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Prospects good for Wisconsin’s bear hunting season that opens Sept. 3

EAU CLAIR, Wis. -- In the Northwoods hazelnuts are ripening, cherries are packed with sugar and the oaks are setting up for what could be the biggest acorn drop in years. Nights are cool, the days crisp.

These are all signals that an exciting time is near for bear hunters. Weeks of hard work and preparation come to a climax Sept. 3 with the opening of the five-week, 2008 bear season.

The state Department of Natural Resources issued 4,660 harvest permits this year, an increase of 255 permits from the 2007 hunt. Most of these hunters will be scattered widely across the northern third of the state, pursuing a healthy and growing population of black bears.

Bear hunters need a lot of room.

“It’s square miles per hunter, not hunters per square mile,” said DNR wildlife biologist Greg Kessler, whose office in Brule is deep into bear country.

In heavily forested northern Wisconsin, where opportunities for long rifle shots are rare, most bear hunters either use dogs to find and chase their quarry, or they draw bears to a specific location by maintaining a bear bait in the weeks before the season opens. Such baits (moldy sweet rolls work well) are covered by heavy rocks or other objects so that only a bear can access them.

Because these two styles of hunting don’t easily co-exist, an annual trade-off was created to alternately favor hound trainers and bait hunters by restricting the first week of the season to one or the other.

This year, hunters who have been maintaining bear baits, or who hunt by other means than the use of dogs, get the first shot. Although they are a small minority, there are hunters who eschew the aid of dogs or bait and either position themselves over natural food sources or attempt to stalk bears on foot.

Those who hunt with the aid of dogs begin their 2008 season on Sept. 10. As part of this annual trade-off, those hunters with the late start get the fifth and final week to themselves.

Hunters who do hunt with dogs should note that 16 hounds have been killed by wolves in northern Wisconsin during the dog training period this year. Wolf packs with pups use rendezvous sites from mid June to late September. Adult wolves are defensive of pups at rendezvous sites and will attack other predators, including dogs, that get too close to the rendezvous site or pups. Bear hunters with dogs are encouraged to check the list of caution areas for bear dogs. The list along with maps of the caution areas are available on the DNR Web site.

“Most bears are harvested the first week,” said DNR wildlife biologist Linda Olver in Madison who keeps a close eye on the numbers.

None of this has reduced interest in bear hunting. In 2008, a record 86,113 individuals applied for the bear season. Of these, 35,895 requested a harvest permit. The remaining 50,218 applied for a preference point, moving them one year closer to the total that will guarantee them a tag.

“For many hunters, going through the process of scouting and preparing and then watching the hunt is more important than pulling the trigger,” Kessler said.

Many applicants are members of informal bear-hunting groups who seek to improve the odds that at least one member of the group will draw a tag. There are three zones across the northern third of the state: D, A and B, moving from west to east. Zone C covers the lower two-thirds.

The minimum number of preference points to draw a kill tag in Zone D or Zone A was seven. In Zone B, hunters waited 10 or 11 years for a tag. In Zone C, south of traditional bear country, the wait is four to five years.

Many of these “hunters in waiting” assist their friends in the weeks before the season and then accompany them during the hunt.

In 2007, the DNR set a quota of 2,650 bear and issued 4,405 harvest permits. The actual harvest was 2,797 bears.

After years of drought in the north, a cooler and moister summer has made life easier for bears. Cool, moist weather is good for dogs, holding scents on the ground and making long runs through the woods less punishing.

It’s a mixed bag for bait hunters. A plentitude of berries and nuts means bears are less interested in the baits humans set out. Nuts and acorns on the forest floor, called “mast,” are a bear’s primary source of fat.

To survive a long, cold winter curled up in its den, a bear needs to put on 20 to 30 percent of its weight in fat, and if the ground is thick with acorns, that will be their first choice. With bear bait, as in real estate, the mantra will be, “location, location, location.”

“Some baits will be good because there isn’t much mast around them,” said DNR wildlife ecologist Keith Warnke. “Other baits will be poor because they are surrounded by mast.”

On the other hand, the cool spring means fruit is ripening a couple weeks behind the usual schedule this year, so bears are likely to remain active deeper into the hunting season.

As in the past, hunters who work hard at pre-season scouting and who arrange alternate hunting locations well in advance of the season have a better chance. Odds are better as well for hunters who tough it out, Kessler said.

