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| Message Subject: Snipers to aid in Leech Lakes comeback? | |||
walleye express |
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 Member Posts: 2680 Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | Pulled this from another board. Thought it might figure in to a recent debate you guys were having about Leech Lake and their recent walleye plantings. Concerned that an exploding cormorant population is responsible for a decline in walleye numbers on Leech Lake -- one of Minnesota's most popular angling destinations -- federal sharpshooters this week will begin killing up to 80 percent of the 5,000 adult cormorants nesting there. Officials say there appears to be a correlation between recent poor walleye fishing and the booming number of fish-eating double-crested cormorants on Leech. The population has jumped from about 150 nesting adults in 1998 to 2,300 in 2003 to more than 5,000 last year. There may be another 3,000 juvenile birds. "We're pretty convinced they are having a significant impact," said Ron Payer, Department of Natural Resources (DNR) fisheries management chief. The birds are voracious eaters, each gobbling up about 1 pound of fish daily. Cormorant"We estimate they consumed in excess of 1 million pounds of fish last year," said Henry Drewes, DNR regional fisheries manager in Bemidji. "That's a level of predation that wasn't present prior to 1998. There's going to be an effect." The cormorant culling plan announced Monday is a joint effort among state and federal agencies and the Leech Lake Band of Chippewa. The cormorants nest on Little Pelican Island, which is on the band's reservation. It is a tiny rock outcrop about 100 yards wide by 400 yards long. Under the plan, federal sharpshooters, hidden in blinds, will use high-powered air rifles to kill about 4,000 of the 5,000 adult cormorants. Authorities wanted to use silencer-equipped .22 rifles, which they said would be more effective, but a bill in the state Legislature allowing their use hasn't been approved and probably won't be in time for the spring nesting season. Officials can't use shotguns because they don't want to scare the birds away before their numbers can be reduced, and they don't want the birds to move to another lake. The shooting will be suspended during the fishing opener May 14-15, and a quarter-mile buffer zone will be marked around the island to prevent boaters from approaching. That area will be patrolled by authorities. Besides shooting cormorants, officials may also "oil" some eggs to prevent them from hatching. But Payer said that won't reduce the current adult population. The estimated cost for the first year is about $50,000. The shooting probably will only be done through May. Common terns also nest on the island, and officials don't want to disturb their reproduction, said Bill Paul of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services, which will conduct the culling action. The shooting is expected to continue over the next couple of years. The dead birds will be collected each day and eventually incinerated. The stomach contents of some birds will be studied to determine better which fish they are eating. Officials suspect that perch also make up much of their diet. Perfect nesting spot On remote Little Pelican Island, cormorants have a perfect nesting spot. The Leech Lake Band has managed the area for the common tern, said John Ringle, fish and wildlife program director for the band. Predators, including mink and weasel, have been reduced. "So the cormorants have found a place with abundant food and low predation," he said. Like resorts and area businesses that depend on anglers, the band also is concerned about a decline in walleye numbers, he said. "Tribal businesses are involved in tourism, gaming and recreation," he said. "There's some real concern that if the fish aren't here, guests won't be either." Roy Huddle has similar concerns. His family has owned Huddle's Resort since 1928, but they've never experienced anything like the cormorant population explosion. He said he watched thousands of cormorants fly past his resort Monday, heading to Little Pelican Island about 4 miles away. He said walleye anglers have had trouble catching fish the past three years. And that means some anglers aren't returning. "Our business is down probably 50 percent for opening weekend," he said. "You don't like to destroy anything in nature, but it's definitely a big part of our problem," he said. "I think the people up here feel these are positive steps. I'm optimistic. But the fix is not going to be instantaneous." To protect walleye brood stock, the DNR has imposed new fishing regulations this year, allowing a possession of four walleyes (instead of six) and requiring that all walleyes 18 inches to 26 inches be released. One fish over 26 inches will be allowed. Cormorants have long been considered birds that people love to hate because of their vulture-like appearance and preference for fish. They are federally protected. Their numbers, once on the decline because of chemicals and indiscriminate killing, have rebounded, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently has allowed their numbers to be controlled. Last year in Minnesota, about 2,000 were shot by the aquaculture industry -- using special permits -- to protect fish-rearing ponds. Officials solicited public comments on their plan, and they received opposition from some groups, including the Humane Society of the United States, which has opposed cormorant killings elsewhere. Edited by walleye express 5/4/2005 1:02 PM | ||
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| JLDII |
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Member Posts: 714 | Personally speaking, with our walleye opener next weekend, I wish they had made it a special "cast and blast" weekend opener for all fishermen willing to come up and take part in the event. I figure 2 3/4" magnum, 1 3/8oz. #5 copper coated chilled lead mag shot in a 12 ga. with about 37 grains of Hercules Blue Dot powder pushing it with a Federal 209 primer would do the trick! As for the choke, well if we could get them to decoy, I'd start off with an improved cylinder, and after that maybe tighten it up to a mod.!! Oh yeah, I almost forgot,.....jigs and shiners on the weed lines too! | ||
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| Gordy |
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Member Posts: 279 Location: Rockford MN | lmao I'd stay clear of Leech on opener with all the guys like Jack trying to shoot with a rod in one hand and a shotgun in the other!!! lol | ||
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| Mac Da Gaff |
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New User Posts: 3 | Out on Eire last spring my partner and I felt we could have shot around 3-$4000 worth of them at $5 per bird. $50,000 is 10 thousand cormorants. And my eye would be sharp for duck season. Let me know when the season opens, I'm in! Mac Da Gaff | ||
