Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2016)
A10 Sports/Outdoors wallowa.com April 13, 2016 Wallowa County Chieftain The noble red-tailed hawk BIRD- WATCHING EH Van Blaricom I took this photo of a juvenile red- tailed hawk on the cross-arm of a power pole about a month ago. Red-tailed hawks belong to the family of Buteos, which are soaring hawks. They are the most nu- merous and wide-spread Buteo in North America. Even so, they are sometimes dif- ¿cult to identify as there are dark phases and light phases, male and female, adult and juvenile. They like to nest in tall trees but prefer to hunt in open country where their main prey are meadow mice and rabbits. However, I once watched a red- tail holding down a mallard duck that was still squirming in its talons. One of the common names for red-tails is “chicken hawk,” which caused a lot of kids to shoot them with their .22 riÀes. 0ost farmers protect them as they consume thousands of mice that are very damaging to their crops. 0ost of these red-tailed hawks that nest here in Wallowa County migrate to as far away as Panama, but a few can be observed here in winter. By far the most common Buteo that can be seen sitting in dead trees or power poles here in Wallowa county in winter are rough-legged hawks. They nest in the Arctic Zone, where their Courtesy of OSU Extension Office 4-H members take a good look during the annual Wallowa County Horse Judging contest on April 3. In the photo are: Addie Royes, Rosie Movich-Fields, Libby Fisher, Bailey Vernam, Marli Tracy, Eva Anderson, Destiny Barney, Cassidee Harrod and Rylee Wilcox. Courtesy of E.H. Van Blaricom The red-tailed hawk. Wallowa County Chieftain main prey is lemmings, but they have to come down to Oregon and Washington to ¿nd mice and gophers. By the ¿rst of April, the rough-legged hawks go north and the red-tails are the dominant Bu- teo here in the county. Unlike the rough- legged hawks that sit on a pole or dead tree while conserving their energy, the red-tails Ày over the farmland searching for their food. Even when they are circling high on a thermal they are scanning the ground for rodents. When the numerous colonies of Beld- ing ground-squirrels come out of hiber- nation in 0arch, the red-tails time their nesting to raise their young on ground squirrels. I should mention that they will only catch and eat live squirrels and will never eat any of the dead squirrels that the hunters leave lying all over the ground. They leave the dead squirrels for the mag- pies, ravens and, yes, bald eagles, to dine on. I guess you could say they want to be considered as hunters and not as scaven- gers. A noble thought for a lowly “chicken hawk.” County steelhead season extended until April 30 on several rivers Wallowa County Chieftain Spring steelhead anglers can ¿sh the *rande Ronde, Wallowa and Imnaha Rivers — including Big Sheep Creek — through April 30 due to 2016 regulation changes that went into effect Jan. 1. The previous closure date was April 15. The extension was a result of ODFW’s regulation sim- pli¿cation process last year. Through public input, ODFW 4-H announces spring horse judging results learned that local anglers thought steelhead ¿shing was cut short in some years despite great catch rates in mid-April. “The suggestions from an- glers led to changes in the reg- ulations, resulting in increased ¿shing opportunities,” said Jeff <anke, district ¿sh biologist in Enterprise. Anglers should note that the Rondowa area, at the con- Àuence with the Wallowa and *rande Ronde Rivers, will still be closed to ATV access after April 15. Anglers can still hike in from 0inam or Palmer Junc- tion. Not all hatchery steelhead reach their ¿nal destination at trapping facilities before mid-April, and the extension is intended to increase harvest of those ¿sh. For example, ac- cording to Yanke, in the Imnaha River approximately 35 percent of the expected run is holding in ¿shery areas, which equates to about 400 steelhead that are still available for harvest. April showers sometimes cause local rivers to rise which can dampen ¿shing success. “Despite the variability of spring river conditions, this ex- tension will help increase steel- head harvest during years with low snowpack or late runoff.” Yanke said. “Last year on the Imnaha was a great example where some of the best catch rates were during mid-April.” Extending the season does come with a few additional chal- lenges, according to Yanke. For example, steelhead smolt releas- es occur in April which irritates anglers because they are catch- ing the 6-inch smolt versus the adult steelhead. “I know it can be frustrating trying to keep smolt from your bait, but the good news is that they don’t hang around very long,” Yanke said. And for a majority of the anglers, the