Conservation

I was listening to a podcast by KVD last week.  No, not Karl VonDibble, the other KVD, the real KVD.  Kevin is known for his rapid fire “power fishing”, and he often is throwing crankbaits.  One thing he mentioned in the podcast was confidence; we all tend to fish best with techniques and baits in which we have confidence.  I will always tell you that versatility is key to consistent fishing success, but there is no doubt we all have our strengths …

Every now and then I climb up on a soapbox and “preach” a little boating safety.  With fall and cooling waters approaching, this might be a good time to do that again.  I especially like to remind us “tough guys” who might be on the water hunting, fishing or trapping by ourselves, that you really should be using a life jacket and your motor’s kill switch ALL THE TIME.  I have been on the water by myself at times too, and …

LINCOLN – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission needs the public’s help in documenting new and existing habitat for monarch butterflies. The public is encouraged to enter plantings of milkweed into the Monarch Tracker, which is available on the Game and Parks website. Doing so will help Game and Parks identify areas where milkweed and other pollinator-friendly flora can be planted, restored or enhanced in the next several years. Monarch populations are in serious decline, mostly because of loss of …

Found these pictures on the ole inter-webby someplace.  Do not know why anyone would want to post these photos, but apparently they really, really liked Snapping Turtles. I do not know how good of an idea that was.  Snapping Turtles can live in water that is not the cleanest and can carry things like Salmonella and other bacteria. Turns out that Snapping Turtles really are not that into kissing. Man, that had to hurt. Was that a nose ring or a …

LINCOLN – Volunteers in towns along the Cowboy Trail are invited to support monarch butterfly conservation by helping the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission plant milkweed seedlings on the trail right-of-way. Monarch butterflies have seen significant population declines in the past several years. One of the primary reasons for their decline is lack of milkweed plants, which are critical in the life cycle of the monarch. Eggs are laid only on milkweed plants, and caterpillars eat milkweed leaves exclusively. Game …

A couple of months ago I had a blog post speculating about ways the invasive “Asian” Carp, Bighead and Silver Carp, might be caught on hook & line, hooked in the mouth (Milk Fish?  Silver Carp?).  Those species are not caught using traditional fishing techniques because they are primarily filter feeders and do not swim around selecting and ingesting food items that anglers typically use for bait.  If someone could figure out some techniques to catch those fish, hooked in …

If you are in the area and you like watermelon, you might want to join us tomorrow night! Conestoga Reservoir aquatic habitat project open house is Sept. 13 LINCOLN – Learn about the aquatic habitat project occurring at Conestoga Reservoir during an open house Sept. 13. The public is invited to attend the 6:30 p.m. event at the boat ramp parking lot on the north side. View the work that has been completed and hear updates by the Nebraska Game …

Through the ages fish and fishing have generated innumerable superstitions.  Gramps Roth always told me I had to hold my mouth just right to catch fish.  To this day, I am trying to figure out what he meant by that?  No doubt a lot of that superstition arises from the fact that we cannot see below the surface of the water and directly observe fish behavior.  Some days it seems that purely random events are the difference between catching fish and …

LINCOLN – Producers in south central and southeastern Nebraska have until Oct. 21 to apply for funding to help improve grasslands for grazing and wildlife. Cost share of up to 75 percent is available to install management practices. Management practices eligible for financial assistance include: payment for grazing management, resting rangeland, prescribed fire, fencing materials and watering facilities for livestock, brush management, converting cropland to grassland bird habitat and more. Through the Grassland Bird Initiative, the U.S. Department of Agriculture …

I know folks who fish Merritt have been wondering about our boat ramp improvement plans, there are some details in this old blog post, Angler Access Improvements.  Getting that work accomplished is dependent on end-of-summer water levels at Merritt.  So, the bad news is that water levels again this fall are too high for the work to be accomplished.  On the other hand, you will never hear me complain about water in our Nebraska reservoirs, so the good news is …