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FROM THE DAKOTAS

Apr 16, 2010

Bighorn Sheep Survey Shows Mixed Results

Fishing proclamation contains new  regulations

Game and Fish Summarizes 2009 Deer Gun Season

Whooping Crane Sightings Should be Documented

North Dakota’s bighorn sheep population was primed for expansion after record numbers in 2008, but two consecutive severe winters have at least temporarily halted progress.

Brett Wiedmann, big game biologist for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department in Dickinson, said exceptionally deep snow last winter affected lamb recruitment significantly more than adult mortality.

“It seems bighorns can handle frigid temperatures, but because of their short legs deep snow takes a heavy toll on them, especially lambs,” Wiedmann said. “They expend a tremendous amount of energy foraging, and become even more susceptible to predators and harsh weather conditions when they are trapped on a ridge with no place to go.”

The 2009 annual bighorn sheep survey, which covers a period from April 2009 to March 2010, revealed 296 bighorn sheep in western North Dakota, a 5 percent reduction from 2008 but still 8 percent higher than the five-year average. The northern badlands’ population was down 2 percent from last year, while the southern badlands’ population saw a 15 percent decrease.

In total, biologists counted 100 rams, 166 ewes and 30 lambs.

Each summer, typically in August, Game and Fish Department biologists count and classify all bighorns. Biologists then recount lambs in March to determine lamb recruitment.

Lamb recruitment was low at only 20 percent, Wiedmann said, which is well below average in North Dakota. Only 60 percent of the lambs counted last summer survived the winter, while 80 percent survived and 50 lambs were recruited into the population in 2008. “Lower lamb recruitment in 2009 is the primary factor contributing to this year’s reduced count,” he added.

While lamb recruitment was low, the adult population remained stable and the ram-to-ewe ratio increased to 60 rams per 100 ewes.

Wiedmann said the adult segment of the population more than held its own. “Overall, I am encouraged with the survey results even after these two brutal winters,” he added. “Really, it is surprising that any lambs were able to survive all winter long in such deep snow.”

By Doug Leier

Rather than wholesale changes on a yearly basis, the bulk of North Dakota’s fishing rules and regulations are implemented every two years, and 2010 is one of the years when we get a new fishing proclamation. The new regulations begin April 1 and are in place until March 31, 2012.

By no means does this mean the face of fishing is overhauled every couple of years. That’s not the case at all. It's just different than most states where season adjustments are made yearly.

While new regulations are implemented every two years, the State Game and Fish Department, through governor’s proclamation, can make adjustments if emergency situations arise. Otherwise, anglers have a couple of years to get used to the new rules, and fisheries biologists have a longer period of time to consider potential law changes and assess their need. 

From Game and Fish Director Terry Steinwand, who previously served as fisheries division chief, to current fisheries chief Greg Power the philosophy is to make fishing regulations as user-friendly and biologically and socially responsible as possible. Essentially, rules for the sake of rules aren't on the table or in the books for long.

Of course, North Dakota does add and subtract from regulations from time to time, and not every rule change is simple. Even streamlined regulations such as those for Red River border water fishing, or reducing the number of lakes with live bait or fish size restrictions, are still more complicated than having no special rules.

Sometimes, however, special rules like bait restrictions or measures to prevent movement of aquatic nuisance species are jnecessary. Game and Fish biologists follow the same philosophy when anglers suggest some type of fish size restriction. If the regulation doesn't meet the appropriate biological criteria, then the Department’s philoslophy is to not add a restriction simply because some anglers want it.

This year’s edition of the fishing proclamation contains a few new  regulations, and also removal of previous rules. Here's a synopsis of the additions and subtractions you'll find in the new fishing guide.

*Added Harmon Lake and Crown Butte Dam, both in Morton County, to the list of lakes where cannot use live baitfish. 

* The State Fair Pond in Ward County is added to the list of waters closed to all fishing from November 1 through March 31. 

* Several new lakes were added to the list of those open for darkhouse spear fishing. They are: North and South Carlson lakes in Ward County; Gravel Lake, Rolette County, West Napoleon Lake, Logan County, and all waters open to public fishing in Ramsey County. On the other hand, Patterson Reservoir in Stark County is now closed to darkhouse spearfishing following a major kill of game fish last winter.

* Lake Metigoshe, Bottineau County, now has a daily and possession limit for bluegill of 10 and 20 respectively. The statewide bluegill limit is 20 daily and 80 in possession. The 10 and 20 special regulation is designed to protect the lake’s population of quality sized adult bluegill.

