Conservation

If you are like me, your calendar is full of “stuff” to do this time of year.  I am trying get stuff finished up here at the office so I can get outta here so I can get other “stuff” done at home.  Ah, the holidays, don’t ya love ’em? Our family has been a little later with the holiday illumination this year; we have been waiting for my daughter to get home from college.  She’s home now, think I …

As I sit here “blogging”, I am pretty sure my open-water fishing for this season is done.  Sure you could still find a few areas of open-water and dry off some fish, you can all winter long if you wish, but most Nebraska anglers are going to be hitting the ice soon, very soon. So, that means it is time for me to give a report on my and my son’s fall fishing.  In recent weeks I have showed you …

Last winter I blogged about the world ice-fishing championship held in Europe, USA! USA! .  I am not going to tell you that I am completely familiar with international fishing competitions, but I know that at least some of them are quite different from what we have here in the United States. Some international fishing competitions, like the ice-fishing championship held last winter, are match-fishing competitions where teams compete, and anglers fish as teams.  In a match fishing format, anglers may …

I have some piles of data on my messy desk right now; I am putting stuff together for the 2017 Fishing Forecast.  It should be done and available near the first of the year, just like it is every year.  I will be sure to get the word out when it is ready. . . . Until then, I know that no matter how much I say or what data I show, nothing beats some pictures!  So, to tease you …

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will kick off its series of public informational meetings about big game animal management at two sites in the Panhandle this month. Discussion about deer, elk and pronghorn is on the agenda. The two meetings, conducted by biologists of the Commission’s northwest district, will be Tuesday, Dec. 20, at the Knight Museum in Alliance and Wednesday, Dec. 21, at the Eagles Club in Oshkosh. Each begins at 7 p.m. The annual series of meetings …

I know word on this is getting around because we have already had some interest, but I want to continue to spread the word some more: Game and Parks offers boat decontamination training LINCOLN – Operators of boat repair shops and marinas can play a vital role in the fight against aquatic invasive species (AIS). The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is interested in providing these operators free training in watercraft decontamination procedures. With increasing concern about the spread of …

Lord knows the recent fisheries management work at Wehrspann Reservoir in west Omaha has been THE topic of discussion this week.  I want to add this update. . . . Our field biologists that did the treatment went back today to see how things looked.  As you can imagine they discovered hundreds of thousands of dead shad.  How many?  I cannot tell you an exact number or even an estimate.  But, there are photos floating around the internet and here …

I wanted to blog about this today, waited for the news release to be published, and now am finally getting around to it after answering questions about it all day long! Gizzard shad targeted for removal from Wehrspann Lake LINCOLN – The chemical rotenone has been applied at Omaha’s Wehrspann Lake in order to remove gizzard shad. Gizzard shad are susceptible to a low dose of rotenone while fish such as largemouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish and crappie are less …

Well, my grandson, Jackson Edward Wagner, turned one year old on Monday, November 28, 2016. I have written him a letter. It is my hope that someday he will read this letter and understand why he is so treasured by me and the value of the sage advice his wise, old grandfather has offered him. November 30, 2016 My Dearest Jackson, It’s been a year since I held you in my arms at the hospital and had that extraordinary feeling …

No matter what kind of fish you pursue, you likely have a tackle box that contains a variety of soft plastic baits, “rubber” worms, grubs, crayfish, flukes, swimbaits, etc., etc.  Those baits are very effective and most anglers use them at least part of the time.  Some of us use them A LOT!  In the course of a day on the water, especially if fish are being caught, those plastic baits will take some abuse and need replacement.  So, then …