April 18, 2008 - TOP STORIES
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Groups say venison concerns are premature
Steelhead will soon make spawning runs on North Shore streams
Grand Rapids firearms safety instructor honored
Grzywinski, Sternberg make Fishing Hall of Fame
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Groups say venison concerns are premature
Venison donor programs skeptical about fears of lead fragments
By David Dishneau
Associated Press Writer
HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) – Organizations that donate nearly a million pounds of venison to food banks annually say growing concerns about lead bullet fragments in the meat are premature.
The North Dakota Health Department told state food pantries late last month to throw out donated venison after all five samples the agency examined tested “strongly positive’’ for lead.
Minnesota followed suit last week, directing food banks and soup kitchens to destroy any venison after tests revealed varying levels of lead fragments in 76 of 299 samples.
Iowa briefly banned venison distribution in late March but lifted the order April 1 after testing 10 samples and finding that eight had no detectable lead and two had less than 1 part per million, which the agency said presented no recognized risk for lead exposure.
Ingesting lead can cause significant health problems for young children and pregnant women.
Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry, based in Williamsport, Md., oversees donations of more than 282,000 pounds of venison in 27 states annually. Josh Wilson, national operations director, said North Dakota may have acted too quickly in asking food banks to discard the meat.
“I don’t think we’ve seen enough to be alarmed or concerned at this point,’’ he said. “If anything, a little more study is needed.’’
Safari Club International, which donated 317,000 pounds of venison to the needy last year through its Sportsmen Against Hunger program, was similarly skeptical.
“This is disheartening, and we certainly don’t think this program should come to an end on the unscientific assessment that has occurred here,’’ Doug Burdin, a lawyer for the Tucson, Ariz.-based group, told The Associated Press in North Dakota.
Hunters for the Hungry, based in Big Island, Va., distributed more than 363,000 pounds of venison to Virginia food banks last year, director Laura Newell-Furniss said. She, too, said more study is needed before venison donations are banned.
“People have been eating venison for centuries from deer that were killed with lead bullets and we haven’t been aware of any problems with that,’’ she said.
Jody Menikheim, who oversees meat-processer inspections for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, said the agency would discuss with state Agriculture Department veterinarians the possibility of venison lead testing next fall when the meat donations are made.
The statewide Maryland Food Bank receives 500 pounds of donated venison annually and doesn’t want to lose it, spokeswoman Shanna Yetman said.
“We’re always really excited to get this type of donation because there’s a lot of protein in deer meat. It’s very nutritious. It’s a good product,’’ she said.
Chicago-based America’s Second Harvest alerted all of its more than 200 food banks around the country to the North Dakota directive, spokesman Ross Fraser said. The organization relayed the state’s announcement but didn’t advise them to take any action.
The group’s guidelines for wild game donations state that, if handled properly, wild game can be an important food source. The guidelines don’t mention lead contamination.
Steelhead will soon make spawning runs on North Shore streams
By Sam Cook
Duluth News Tribune
DULUTH, Minn. (AP) – Any day now, North Shore streams will bust loose, sending a winter’s worth of ice down to Lake Superior. When they do, steelhead staging offshore will begin to make their spawning runs up the brawling tributaries.
When the run is on, steelhead anglers will wade into the rivers trying to intercept these powerful Lake Superior rainbow trout. Anglers may keep none of these wild fish in Minnesota waters. Those days are long gone.
Runs are nothing like they were a few decades ago, but steelheading traditions run deep in the North. Wader-clad anglers wielding fly rods rise early on April mornings, hoping for a hookup with one of these silver torpedoes.
On the South Shore of Lake Superior, steelhead fishing opened in late March on the Brule River. Unlike North Shore tributaries, the Brule still takes a strong run of steelhead, thanks to better spawning conditions and more consistent water flows.
Kevin Bovee, a longtime North Shore steelheader, looked out an office window at Lake Superior.
“The problem,’’ he said, “is out there.’’
That, in a nutshell, describes the decline of steelhead spawning runs over the past 50 years on the North Shore.
The heyday of steelheading was the 1950s and 1960s, when lake trout had been decimated by lampreys and commercial fishing. As lake trout rebounded and salmon were introduced, steelhead numbers declined steadily. Runs on the Knife River, once perhaps several thousand strong, have dwindled. Last year, about 500 rainbows ascended the stream, only about 250 of them wild, naturally produced steelhead.
“Steelhead angling is better now than when we started this rehabilitation process in 1991 or 1992,’’ said Don Schreiner, Lake Superior area fisheries supervisor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “But we’re not where anglers would like us to be. We’re not where we were in the 1960s, and I don’t think we ever will be.’’
Still, anglers keep finding steelhead, not only in the Knife but many other North Shore streams. On-stream angler surveys by the Minnesota DNR estimated the catch of wild steelhead at about 3,500 fish last spring.
The DNR, at the urging of the Lake Superior Steelhead Association and other anglers, has tried nearly everything to bolster steelhead runs over the past 40 years. Waterfalls were dynamited to allow easier fish passage upstream. Young-of-the-year fish were stocked by the hundreds of thousands. Beaver dams were blown out to allow fish to reach more spawning habitat. Hatchery-reared yearling steelhead were stocked.
