User: jsoprano Time: 05-12-2012 20:25 Product: Times_Leader PubDate: 05-13-2012 Zone: Main Edition: Main_Run PageName: outdoors PageNo: 12 C
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PAGE 12C SUNDAY, MAY 13, 2012
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THE TIMES LEADER
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OUTDOORS Don’t touch young wildlife that appears abandoned
THE WESTERN POCONO CHAPTER OF TROUT UNLIMITED will hold its Memorial Day picnic on Monday, May 28 at the White Haven Sportsmen’s Club along the Lehigh River. The picnic will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and food and drinks will be available. A casting demonstration will be conducted by George Daniel – a certified FFF Fly Casting instructor who has also appeared on ESPN and OLN. Daniel was the head coach of Team USA in the 2011 World Fly Fishing Championship in Italy and eaned a gold medal at the 2008 U.S. National Fly Fishing Championship in Colorado. Autographed copies of his book, “Dynamic Nymphing” will be available for purchase. Fishing will be permitted after the demonstration. Tickets are $18 for adults, $12 for teens 13-17 and children under 12 are free. For more information, call chapter president Paul Raubertas at (570) 768-8409 or email praubert@ptd.net. THE STANLEY COOPER SR. CHAPTER OF TROUT UNLIMITED will host the Wyoming Valley Fly Tyers on Tuesday, May 15 at the VFW Anthracite Post 283 in Kingston. The adult fly fishing camp will be held on May 20 at the American Legion in Mountain Top. The cost is $25 for non-TU members and free to members. For more information call Jay Downs at 814-6998. This year’s youth fly fishing camp will be held on June 9 at the Sedesky property. Contact Joe Ackourey at 574-5956. For more information, visit www.sctu.org. THE GREATER WYOMING VALLEY AUDUBON SOCIETY is offering partial scholarships for area students to attend nature camp during the summer of 2012. Partial scholarships will be available at several sites this year. Applicants may choose to attend camp at the Bear Creek Camp Nature Center, Nescopeck State Park, or the Endless Mountains Nature Center. Applications are available by contacting 570-403-2006 or nescopecksp@state.pa.us Application deadline is May 31, 2012. Scholarship recipients will be notified by June 8, 2012. A limited number of scholarships will be awarded to each age level. Recipients will be responsible for their own transportation to and from camp, and for paying the remainder of the camp fee not covered by the scholarship. For more information call 570-4032006. LAKE WALLENPAUPACK is included in this year’s waterways participating in Cabela’s “Wanna Fish for a Millions?” contest. For a second year, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) is partnering in this contest by tagging fish and selecting Pennsylvania waters where participants can be big winners. Most people have heard the phrase “you have to play to win.” Well, in addition to knowing the contest waters, Pennsylvania anglers need to have a fishing license to play. Your license will be your ticket to fish some of the Commonwealth’s best waters in the hopes of cashing-in on big winnings. While purchasing a fishing license guarantees you a gateway into the contest, PFBC underscores that regardless of the contest, a Pennsylvania fishing license is always a winner. In fact, it affords anglers the opportunity to unlock a year’s worth of fishing opportunities in all the Commonwealth’s fishing waters. Cabela’s started accepting registrations on its website on April 19. The contest began on May 5 and ends July 8. The premise is simple: catch specially tagged fish and win prizes ranging from Cabela’s gift cards to boats to $2 million. All rules and requirements, as well as contest details and registration information, can be found at Cabela’s contest website, www.cabelas.com/ fishformillions. In addition, PFBC will maintain its own contest web page at www.fishandboat.com/fishformillions.htm. Here, Pennsylvania anglers will be able to see the listing of contest waters along with photos of tagged fish. Bulletin Board items will not be accepted over the telephone. Items may be faxed to 831-7319, dropped off at the Times Leader or mailed to Times Leader, c/o Sports, 15 N, Main St., WilkesBarre, PA 18711-0250.
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TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS
On any waters, there is some life all its own
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Each spring the Game Commission receives numerous calls regarding fawns that have been abandoned. Sometimes the fawns are picked up by people and taken – an action that often results in a fatal ending for the fawn. PGC officials say fawns that appear abandoned usually are not. The mother is often nearby feeding.
Looks can be deceiving By TOM VENESKY tvenesky@timesleader.com
The litter of red fox pups playfully jumped at each other outside of the entrance to their den. While they didn’t have a care in the world, their mother was nowhere to be found. But it didn’t mean the young foxes were abandoned. With a bunch of hungry mouths to feed, the female fox was out hunting prey to feed her litter. She would return. The appearance of young wildlife throughout the area is a certain sign of spring, and it’s also an indicator that the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Northeast Region Office in Dallas will start to get calls about abandoned fawns, rabbits, birds and other newborn wildlife. But in most cases, the young animals haven’t been abandoned and human interference can sometimes bring about a fatal end. “We’re getting calls everyday,” said William Williams, education and information specialist for the PGC. “We’ll get calls about young wildlife from now until midJune.” Topping the list are fawns, Williams said. Does often leave their fawns while they go off to feed, and people often mistake them for being abandoned when in fact they are waiting for their mother to return. PGC biologist Kevin Wenner said an adult doe with fawns needs to feed often so it can produce milk. Leaving the fawn behind, he said, is a defense mechanism. “If she remained with her fawn it would attract predators,” Wenner said. “While the mother is away, the fawn stays motionless to avoid detection.” Williams said the bulk of the calls for supposed abandoned fawns occur during
Nesting season While the fawning season for deer has yet to peak, turkeys have begun the early stages of nesting, according to Wenner. Data from the PGC’s banded hen study – which allows the agency to track turkey hens with GPS, the nesting season is just beginning. The recent warm weather the area experienced had nothing to do with the timing of when hens nest, Wenner said. “Nesting is typically the result of a change in delight,” he said. “It’s called photoperiodism. The change in daylight initiates the pituitary gland to produce hormones. With hen turkeys that hormone is estrogen, and that prepares their oviduct for egg-laying.”
