Lone✯Star Outdoor News
April 13, 2012
Texas’ Premier Outdoor Newspaper
April 13, 2012
Page 1
INSIDE: 2012 Texas Fishing Spring Annual
LSONews.com
Volume 8, Issue 16
No hunter money used for burro problem
Inside
By Conor Harrison
— a first step to assess costs and the feasibility of a nonlethal solution to remove the nonnative burros from the park. The funds will come from Fund 64, derived from state park fees and not Fund 9, which is derived from the sale of hunting and fishing licenses, according to Lydia Saldana, TPWD’s communications director.
LONE STAR OUTDOOR NEWS A problem with wild burros in Big Bend Ranch State Park has made for some strange bedfellows. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has agreed to costshare up to $10,000 with the Humane Society of the United States to help pay for aerial surveys
❘❚ HUNTING
“The money will go directly to the company that performs the survey,” Saldana said. “It will not go directly to the HSUS.” If the HSUS, a committed antihunting group, determines that nonlethal alternatives are feasible, the organization will prepare and submit to TPWD for its consideration a proposed time frame, strategies, methods and resources
required to accomplish nonlethal management. At present, there is no formal proposal or agreement between TPWD and HSUS. The burros are a feral, exotic, invasive species threatening the state park’s native plants and animals, desert springs and seeps, and See BURRO PROBLEM, Page 18
State of gobbling Toms searching in south, henned up in north. Page 4
Injunction denied Appeal to delay April 4 ruling denied for three exotic species. Page 5
Border smallies
❘❚ FISHING By Conor Harrison LONE STAR OUTDOOR NEWS
Rain or shine Keith Miller catches a fish every day for a year — twice. Page 8
So many drum Black drum are mostly ignored by recreational and commercial anglers. Page 8
Floating down the Devils River in southwest Texas can be a solitary feeling if not for the great smallmouth bass fishing keeping you company. Wichita Falls angler Brady Sullivan makes the trek to the Devils every year for the solitude and the fishing. He recently returned from a spring outing down the river. “The numbers on this trip were a little down,” he said. “But the quality of the smallmouth and the largemouth were up. We caught two smallies over 20 inches. The biggest weighed 4.1 pounds.” Sullivan said the lower end of the Devils River near Lake Amistad holds See SMALLMOUTH, Page 15
SMALL SIZE, BIG FIGHT: Angler Brady Sullivan caught many smallmouth bass on a recent kayak trip down the Devils River. Fishing for river smallies has been good in South Texas and good reports are also coming from Lake Texoma. Photo by Brady Sullivan.
❘❚ CONTENTS Classifieds . . . . . . . . Crossword . . . . . . . . Freshwater Fishing Report For the Table. . . . . . . Game Warden Blotter . . . Heroes. . . . . . . . . . Outdoor Datebook . . . . Outdoor Business . . . . Saltwater Fishing Report . Sun, Moon and Tide data .
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Treatment developed for EHD in whitetails Breeder deer used for research By Craig Nyhus
Time Sensitive Material • Deliver ASAP
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID PLANO, TX PERMIT 210
LONE STAR OUTDOOR NEWS Most summers, especially during drought years, white-tailed deer face their most formidable disease, epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD). But information collected from captive white-tailed deer populations may offer protection from the deadly virus. Dr. Joe Ables of Decatur, a veterinarian and deer breeder, presented findings of his research at the annual convention of the National Association of Deer Farmers. “Up until now, we have only been able to treat the secondary signs of
the virus, such as salivation, swelling and fever,” Ables said. “Chronic signs include pneumonia and secondary bacterial infections. There was no way to fight the virus.” EHD is a virus that causes bleeding in deer, and so far, there are three types, EHD1, EHD2 and EHD6. The virus is delivered from a midge (fly) that bites the deer. The flies gather in wet or moist areas where deer may concentrate, especially during drought years. “EHD1 and EHD6 are nearly always fatal to the deer,” Ables said. “EHD2 has been successfully treated in some cases.” Ables obtained samples See EHD, Page 18
MORE THAN ANTLERS: Breeder deer were used to gather information and help develop a treatment for EHD in whitetails. Photo by David J. Sams, LSON.
Yes, Harvard has a fishing team By Conor Harrison LONE STAR OUTDOOR NEWS Red brick walls festooned with ivy, plaid-wearing intellects hustling to class and secret societies catering to America’s elite are usually the first thoughts that come to mind when Harvard University is mentioned. Bass fishing? That usually isn’t associated with the prestigious institution. But two Harvard students are hoping to change that one big fish at a time. Manny Cominsky from Utica, N.Y., and Jake Boy from Boyers, Pa., started a fishing club at Harvard in January after reading about the team from Louisiana State University fishing in a college tournament. “I was surfing the Web and came across the LSU team,” Cominsky said. “It just seemed cool. I grew up fishing in a camp in the Adirondacks. Fishing is definitely popular in the Northeast.” Cominsky, a sophomore history major, said he pitched the idea of a fishing club to Harvard administers in December and the club was approved on Jan. 15. He said they have been well received by students and administers and hope to have about 30 members by the end of the semester. After researching several collegiate fishing series, the pair decided to fish the BoatUS Collegiate Bass See HARVARD, Page 18