Starting this year, the annual stocking of 40,000 yearling steelhead will end. Stocking of young of the year will continue on a dozen North Shore streams. Habitat work, including beaver trapping, will continue.
“The good old days were when I was a kid,’’ says Bovee, 54, of Duluth. “I don’t think we’ll ever see days like that again. Too much has changed.’’
Stocking yearling steelhead hasn’t panned out as hoped, but it has helped individual streams, Schreiner said.
“We might stock 40,000 and get 200 back,’’ he said. “But if an additional 200 come back to the Knife River, that’s a significant increase.’’
Duluth’s Craig Wilson, vice president of the Lake Superior Steelhead Association, and others believe it’s time to look at solutions other than stocking.
“Maybe a hands-off approach and looking at habitat becomes a better use of personnel and resources,’’ Wilson said. “I think the Knife has a chance to recover. But on the shore as whole, I think you’re seeing what you’re going to see for fishing.’’
The club, a staunch supporter of the fishery since the 1970s, has turned its efforts to improving the Knife River watershed. It has contributed $5,000 to the DNR this year for beaver trapping on Knife River tributaries where steelhead spawn, Bovee said. Beavers are trapped and their dams removed so steelhead can reach more spawning habitat.
North Shore streams, where young steelhead typically spend a year or two before down-migrating to Lake Superior, also are a harsh environment for the fish. Recent summers have been hot and dry, lowering oxygen levels and exposing fish to predators. In low-snow winters, streams sometimes freeze to their beds, wiping out much of a year class of fish.
Anglers are not giving up, Wilson says.
“(Fishing) hasn’t been bad,’’ he says. “You can still go out and hook fish on pretty much a daily basis.’’
“On the North Shore last spring, it was kind of a goofy run,’’ said Duluth’s Brian Porter. “It happened a little later. But there were a lot of fish.’’
Steelheaders have choices beyond Minnesota. The Brule is less than an hour away, and its steelhead population is in excellent shape, biologists say. Last fall, about 6,300 steelhead entered the river and will spawn this spring. Perhaps another thousand will enter the river this spring to spawn.
“We’re in very good shape,’’ said Dennis Pratt, fisheries biologist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in Superior.
Brule anglers have been restricted to one steelhead over 26 inches since the early 1990s to compensate for increased mortality by lake trout in Lake Superior.
“Otherwise, our fishery would have declined rapidly,’’ Pratt said.
Some steelheaders also drive north to Ontario to fish Lake Superior tributaries there, where steelhead numbers have rebounded after some low years. And some make the long road trip to Ohio or Pennsylvania to “Steelhead Alley,’’ a number of stocked tributaries of Lake Erie.
DNR names Mike Kurre mentoring program administrator
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has selected Michael Kurre (above) to lead the agency’s new angling and hunting mentoring program.
Kurre, of Chaska, comes to the DNR with 20 years of marketing, strategic planning and media experience while serving in various managerial positions at Minnesota-based Gander Mountain, Inc. and Holiday Sports. Since 1998, Kurre has been the co-host of KFAN Outdoors, a sports radio show based in St. Louis Park.
The DNR created a hunting and angling mentoring position to address a national decline in outdoor recreation participation. Although Minnesota hunter and angler numbers have remained fairly steady in recent years, participation among youth and young adults shows signs of decline. Fewer young people taking up hunting and fishing - plus the eventual decline in participation from aging Baby Boomers - is seen as the potential double-whammy to participation in the not-too-distant future.
The DNR’s mentoring effort will focus on expanding relationships with existing organizations to increase access to mentors, gear, and hunting and fishing sites, plus positive introductory experiences and long-lasting social support.
Metro conservation officer promoted to district supervisor
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is promoting State Conservation Officer Jason Peterson of Hastings to the rank of First Lieutenant and District 14 enforcement supervisor effective April 16.
Peterson, 34, has been a conservation officer since 2005, serving first in the Eagan field station and most recently the Hastings field station. He was a member of the Minnesota State Patrol from 1999-2005. Peterson was also a Minnesota Conservation Corps worker from 1996-1998.
Peterson has a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from St. Cloud State University. He is also a graduate of the law enforcement program at Alexandria Technical College.
District 14 includes the Metro, as well as Anoka, Dakota, Ramsey and Washington counties. The Mississippi and St. Croix rivers, as well as several wildlife management areas provide multiple outdoor recreation opportunities in the area.
Peterson replaces John Hunt who was recently promoted to the rank of captain and named Water Resources Enforcement Supervisor.
Itasca State Park hires new manager
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has hired former South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Manager Matt Snyder as the new manager of Itasca State Park.
Snyder holds a Bachelor of Science degree in park management from South Dakota State University and a Master of Science degree in Natural Resource Administration and Policy from Michigan State University. He was the assistant director of operations for the Division of Parks and Recreation for the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department. He supervised and directed many recreational facilities including 12 state parks, 42 recreation areas and 69 lakeside use areas. Prior to his appointment in 2000, Snyder was the park manager of Lake Thompson State Recreation Area.
