Conservation

CHADRON, Neb. – Participants of the Chadron State Park Bioblitz in late September identified 203 species of plants, animals and insects, providing evidence of the biodiversity in the Pine Ridge. Amber Schiltz, Nebraska wildlife education coordinator for the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, was pleased with the tally, especially considering the time of year. Species ranged from the osprey flying high above the park’s pines to the smallmouth bass swimming below the pond’s surface. “We saw 45 bird species alone, …

Quick blog post just before I head out the door.  Got a big, long weekend ahead of me.  If you want an idea of what I will be doing. . . . Yep, I will be helping empower women by teaching them outdoor skills!  And proud of it!  It is very rewarding and a lot of fun! I know it is not fair for me to mention this now, because if you are a woman and are interested, it is …

It is fall and Nebraska fisheries biologists are in the midst of their annual fish sampling activities on lakes, reservoirs, pits and ponds across the state.  It is a busy time of year.  The sampling of fish in our public waters is necessary to gauge the health of the fish populations in those waters and evaluate fisheries management activities like habitat enhancement, harvest regulations and stocking programs.  The data collected from our fish communities is invaluable to pointy-headed fisheries biologists. …

CHADRON, Neb. – The public is invited to assist Boy Scouts on Saturday, Oct. 7, in planting about 2,500 ponderosa pine seedlings in areas burned by the 2012 wildfire at Chadron State Park. Volunteers should arrive at the park’s campground between 7:30-8 a.m. in work attire. The plantings, which will occur at various points throughout the park, are expected wrap up early in the afternoon. Helping organize the effort are park staff, employees of the Upper Niobrara White Natural Resources …

I realize this has been publicized in a lot of places, I am going to do it here too. . . . Nebraska Game and Parks Commission launches new permit site LINCOLN, Neb. — The Nebraska Game and Parks system has launched a new website for the sale of hunting, fishing and state park permits.  The site, which went live on Sept. 28, offers improved navigation, mobile responsiveness and many other features, including: -Information about each type of permit offered …

I caught a freshwater drum the other day, as far as drum go, a pretty nice one.  It just hammered my crankbait. Reminded me of this song. I categorically deny that I have a drum tattoo on my chest.  Do not have any piercings either. Have a great weekend everyone, GO FISH, see if you can dry off a drum.

No matter how you define it, we are now in the fall season.  There are no calendars in nature; seasons gradually morph from one into another.  Below the surface of our Nebraska waters, fall started weeks ago. I know folks are busy with a lot of activities in the fall, and many of them will reach for their sticks & strings, scatter guns, and smoke poles rather than fishing poles.  Just know that fall provides some of the best open-water …

CHADRON — The public is invited to join Chadron State Park’s second annual Bioblitz on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 29-30. The park’s group event facility will serve as headquarters for the more than dozen surveys and activities, which will take place at locations throughout the park. The free event will allow participants young, old and in-between to discover and celebrate western Nebraska wildlife. A bioblitz is an event where members of the public become “citizen scientists” and work with biologists …

I like to give updates whenever I can on some of the fish sampling our Game & Parks fisheries biologists are doing around the state.  Admittedly, in most of those updates I have showed pictures of fish sampled from our state’s lakes, reservoirs, pits and ponds.  We also do work on a variety of rivers and streams in Nebraska including cold-water streams that support year-around, reproducing populations of trout.  I mentioned some of that cold-water stream sampling earlier this year, …

Our FaceBook Live broadcasts have gone well, so we are going to do another one!   Tune in to our Game & Parks FaceBook page at 12:00 central time, tomorrow, Friday, September 22, and I will answer fish and fishing questions as fast as I can for thirty minutes, and then follow-up with some more on-line after that. Naturally, fall fishing will be the focus of this “broadcast”, but if you have other fish or fishing questions to ask, do not hesitate!