Linking Landscapes

Posted on by

 

How many times have you been traveling along a road and have seen the dead carcasses of deer, squirrels, salamanders, turtles, etc. which have been hit by vehicles? Any how many times have you seen such dead critters in the same location year after year? You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that the road is probably crossing their ancestral migration paths or some necessary transit way. Do you feel helpless and wish you could do something to reduce these casualties? Well, there might be.

There is a statewide, long-term, and multifaceted volunteer-based wildlife monitoring and conservation planning collaboration that involves the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, state agencies, and citizen scientists. Called Linking Landscapes for Massachusetts Wildlife (LLMW), its objectives are to: 1) reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and improve public safety; 2) enhance, protect, and restore habitats impacted by roads; 3) control invasive species within habitats of high conservation priority; 4) incorporate conservation priorities into transportation planning; and, 5) implement wildlife transportation research projects to inform transportation and conservation decision making.
Utilizing expertise from the program partners, a research project was designed to collect information on wildlife roadway sightings and mortalities through volunteer participation. Partnering with the UMASS since 2010, The LLMW website, hosted by UMASS (http://www.linkinglandscapes.info/), features three separate databases: 1) road-crossing observations of vernal pool-breeding amphibians during spring migration; 2) turtle road crossing mortality during nesting season; and 3) all other wildlife road related mortality.
Online data forms available on the LLMW website use a Google Map interface that allows users to identify the exact location of a recorded observation and all of its associated data, including species and numbers of animals observed, date of the observation, observer name, contact information, and additional comments. Multi-year wildlife mortality observations and the presence of any rare wildlife are also recorded.
The citizen scientist volunteers documented over 3,500 mortalities representing 49 species at 1,161 locations throughout the state. Nine species of current or former state-listed salamanders and turtles were among the mortalities recorded. Sites of highest conservation need were identified and targeted by MassWildlife and MassDOT to develop on-site improvements such as new signage, enhanced culvert design, or installation of wildlife barrier fencing. One successful fencing example at the highest turtle mortality hot spot documented in the state (Littleton) reduced turtle mortality by 90%.
In addition to community engagement through citizen science, the collected data from LLMW has informed the agencies where best to install improved crossing structures and other wildlife barriers to enhance public safety and protect endangered species. The LLMW collaboration has helped the partners prioritize and implement invasive species control, and conduct habitat restoration activities on scenic uplands and calcareous wetlands that are hot spots for biodiversity.
The LLMW has engaged with community organizations to build and install nesting boxes for American kestrels, a declining species; installed and monitored peregrine falcon nesting boxes on bridges; and provided an avenue for meeting the Highway Division’s GreenDOT goal to enhance the ecological performance of MassDOT impacted land.
To prevent or reduce turtle road mortality – one of the most pernicious and devastating threats to this group of reptiles – new initiatives are providing barriers to road crossings, placing turtle crossing signs at reported high mortality areas, and enhancing culvert/bridge designs to favor turtle survival.

You can learn more about Conservation Projects at the link https://www.linkinglandscapes.info/uploads/2/8/7/8/28782453/linking_landscapes_2017_final_3-26-18_update.pdf. Also, there is a good write-up regarding this program in the Issue #3, 2014 Massachusetts Wildlife magazine if you can get your hands on one.

After reading the Summary Report, I had a few questions which I posed to David Paulson from MassWildlife. asked him if the program covers secondary roads, ie, town roads? He said that it covers all roads in MA, especially the citizen science data.

I asked him how can the general public participate? Does the general public join as a monitor, or just report a road kill?
Reporting is easy, he said, volunteer effort can be as passive as occasional observations to more intensive survey efforts (which are usually coordinated). Safety is always the priority. To submit your findings, click the major project that best fits what you see: reducing turtle roadkill, mapping amphibian crossings, or mapping wildlife roadkill. Fill out the short survey, with detailed location information. The Google Map at the bottom of the survey can be zoomed in and panned to a specific location. The information provided on the website helps MassWildlife and MassDOT determine priority areas to mitigate wildlife-human interactions and how best to manage them.

I asked him if people can sign up through the Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT)? Not required, but absolutely, he said. Two organizations have been very involved with the monitoring program and deserve recognition: The Parker River Clean Water Association and our own BEAT.

Many thanks to Fish & Wildlife Board Member Steve Sears who originally brought this program to the attention of the Berkshire County League of Sportsmen in February of this year.

Basic Hunter Education Course Cancelled
In this column of August 11, I mentioned that there will be a 6-day basic hunter education course at the Pittsfield High School running nights from September 10 through September 26. Please be advised that the course has been cancelled. No word has been received as to why the cancellation or if another one is being rescheduled.
Is it time to allow crossbow hunting here in Massachusetts?

Many hunters think so. A crossbill hunting bill passed in the State Senate last year, but not the House. Sportsmen have been trying to get a bill passed in the House for years now only to see it hug up in “committee.” Now they are asking public support. The Massachusetts Conservation Alliance is spearheading this year’s effort by supporting a bill in the MA House of Representatives titled H.3866. They are joined by the Massachusetts Sportsmen’s Council, GOAL and others.

Here are some of the reasons the MCA is asking the public to support the bill:
• Crossbows are legal in 46 other states.
• MA currently allows crossbow use by disabled persons by permit. If passed, Massachusetts would join at least 32 other states that currently allow crossbow hunting for non-disabled individuals
• It allows professional managers at the DFW to regulate crossbows as they currently do for all other archery equipment
• Crossbow sales taxes would increase the Pitman-Robertson funding for conservation of both game and non-game species.
• Crossbows are quick, quiet and effective on all types of game
• Crossbow hunting increases options for hunters and wildlife managers in areas where firearms are prohibited, and populations are high.
• There are no documented cases of non-hunters being injured by archery equipment in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Unfortunately, many older bowhunters have had to give up archery hunting simply because they no longer have the strength to draw a 45-50 lbs. bow anymore. (Sorry folks, it’s a fact of life.) Because crossbows are much easier to draw (load) it allows them to enjoy a few more years in the woods archery hunting.

So how can the general public and sportsfolks help? By phoning or writing your legislators asking them to vote for H.3866.

Fishing Derby
The Berkshire Hatchery Foundation in Hartsville-New Marlborough is having its next free children’s fishing derby on Saturday, September 14 from 9:00 to 10:30 am at its lower pond. Children aged 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult. This will be the last derby of the year.
Early Goose Hunting Season

The statewide Early Canada Goose hunting opened on September 3 and runs until September 20. The daily bag limit is 15 and the possession limit is 45. For more information such as type of shot, licenses required, hunting hours, etc., click onto https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2019/05/14/MassWildlife_MigratoryGameBird-Regs_2019-2020.pd.

 

Black bear hunting season opens Tuesday

Posted on by

Can you believe it? Fall bear hunting season is opening already. Gosh, where does the time go. The first bear hunting season runs from Sept. 3 to Sept. 21, the second season from Nov. 4 to Nov. 23 and the Shotgun season runs from Dec. 2 to Dec. 14 (concurrent with the shotgun deer hunting season). Hunting is prohibited on Sundays.
The regulations are complicated, so here we go:
The Hunting hours begin ½ hour before sunrise and end ½ hour after sunset. (Except on WMAs stocked with pheasant or quail during the pheasant or quail season, hunting hours are sunrise to sunset.)
To hunt black bear in Massachusetts you must have the appropriate license and permit, which you can buy through MassFishHunt. Licenses required for Massachusetts residents are a hunting or sporting license and a bear permit. Non-residents need a big game license and a bear permit.
Bear hunters are allowed to take one bear per calendar year.
Hunting implements
Hunting implement First season Second season Shotgun season
Rifle* X X
Handgun* X
Muzzleloader* X X X
Archery X X X
Shotgun X

*Except on WMAs stocked with pheasant or quail during the pheasant or quail season.

The rifle caliber must be a.23 or larger. Handgun: .357 Magnum revolver with .357 Magnum cartridges only, or a revolver .40 caliber or larger. Muzzleloader: .44 to .775 caliber, fired from the shoulder, using a single projectile.