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| sworrall |
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Location: Rhinelander | Here is a press release from the USFWS, from a few weeks ago Contacts: Rachel F. Levin, USFWS, 612-713-5311 Bill Paul, USDA APHIS Wildlife Services, 218-327-3350 Lee Pfannmuller, MN DNR (Wildlife), 651-296-0783 Ron Payer, MN DNR (Fisheries), 651-297-4098 Steve Mortensen, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, Division of Resources Management, 218-335-7423 EA 05-23 Public Comment Invited on Draft Environmental Assessment for Double-crested Cormorant Management in Minnesota Four natural resources agencies are seeking public comments on a draft environmental assessment (EA) that lays out a plan to manage double-crested cormorants in Minnesota. In a partnership among state, federal and tribal resource agencies, the Interior Department’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Wildlife Services, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe’s Division of Resources Management have drafted a plan to reduce damage from double-crested cormorants in Minnesota. Wildlife Services is the lead agency for the EA; the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe’s Division of Resources Management are cooperating agencies. The draft EA proposes to implement an Integrated Wildlife Damage Management approach to reduce damage associated with double-crested cormorants to property, aquaculture and natural resources, and cormorant-related risks to public health and safety in Minnesota where a need exists, a request is received, and landowners grant permission. The EA considers five alternatives, including the proposed integrated management approach and a “No Action” alternative, which is required under the National Environmental Policy Act. The other alternatives being considered include a non-lethal control approach and one alternative that limits federal government involvement to providing technical assistance only. Under the proposed alternative, when appropriate, physical exclusion, habitat modification or harassment would be used to reduce double-crested cormorant damage. In other situations, cormorants might be removed by shooting, egg oiling or destruction, nest destruction, or euthanasia following live capture. In determining the damage management strategy under the proposed alternative in the draft EA, preference would be given to practical and effective non-lethal methods. However, non-lethal methods may not always be applied as a first response to each damage problem. The most appropriate response could be a combination of non-lethal and lethal methods, or there could be instances where the application of lethal methods alone would be the most appropriate strategy. The expanding number of double-crested cormorants in Minnesota reached the point of concern in the past few years, when the colony on Leech Lake expanded from 73 nesting pairs in 1998 to 2,524 nesting pairs in 2004. Biologists from the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources believe that cormorants may be negatively affecting the lake’s colony of common terns, a threatened species in Minnesota, as well as the lake’s walleye and yellow perch populations. Because the cormorant colony on Leech Lake is located on a tribally owned island, the Leech Lake Band has taken the lead in using methods to reduce the number of cormorants that nest on the island. Under this plan, additional methods will be available to reduce cormorant numbers in addition to the nesting material reductions that have already been completed. Under the proposed alternative in the draft EA, and under several other alternatives being considered, a special effort would be made at Leech Lake to reduce the double-crested cormorant population by 80 percent. The draft EA covers damage management measures statewide, as cormorants may cause losses at aquaculture facilities, damage private property or public resources throughout the state, and pose risks to human health and safety. A 2004 Minnesota Department of Natural Resources study of colonial waterbirds estimates a statewide population of about 16,000 nesting pairs of double-crested cormorants. The current population in North America is estimated at two million birds, nearly 70 percent of which are in the interior population, which includes Minnesota. In 2003, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued regulations allowing more flexibility in the management of double-crested cormorants where they are causing damage to aquaculture stock and public resources such as fisheries, vegetation and other birds. The regulations established a Public Resource Depredation Order allowing state wildlife agencies, tribes and Wildlife Services in 24 states, including Minnesota, to conduct cormorant damage management for the protection of public resources. Without this depredation order, agencies and individuals would not be able to use lethal methods to manage cormorant damage without a federal permit. Agencies acting under the order must have landowner permission, may not adversely affect other migratory bird species, threatened or endangered species, and must satisfy annual reporting and evaluation requirements. The Service will ensure the long-term sustainability of cormorant populations through oversight of agency activities and regular population monitoring. Double-crested cormorants are large, fish-eating birds that nest in colonies and roost together in large numbers. A reduction in eggshell-thinning pesticides (primarily DDT), increased protection under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and abundant food resources on their wintering grounds has caused cormorant numbers and distribution to increase greatly in the last 30 years. Conflicts with human and natural resources, including real or perceived impacts on commercial aquaculture, private property, recreational fisheries, vegetation and other colonial waterbirds that nest with cormorants, and risks to human health and safety, led to a decision by the cooperating agencies in Minnesota to develop a management strategy for the species. Copies of the draft EA on double-crested cormorant management may be downloaded from the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Web site at http://midwest.fws.gov/NEPA. Hard copies may be obtained by contacting Bill Paul, Wildlife Services, 34912 U.S. Hwy 2, Grand Rapids, MN 55744; phone 218-327-3350. Written comments on the EA will be accepted through April 18, 2005. Written comments should be submitted to Bill Paul at the above address, or they may be faxed to 218-326-7039. When faxing a comment, a copy should also be mailed to ensure that a complete version of the text is received. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. -FWS- | ||
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