is just getting to what stripers like: 55 to 68 degrees.
The ocean off southern New Jersey was at 62 degrees on Tuesday. Stripers range from Florida to Canada, but most are found between North Carolina and Massachusetts. Fish that summered off New England are starting to head south, but they have yet to move past New Jersey to wintering grounds as far away as North Carolina and Virginia. So, Goron looked at the bright side.
"It's better to fish and not catch them, than to not fish at all," he said.
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EHD Outbreak in South Jersey
The NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife's Office of Fish and Wildlife Health and Forensics (OFWHF) reports that Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) has been confirmed in Deer Management Zone 63 in Salem County. A total of 80 deer are believed to have died due to this EHD outbreak from mid-September to mid-October, 2010.
The virus is transmitted from infected deer via biting midge flies. The disease is not transmissible to humans.
Because cold weather terminates midge activity the outbreak is not expected to spread further. Deer which are unable to stand and are drooling or emitting foam from the mouth and nose could be suffering from EHD. Similarly, those found dead in the water or near the water with no apparent wounds should be considered suspect EHD cases and the OFWHF should be notified immediately by calling 908-735-6398.
For more information on the outbreak visit http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/news/2010/ehd_outbreak10.htm on the division's website.
GAME COMMISSION OFFERS TIPS FOR THOSE PLANNING TO HEAD AFIELD
HARRISBURG – Each hunting season offers new opportunities. However, in some cases, there are changes that may raise questions in hunters’ minds. In an effort to answer some recent questions, Carl G. Roe, Pennsylvania Game Commission executive director, offered the following advice.
“With the PALS license sale system providing a different look and feel to hunting licenses issued prior to 2009, there have been a lot of questions about whether these licenses still need to be displayed in the middle of the back, as has been required in the past,” Roe said. “The short answer is, yes, state law still requires that hunting and furtaker licenses be displayed, but it can be pinned to any outer garment, including your sleeve, coat or hat.
“We continue to support legislation that would remove the requirement from law and allow hunters and trappers to carry their licenses in their pockets or wallets, with the other form of identification hunters and trappers are required to have while afield.”
Roe also cautioned hunters and trappers to not mistakenly place their licenses in the dryer or near any source of heat, as it will cause the material to shrivel and turn black.
“Hunters and trappers who venture out in the rain should be extra careful to take their licenses off of their jackets and simply wipe them off with a towel and let them air dry,” Roe said. “The new material is made of thermal paper, and will become illegible if placed in the dryer or left near a heat source for any length of time. Similarly, don’t leave licenses lay on the dashboard of your car, as this will cause them to turn black as well.”
This year’s license is printed on the same color material – yellow – as the 2009-10 licenses, so hunters and trappers should be certain to remove last year’s licenses from their hunting equipment before heading afield this year.
“By removing last year’s license from your hunting equipment, you will avoid misusing last year’s tags for game harvested this year,” Roe said. “Make sure that your licenses and tags have ‘10/11’ noted on them, and leave all those with ‘09/10’ at home.
“Also, when tagging harvested game, make sure you use the harvest tag and keep the license with you, as you will need that information when reporting deer and turkey harvests. This is most critical for antlerless deer licenses, which are processed by county treasurers and include two panels; the top portion, which is the antlerless deer license, and the bottom portion, which is the harvest tag.”
Hunters who go out hunting for deer, turkey or bear should also add a ball-point pen to the list of equipment they plan to take out with them.
“Ball-point pens work best when filling in the harvest field tags that must be attached to harvested big game,” Roe said. “Felt tip pens will smear, pencils will wipe off easily, and other sharp implements used in the past, such as the pin tip of most back-tag holders, will not work on the new license material.
“Each field harvest tag – whether for deer, bear or turkey – has two pre-punched holes to make it easier to attach the tag to the animal carcass. And, one last tip on harvest tags: make sure that you use the correct tag. Not only is each harvest tag pre-printed with the hunter’s name, address and license number, but each harvest tag is identified by species name as well as an icon to depict the species.”
For archery hunters, another recent change made by the General Assembly, in 2008, allows for the possession of a handgun if they have a permit to carry, which is issued by a county sheriff. This change, however, does not allow archery hunters to use the handgun to hunt other species while participating in archery seasons.
Lastly, as part of the Mentored Youth Hunting Program, Roe noted that those adult hunters who already harvested an antlered deer still may serve as an adult mentor for a youth hunting antlered deer.