Archery Equipment: Bows must have a draw weight of at least 40lbs at 28 inches or at peak draw. Arrows must have a well sharpened steel broadhead blade not less than 7/8 inches in width. Expanding broadheads are legal. Poisoned arrows, explosive tips and bows drawn by mechanical means are prohibited. Crossbows may be used by certain permanently disabled persons by permit only.
Shotgun: Allowed only during the shotgun season, shotgun not larger than 10 gauge, including shotguns with a rifled bore, slugs only.
Hunter orange requirements
• First Season: None
• Second Season: A hunter orange hat is required on WMAs stocked with pheasant or quail during the pheasant or quail season.
• Shotgun Season: You must wear 500 square inches of hunter orange on your head, chest, and back.
It is illegal to use bait and dogs.
Special rules on Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) stocked with pheasant or quail during the pheasant or quail season
• Hunting hours are sunrise to sunset
• Hunter orange hat is required
• Other rules apply – check the WMA regulations

Upon killing a bear, hunters must immediately fill out and attach to the carcass the “harvest tag” found on the bear permit. The bear must remain intact (other than field dressing), with the harvest tag attached, until it is reported and prepared for food or taxidermy.
Hunters must report their bear either online or at a check station within 48 hours of harvest. If reporting online, a confirmation number will be issued and must be written on the harvest tag, if reporting at a check station a metal seal will be attached to the carcass. Either the seal or the harvest tag must be attached to the bear until it is processed. When transporting the bear, some portion of the carcass must remain visible until it has been reported.
The statewide population of bears is estimated to be over 4,500 animals and is growing, so the hunters’ odds are pretty good at getting one.
Gray squirrel hunting season
Thursday, September 9 marks the opening of the Gray Squirrel hunting season in Zones 1 through 9. (Yes, there are quite a few local squirrel hunters who relish a good squirrel and dumplings meal). Rather than confuse the hunters with another set of hunting regulations, I refer you to the MassWildlife web page https://www.mass.gov/service-details/gray-squirrel-hunting-regulations. There you will find squirrel hunting regulations such as Hunting Hours, Required License, bag limits, type of hunting implements, hunter orange requirement, and more.
Non-resident hunters, take note
There are non-resident readers of this column from NY and elsewhere who are interested in hunting in Massachusetts but are a little confused about our hunting regulations. The following information comes from the 2019 Freshwater Fishing, Hunting and Trapping Laws. Non-Resident Hunters:
• Must have a valid Massachusetts non-resident hunting license in order to hunt.
• Must have successfully completed a Basic Hunter Education course or held a hunting license anywhere in North America prior to 2007 in order to purchase a Massachusetts hunting license. Non-resident adults and minors (ages 15–17) purchase the same class license, H5 or H6 (see below for explanations).
H5 – Non-resident (adult/minor) Hunting, Big Game (Deer, Bear, Turkey, and all other game species) $99.50.
H6 – Non-resident (adult/minor) Hunting, Small Game (All game species except deer, bear, and turkey) $65.50.
• Must obtain the same stamps and permits as residents which are the same for residents and non-residents. Non-resident migratory game bird hunters must complete a Massachusetts H.I.P. survey to hunt.
• May not purchase ammunition in Massachusetts (including materials used in black powder firearms).
• Must have their firearms unloaded and enclosed in a case while travelling into or through Massachusetts.
• No gun license (FID) is needed to possess or transport long guns.
• Should contact the Massachusetts Criminal History Systems Board (CHSB) Firearms Support Services, 200 Arlington St., Suite 2200, Chelsea, MA 02150, tel. (617) 660-4780 for information on handgun permits.
Culvert Replacements
The Baker-Polito Administration recently awarded $932,000 to support 16 statewide culvert replacement projects that improve municipal infrastructure, river health and resilience to climate change.
Grants of interest to local environmentalists and outdoor sportspersons are as follows:

Chester (Trout Unlimited), $30,000 – Trout Unlimited, the Town of Chester and other project partners will use the grant funds to construct a structure that meets improved stream crossing and engineering design standards. Replacing this undersized and failing culvert on Kinne Brook Road with larger, safer structures will allow full upstream and downstream movement of aquatic species, including native eastern brook trout, and reduce the risk of road damage and failure in flood conditions.
Clarksburg, $41,000 – The Town of Clarksburg will conduct field data collection and analysis, design and engineering, and permitting for a culvert replacement on Bear Swamp Brook. Upgrading the culvert allows coldwater species to access to critical coldwater streams, particularly important as the climate warms and stream temperature increases. The road also serves a primary emergency access route.
Cummington, $80,000 – The Town of Cummington will complete design and engineering tasks for the culvert replacement on the North Branch of the Swift River. Upgrading the culvert will enhance public safety, resiliency, and ecological conditions and maintain economic connectivity. The North Branch Swift River is a tributary to the Wild & Scenic Westfield River, a coldwater stream that provides critical habitat for state-listed fish only found in Massachusetts in the upper tributaries of the Westfield River.
Sheffield, $54,000 – The Town of Sheffield will conduct final engineering and design and permitting for a culvert replacement on Dry Brook. The current structure results in frequent roadway flooding and repair costs. Upgrading this culvert will improve Sheffield’s infrastructure and storm resilience, reduce maintenance costs, and improve passage for fish and wildlife, including the federally listed bog turtle.
Culverts are a critical yet hidden part of our infrastructure, yet so many are in disrepair,” said State Senator Adam Hinds (D-Pittsfield). “This funding will go a long way towards our continued work with local officials to address their needs.”
“I am grateful to Secretary Theoharides for making this announcement in Windsor and for recognizing the importance of partnership between the state and our small, rural communities,” said State Representative Paul Mark (D-Peru). “Rural towns often face tough situations and tough choices when it comes to budgeting. Every state investment we are able to help secure goes such a long way towards sustainability and the long-term health of our region. This grant will be put to good use and will help improve our environment for natural habitat and nature lovers.”

Enjoy some summertime bass fishing

Posted on by

With the hot weather that we have had recently, our local rivers have basically shut down with regards to trout fishing. They require colder waters, preferably under 70 degrees Fahrenheit. There is still good trout fishing in some of our deeper local lakes.
But for some anglers, they have put down the trout fly rod or spinning outfits, picked up their bass fishing gear and headed for the lakes, preferably those with some lily pads. If you have had a chance to look out onto a lake in the early mornings or early evenings at this time of the year, chances are good that you will see anglers in boats quietly bass fishing.
Anglers can bass fish year-round now in MA, but it wasn’t always that way. Back when fishing seasons didn’t open until mid-April, anglers could not catch and keep bass before June 15. The reason was that the bass were on their spawning beds until then and it was felt that they shouldn’t be pulled off of those beds leaving their eggs and/or small fry exposed to predators such as sun fish and perch. Some states like nearby New York still don’t allow bass fishing until that date.
Some of us are from the old school and still don’t fish for them until after June 15, and then we fish for them all summer long.
There are different methods of bass fishing- from using live bait with bobbers, to spoons and spinners, to rubber imitations of worms, crayfish and other critters. They all work well.
My preference for catching bass is the old fashioned topwater bass plug. To me there is nothing more exciting than the heart-stopping thrill of a bass coming to the surface and slamming that plug, followed by splashing, jumping, deep diving, etc. And if I am using a 50 or 60 year-old plug such as a Heddon River Runt or Baby Zara, a Fred Arbogast Crazy Crawler or Jitterbug, a Rapala bait fish imitation or a Helin’s Flatfish, all the better. I’ll bet some of you “more experienced” anglers are still using the old red and white Bass-O-Reno plug. They may be old with dings and teeth marks, but they still work.
There are a lot of bass out there in our lakes these days, partly because we have some nice, healthy waters and partly because more anglers now are practicing “catch and release”, resulting on more larger fish swimming around. That’s not to say that one should feel guilty when taking a bass home to eat now and then, but the catch and release concept has really taken hold these days in bass and trout fishing.
I like to link up with my nephews Joe and Jim Chague, buddy Doug Yates and others and go bass fishing on Friday nights. It’s a nice way to end the work week (even though I am long retired). Pictured here is a nice bass caught recently by Doug on a Heddon “Zara Puppy” bass plug, using the “Walking the dog” fishing method. Manipulated in a certain way, the plug looks like a small fish jumping out of the water chasing an insect. The big bully bass can’t stand that and pounce onto the imitation.
Its always nice to see families out fishing, such as the one shown in another attached picture. Grandparents Sue Joyner of Hinsdale and Gary Ouimet of Dalton took young Aralyn fishing last weekend. They had a nice day with Sue catching 4, Gary catching 3 and Aralyn catching 2 bass. All of them were released. Aah, it doesn’t get any better!
Aralyn is no novice when it comes to fishing. Two years ago, she won a “Lunker Derby” by catching a 4 ½ lbs. fish and taking home the $60 first prize money.
More on MassWildlife Habitat Programs
Readers may recall that last week this column dealt with MassWildlife’s Habitat Programs. Mass Fisheries & Wildlife Board Vice Chairman Mike Roche recently wrote an excellent piece about the same topic coming at it from a different angle, that being carbon storage and release. Here are some excerpts of what he wrote:
“MassWildlife has, for many years, planned the forest management on MassWildlife Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) for a number of purposes. The stewardship of the wildlife, plants and insects is always part of the equation but so are the important issues of carbon storage and release as they relate to Climate Change. A very detailed and informative presentation was given to the Fisheries and Wildlife Board at a recent meeting by Brian Hawthorne, Habitat Planning Coordinator, that included data analysis of the work done on MassWildlife lands and the impact, now and going forward.
As part of ongoing efforts to support Governor Baker’s Executive Order on Climate Change, and to implement the Global Warming Solutions Act, MassWildlife recently completed a detailed accounting of carbon storage and carbon release on state Wildlife Management Areas. The results from this carbon budget analysis showed that the amount of carbon released during selective tree clearing carried out during habitat management projects is a tiny fraction of carbon storage gained by tree and plant growth on the agency’s 170,000 acres of forested WMAs. Conducting habitat management provides a vital boost to rare and dwindling animals and plants that rely on open habitats and allows MassWildlife to fulfill its mission. “The Division of Fisheries and Wildlife is proud to incorporate climate change adaptation and mitigation principles into its mission to conserve biological diversity in Massachusetts,” says John Scanlon, MassWildlife’s Habitat Program Leader. “We are able to manage habitat for all kinds of wildlife while substantially contributing to carbon sequestration in Massachusetts.”
MassWildlife protects and manages over 220,000 acres of wildlife lands across the state, including WMA’s and Wildlife Conservation Easements, for wildlife to thrive and for people to enjoy. The agency is recognized as a national leader in incorporating climate change adaptation and mitigation principles into its statewide wildlife conservation mission. Climate change is driven by increased concentrations of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide, in the atmosphere. As they grow, trees and other forest plants help reduce greenhouse gases by storing large amounts of carbon in wood, root systems, and soils. MassWildlife is committed to managing the vast majority of its land as forest and recognizes that every acre the agency and its conservation partners permanently protect from development contributes to climate change mitigation efforts.
In 2006, MassWildlife habitat biologists conducted a comprehensive inventory of forests on WMAs and found that its wooded lands stored 10.3 million tons of carbon. Between 2007 and 2018, MassWildlife acquired additional lands which contributed to another 2.6 million tons of carbon storage. In addition, between 2007 and 2018, forest growth across all MassWildlife lands sequestered an additional 1.2 million tons of carbon. MassWildlife lands currently store a grand total of just over 14 million tons of carbon.
On the other side of the equation, MassWildlife staff calculated carbon release tonnage from habitat management activities. MassWildlife regularly performs habitat management on WMAs including tree clearing. These actions restore and maintain open habitat types that are crucial to the conservation of many kinds of uncommon or rare animals and plants. These habitat management practices release carbon, but how much? The results from the carbon budget analysis showed that since 2006, MassWildlife’s habitat management activities have released only about 20,000 tons of carbon. This is just 1.7% of the 1.2 million tons of new carbon storage gained on WMAs from forest growth since 2006.
Scanlon says that the agency’s habitat management activities are critical for rare and declining wildlife like whip-poor-will, New England cottontail, and a variety of butterflies and moths. “Forest cutting also directly benefits game species such as ruffed grouse and American woodcock. At the same time, we are doing our part in storing carbon.” Scanlon notes that MassWildlife is currently working to calculate carbon storage and release measurements on its Wildlife Conservation Easement lands.
Sportsmen have long recognized the wildlife value of forest cutting and it is easy to observe the changes in the following years after the work is done. Both game species and non-game species tend to become more abundant and that is not lost on hunters and birdwatchers”.