“With bait hunters, even if there is a good acorn crop, if they persist, they will have opportunity.”

More information about black bears and bear hunting is available on the DNR Web site.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Linda Olver – 608-261-7588 or Keith Warnke – 608-264-6023

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Labor Day holiday boaters, anglers reminded of steps to avoid spreading invasive species

MADISON -- As anglers and boaters head out for the summer's last big boating hurrah, they are reminded to take a few simple steps to keep Wisconsin lakes and fish healthy for the future.

An online video demonstrates the steps that will keep invasive species such as zebra mussels and Eurasian water milfoil, and the fish disease viral hemorrhagic septicemia, from spreading to new waters.

The primary way that invasive species are spread to new waters is by boat traffic. The invasive species may attach to the boat, become entangled in its propeller or on the boat trailer, or be carried within its bilge or live well. VHS can spread when infected live fish are moved to a new water or in bilge water or live well water carrying with the virus.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: DNR Bureau of Law Enforcement - (608) 266-2141

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Poorer year predicted for wild rice harvest

MADISON -- Wild rice gathering, a seasonal ritual that typically runs from late August through the first three weeks of September, will likely produce a small harvest in 2008, based on aerial surveys of ricing waters conducted by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission.

“Based on our surveys, I’d predict this year will be in the bottom five of the last 20 years or so since we’ve conducted surveys,” says Peter David, wildlife biologist for the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission in Odanah.

David says it’s difficult to pinpoint a reason, but he suspects that the cool late spring in the north may have meant that a lot of the wild rice seed remained dormant in the lake bottoms and did not germinate. Wild rice seed can remain viable for many years and sparse pickings this year is not necessarily a prelude to poorer years in the future. David described some of the traditionally harvested lakes as being “pretty sparse” this year following aerial surveys in northwest and north central Wisconsin that started July 22. He estimates the harvest on river systems will start at least six to eight days later than in typical years with some rice ripe by late August. The harvest on wild rice lakes is predicted to be at least 10 to 14 days later than in normal years and seasons will likely open in September.

“We are generally seeing better rice stands on river systems than on lakes this year, perhaps because the rivers tend to warm up before the larger lakes and more rice may have germinated there,” David speculated.

Wild rice is the seed of a family of aquatic grasses (including Zizania aquatica and Z. palustris). The rice kernels are nutritious, delicious foodstuff for wildlife and people. The grain grows on tall stalks in shallow lakes, streams and riverbeds throughout the upper Midwest and Canada. Seed imbedded in lake bottoms for a year or more start to germinate in early spring and send a stem up to the surface of the water. Given stable water conditions, the rice plants grow into thick beds from June through September. The seed heads start to fill out in late August and mature over a 10 to 14 day period.

Wild rice harvest regulated in Wisconsin

In Wisconsin, most of the harvest comes from the northwestern part of the state in Burnett, Washburn and Polk counties and in Vilas and Oneida counties in north central Wisconsin. Additional beds are managed on waters on tribal lands.

On rivers, flowages and some lakes, no formal seasons are established, and these can be harvested whenever ricers determine the rice is ripe, provided they find ripe rice before the ducks, songbirds and mammals that also crave the calorie-rich grains.

On some lakes, however, the season is date-regulated, and wild rice may only be harvested during the open season set cooperatively by Department of Natural Resources staff and tribal rice chiefs. Notice of season openings and closings are posted at lake landings and at common lake access points at least 24 hours in advance of season openings.

Authorities inspect the rice beds every two to three days or so on larger waters that typically have larger rice beds and are frequented by more harvesters. Smaller beds are inspected less frequently. Wild rice harvesters can find out when prime waters are open for ricing in northwestern Wisconsin by telephoning the DNR’s Spooner Service Center at (715) 635-2101 and in north central Wisconsin waters by phoning the DNR’s Woodruff Service Center at (715) 356-5211.

Lists of open ricing waters are also posted and updated regularly during the harvest season on the wild rice page of the DNR Web site and on the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission website, [www.glifwc.org] (exit DNR).

Only Wisconsin residents may harvest wild rice in the state. Harvesters age 16 to 65 must purchase and possess a wild rice harvesting license for $8.25 annually. Immediate family members (spouse and minor-age children residing in the same household as the license holder) may harvest rice under the same permit as long as the other family members have received special wild ricing identification. Those buying quantities of wild rice for resale or importation as well as those processing wild rice for others or processing wild rice for sale to others must annually purchase a wild rice buyers license.

