On Thursday morning, January 17, The Western District Office of MassWildlife was called upon to rescue a 180-190 lbs buck that was stuck on the ice on Pontoosuc Lake. According to DFW Western District Supervisor Andrew Madden, the deer was splayed out on the ice, couldn’t get any grip and appeared to be injured. Although there was a lot of blood and the animal’s tail was missing, the DFW staff was hopeful that after assessing its injuries, perhaps they could treat and release it back into the wild.
They had to tranquilize it in order to free it from the ice. DFW Wildlife Biologist Nate Buckhout slowly and cautiously approached the deer with a tranquilizer gun. He tried not to startle the deer and keep it as stress-free as possible to avoid it from trying to get up and hurting itself more. The deer was alert and tried to get up but the ice was too slick
“Nate took a good shot getting the immobilizer into the deer. The drugs worked pretty quickly and all went pretty well,” Madden said. The buck was loaded onto a sled and dragged off by MassWildlife personnel to be assessed. At that time, it wasn’t known whether the deer would survive the wounds and traumatic event.
Thank goodness the ice was solid and they could get to the deer because, if not, they would have had to work with the fire departments on water rescue which can be risky.
After assessing the deer, MassWildlife personnel discovered more serious injuries and determined that they were far too serious for the deer to recover. Unfortunately, they had to euthanize it.
Madden felt that perhaps the deer was chased onto the ice by coyotes, fell down and couldn’t get up due to its being so slippery. On that day the ice was hard with no snow on which to grip.
Although it was not a happy ending, give credit to MassWildlife and all involved for their valiant efforts to try to save that deer.
Want to learn how to ice fish? Attend a Family Ice Fishing Festival
MassWildlife advises us to not let winter keep us indoors. Ice fishing provides anglers with the unique opportunity to fish on a lake or pond without a boat during the cold winter months. If you’re looking to learn how to ice fish, join MassWildlife’s Angler Education Program at an upcoming event this winter.
Two Family Ice Fishing Festivals are scheduled for the Western District this year. Both are free and open to the public with no pre-registration required.
February 2 in Pittsfield – A learn to ice fish event at Pontoosuc Lake (81 Narragansett Avenue) from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (Park on the street around the park and walk onto the lake from there.)
February 9 in Chesterfield – A learn to ice fish event at Scout Pond – Tolgy Wood (the old Chesterfield Scout Reservation at Sugar Hill Road in Chesterfield) from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Bring your ice fishing equipment, or borrow theirs; equipment and bait will be available on a first come, first served basis. These events are in cooperation with the Western Massachusetts Boy Scout Council. For more information contact Jim Lagacy at jim.lagacy@mass.gov or (508) 389-6309. PLEASE NOTE: Less than 6″ of safe ice, rain, or heavy snow will cancel the events.
Basic Hunter Education courses being offered
By state law, if you are 18 years of age or older and you want to purchase your first-ever hunting license, you must complete a Basic Hunter Education course. Hunters 12 to 17 years of age must adhere to the regulations which are specific to their age. While minors are not mandated to complete a Basic Hunter Education, it is a prerequisite for certain youth programs and it allows minors 15 to 17 years of age to hunt without direct supervision.
In a Basic Hunter Education course, students receive instruction in the safe handling and storage of hunting arms and ammunition, hunting laws and ethics, care and handling of game, and wildlife conservation. Courses are typically 15 hours in length and are offered in different formats to meet the public’s needs. Students under the age of 18 will need a parent or legal guardian’s permission to attend this course. All courses are free of charge and open to the public.
The Cheshire Rod & Gun Club will be conducting a 6 session Hunter Education Course at its clubhouse on 310 Curran Road, Cheshire. The sessions will run from 6:00 to 9:00pm on February 18, 22, 2 and March 1, 4 and 8.
A similar 6 session course will be held at the Pittsfield High School, 300 East Street, Pittsfield. The sessions will also run from 6:00 to 9:00pm on March 5, 7, 12, 14, 19 and 21.
If these courses are not convenient for you, Basic Hunting Instructor Wayne McLain plans to teach a course at the East Mountain Sportsmen’s Club in Williamstown sometime in April, but the dates have not been firmed up yet. As soon as the dates have been established, I’ll pass them on in this column.
To enroll in either course, call (508) 389-7830. Don’t wait! These courses fill up rapidly.
It may be more convenient for you to take the Basic Hunter Education course in another state. A government-issued Basic Hunter Education certificate from any U.S. State, Mexico, or Canada is accepted to meet the prerequisites for purchasing a Massachusetts hunting or sporting license. Many states near Massachusetts allow non-residents to attend their hunter education course offerings.
If you are using your certificate to becoming eligible for your first-ever hunting license and apply for a firearms license please be aware that your local police department will not accept an out-of-state certificate.
For more information, click onto http://www.mass.gov/service-details/basic-hunter-education-course-offerings.
On the Water TV show features Berkshire Waters
Rick O’Neill, of Pittsfield, was fortunate enough last May to get together with Chris Megan, Publisher of On the Water magazine/television show, and Dave Hadden of Old Town Kayaks to film a couple of days of smallmouth and trout fishing in the Southern Berkshires.
According to Rick, they had 2 tremendous days of fishing and filming that included drone and underwater footage. They caught tons of smallmouth bass ranging from 1 ½ lbs to 6 lbs on a pond in Great Barrington. Sorry, you will have to watch the program to see exactly where they caught them.
The show will be airing on Sunday, February 10 at 10:00 am on Channel 26 NBC Boston. While Rick hasn’t seen the final footage, he knows for a fact that they also took lots of film of local attractions and will be trying to promote all that we have to offer here in the Berkshires.