What are MassWildlife’s Habitat Programs?

Posted on by

Habitat Programs conserve rare and declining wildlife through restoration and management of grassland, shrubland, and young forest habitats.
MassWildlife’s Habitat Programs works to conserve a variety of wildlife and plants including rare and declining wildlife species identified in the State Wildlife Action Plan, as well as game animals and more common species. In many cases, this happens through restoration and management of grassland, shrubland, and young forest habitats on public and private lands across Massachusetts.
Using information from scientific literature, from biological monitoring, and from private conservation organizations, their Biologists and Foresters set statewide habitat goals for MassWildlife lands. These habitat goals were set to provide high quality habitat for both game and non-game species, and include the establishment of forest reserves.
Many types of wildlife rely on grassland, shrubland, and young forest habitats – all of which are declining in Massachusetts. MassWildlife’s Habitat Programs work to expand these habitat types on state wildlife lands. These lands include Wildlife Management Areas, Wildlife Conservation Easements, and Wildlife Sanctuaries.
MassWildlife management goals for grassland, shrubland, and young forest habitats.

Why is habitat management needed?
Human infrastructure and development have substantially restricted certain natural disturbance processes that historically provided diverse open habitats for wildlife. In particular, flooding and fire are greatly constrained across the landscape today. While control of flooding and fire is essential to protect human life and property, it also creates an obligation on MassWildlife’s part to provide the dynamic habitats for wildlife that these natural processes formerly did. Habitat management is sometimes needed to create, restore, and maintain a variety of habitat types including grasslands.
History of the Massachusetts landscape
Open habitats (grasslands, shrublands and young forest) were part of the New England landscape for centuries prior to European colonization due to:
1. ubiquitous beaver activity
2. spring flooding and ice scouring along rivers and major streams
3. wildfires and fires set by Native Americans in coastal areas and major river valleys
4. occasional catastrophic windstorms

These open habitats started to decline after European colonization due to:
1. extirpation of beaver from Massachusetts
2. extensive development of roads and buildings in portions of the landscape that formerly supported abundant beaver activity
3. flood control
4. fire suppression (especially in portions of the landscape that supported fire-associated natural communities like pitch pine/scrub oak).
Human activity has also reduced the impact of wind storms across the landscape. Today’s forests are relatively young (75 to 90 year old) compared to the old growth that once existed, which means that trees are more pliant and resistant to wind disturbance than original old growth forests. Forests are also fragmented by development in many portions of the landscape, which means that when wind disturbance does occur on forested lands, it is typically interrupted by adjacent development.
MassWildlife uses active management to provide a range of grassland, shrubland, and young forest habitats that are no longer created frequently enough by natural processes. Forestry practices, along with mowing, prescribed burning, and invasive plant control are often used to manage sites.

Wildlife in decline
Many kinds of birds, mammals, reptiles, insects, and plants thrive in or near open habitat types. The continuing decline of open grasslands, shrublands, and young forests has impacted a number of wildlife and plant species.
Native grassland and shrubland birds are declining at an alarming rate. Even some forest nesting birds are declining, despite the fact that Massachusetts has more forestland now (nearly 3 million acres) than at any time in the past 300 years. This is because some forest birds (e.g., chestnut-sided warbler) are specialized to nest in young forest, and because other forest birds (e.g., wood thrush) nest in mature forest but then move their young into shrubland and young forest habitats after fledging to utilize abundant food and cover found in these areas.
Reports from the yearly North American Breeding Bird Survey, Massachusetts Audubon Society’s 2013 State of the Birds report, and other published scientific articles, show that species including Eastern Towhee, Field Sparrow, and the Brown Thrasher are all showing alarming declines. Populations of Upland Sandpiper, Vesper Sparrow, and Grasshopper Sparrow (all classified as either Threatened or Endangered in Massachusetts) are also declining. It is clear that without the maintenance and creation of open habitat, birds that require this type of habitat will continue to decline.
Other animals and plants that rely on open habitats are in decline. The New England Cottontail, Massachusetts’ only native cottontail (not to be confused with the Eastern Cottontail, which was introduced to the state in the early 1900s), was once common throughout all of the New England states; now it occurs only sporadically. The Regal Fritillary Butterfly, once common, no longer occurs in the state. Black Racer Snakes and Eastern Box Turtle rely on open habitats for various stages of their life cycle. In addition, many field and grassland plants including New England Blazing Star (a state Special Concern Species), Sandplain Gerardia (a state Endangered Species), and Eastern Silvery Aster (a state Endangered Species) are becoming increasingly rare.
MassWildlife uses active management to provide a range of grassland, shrubland, and forested habitats that are no longer provided frequently enough by natural disturbance processes to help support both common and declining species. Forestry practices, along with mowing, prescribed burning, and invasive plant control are used to manage sites.
Here in the Berkshires, MassWildlife has implemented successful management plans in several areas such as the Stafford Hill Wildlife Management Area in Cheshire and the Moran WMA in Windsor to name a couple. I believe a prescribed burn was scheduled sometime this year in Sheffield.
If you are of my generation, you may remember many of our local farms going out of business and their grasslands becoming overgrown with shrubs, wild blackberries, black caps, raspberries, blueberries, grapes and other vegetation that the birds and critters liked to eat. The abandoned orchards were especially good places for deer, rabbit and partridge hunting. MassWildlife does not have to work hard to convince us of the value of its habitat programs. We grew up in those places and saw the wildlife first hand……before the housing developments.
Go to the Massachusetts State Wildlife Action Plan for more information.

