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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (April 8, 2015)
SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2015 3 C New publication aimed at helping Oregon turtles © is brought to you by these participating sponsors: There’s no place like • Keep it fresh and local for the Kids in Florence! • Live Music on the Weekends Like us on Facebook so our Daily Specials pop up in your NEWS FEED 294 Laurel St. in Historic Old Town Florence 541-997-4886 CLACKAMAS — A com- prehensive guide focused on conserving Oregon’s native turtles and their habitats recent- ly was released by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The guide includes Best Management Practices (BMPs) to protect and conserve Oregon’s two native turtle species, the western painted turtle and the western pond tur- tle. Both turtles are classified as “critical” on Oregon’s Sensitive Species list and iden- tified as priority at-risk species in the Oregon Conservation Strategy. The Strategy is Oregon’s blueprint for conserving the state’s fish and wildlife and their habitats. Guidance for Conserving Oregon’s Native Turtles Including Best Management Practices is intended primarily for natural resource and land managers, land use planners and project managers, but landowners and the general public can also benefit from this resource. The guide was peer- reviewed and the BMPs are practical and cost-effective so they can be readily used. The guide can help with planning projects in or near permanent or seasonal wet- lands, ponds and other water bodies that are within the ODFW Good Diet = Healthy Teeth If your child must snack, choose nutritious foods such as vegetables, low-fat yogurt, and low-fat cheese which are healthier and better for children’s teeth. Celebrating 6 Years of offering the Florence Community Dental Care 541-997-3423 Dr. Chad Clement 1256 Bay St. Old Town Florence ATHLETE from 1C The program will continue through July 31 in Astoria, where the Clatsop County Fisheries Project manages a salmon rearing program. Hazing is designed to dis- rupt the birds’ feeding patterns long enough to give wild- spawned and hatchery fish a chance to pass through the estuaries unharmed. Some of these spring migrants are listed by the state or federal government as OF THE WEEK Abby Watkins Siuslaw H.S. Vintage Blue Warehouse ESTATE SALES - CONSIGNMENT New half price markdowns this week! Look for the RED SLASH tags! Thursday - Saturday 10-5 Sunday 11-4 80 Harbor Street 541-999-1159 Track & Field The Viking sophomore won the long jump at last week’s Junction City Invitational with a personal-best mark of 16’4”. Watkins also finished third in the 100 meters and ran one leg in Siuslaw’s third place 4x100 relay. Honorable Mention Carissa Oliver Siuslaw News + Business Listings Coupons & More www.shoppelocal.biz © 2015 by Vicki Whiting, Editor Jeff Schinkel, Graphics Vol. 31, No. 18 Teammate and fellow tenth grader, Carissa Oliver who won the discus in Junction City with a throw of 112’10”, eclipsing her former best throw by more than 13-feet. Sponsored By: The Siuslaw News , KCST and The Sports Club Best For Hearing Oregon Box Lunch Reedsport Marine & Fabrication Foglio Drop Box Services Shoreline Customized Apparel Alan Twombly-H & R Block Central Coast Disposal Dana Rodet Construction County Transfer & Recycling River House J.L. Walker & Sons Excavating Dry Tech Carpet Cleaning Dutch Bros. Elson Shields Property Management Florence RV & Automotive Specialists Frank Romero 541 Designs Leisure Excavating Ultimate Pest Control Integrity Plumbing Lane Community College - Florence Fishing from 1C week as the river levels being to drop. Lake Creek typically clears up more quickly. ALSEA RIVER: Steelhead The winter steelhead fishery is slowing down for the sea- son down but fair numbers of fish can still be found in the upper river, especially after a rain event. Native fish tend to be prevalent this time of year. Casting lures, bobber and jig/bait or drifting beads along the bottom can be effective techniques. SILETZ RIVER: Steelhead Steelhead fishing is slow to fair. Fish are being caught in most sections depending on river conditions. This time of year tends to produce a good percent of native fish and/or post spawn fish. Typical steel- head tactics apply such as side drifting, bobber and jig / bait, or casting spoons or spinners. WILSON RIVER: Steelhead, Chinook Winter steelhead fishing should be slow to fair. Last weekend’s rain brought good numbers of fish into the sys- tem. Fish will be holding ups as flows are low. Bank anglers can find success throughout the river. Boaters should fish the lower drifts until more rains come. Use lighter gear in the clear water. Spring Chinook fishing opens April 1, but few fish will be present for several weeks. YAQUINA RIVER: Steelhead The winter steelhead fishery is slow in the Big Elk. The fishery is typically very slow for the rest of the season. Anglers are advised to watch for private property. Typical steelhead fishing tactics apply but the Big Elk is bed rock dominated and does have a lot of snags. UMPQUA RIVER, SOUTH: Steelhead Fish have been caught in the Canyonville area and hatchery fish have been reported. The hatchery pro- gram for winter steelhead is centered in the South Umpqua, which offers the best chance for catching an adi- pose-fin clipped steelhead for harvest. Most hatchery fish are caught from Canyonville downstream. All wild fish must be known range of native turtles. Actions that involve ground disturbance, changes in water levels, riparian habitat restora- tion, or use of heavy equipment are just a few examples known to affect native turtles. “Our native turtles are