annoyance is worth it. Approximately one million smolts are released from the *rande Ronde and Imnaha Riv- ers to begin their long journey to the ocean. “Our research clearly indi- cates that releasing smolts in April maximizes their chances of survival, which in turn pro- duces more adult steelhead to catch one to two years later.” The 2016 horse judging tour was held Sunday, April 3. Twenty-two 4-H members judged four equine classes, one class of oral reasons, one class of identi¿cation and a class of hay. The members judged an English Equitation class, a class of mares, ranch geldings and a class of Paint gelding at the fairgrounds. A total of 350 points in the judging contest was possible. *abrielle Wells, a senior, was the overall high point judge with a score of 316. It was the ¿rst horse judg- ing contest of the year. 0em- bers will have an opportunity to judge again at the Eastern Oregon Livestock Show and at the Wallowa County Fair. HO0E Continued from Page A9 Plew also scored a run and drove in two. Frolander ¿nished 2 for 2 with a pair of runs scored. Cubs 15, Bulldogs 7 Wallowa Valley gave up ¿ve quick runs in the ¿rst two innings behind pitcher Natalie Williams before settling in and pounding out a big win in the second game. ALPINE Continued from Page A9 On any given year in April, Wallowa County golfers chomp at the bit to get on the course, but with this season an extra level of enthusiasm has been added by Bivens’ exuberance and Currie’s cooking. The clubhouse revamp has created an energetic Àow all the way down *olf Course Road to the parking lot. Bivens, who claims he’s the “I’ve been everywhere man,” is unstoppable. “We want golfers, whether ATHLETE OF THE WEEK Nyssa on Friday. She struck out seven batters over seven innings and drove in the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh. Madison went 4 for 7 from the plate, scored three runs and drove in three more during the two games. She also made the Enterprise High School honor roll each of the first Enterprise sophomore two quarters this Madison Plew took the school year. mound and got the win in Congratulations, Madison. the opening game of a soft- ball doubleheader against MADISON PLEW Proudly Sponsored By: Eastern Oregon’s Full Service Propane Supplier 201 E. Hwy 82, Enterprise 541-426-0320 www.edstaub.com wallowa.com No matter what your business is, the Wallowa County Chieftain has the audience you need! We have many options to market your business in an affordable and effective manner. Call Jennifer Powell today! 541-426-4567 (office) or email jpowell@wallowa.com Their scores will be compiled and the top intermediate and senior judges will qualify to represent Wallowa County at the state competition. In the Senior Division (ages 15-19), Wells placed ¿rst (316), followed by 0ad- die Tracy (311) and 0arli Tracy (309). In the Intermediate Di- vision (ages 12-14), Deidre Schreiber (303) placed ¿rst, followed by Cassidee Har- rod (293) and Rylee Wilcox (292). In the Junior Division (ages 9-11), Johanna Wells (296) was ¿rst, followed by Josi Coggins (287) and Bai- ley Vernam (283). The lone ¿rst-year junior to compete was Lily Royes (277). The Cubs plated ¿ve runs in the third and four more in the fourth to go up 13-7. Shelby 0oncrief went 3 for 3 with two walks, two RBI and four runs scored. Dar- by *assett had two hits and drove in three runs. 0adison Plew was 3 for 4 with two runs and an RBI, while Lexie *assett drew three walks and scored twice. Wallowa Valley hosts league foe *rant Union (0-0, 5-2) for a double header start- ing at 1 p.m. Friday at Jensen Ball Fields. they’re having a good game or a bad one, to feel comfortable at the 19th hole. We also invite the public to come for lunch, and/ or play golf,” he said. “0usic brought me to the county, but it’s the people in this beautiful place that make me want to stay.” As warm weather continues, golf course activity is high. The greens crew is working hard to keep up with the fast-growing grass and to rid the greens of snow mold, all the while show- ing a courtesy to golfers on the course. A thank you to volunteer Chuck Haines, who has hand- raked fallen branches from about every tree on the course, and earlier, Ron Layton, who cleaned debris from greens. Enterprise and Wallowa/Jo- seph high school golf teams can be seen after school practicing for meets, as well as the E.H.S Invitational on Friday, April 29. Congratulations to Joseph freshman Tori Suto on her Pend- leton Invitational win. The ¿rst-time Bomber Tour- nament, scheduled Saturday, April 30, has been appropriately named in honor of the B-24 Lib- erator and crew that conducted a successful emergency landing on the golf course in 1944. Sign up now. Rochelle Danielson is an Alpine Meadows member who resides in Enterprise.