* The 14-inch-minimum walleye size limit on Spiritwood Lake in Stutsman County and Lake Ashtabula in Barnes County has been eliminated. After years of evaluation, fisheries biologists found no evidence that these length restrictions provided any benefits to walleye populations in these waters.

While not new for this year, anglers and boaters should also remember the regulations established two years ago designed to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species. Remove all vegetation from boats, motors, trailers and other equipment when leaving the water, and also drain bilges, livewells, baitwells and other water.

For more information on fishing in North Dakota, visit the Game and Fish Department website at gf.nd.gov.

North Dakota deer hunters took nearly 75,000 deer during the 2009 deer gun hunting season. Overall hunter success was 59 percent, down from 70 percent in 2008.

Bill Jensen, big game biologist for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, said the deer population was down from previous years because of the severe winter of 2008-09. “We were issuing record to near-record licenses for a number of years because of the high deer population,” Jensen said. “After the severe winter, the drop in the population was noticeable.”

Jensen said the department kept the pressure on whitetails in many units in 2009 because deer numbers were still above management goals. “In the past under similar situations, we lightened up on license numbers too quickly, and the population rebounded almost immediately to numbers well above goals,” he said.

Game and Fish allocated 144,400 deer gun licenses in 2009, and more than 98 percent were issued to hunters.

Hunter success for antlered white-tailed deer was 69 percent, and antlerless whitetail was 61 percent.

Mule deer buck success was 73 percent, while mule deer doe hunters had a success rate of 74 percent.

Hunters with any-antlered licenses had a success rate of 59 percent, while any-antlerless license holders had a success rate of 56 percent.

Hunters drawing a muzzleloader license had a success rate of 34 percent, while youth deer season hunters had a success rate of 51 percent.

Significant snow cover this past winter enabled the Game and Fish Department to conduct aerial white-tailed deer surveys in January and February. Results indicate deer numbers were hit hardest in the east.

Unit 2A in the southeast showed the largest decline in the population from the previous winter at more than 60 percent. Other units showing a decrease in numbers were 1, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F1, 2F2, 2G, 2G1, 2G2, 2I, 2J1 and 2J2. Deer numbers in Unit 2K2, however, showed a stable to increasing population. Units 2B and 2H remained stable.

In the western half of the state, whitetail numbers remained stable to above management goals along the South Dakota border. Unit 3A1 in the northwest showed a slight increase in numbers, while 3A3 remained stable. Units 3D1, 3D2, 3E1 and 3E2 showed declines.

Game and Fish staff will fly the annual mule deer survey in April.

Department biologists are in the process of determining recommendations for licenses in the 2010 deer proclamation, which will be sent to the governor’s office for approval in late April.

Deer license numbers are determined by evaluating hunter harvest and deer survey data, deer-vehicle collision reports, depredation reports, advisory board meetings, and comments from the public, landowners and department field staff.

Whooping cranes, one of North America’s most endangered birds, have started their spring migration and are making their way through North Dakota. Anyone seeing these rare birds is asked to report sightings so the birds can be tracked.

Mike Szymanski, migratory game bird biologist for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, said it can be surprisingly easy for people to mistake other white birds – snow geese, pelicans, swans and egrets – for whooping cranes.

“But the most common mistake is pelicans because their wingspan is similar and they tuck their pouch in flight, leaving a silhouette similar to a crane when viewed from below,” Szymanski said.

Whooping cranes stand about five feet tall and have a wingspan of about seven feet. They are white with black wing tips, which are visible only when the wings are outspread. In flight they extend their long necks straight forward, while their long, slender legs extend out behind the tail. Whooping cranes typically migrate singly, or in groups of 2-3 birds, and may be associated with sandhill cranes.

Anyone sighting whoopers should not disturb them, but record the date, time, location, and the birds' activity. Observers should also look closely for and report colored bands which may occur on one or both legs. Young whooping cranes were marked during 1975-1988 with colored leg bands to help determine their identity.

Whooping crane sightings should be reported to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge office at Long Lake at (701) 387-4397, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department's main office in Bismarck at (701) 328-6300, or to local game wardens around the state. Reports help biologists locate important whooping crane habitat areas, monitor marked birds, determine survival and population numbers, and identify times and migration routes.

© 2010 Outdoors Weekly