The Quabbin Controlled Deer Hunt
The Quabbin Controlled Deer Hunt is an annual event conducted on Quabbin Reservoir watershed lands, implemented as part of the management program to maintain a balance between deer herd densities and forest regeneration. Participants are selected from an applicant pool in a special lottery in early September. The application must be filled out on line and submitted from the DCR Deer Hunt web page between July 1 and August 31. Hunters can get assistance completing the online application at the Quabbin Visitor Center on Saturdays (9 a.m. to noon) and Wednesdays (noon to 3 p.m.) during the application period.
Following input from the public, Quabbin Park has been added to the White-tailed Deer Management Program at Quabbin in 2019. The application is available from August 1 to August 31.
Once selected, all successful applicants will receive written notification by early to mid-October. If you have any questions or concerns, contact https://www.mass.gov/service-details/quabbin-reservation-deer-hunt:
Bird Language

Next Tuesday at J Allen’s Clubhouse,41 North Street, Pittsfield, the Pittsfield Green Drinks will be having Kevin Bose as its guest speaker to talk about bird language. Starting at 5:15 PM they will chat and nosh, and at 6 PM Kevin will give a 30-minute talk.

All animals (and once all humans), listen with great awareness to the vocalizations of the birds. When we practice tuning our awareness to bird language, we can learn about so many unseen things happening on the landscape – such as where the fox, weasel, and cooper’s hawk are. Through this practice we can come to a deeper understanding of ecological interconnections, as well as make us better listeners throughout our lives.

Kevin Bose has mentored children and adults of all ages in nature and permaculture for over a decade. In a year-long program that combined these two things (called RDNA) he was mentored by Jon Young (author of What the Robin Knows), in bird language as a core routine for Nature Connection.

So, who/what is Green Drinks? Sponsored by the Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT), it is a group of people who meet the 3rd Tuesday of every month, .and usually have a guest speaker. It is billed as great way of catching up with people you know and for making new contacts. The drinks aren’t green but the conversations are. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to bring your questions! It is free and open to the public.

 

Good Things Happening with the Williams River and its watershed

Posted on by

Recently, the MA Department of Fish and Game and the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFG/DFW) Land ·Protection Program was awarded $13,447 in “In Lieu Fee Program” funds for the fee interest acquisition of a 49-acre property, located off Moscow Road in West Stockbridge. This property is adjacent to the DFW Maple Hill Wildlife Management Area and includes approximately 5,000 feet of frontage on the Williams River and 3.8 acres of freshwater wetlands. The property was under threat of development, with 500 feet of frontage on Moscow Road and potential for residential housing lots.
The Williams River, which is a major tributary of the Housatonic River, is an identified Coldwater Fisheries Resource. Wetlands on-site are identified as State BioMap2 Wetlands Core habitat. The Williams River preservation parcel is of significance for connectivity, ecological integrity, and climate change resiliency; it is identified as (1) BioMap2 Critical Natural Landscape Upland Wetland Buffer, (2) a DEP Important Habitat), and (3) a TNC resilient site. (See explanations below)
Acquisition and management of this parcel by DFW ensures the preservation of these aquatic resources and about10 acres of upland buffer.
(1) BioMap2 is designed to guide strategic biodiversity conservation in Massachusetts by focusing land protection and stewardship on the areas that are most critical for ensuring the long-term persistence of rare and other native species and their habitats, exemplary natural communities, and a diversity of ecosystems across the Commonwealth. Critical Natural Landscape identifies larger landscape areas that are better able to support ecological processes, disturbances, and wide-ranging species.
(2) Developed by UMass, the Massachusetts Ecological Integrity Maps (IEI) are based on a computer software program and a method to prioritize land for conservation based on the assessment of ecological integrity for ecological communities (e.g., forest, shrub swamp, headwater stream). Using the IEI values, the MassDEP maps habitat of potential regional or statewide Importance (MassDEP Important Habitats). They depict areas representing 40% of the landscape with the highest wildlife habitat value.
(3) The Nature Conservancy’s Resilient Sites for Terrestrial Conservation project identifies the areas estimated to be the most climate resilient for each of 62 characteristic environments in Eastern North America.
But wait, there’s more!
The Masiero family of West Stockbridge recently conserved about 25 acres of land bordering the Williams River across from the old West Stockbridge Sportsmen’s Club. According to a Berkshire Natural Resources Council (BNRC) news release, the Masieros approached them over the winter and asked about conservation options for their beloved family land. Together they walked the scenic and unspoiled property on the banks of the Williams River–a clear conservation gem. Furthermore, generously, the Masieros were open to the idea of public access to this beautiful place for fishing.
They discussed conservation options, including the option of working with MassWildlife, owners of the Williams River Wildlife Management Area which is directly across from the Masiero land. (That WMA consists of 35 acres of land purchased in 2010 behind the West Stockbridge Sportsmen’s club that contains nice wildlife habitat and a section of the Williams River which provides excellent trout fishing). The Masieros decided it made sense to work with MassWildlife, so BNRC connected them, and are now “thrilled” to announce the land is conserved, with public access to the river.
Incidentally, John Masiero was one of the founders and directors of the Friends of the Williams River (FWR) an environmental organization which focused on the Williams River and its watershed. It leaned hard on George “Gige”Darey, Chairman of the Fish & Wildlife Board and the DFW back in the 1990’s to acquire land which ultimately became known as the Maple Hill Wildlife Management Area. Additional acreage was subsequently added to it in 2013.
During the same time, the FWR also urged fellow Board Member George Naventi to sell some of his property on Moscow Road to the DFW in order to preserve it. Unfortunately, the FWR became defunct before that could happen. It is so nice to see the previously mentioned. 49 acre “In Lieu Fee Program” purchase come about.
Never heard of the Friends of Williams River? Well, my good friend John Masiero and I were on that Board and we should sit down and do a write-up about it for a future column or two.
Basic Hunter Education Courses
Hunter Education is mandatory for all first- time hunters. By state law, all first-time hunters (18 years of age or older) must successfully complete a Basic Hunter Education course before they may purchase a Massachusetts hunting or sporting license. Government issued “certificates of completion” from any jurisdiction are accepted.
Minors, 12 to 17 years of age, have separate rules to follow (https://www.mass.gov/service-details/hunting-regulations-for-minors). While minors are not mandated to complete Basic Hunter Education to hunt, it is one option for minors 15-17 years of age to purchase a hunting license. It is also a prerequisite for all minors 12-17 years of age to participate in some youth programs such as the Youth Turkey Hunt Program and the Young Adult Pheasant Hunt Program
All courses are free of charge and open to the public.
A 6-day Basic Hunter Education Course will be held at the Pittsfield High School, 300 East Street, Pittsfield. It will run Tuesdays and Thursdays on September 10, 12, 17, 19, 24 and 26 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm each night. To enroll call (508)389-7830.
Hunter Education graduates aged 12–17 can participate in the Young Adult Pheasant Hunt. This program involves shooting instruction and practice, a pre-hunt workshop, and a mentored hunt prior to the regular pheasant season. All young adults between the ages 15 and 17 will need a hunting license and FID card to participate in this program.
The Young Adult Pheasant Hunt takes place on Saturdays in September and October; specific dates vary and are determined by participating sportsman’s clubs. Applications must be received by August 27. For more information and to view participating clubs, click onto Young Adult Pheasant Hunt Program (https://www.mass.gov/service-details/young-adult-pheasant-hunt-program).
Incidentally, the Youth Deer Hunt day is Saturday, September 28. Youth Deer Hunt Day permits are available online, beginning August 1. With this permit, youths may take either an antlered or antlerless deer in any zone on the Youth Deer Hunt Day. Learn more about the Youth Deer Hunt Day by clicking onto. https://www.mass.gov/service-details/youth-deer-hunt-day
Antlerless Deer Permit instant award period began August 1
If you applied for an Antlerless Deer Permit by the July 16 deadline, you must now check back to find out if you have been awarded one. The award period began August 1 and ends on December 31. Your odds of being awarded a permit are the same regardless of when you check your permit status. You can check the status of your permit through MassFishHunt, or by visiting a MassWildlife office or license agent location. A $5 fee is charged only if you are awarded a permit. Good luck!
If you already know that you weren’t awarded an antlerless deer permit, you might want to consider applying for a surplus antlerless deer permit in zones 9, 10, 11, 13, and 14 until sold out. The surplus permits, which will be sold by Wildlife Management Zone will be staggered over the following days in September.
• Zone 11: Tuesday, September 24 at 9 a.m.
• Zone 10: Wednesday, September 25 at 9 a.m.
• Zones 9, 13 and 14: Thursday, September 26 at 9 a.m.

Surplus Permits are first-come, first-served. Surplus permits must be purchased within 15 minutes after being placed in your shopping cart. The MassFishHunt online licensing system only allows 1 session per customer, so do not log in on multiple devices or you may be kicked out of the system and need to start over.
You may purchase only one Zone 11 and one Zone 10 permit per day; up to four permits per day may be purchased for Zones 13 and 14.

Apprehensions over the new proposed coyote hunting regulations

Posted on by

Apprehensions over the new proposed coyote hunting regulations
Last week, this blog listed the proposed new MA coyote hunting regulations. For a review of them, click onto https://www.mass.gov.