Who to contact Reach the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Northeast Region Office at 675-1143.
the Memorial Day weekend. That’s when fawning season is at its peak, he said, and many people are outdoors. “That combination results in more encounters with fawns and more calls to the office,” Williams said. “Some people do try to take the fawn and nurse it, but usually the formula of milk they use isn’t correct and the fawn gets sick. That’s when they call us and by then it’s too late.” Williams strongly advised against handling any fawns. If you do encounter one simply leave it alone, the mother will return he said. In instances when it’s clear that the mother has been killed – such as a fawn standing next to a roadkilled deer, Williams said call the PGC region office. Aside from fawns, PGC Bureau of Wildlife director Cal Dubrock said young rabbits, birds and raccoons are the other species that people commonly encounter in the spring.
While it may appear that they are abandoned, Dubrock said that’s often not the case. In many instances Dubrock said wildlife rely on the “hider strategy,” which Wenner said is employed by does with their fawns. “While it may appear as if the adults are abandoning their young, in reality, this is just the animal using its natural instincts to protect its young,” DuBrock said. “Also, young animals often have camouflaging color patterns to avoid being detected by predators.” Handling young wildlife is a practice that can be dangerous to people as well. Williams said raccoons pose a rabies risk. If young raccoons are picked up and handled, he said, they will have to be euthanized and tested for rabies. “A lot of people don’t realize that, but by handling them they’re exposed to rabies,” Williams said. “We have to start the process for a rabies test, and that upsets them and it’s not something we want to do either. But it can all be avoided by just letting the young animals alone.” Raccoons are considered a high-risk rabies vector species under a working agreement with state health officials, meaning they must be euthanized and tested after human contact. Other species considered high-risk include skunks, foxes, bas, coyotes and groundhogs. Aside from the risks to wildlife and the health hazards posed to humans, there is also a legal element. Under state law, it is illegal to take or possess wildlife from the wild. The penalty for such a violation is a fine of up to $1,500 per animal. “In most cases with young wildlife, people end up doing more harm than good,” Wenner said. “If you find them, don’t touch or handle them and consult the agency.”
Spring is the peak season for newborn wildlife, and it’s also the time of year when people handle and even take home the animals they encounter, thinking they can lend a helping hand.
RICK KOVAL/FOR THE TIMES LEADER
ozens of ducks erupted from the marsh as I crept up to the edge. The area was flooded by a beaver dam two years ago, and the blueberry bushes and tall grass still thrived despite being half-submerged in water. Interspersed among the bushes were pockets of open water, and it was prime habitat for ducks and a multitude of other wildlife. As I knelt at the edge of the marsh and dipped my hand in to check the temperature, I thought about the vital role of water to wildlife. Anywhere there’s water – whether it’s a sprawling lake or a little vernal pool tucked in the forest, there is life. After the ducks quieted down, I gently eased my 10-foot johnboat into the marsh to see what other life this watery world had attracted. There was plenty. With an oar in hand I glided the boat along the calm surface of the water and was soon joined by several American toads, lazily swimming along. It was early April, so the toads were likely males searching for a suitable aquatic lair to begin calling females. The toads were also easy targets. As they kicked and glided across the surface next to the boat, I noticed bunches of small bluegills hovering below. When the toad would kick, the bluegills would dart up and nip at its toes. They would quickly drop back down when the toad floated motionless. It must have made for an annoying day on the water for the toads. With acres of flooded grass and blueberry bushes surrounding me, I decided to maneuver the boat into some of the secluded pockets to see what they held. The ducks – the ones I could identify were woods and mallards, coasted overhead as they returned to the edges where I had flushed them earlier. Hovering above the surface of the open pockets were a few dragonflies. They appeared to be common green darners, but it was impossible to get close enough to tell. The pockets of open water were connected by narrow channels through the thick blueberry bushes. There was just enough water for the little johnboat to glide from one pocket to the next. As I pushed deeper into the marsh I noticed feathers floating on the water. They were from a Canada goose, and as I turned the boat around the corner I came face to face with the source. A few feet away a female goose sprang up from her nest and eyed me suspiciously. I didn’t want to disturb the nest, but the momentum of the boat carried me alongside the goose, who reluctantly hopped in the water and swam a few feet away. The nest was positioned in a large clump of grass just above the water. Three large, white eggs were tucked in the bowl while a fourth – covered in mud, lay along the edge of the water. It had been there for some time, and perhaps the female goose somehow knew the eggs wasn’t any good and rolled it out of her nest. Not wanting to cause any more disturbance for the goose during this critical period, I sunk the oar into the shallow water and pushed the boat back the way I came. As I did, the goose eagerly swam back, stood on the shore and gave me a glaring look before concealing herself back on the nest. Back onto the open water, the wood ducks emitted a few high-pitched whistles from their backwater haunt while the female goose gave a few contented honks now that I had left. I dragged the boat back onto shore and took one last look at the watery world. The ducks had quieted down and life – in all its abundance, returned to normal in the marsh. Tom Venesky covers the outdoors for The Times Leader. Reach him at tvenesky@timesleader.com