Harvesters are limited to gathering wild rice in boats no longer than 17 feet and no wider than 38 inches that must be propelled by muscular power using paddles or push poles. The grain is still harvested by hand using wooden sticks (flails) that bend the tall stalks over the canoe. As the seed heads are tapped, some rice falls in the canoe and some in the water to seed the bed for future years. The flails must be rounded wooden rods or sticks no more than 38 inches long and hand-operated. Harvesting should be done gently, so that the stalks and beds can be harvested again as more rice matures, and using a good ricing technique ensures the wild rice stands aren’t damaged.

Cottage industries have developed over the years in communities adjoining the traditionally productive wild rice waters to thresh or “process” the green wild rice which must be gently dried, parched and threshed to separate usable grain from chaff. Moisture, seed coats and chaff often compose more than 60 percent of the green weight harvest, leaving about four pounds of edible rice for every 10 pounds harvested.

The wild rice season typically runs from late August through mid-September. Wild rice ripens at a gradual rate as the milky starch fills the rice heads and hardens during maturation. At any given location, rice is harvested over a two- to three-week period.

To further protect the fragile rice beds and to allow waterfowl an undisturbed period to feed, ricers can only collect wild rice during the day from 10 a.m. until sunset.

Wild rice waters where seasons are date-regulated include:

• Barron County: Bear lake, Beaver Dam lake and Red Cedar lake
• Bayfield County: Totogatic Lake
• Burnett County: Bashaw Lake, Big Clam Lake, Big Sand Lake, Briggs Lake, Gaslyn Lake, Long Lake, Mud Lake, Town of Oakland, Mud Lake, Town of Swiss, Mud Hen Lake, Spencer Lake and Trade Lake
• Douglas County: In Allouez Bay in the City of Superior and Mulligan Lake
• Forest County: Atkins Lake, Riley Lake, and Wabigon Lake

• Marinette County: Noquebay Lake.
• Oneida County: Atkins Lake, Big Lake and Big Lake thoroughfare, Gary Lake, Little Rice Lake, Rice Lake and Spur Lake.
• Polk County: Balsam Branch, Big Round Lake, East Lake, Glenton Lake, Little Butternut Lake, Nye Lake, Rice Lake and White Ash Lake
• Sawyer County: Musky Bay located in sections 10 and 11, T39N, R9W, on Big Lac Court Oreilles Lake
• Vilas County: Allequash Lake, Little Rice Lake, Nixon Lake, Irving Lake, Aurora Lake, West Plum Lake, Devine Lake, West Ellerson Lake, Micheys Mud Lake, Frost Lake, Rice Lake, Sand Lake and Sugar Bush Chain.
• Washburn County: Bear Lake, Gilmore Lake, Little Mud Lake, Long Lake, Mud Lake, Nancy Lake, Rice Lake, Spring Lake and Tranus Lake

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron Eckstein, DNR Wildlife Biologist, Rhinelander, 715-365-8999

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Mourning dove season opens on Sept. 1

2008 season extended by 10 days

MADISON – Hunters participating in the 2008 mourning dove season in Wisconsin will enjoy an extra 10 days of hunting opportunity, and those hunters hunting on state and federal lands will only be able to use nontoxic shot.

The 2008 season opens Sept. 1 and runs through Nov. 9, which is 10 days longer than previous seasons. In a June 2008 decision, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provided for states to select an additional 10 days of dove hunting. In August, the state Natural Resources Board approved extending the Wisconsin mourning dove season to Nov. 9. Because the change was made so late, the 2008 Small Game Hunting Regulations pamphlet does not reflect this increase of 10 additional hunting days.

Also new this year is a requirement for nontoxic shot for hunting mourning doves on all DNR managed lands in addition to the previous requirement for nontoxic shot on National Wildlife Refuges and federally owned Waterfowl Production Areas.

Between 10,000 and 15,000 hunters have taken to the fields in pursuit of mourning doves in recent years, according to Kent Van Horn, migratory game bird ecologist with the Department of Natural Resources.

“During this same period, mourning doves have shown a 1 to 5 percent increase in population, while hunters were harvesting 100,000 to 200,000 doves annually,” Van Horn notes.