The MA Fish &Wildlife Board voted 6 to 1 in favor of forwarding them for public hearing. Only Board member Robert Durand had opposed the motion because the Board had not yet been provided with the parameters of the regulation.

He had other issues, too. He pointed out to the Board that most states won’t touch “wanton waste” because it is hard to enforce and leaves it up to the discretion of law enforcement. He noted that the state of ME excludes coyotes from their wanton waste provision and the VT Commissioner said at a legislative hearing that wanton waste regs are “fraught with peril”.

Board member Brandi Van Roo is reported to have said that (banning) coyote hunting contests means standing up for a core value of the organization (DFW). But Durand reminded the Board that that the core constituency are the sportsmen and women of the Commonwealth, who pay for MassWildlife, and yet they continue to put in more regulations that hurt this constituency. “If it’s not broke don’t fix it. While I have tremendous respect for the (DFW) staff, they too can get it wrong. I believe this is the case.”, he said. Bob is not alone in this belief.

Bob Durand is no babe in the woods when it comes to environmental and sportsmen’s issues. He formerly served as MA Executive Secretary of Environmental Affairs from 1999 to 2003. He is highly respected in the sportsmen community and his opinions carry a lot of weight.

Because of the 4 listening sessions held across the state (none of them in the Berkshires, by the way) sportsmen knew that coyote hunts would probably be banned. What they didn’t know was that they could be made lawbreakers (wanton waste segment) for doing what they believed was a good thing, reducing the numbers of the coyotes thereby giving the deer, snowshoe hares, partridge and other critters a better chance for survival.

Sportsmen are aware of wanton waste and are taught the importance of ethics in the basic hunting education course. Of course, hunters shouldn’t shoot a duck, deer or other game animal for no reason and leave it in the woods. Give them credit for that at least. But when it comes to predators, that is a different matter. If they see a pack of coyotes chasing a doe and her fawn, for example, chances are good that they will take steps to protect those deer. And I suspect that they are not about to stop their day in the field to drag the animal out and check it in. If the State is going to ban coyote hunts, then ban them, but don’t make criminals of the good intentioned hunters.

The definition of “wanton waste” that I am aware of states “to intentionally waste something negligently, inappropriately for no apparent reason.” And the term is usually associated with edible food – deer, ducks, pheasants, rabbits, etc. In the coyote example used above, it is doubtful that hunters consider that wanton waste, because they killed that animal for a reason….to save another animal. Perhaps many, if not most, hunters would agree with that. I personally don’t believe the coyote hunts came about for any reason other than to relieve the deer herd from being decimated. Any prize winnings are negligible.

I am not a lawyer, but if I was, I would have a field day in court arguing this wanton waste issue.

So how does one sell the notion of wanton waste to the public? That’s easy. Tell them that the deer population doesn’t need the help from the hunter; that coyotes don’t adversely affect the herd, that coyotes don’t chase down and kill healthy adult deer. Well, try telling that to an experienced hunter or someone who owns or lives near a field and frequently sees the carnage for themselves. Our observations in the woods and fields yield different conclusions than DFW’s.

MassWildlife seems to have a handle on the numbers of deer and coyotes that are in MA They feel that the coyote populations are stable, healthy, and abundant with an estimated statewide population of between 9,500 and 11,500 animals. They estimate that there are 95,000 deer in Massachusetts. (Probably the vast majority of them are in the Eastern part of MA where hunting is not allowed in some towns). Each year tens of thousands of antlerless deer permits are issued there to try to control the herd size. There aren’t those kinds of numbers here in the Western District, especially in Wildlife Zones 2 and 4.

But when it comes to the estimated number of fawns born each year, DFW is mum. All that is said is that annually, biologists estimate that coyotes kill about 20–30% of them. That is meaningless unless you know how many fawns are born each year. Does a herd of 95,000 produce15,000 fawns each year? I don’t know, but DFW should. Assuming it is 15,000, then are we talking about a coyote kill of 3,000 to 5,000 fawns a year? Could it be that DFW doesn’t want to shock the general public with such numbers of fawns killed? Then add the kills made by bears which may also be quite high and the kills of adult deer and you are talking some high numbers.

And what about the coyote effect on the snowshoe hare population. They have nearly been decimated here in the Berkshires. Many hunters believe that there is a direct correlation of the rise in the population of the coyote to the decline of the hares.

I have particular concerns of coyotes attacking my beagles while rabbit hunting (happened on 3 separate occasions over the last 30 years) and sought clarification from Board Member Steve Sears. His understanding is that if I shoot a coyote after my dog, I am protecting my property, which the regulations permit. I hope he is right.

But, according to DFW WD Supervisor Andrew Madden, if I shoot a coyote trying to chase down and kill a deer and/or a fawn, it is legal to shoot it, during the combined coyote and deer hunting season, but it must be removed from the woods and checked in, with an explanation as to what I will do with it.

And what if I didn.t report it and left it in the woods? What are the penalties? I see no mention of them in the proposed new regulations. Will there be financial penalties? Will my gun be confiscated? My FID card?

After the Board voted to go to public hearing, DFW Director Mark Tisa is quoted by the Worcester Telegraph-Gazette as saying “The proposed regulations would make the State one of the leaders in banning hunting contests”. The article did not say that he was only referring to coyote hunts. My immediate concern was about the bunny hunts that we have here in the Berkshires. The general public may not be aware that the rabbit meat from these hunts is not wasted but rather brought home to eat or donated to an organization, such as the Adams Outdoor for Youth, that puts on game suppers in order to raise funds to support youth programs.

On two occasions, I emailed Director Tisa to see if he was misquoted or wanted to clarify that statement, but to date I have received no response. Could the bunny hunts be the next target? Big buck contests? And later fishing derbies?

Space does not allow me to express more concerns regarding this proposed regulation. There is supposed to be a public hearing sometime in September with a date to be announced. I encourage sportsmen to weigh in on this whether or not they hunt coyotes.

One parting comment of this subject. A former high-ranking state environmental official commented to me that Gige would be “turning in his grave” over this. He was referring to the late George “Gige” Darey of Lenox, the long-time Chairman of the MA Fish & Wildlife Board.

There is no question that Gige was a strong advocate for the coyote, fighting hard to not allow year-round hunting of them (unlike some neighboring states) and supporting DFW’s findings. The lively monthly discussions between him and Berkshire County League of Sportsmen Board member Robert McCarthy, who is not a big fan of coyotes, were legendary, with neither giving an inch.

But Gige also had a very high regard for the outdoor sportsmen and always had their backs. He fought hard to protect their rights. He was particularly proud that he had their trust.

I’ve got to believe that he would have handled this coyote issue much differently.

Firearms Class

The Lenox Sportsmen’s Club will host an LTC – UTAH and Multi State Firearms class on Sunday, August 11th from 10:00 am to 2:00 p.m. If you or someone you know would like to register for this class contact Tom Nadolny at tnadolny1@gmail.com or call him at 413-822-6451.

Fishing Derby
The Berkshire Hatchery Foundation in Hartsville-New Marlborough is having its next free children’s fishing derby on Saturday, August 10 from 9:00 to 10:30 am at its lower pond. Children aged 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult.

MA F&W Board to hold public hearing on new coyote, fur bearing hunting regulations proposed by DFW