in trouble — habitat loss, poor water quality, roads that sepa- rate aquatic habitats from upland habitats and competi- tion with invasive species like red-eared slider turtles are just a few threats,” said Susan Barnes, an ODFW wildlife biologist noted for her work with native turtles. “We encourage project planners and land managers to use the guide or call ODFW for help when planning projects in native tur- tle habitat.” There is something each per- son can do to help native tur- tles, Barnes said. Whether it’s creating suit- able turtle nesting habitat, knowing how to keep turtles out of an active construction zone or knowing what to do if you find a turtle crossing a road. “We all have a role in turtle conservation,” Barnes said. The guide was produced by ODFW with significant finan- cial and design contributions from the Port of Portland, tech- nical review by the Oregon Native Turtle Working Group. species under some degree of conservation risk, including coho salmon, which are feder- ally Threatened in Oregon under the Endangered Species Act. Cormorant hazing is expect- ed to benefit both wild- spawned and hatchery fish. In a separate but related project, ODFW staff will col- lect up to 50 double-crested cormorants at the mouth of the Umpqua River. This is part of an ongoing study that will assess the diet of double-crested cormorants in Oregon estuaries. Oregon has a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that allows for limited collection of double-crested cormorants, a protected species under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act. ODFW is also actively researching the potential use of low-power handheld lasers to disperse cormorants from feed- ing and roosting sites. Laser-based hazing activi- ties will occur this spring on a trial basis at several coastal locations. released unharmed. Plunking should be good at places such as L AWSON B AR , M YRTLE C REEK and behind Seven Feathers. The water has been low making it harder for long boat drifts, but still suitable for bank anglers. season is open for all salmon except coho salmon, with a bag limit of two salmon per day, and a minimum size for Chinook salmon at 24 inches or larger. Fishing for lingcod has been very good in the Coos Bay and Bandon areas. Anglers are catching ling- cod in shallow and deep water. Fishing for black rockfish has been decent. The all depth rockfish sea- son has ended. Retention of cabezon is not allowed until June 30. • Salmon Ocean recreational fishing is open for Chinook salmon from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mt. through April 30. This season is open for all salmon except coho salmon, with a bag limit of two salmon per day, and minimum sizes for Chinook salmon at 24 inches or larger, and steelhead at 20 inches or larger. Anglers are restricted to no more than two single-point barbless hooks when fishing for salmon and when fishing for any other species if a salmon is on board the vessel. Anglers fishing in ocean waters adjacent to Tillamook Bay between Twin Rocks and Pyramid Rock and within the 15-fathom depth contour are reminded that only adipose fin-clipped Chinook salmon may be retained or on board while fishing prior to Aug. 1. • Pacific halibut The 2015 Pacific halibut quota is approximately 1 per- cent greater than 2014. Therefore, sport halibut sea- sons are projected to be simi- lar to 2014. The staff-recom- mended season dates are on the OFDW sport halibut web- page and will be finalized by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission on April 24. • Crab Ocean crabbing is slow on the central and south coasts. Bay and ocean crabbers might run into red rock crab as well as Dungeness crab. Red rock crab is a native species but is not present in all of Oregon’s bays. Good places to try are from the docks in Tillamook Bay, Yaquina Bay, and Coos Bay. Red rock crab are caught just like Dungeness and have a daily limit of 24. COOS COUNTY LAKES PONDS: Trout AND Trophy trout were stocked last week in Bradley Lake and Johnson Mill Pond. Legal-size and trophy trout were also stocked last week in Empire Lakes. Legal size trout were stocked in the past month in B RADLEY L AKE , S AUNDERS L AKE , P OWERS P OND , M INGUS P ARK P OND , and J OHNSON M ILL P OND . Trout are biting on bait fished near the bottom or lures like spinners or spoons. There are several lakes like T ENMILE , E EL , and B UTTERFIELD with holdover rainbow trout from last year’s stocking. COOS RIVER BASIN: Dungeness crab, bay clams, steelhead, rockfish Steelhead fishing is open until April 30 in the Coos Basin although many anglers have put away their steelhead gear for the season. River lev- els have been low but there are still a few steelhead around. There is bank access on the West Fork Millicoma at the Millicoma Interpretive Center and on the East Fork Millicoma at Nesika Park. Access to the South Fork Coos River is through Weyerhaeuser property and anglers must have the appro- priate permit from Weyerhaeuser. WINCHESTER BAY: Bottomfish Fishing for bottomfish in the Triangle and South jetty has been successful. Crabbing has been slow recently. PACIFIC OCEAN and BEACHES: Bottomfish, Dungeness crab, surf perch The ocean is open for har- vest of Dungeness crab. Anglers continue to catch surf perch from the beaches near Bandon and Coos Bay. The best fishing is usually on the incoming tide. Sand shrimp is one of the best baits to use when fishing for surf perch. Recreational ocean salmon season from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mt. is now open. The D EADLINE FOR P RESS R ELEASES I S E VERY M ONDAY AND T HURSDAY BY N OON . E MAIL P RESS R ELEASES @T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . COM .