Snyder has also served as the parks operation superintendent for Eaton County Parks and Recreation Department in Michigan, and has worked for county conservation boards in Humboldt and La Porte, Iowa.
Snyder is expected to assume his duties at Itasca the end of April.
Public invited to ‘meet and greet’ new DNR staff
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will hold an open house for people to meet new Baudette Area fisheries supervisor Phil Talmage and new District 1 Enforcement Supervisor Lt. Pat Znajda.
The event will be held Wednesday May 14, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Lake of the Woods High School in Baudette, room E-120 (ITV Room).
Talmage is taking over for Mike Larson, who retired as fisheries supervisor in February after 35 years of service to the state. Talmage comes to Baudette from the International Falls Fisheries office, where he has worked as the large lake specialist for Rainy and Kabetogama lakes for the past five years.
Znajda was promoted to 1st Lieutenant and took over as the Baudette area enforcement supervisor in October 2007, after Lt. James Dunn was promoted to captain and became the Northwest Regional law enforcement manager. Znajda has been a licensed peace officer since 1986, including 15 years with the Minnesota State Patrol, and has been with the DNR since 2005.
Grand Rapids firearms safety instructor honored
DNR News
At a time when fewer firearms safety classes were being offered in the Grand Rapids area, the dedicated efforts of Bill Peltier filled the breach. Those efforts were recently honored when Peltier was named the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources – 2007 Firearms Safety Instructor of the Year during the Northwest Sports Show in Minneapolis.
“In my estimation, there were about 200 youth in the Grand Rapids area requiring Firearms Safety certification prior to the past firearms deer season,” said 2nd Lieutenant Shelly Patten, DNR Regional Training Officer, who was among several conservation officers to nominate Peltier for the prestigious award. “Bill Peltier was instrumental in organizing and teaching classes, and recruiting new and existing instructors.”
Patten noted that Peltier volunteered hundreds of hours between August and November last year to ensure the large number of youths were Firearms Safety certified prior to the deer hunting season. Patten thought Peltier would burned out or become disheartened with the program by taking on such a daunting task.
“I feared that we could potentially lose one of our most valued instructors because of the pressure of certifying so many kids in the area,” Patten said. “But, Bill anticipated the need and continued to teach the classes with no complaint, no prodding and no deviation from his usual outstanding program.”
Peltier, a retired Itasca County Sheriff’s Department dispatcher and jailer, has been a Firearms Safety instructor for over 36 years. His reputation as being the “fund-raiser guy” in the Grand Rapids area is well known. Peltier created the Youth Firearms Safety Corporation to help defray some of the costs associated with putting on firearms safety classes. The corporation also donates money to local charities, benefits and events in the name of Youth Firearms Safety.
Peltier also helped in the development of a hunter-walking trail behind the Minnesota Shooting Sports Center in Grand Rapids. The hunter-walking trail contains all the objectives that students need to complete for the field day portion of Firearms Safety training.
Always known for working beyond expectations, Peltier assisted in organizing the popular Grand Rapids Volunteer Instructor Appreciation banquet which has averaged over 100 in attendance each year since the early 1990’s.
“Mr. Peltier’s recognition as DNR Firearms Safety Instructor of the Year is testament to Minnesota’s hunter education program,” said Captain Mike Hammer, DNR Enforcement Education Program Coordinator. “Frankly, we’ve got some of the best firearms safety instructors in the country right here,” he said.
Grzywinski, Sternberg make Fishing Hall of Fame
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National Freshwater Hall of Fame Reports
In a ceremony at the recent Northwest Sportshow in Minneapolis, two well-known Minnesota anglers were inducted into the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. Dick (“The Griz”) Grzywinski was inducted in the category of “Legendary Guide,” and Dick Sternberg as “Legendary Communicator.”
Grzywinski, who is arguably Minnesota’s most famous fishing guide, specializes in walleye fishing but is also an accomplished bass, pike, muskie and panfish angler. He is best known for his walleye rip-jigging technique, which has been featured on numerous TV fishing shows and in dozens of magazine articles. His die-hard approach to fishing often means 10-hour-plus days for clients willing to stay out that long. Unlike most fishing guides, Grzywinski will take his clients to most any body of water they want to fish, explaining the slogan on his business card, “Have Boat, Will Travel.”
Sternberg, one of the country’s top fishing authors, has written more than 40 books with combined sales of around 10 million copies. He is best known for the popular “Hunting & Fishing Library” book series, and has also authored a series of books for The North American Fishing Club. Formerly a fisheries biologist with the Minnesota DNR, Sternberg remains heavily involved in conservation issues and was instrumental in establishing the DNR Fishing Roundtable, which has given the state’s anglers more voice in fish management issues. Outdoor Life Magazine recently selected Sternberg as one of the prestigious OL 25 – “People Who Have Changed the Face of Hunting and Fishing.”
The National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, located in Hayward, Wisconsin, recognizes persons and organizations for outstanding achievement and accomplishment in the realm of freshwater fishing. It also operates a museum to collect, preserve and display the artifacts of the sport of freshwater angling and has a program for qualifying, compiling, publishing and updating record freshwater fish catches.
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