Posted on by


On Wednesday, July 17, after receiving recommendations from the DFW, the MA Fish and Wildlife Board voted 6 to 1 to hold a public hearing regarding three matters: the prohibition of hunting contests for coyotes and other fur bearers such as foxes, bobcats, raccoons and opossums; Inclusion of a ”wanton waste” provision prohibiting the intentional killing of wildlife without retrieving animals for consumption or other use and altering the reporting requirements for fox and coyote.
Board member Steven Sears, representing the Western District, voted with the majority. The lone no vote was given by newly appointed Board member Robert Durand. His reasons for the negative vote will be given further on in this column and a subsequent one.
On Tuesday, July 23, Berkshire County League of Sportsmen President Wayne McLain and I met with Western District DFW Supervisor Andrew Madden and Board Member Steven Sears. At that time, no written regulations had been made available to the public or, so I was told, to the Board Members themselves who approved it and forwarded it on. Only a power point presentation was made at the July 17 meeting. That is one reason why Board Member Durand opposed it. He brought up the fact that the Board didn’t have the info that staff was contemplating for the coyote regulations at the board meeting. “Why would we move to public hearing”, he said “when we don’t know the parameters of the regs?”
Well, that was the issue that Wayne and I were also dealing with now. I must credit Madden and Sears for their efforts in trying to obtain the information for us. The formal proposed regulations were finally made available to the general public on Wednesday, July 24.
Rather than risk erroneously paraphrasing the proposed regulations, I am including them r verbatim in this column along with the attached FAQ’s. I and many other hunters have serious issues and concerns with the above proposed regulation and how it came about, but due to space limitations, we’ll have to get into them in next week’s column.
DFW SUMMARY
In response to public concern related to coyote hunting contests sponsored by private entities, MassWildlife and the Fisheries and Wildlife Board conducted a review of policies and regulations associated with coyote hunting and contests. To gather public feedback, MassWildlife held 4 listening sessions from April through June in Barnstable, Shelburne Falls, Westford, and Bourne. Phone calls, letters, and emails from the public were also reviewed and factored into MassWildlife’s analysis and review. In addition to gathering input from stakeholders, MassWildlife professionals considered the best available science and consulted with wildlife professionals from other state agencies.
MassWildlife staff made a regulatory recommendation to the Fisheries and Wildlife Board based on this comprehensive review. The recommendation addresses public concerns that these hunting contests are unethical, contribute to the waste of animals, and incentivize indiscriminant killing of wildlife, inconsistent with the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. Further, recognizing that public controversy over this issue has the potential to threaten predator hunting and undermine public support for hunting in general, MassWildlife recommended the following regulatory changes:
• Prohibit hunting contests for predators and furbearers.
• Prohibit “wanton waste” of all wildlife taken during regulated hunting and trapping seasons. • Change harvest reporting requirements for fox and coyote to be reported within 48 hours, consistent with current reporting requirements for deer, turkey, and bear.
The Fisheries and Wildlife Board voted to hold a public hearing on the Agency’s recommendations. Details about the public hearing and proposed regulatory language will be available soon on Mass.gov/MassWildlife-Public-Hearings.
THIS PROPOSAL DOES:
• Fulfill one of MassWildlife’s core functions to develop and maintain hunting, fishing, and trapping opportunities in Massachusetts.
• Address public concern that certain contests contribute to the waste of animals.
• Recognize and address the fact that public controversy over this issue has the potential to threaten predator hunting.
• Discourage the waste of wildlife and reinforce a core principle and expectation that all animals taken during the regulated seasons are utilized to the greatest extent possible, as taught in Hunter Education.
• Recognize that coyotes and other furbearers are managed as a valuable natural resource
THIS PROPOSAL DOES NOT:
• Reduce opportunity for hunting coyotes or other furbearers.
• Apply to the defense of people or property. •
Apply to problem wildlife, such as Beaver Emergency Permitting and Problem Animal Control.
• Apply to animals “unfit for consumption or use” (damaged, destroyed, decayed, rotting, diseased, or infected).
• Apply to certain animals listed in M.G.L. c. 131 Sec. 5: English sparrow, starling, crow, chipmunk, flying squirrel, red squirrel, porcupine, skunk, weasel, or woodchuck.
• Apply to wounded or dead animals that cannot be retrieved after a reasonable effort has been made.
DETAILED SUMMARY OF PROPOSED CHANGES
Prohibition on contests for predators and furbearers
• A predator or furbearer contest is where participants compete for prizes of cash value or other inducements in the capture or take of predatory or furbearing animals.
• It shall be unlawful for any person to organize, sponsor, promote, conduct, or participate in a contest (as described above) for take of coyote, bobcat, red fox, gray fox, weasels, mink, skunk, river otter, muskrat, beaver, fisher, raccoon, and opossum. (Animals regulated under 321 CMR 3.02(3) or 3.02(5)(b)(2, 5-11)).
Prohibition of wanton waste
• “Waste” means to intentionally or knowingly leave a wounded or dead animal or bird in the field or the forest without making a reasonable effort to retrieve and use it.
• It is unlawful for any person while hunting or trapping in accordance with 321 CMR 3.02 to waste an animal or bird. Each retrieved animal or bird shall be retained or transferred to another until processed or used for food, fur, feathers, or taxidermy.
• The draft waste regulation does not apply to:
o Animals “unfit for consumption or use” – animals or birds and their parts that are damaged, destroyed, decayed, rotting, diseased, or infected.
o Defense of people or property (M.G.L. Ch. 131 Sec 37)
o Problem wildlife, such as Beaver Emergency Permitting (321 CMR 2.08) and Problem Animal Control (321 CMR 2.14)
o Certain animals listed in M.G.L. c. 131 Sec. 5: English sparrow, starling, crow, chipmunk, flying squirrel, red squirrel, porcupine, skunk, weasel, or woodchuck.
o Wounded or dead animals that cannot be retrieved after a reasonable effort has been made.
Change harvest reporting requirements for fox and coyote
• Fox and coyote shall be checked within 48 hours of harvest, consistent with deer, bear, and turkey requirements. Fox and coyote may be checked online or in person.
FAQS
Q: Have other states banned similar contests?
A: Yes. Since 2014, California, Arizona, Vermont, and New Mexico have banned coyote, predator, or furbearer contests. New York and Oregon are currently contemplating laws on this matter.
Q: Are hunting contests or coyote hunting regulations threatening the current coyote populations?
A: Coyote populations are stable, healthy, and abundant. MassWildlife estimates the statewide population of coyotes is between 9,500 and 11,500 animals. Over the past 10 years, the annual coyote harvest has ranged from 400 and 750—less than 10% of the statewide population. Due to the coyote’s unique reproductive biology, it would take an annual 70% harvest to reduce coyote populations. The current harvest from coyote hunting does not reduce the coyote population.
Q: Coyotes kill deer; shouldn’t coyote populations be controlled in order to maintain the deer population in the state?
A: With a historic high of 95,000 deer estimated in Massachusetts combined with recent record deer harvests, deer populations are thriving despite the presence of coyotes. Recent research shows that coyote predation on fawns and adult deer does not impact deer populations. Annually, biologists estimate that coyotes kill about 20–30% of fawns. Scientific studies have shown that fawn survival rates are similar with or without coyote predation. Coyotes rarely kill adult deer and in Massachusetts, adult doe survival rates are very high. High adult female survival translates into more fawns produced over a number of years, contributing to a flourishing statewide population.
Field Trials
Next weekend, the Berkshire Beagle Club will be conducting field trials on its lands located on Sleepy Hollow Road in Richmond. The trials start on Friday, August 2 at 2:30 pm with the Field Champions. On Saturday the two couple packs will run.
There will be an AKC Judges field trial seminar starting at 9:00 AM and a JR Fun Bench show at 6:00 pm. There will also be a cook out on Saturday evening.
On Sunday is the derby and all age. The club will be raffling off a TT15 mini collar each day and there will be T-shirt’s for sale.
For more information, contact John Demary at 413-684-2228.

New Turkey Hunting regulations to take effect in 2020

Posted on by

The Fisheries and Wildlife Board recently voted to approve changes to turkey hunting regulations affecting bag limits, fall season dates, shot size, and the Youth Hunt. These regulation changes will take effect with the 2020 season. There are no changes to the 2019 fall turkey hunting season.
The summary below provides an overview of the changes.
Increase the annual limit to three birds (2 bearded turkeys in the spring and 1 of either sex in the fall). Currently, hunters may harvest either two bearded birds in the spring with no fall birds or one bearded bird in the spring and one bird of either sex in the fall, for an annual limit of two birds. The change allows all hunters to take two bearded birds in the spring and an additional turkey of either sex in the fall, increasing the annual bag limit to three birds.
Increase the daily bag limit to two per day during the spring season. Currently, turkey hunters may harvest one turkey per day during the spring season. Increasing the daily bag limit to two allows hunters to take their spring season limit in a more efficient manner.
Expand the fall season (ARCHERY ONLY) to coincide with the archery deer season. Currently, the fall turkey hunting season begins the second to last Monday in October and ends the second Saturday thereafter, during which hunters may use a shotgun, muzzleloader, or archery equipment. This change allows turkey hunters to harvest turkeys with archery equipment during the entire duration of the archery deer season (6–8 weeks depending on zone). Turkey hunters would continue to be permitted to use shotgun, muzzleloader, or archery equipment during the traditional 2-week season from the second to last Monday in October through the second Saturday thereafter.
Allow no larger than #4 shot size. Currently, turkey hunters may only use #4–#7 size shot for turkey hunting. The change removes the minimum shot size restriction. Due to advancements in ammunition technology, there are now shotshells available that are made of lead alternatives like tungsten which are denser than lead. These alternatives can utilize small shot sizes (#7 or #9) while still maintaining lethal ballistics down range to effectively and humanely harvest a wild turkey at common hunting ranges. These types of ammunition allow hunters greater flexibility when choosing ammunition/shotgun combinations for turkey hunting, including the use of smaller gauge shotguns that may be easier or more convenient for hunters to carry and shoot.
Expand Youth Day turkey hunting hours to ½ hour before sunrise until 5 p.m. The Youth Turkey Hunt Day occurs on only a single day the Saturday before the last Monday in April; approximately 250–285 young adults ages 12–17 participate each spring. This change provides young hunters the opportunity to hunt on a special day before the start of the regular spring hunting season. The expansion of the hunting hours will greatly increase the total time available for hunting.
Allow Youth Turkey permits issued to youth aged 12–14 for use in the fall turkey hunting seasons. At this time, youth 12–14 years old who successfully complete the mandatory training program for the Youth Day are issued a free Youth Turkey Permit with two turkey tags and must always hunt with a licensed adult mentor hunter. These tags are currently only valid on the Youth Day and the remainder of the regular spring turkey hunting season. When hunting turkeys in the fall, these young hunters must currently use their accompanying mentor’s turkey tags and license. Because young adults who complete the mandatory training workshop for the Youth Day demonstrate significant initiative to earn the Youth Turkey Permit and must always hunt with a mentor, it is unnecessary to restrict the use of their tags to the spring season only.