The mourning dove is a fast flying game bird, which Van Horn says, presents a challenging target but fine food on the dinner table. Additional information on dove hunting is available on the DNR Web site.

Dove hunting regulation and safety reminders

Doves are migratory birds so hunters must use a plugged shot gun with a capacity not to exceed three shells in the magazine and chamber combined.

Dove hunters must be registered with the federal Harvest Information Program (HIP). HIP registration is free and available at all locations where hunting licenses are sold. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service randomly selects a sample of HIP registered hunters and asks them to participate in a harvest survey.

Remember to avoid shooting at doves near power lines and horizontally at low-flying birds where other hunters may be present.

Dove hunters are encouraged to be sure to pick up all litter, including spent shell casings, while hunting. DNR wardens report some dove hunters are leaving behind large numbers of shell casings on public lands and that they will be increasing enforcement of litter laws this season.

“Take a moment to think about how you’d like to find a hunting spot – clean, picked up and with only boot prints left hehind,” said Mike Dickhoff, DNR Rock County conservation warden. “Then extend that same courtesy to the next hunter.”

Always remember the basic rules of firearms safety: TAB-K:

• Treat every gun as if it were loaded.
• Always point the muzzle in a safe direction.
• Be sure of your target and beyond.
• Keep your finger out of the trigger guard until you’re ready to shoot.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Kent Van Horn (608) 266-8841

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Cleanup finished on popular Blatz Pavilion lagoon in Milwaukee

EDITOR'S ADVISORY: - This article has been updated to clarify some points about uses of the lagoon following the cleanup.

MILWAUKEE – The popular Blatz Pavilion lagoon in Milwaukee’s Lincoln Park has reopened for boating and fishing after mud containing PCBs was removed from it as part of a collaborative project between the Department of Natural Resources and Milwaukee County. Planning continues for a larger effort to clean up the adjacent Lincoln Park Lagoon and channel.

“We’re very pleased to complete this important first step in restoring recreational opportunities in Lincoln Park,” says DNR Secretary Matt Frank. “The park has long been an important recreational spot for the local community, and this work allows people to enjoy it again.”

Contact with Milwaukee River water is no longer a problem for people boating in the lagoon as a result of the project. People fishing from 1-acre lagoon who want to eat their catch should follow the fish consumption advice for that stretch of the Milwaukee River.

Frank says that the $1.3 million project was possible because of state Great Lakes Program Funds that Gov. Jim Doyle and the Wisconsin Legislature provided to address the significant sources of toxic chemicals that have contaminated fish in Wisconsin's major tributaries to the Great Lakes.

“This project, like the Kinnickinnic River cleanup announced last week, demonstrates Governor Doyle’s commitment to providing the resources to successfully address the contaminated sediment sites in the state and restore our natural resources for people to enjoy," Frank says.

On July 20, Doyle announced a $24.4 million project to clean contaminated sediment from the Kinnickinnic River in Milwaukee. The state is leveraging about $7.7 million of state funds, earmarked in the current state budget, to secure $14 million in federal funds for the cleanup. The city of Milwaukee also is contributing money.

The Blatz Pavilion site was identified as a priority cleanup site by the DNR and the local community following a 2005 report on PCBs in the Estabrook Impoundment in Lincoln Park in Milwaukee, according to Ted Bosch, project engineer from the DNR Southeast Region. The risks posed by the site included skin contact and potential water ingestion by park users, and the consumption of too many contaminated fish from the river. Infants and children of women who have eaten a lot of PCB-contaminated fish may have lower birth weights and delayed physical and learning development. PCBs also may affect reproductive function and the immune system and are also associated with cancer risk.

The department conducted an environmental investigation of the river but was not able to determine a source that was responsible for the PCB contamination.

The Blatz project removed an estimated 300 pounds of PCBs in nearly 4,000 cubic yards of mud from the lagoon bottom. About 2,000 tons of the mud with higher concentrations of PCBs were shipped out of state to a chemical waste landfill. About 3,500 tons of low level sediment were disposed in a local solid waste landfill, Bosch says.

The lagoon bottom was restored with sand and gravel and improvements were made to the lagoon waterfront, Bosch says. The DNR, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Milwaukee County, and the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sanitary District all provided supervision for the contractor performing the work.

The experience DNR staff gained on other sediment remediation projects, including the Lower Fox River project, resulted in the success of the Blatz Pavilion lagoon project, according to Greg Hill who leads the DNR’s statewide contaminated sediment management program.