This change provides additional opportunity for young hunters with the Youth Turkey Permit to use their own tag during the fall season by providing them with 2 spring tags and 1 fall tag. (Note: Under current regulations, youth aged 15–17 are required to have their own hunting license and turkey permit, which allows them to hunt in the spring or fall seasons.)

.
The Quabbin Controlled Deer Hunt
The Quabbin Controlled Deer Hunt is an annual event conducted on Quabbin Reservoir watershed lands, implemented as part of the management program to maintain a balance between deer herd densities and forest regeneration. Participants are selected from an applicant pool in a special lottery in early September. Since 2016, all applications must be submitted online; the application must be filled out and submitted from the DCR Deer Hunt web page between July 1 and August 31. Hunters can get assistance completing the online application at the Quabbin Visitor Center on Saturdays (9 a.m. to noon) and Wednesdays (noon to 3 p.m.) during the application period.
Once selected, all successful applicants will receive written notification by early October.
Organization of the Hunt
During 2019, hunting will occur at Petersham between Gates 38 and 40. This area will have one, two-day segment, December 12 and 13.
Access will be restricted to designated gates. Hunters must check in and out by posted times on each day they hunt and obey all regulations and directions of DCR and law enforcement personnel.
Hunters will be assigned to a specific access zone where they must check in and out each day. There will be a limited number of Antlerless Deer Permits available to participating hunters, so unlike in past years, not all hunters are able to purchase an Antlerless Permit.
Since 2007, hunters have been able to use muzzleloaders for the Quabbin Deer Hunt. However, all hunters must possess a valid FID Card in order to participate in the hunt.
The hunt may be cancelled due to severe weather conditions or security situations.
Application Process
The application must be filled out and submitted online through the DCR Deer Hunt web page. There is no application fee. To minimize vehicular traffic and increase efficiency, hunters may apply in groups of up to six with a MINIMUM of two. Hunters may only apply on one application. There are several required fields on the application which must be completed before it can successfully be submitted, including a valid email address for Hunter #1. This hunter will receive an email message confirming successful submission of the application.
Once selected, hunters will be assigned to a specific access zone where they must check in and out each day.
This is the application for the Petersham hunt only. There are plans to hunt other areas of Quabbin in 2019. Details will be posted on the web page when available.
Hunter Selection Process
The drawing to select hunters will be based on the last digits of your MassWildlife Customer ID Number. All eligible Customer ID numbers listed on the application will be included in the lottery.
Selected hunters will be required to complete an orientation session prior to the 2019 Quabbin deer hunt except for those who completed an orientation session in 2018, 2017, or 2016. DCR has developed an online orientation session option for returning hunters who have not completed an orientation session in 2018, 2017, or 2016 but have attended an orientation session at some point in the past. New Quabbin hunters will still be required to attend an in-person orientation session.

For more information, go to https://www.mass.gov/service-details/wild-turkey-hunting-regulations

All about rivers program
On Wednesday, July 24 from 5:30 to 6:30pm the Housatonic Valley Association is having a free community program all about rivers. This is an opportunity to meet river critters, learn about our river ecosystem and our current river issues. You will be able to take home tips for protecting our rivers’ health. If interested, meet at the Stearns Elementary School parking area, 75 Lebanon Avenue, Pittsfield. Heavy rain or thunder cancels. Call 413-298-7024 for more information.

Western Massachusetts has great camping areas for fishing

Posted on by

Recently, MassWildlife listed what they consider the ten top campsites for fishing in Massachusetts. Five of them are right here in Western MA. They are beautiful areas right under our noses which we sometimes take for granted. They are as follows:

Clarksburg State Park in Clarksburg

With over 365 acres of hardwood forest surrounding Mauserts Pond, Clarksburg State Park is a perfect spot for camping, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, and fishing. There one can take advantage of 9.5 miles of foot trails surrounding the pond to look for wildlife, like moose or otters. There are 45 well-spaced and wooded campsites located near the pond. A cartop boat ramp is available for launching non-motorized boats. Ideal for beginner anglers, Mauserts Pond is a 49-acre, shallow, man-made pond offering great warmwater fishing opportunities. Just outside Clarksburg State Park, anglers will find excellent trout fishing opportunities along the North Branch of the Hoosic River, which is stocked with trout annually.
Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) State Forest in Goshen

Visitors can enjoy fishing, swimming, and paddling in the Highland Lakes found in the DAR State Forest. Try fishing for trout in Upper Highland Lake, which is stocked with trout annually each spring. Lower Highland Lake is popular with anglers for largemouth bass and yellow perch. There is a paved boat ramp on Lower Highland Lake and an informal ramp on Upper Highland Lake, suitable for launching canoes, cartop boats, and small craft with electric motors. The 50-site campground offered at DAR State Forest is situated on a ridge between Upper Highland Lake and a scenic wetland where moose, bear, and beaver can be spotted. Hikers will enjoy 15 miles of trails with options for all experience levels. Try the Highland Lake Trail or make your way up to the DAR Fire Tower for a great mountain view.
Mohawk Trail State Forest in Charlemont

Mohawk Trail State Forest is one of the most scenic woodland areas in Massachusetts, covering 6,000 acres of mountain ridges, gorges, and woods. Visitors can enjoy camping, fishing, hiking, swimming, canoeing, and kayaking. There are 47 wooded campsites available seasonally, and 6 log cabins available year-round. In the state forest, enjoy trout fishing on the Deerfield River and Cold River. You may also try trout fishing in the Chickley River or Clesson Brook just outside the state forest.
Tolland State Forest in Otis

At the center of Tolland State Forest sits the 1,065-acre Otis Reservoir, which has a large concrete boat ramp and ample shore access for fishing. Anglers will enjoy catching a variety of fish here, including bass and stocked trout. There are 92 campsites available on a peninsula that juts out onto the Otis Reservoir, providing a unique camping experience for all to enjoy.
Beartown State Forest in Monterey

This 12,000-acre forest is the perfect place to visit, no matter the season. Swim, fish, or boat in Benedict Pond. A gravel boat ramp is available to launch cartop boats, canoes, and small electric crafts. Shore fishing access is excellent from many areas of the shore for largemouth bass, yellow perch, and golden shiners. Take a walk along the 1.5- mile loop around Benedict Pond and look for wildlife including deer, bobcats, and even bears.
The other five campgrounds on the list are: Lake Dennison Recreation Area in Winchendon, Wells State Park in Sturbridge, Myles Standish State Forest in Carver, Nickerson State Park in Brewster and Harold Parker State Forest in Andover. To find out more about them, click onto https://www.mass.gov/service-details/top-10-campsites-for-fishing-in-massachusetts.
The MassWildlife Habitat Management Grant Program
MHMGP provides financial assistance to private and municipal landowners of conserved lands to enhance wildlife habitat, while promoting public access for outdoor recreation. Over the past 4 years, the MHMGP has awarded over $1.5M in funding to 28 different organizations and individuals for 63 habitat projects. MassWildlife anticipates the next MHMGP grant application will become available about now, with applications due in the early fall. Application information is available on the MHMGP web page.
The MHMGP encourages landowners to engage in active habitat management on their properties to benefit many types of wildlife, including species of greatest conservation need and game species. Although MassWildlife and other conservation organizations have made unprecedented investments in land acquisition in Massachusetts, land protection alone is not enough to guarantee the persistence of the Commonwealth’s diverse wildlife. They feel that investment in habitat restoration and management is urgently needed on public and private lands across the state. To address this need, MassWildlife and the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs have substantially increased their investment in habitat management on state wildlife lands and are committed to working with partners to promote these efforts on other conserved lands across the state.