That expertise will be important as the DNR and Milwaukee County tackle the larger clean up project the must be done in the adjacent Lincoln Park Lagoon and channel. The DNR is developing a project plan with Milwaukee County to design and implement this next project.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Greg Hill - (608) 267-9352

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Traveling Labor Day weekend? Avoid trouble and expense, leave the firewood at home

MADISON -- Campers, vacation home owners, and others who plan on traveling this Labor Day weekend are reminded that firewood can transport tree-killing foreign pests and diseases.

Because of this threat, firewood is increasingly regulated. Campgrounds in particular are restricting the wood they will allow onto the property and this is happening at state, federal, county and private campgrounds.

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources forestry officials are asking everyone to obey new firewood quarantines and not move hardwood firewood out of the newly established emerald ash borer quarantine area of Ozaukee, Washington, Sheboygan and Fond du Lac counties to avoid spreading this damaging pest. Movement of hardwood firewood out of the quarantine area by individuals is a criminal violation with a penalty of six months in jail, a $200 fine, or both.

“Even though movement within the quarantine area is legal, it is still a bad idea,” says DNR forest health specialist, Andrea Diss-Torrance, “emerald ash borer moves slowly on its own so even though is has been found in northeast Washington County, it could be years before it got to Holy Hill in the southwestern part of the county. That is, unless someone insisted on moving firewood and brought it there tomorrow.”

Campers are also reminded not to bring firewood from these quarantined counties, from out-of-state, or from more than 50 miles away from any state managed property they will be visiting as it will be confiscated and destroyed. Most state campgrounds have firewood available for purchase at or near the campground. People who have questions about where to get firewood at a state campground they will be visiting should contact the campground directly. A list of state park phone numbers is online at [www.wiparks.net].

The national forests in Wisconsin recently announced they will not accept firewood from south of Highway 29 or from out of state to reduce the risk of introduction of emerald ash borer. Many county parks and private campgrounds also restrict firewood brought onto their property. Contact the campgrounds you plan to visit or better yet, get your wood when you arrive.

“If you are going up to your vacation home, get your wood from a local dealer, don’t bring it from several hours away” recommends Diss-Torrance, “You don’t want to introduce pests or diseases right onto your property.”

The converse is true for homeowners returning home, “You don’t want to bring home an unwanted souvenir, a new pest on your trees!”

To learn more about Emerald Ash Borer, firewood quarantines, what’s being done, and what you can do to help, visit [www.emeraldashborer.info] (exit DNR). More information about Wisconsin’s firewood rule is available on the DNR Web site or call the firewood hotline at 1-877-303-WOOD (9663).

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Andrea Diss-Torrance: (608) 264-9247 or Jane Cummings-Carlson - (608) 275-3273

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New Initiative aims to apply “sustainable” technologies to environmental cleanups

MADISON – State directed efforts to clean up and redevelop contaminated properties in Wisconsin would add a new dimension emphasizing the application of sustainable technologies, under a new Department of Natural Resources initiative.

Wisconsin’s Initiative on Sustainable Cleanups (WISC) will focus on such things as integrating the reduction of greenhouse gases, energy savings and waste recycling with remediation and reuse of contaminated properties, according to Mark F. Giesfeldt, director of the DNR Remediation and Redevelopment program.

The agency recently selected the private contractor Earth Tech AECOM of Sheboygan, to work with the agency on developing sustainable cleanup practices at contaminated properties. Earth Tech AECOM was selected as the firm with the best overall proposal out of Statements of Qualifications staff reviewed from 24 applicants.

Giesfeldt said the contractor’s tasks will include developing a sustainable remediation reference guide to assist department staff in conducting baseline sustainability reviews for proposed remediation systems, and providing a framework for comparing outcomes from various sustainable elements on individual remedial projects.

Earth Tech AECOM will also be evaluating seven existing state-funded response and Federal Superfund projects around the state to determine if DNR’s contractors at those projects could employ more sustainable practices.

Initially, Giesfeldt said, the focus will be on state-funded cleanups, where the responsible party is unknown, unable or unwilling to pay for remediation. While the initiative will start with state-funded projects, Giesfeldt noted the RR Program would also pursue opportunities for the private sector to embrace more sustainable cleanup practices.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Marie Stewart, 608-267-2465