New this year, MassWildlife is offering technical assistance to landowners who are interested in applying to the MHMGP but the offer ends tomorrow. If you are interested in speaking to a MassWildlife Habitat Biologist about habitat management on your property or your eligibility for the MHMGP, contact: James Burnham at James.Burnham@Mass.gov or (508) 389-6343. MassWildlife anticipates the FY 2020 MHMGP grant application will become available in mid-July, with applications due in the early fall.
Report any fish kills

Summer weather is here, and once again MassWildlife is reminding us that lakes and ponds are warming up, and fish kills may occur. The sight of dead and dying fish along a shoreline can be distressing and can prompt concerns about pollution. However, the vast majority of summer fish kills reported are natural events.
Natural fish kills are generally the result of low oxygen levels, fish diseases, or spawning stress. Depletion of dissolved oxygen is one of the most common causes of natural fish kills. Water holds less dissolved oxygen at higher temperatures; in shallow, weedy ponds oxygen can be especially low as plants consume oxygen at night. Spawning of fish including sunfish and bass in late spring and early summer occurs in shallow waters along the shore. These densely crowded spawning areas can become susceptible to disease outbreaks, especially as water temperatures rise. The result is an unavoidable natural fish kill, usually consisting of only one or two species of fish.
To be sure there isn’t a pollution problem, it’s always best to report fish kills. When a fish kill report is received, a MassWildlife fisheries biologist determines if the kill is a natural event or the result of pollution. In general, pollution impacts all kinds of aquatic life; therefore, the most important piece of evidence for the biologists is the number and variety of fish associated with the incident. When pollution is suspected, MassWildlife notifies the Department of Environmental Protection, who then conducts a formal investigation of the water and affected fish to determine the source of pollution.
To report a fish kill, contact the Environmental Police Radio Room at 1 (800) 632-8075.
Basic Hunter Education courses being offered

The Worthington Rod & Gun Club will be conducting a 4-day Hunter Education Course at its clubhouse on 458 Dingle Road (Route 112) in Worthington. The sessions will run on Monday, July 29, Tuesday, July 30, Thursday August 1 and Friday August 2 from 5:30 to 9:00 pm.

To enroll in the courses, call (508) 389-7830. For more information, click onto http://www.mass.gov/service-details/basic-hunter-education-course-offerings.

Last reminder for antlerless deer permit

Deer hunters remember, you must apply for an Antlerless Deer Permit by this Tuesday, July 16, to be eligible for a permit.

The Berkshire County League of Sportsmen – Who are they and what do they do?

Posted on by

Recently Civitan of the Berkshires invited former BCLS president Mark Jester and me to give a presentation about the BCLS (In case you don’t know what Civitan is, it is a worldwide organization with more than 30,000 members which are dedicated to serving the needs of local communities. It is dedicated to serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities).

Civitan currently has an initiative entitled “Know your Berkshires” and member Carol Zalek, attended this year’s BCLS’s Youth Outreach fishing derby, was impressed with what she saw and asked that we speak at their next meeting.
We did speak and during the presentation, Civitan members apparently found it quite informative and wondered if we had any brochures or anything in writing that listed the activities in which we are involved. Well, we didn’t and the idea came up that perhaps I can write about it in this column.
The BCLS was formed in 1929 and is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year.
Its objectives are as follows:
• Promote, protect and perpetuate fishing, hunting, trapping, firearms ownership, shooting sports and various forms of outdoor recreation.
• Promote the conservation of our natural resources, public access to them, and education as to the wise use of them.
• Foster good sportsmanship in the safe enjoyment of these great heritages.
• Advise State and Federal legislators dealing with fish and game laws and wildlife management including propagation, distribution, regulations, license fees, law enforcement, conservation, public access to lands, elimination of pollution, the right to own and properly use firearms,
• Assist in organizing the sportsmen of Berkshire County (into clubs such as the various town sportsmen’s clubs, local Trout Unlimited and Ducks Unlimited chapters, Beagle Club, BASS, Adam Outdoor for Youth, etc.)
• Contribute to and support work of the Massachusetts Sportsmen’s Council (MSC) as a statewide organization working on behalf of outdoor sportsmen and women. (It is the umbrella organization and legislative arm of all state county leagues, working on Beacon Hill).
• Foster cooperation with landowners and to support professional management of our fisheries, wildlife and other natural resources.
• Introduce and assist in passing laws that may favorably affect outdoor sports folk’s objectives and to oppose those that are deemed unwise or unfavorable to them.
The BCLS is an advocacy organization which is currently comprised of 13 organized sportsmen’s clubs. Each club pays membership dues and sends delegates to the meetings. (Currently, $85 of the BCLS fee is passed onto the MSC).
The BCLS currently represents over 4,000 organized sportsmen and sportswomen in Berkshire County. If one adds in their family household members and unaffiliated sportsmen and gun owners, it is estimated that the league represents just over 10% of the population of Berkshire County when it comes to conservation and the shooting sports. It supports over 30 local and national conservation organizations, as well as local after school and church groups.
It conducts monthly meetings except in July and August. At each meeting, the current DFW Western District Manager (Andrew Madden) presents a report of their activities. (land acquisitions, trout and pheasant stockings, regulation changes, eagle bandings, etc.). Also at each meeting our current MA Fish & Game Board member (Stephen Sears) presents a report on statewide activities. These are also opportunities for local sports folks to bring up issues with the Division and the Board.
Minutes are taken at each monthly meeting and are sent to the various club delegates along with the copy of the DFW report. The delegates in turn relay that info to their club members so that everyone is fully appraised of important legislation, upcoming events, etc.
The BCLS is non-political and does not endorse any candidates but it does make its feelings known on any proposed legislation which affects them.
The BCLS provides the venue for MassWildlife staff when they come out to the Berkshires to speak to the public about various regulatory changes, and for GOAL to educate sportsmen about new gun regulations (instead of trying to meet at every club). If funds are available, BCLS also financially supports organizations such as the Berkshire Natural Resources, and other conservation minded organizations.
Each year the BCLS puts on the Silvio O. Conte Memorial Dinner which is named in honor of our late US Congressman, who was an avid sportsman in his own right. At this event the League honors various people/organizations for their work promoting our causes. (youth outreach issues, conservation issues, outstanding support of their individual clubs or the League, etc.) The recipients don’t have to be club members or hooks and bullet type people. In the past the League has honored the Berkshire Natural Resources Council, the Housatonic Valley Association, the Berkshire Environmental Action Council, college/school environmental educators, etc. The League believes that the work that they do is so important, that they also deserve to be recognized.
This banquet is also a major fundraiser for the year which helps to:
Put on fishing annual derbies for at risk youth
Send two kids to the MA Junior Conservation Camp annually
Send monies to the Mass Heritage Foundation (which helps fund the National Archery in the School Program (NAIC), land acquisitions, etc)
Maintain a defense fund (which provides rewards to help catch lawbreakers).
League members are involved in hunter education courses, archery programs, Becoming an Outdoorswoman (BOW) programs, teaching trap and skeet shooting, and much more. It has a representative on the Citizen’s Coordinating Council (CCC) which is holding GE accountable for the removal of PCB’s, Zebra Mussel Committee, lake management committees, acid rain monitoring, river and mountain clean-ups, advocated for Houstonic River Catch and Release areas) coordinate courses for people wishing to obtain required gun permits, helping out in paraplegic hunts, involved in Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) designations. It has been involved with Earth Days, Farmers Bureau Habitat Restoration, Rough Grouse Society, Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, Isaac Walton League and others.
It is heavily involved with the National Archery in the Schools Program (Got 13 local schools on board here in the Berkshires), new legislation proposals, the Open Space Bond Bill, is a watchdog of harmful legislation for the Environment, working with DFW, coordinating school kids stocking trout in some of our lakes, promotes the Guns and Roses Coalition (where we join forces with non-hunting organizations but who are also involved in the conservation of our natural resources.)
The League is kept busy, but it is a labor of love. If your outdoor sports club is not a member of the BCLS, you might want to consider joining.
Incidentally, the BCLS and the various outdoor sports clubs have always had a priority mission to get our youth into the outdoor sports. Unfortunately, the numbers of hunters have been declining of late as have young hunters taking up the sport. This probably comes as good news to some folks who are anti hunters, but please consider this:
Financing for the purchase of wildlife management areas comes from sportsmen’s license fees, Federal and State duck stamps and an annual $5.00 self- imposed fee to be used for such purchases. Also, Federal regulations such as the Pittman Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Act and the Dingell-Johnson Act impose excise taxes on all outdoor sporting goods purchases (hunting and fishing equipment, boats, etc).
These taxes, which amount to hundreds of millions of dollars nationwide are accumulated and administered by the US Fish & Wildlife Service. They are then apportioned to state wildlife agencies for their conservation efforts, hunter education programs, and operation of archery and shooting ranges. There are millions of dollars reserved for such projects in Massachusetts alone.
One does not have to be a mathematic whiz to figure out that with a decline in the numbers of outdoors sportsmen and women, there is also a reduction of funds available to purchase and maintain those open spaces. Where do you suppose the future funds will come from to purchase future lands or maintain those that we already have? Just saying…..
Fishing Derby
The Berkshire Hatchery Foundation in Hartsville-New Marlborough is having its next free children’s fishing derby on Saturday, July 13 from 9:00 to 10:30 am at its lower pond. Children aged 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult.