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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 18, 2015)
September 18, 2015 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 7A Seeking elk and finding them Wildlife officials come on a mission to see elk, set fish rules By Katherine Lacaze Seaside Signal More than a dozen Ore- gon Fish and Wildlife Com- missioners and staff peered through telescopes on the banks of the Neacoxie River Sept. 3. They were seeking elk — and they found them during their daylong tour of ¿sh and wildlife facilities along the North Coast. The Reserve at Gear- hart was their ¿rst stop a precursor to the commis- sion’s monthly meeting the following day at the Best Western Ocean View Re- sort in Seaside. The tour provided commissioners a ground-level look at Clatsop County wildlife and habitat. At The Reserve in Gear- hart commissioners wit- nessed elk that had separat- ed from the main herd of about . +ere the elk are ³in their natural element which is kind of low-den- sity development and golf courses´ said +erman Bie- derbeck a wildlife biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The reserve is surround- ed by two golf courses Gearhart Golf Links and Highlands Golf Club. Thirty acres of North Coast Land Conservancy land to the east of the reserve are part of the conservancy’s Neacoxie Wildlife Corridor proMect designed in the 1990s to create a habitat for wildlife along the Neacoxie River. As the Clatsop Plains get increasingly developed elk and humans inevitably col- lide creating risks for both. Wildlife photographer Neal Maine shared photos of what happens when elk and people share the landscape. ,n one a young woman scurries away from an elk she angered by approaching the animal and its calf for an ³elk sel¿e.´ Elaborate landscaping can draw elk into yards KATHERINE LACAZE/SEASIDE SIGNAL Members of the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission and staff members look for elk on the North Coast Land Conser- vancy’s habitat to the east of The Reserve at Gearhart during the group’s tour Sept. 3. NEAL MAINE/PACIFICLIGHT IMAGES Wildlife photographer Neal Maine said he spotted a woman and her dog get too close to an elk cow, which then charged. People are advised to stay well clear of cows and calves, espe- cially during calving season from late May through early June. where they are unwanted Maine said and the animals are known to create traf¿c hazards crossing U.S. High- way 101 and other roads. Residents have differing opinions about the elk and how to deal with them Bie- derbeck said. Some prefer elk roam unhindered; oth- ers particularly farmers and commercial interests prefer a more managed approach. Because of strong con- trasting opinions the de- partment tends “to deal with elk issues on an individual case-by-case basis´ Bie- derbeck said. “The elk have their pros and cons out here for sure.´ Jewell Meadows Wildlife Area ,nland at the -ewell Meadows Wildlife Area in the Oregon Coast Range mountains the department manages a different elk pop- ulation. The 111-acre area serves to protect and en- hance wildlife habitat re- duce wildlife damage to surrounding properties and provide the public with an opportunity to observe wild- life in a natural setting. -ew- Commission approves sport ¿sKinJ reJs The Associated Press SALEM — The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission approved the 01 Oregon sport ¿shing regulations at its meeting in Seaside on Friday. Under the regulations ad- opted anglers should ¿nd it easier to navigate the rules for trout and warmwater ¿shing thanks to fewer special regu- lations creating different sea- sons gear restrictions and bag limits for different waters. These changes are the result of an almost yearlong effort by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife staff to streamline and simplify the ¿shing rules. Mike Gauvin ODFW recre- ational ¿sheries manager told the commission that overly complex regulations is one of the most common complaints among anglers. Some of the changes for 01 include: Eliminating of the April trout opener — most of these waters will now be open year- round. Setting the May trout opener at May each year ensuring that trout ¿shing statewide would always be open Memorial Day weekend. Removing the bag limit on non-native brown and brook trout in streams statewide though some exceptions will still apply. Simplifying lan- guage including replacing the terms “adipose ¿n-clipped´ and “non adipose ¿n-clipped´ with “hatchery´ and “wild.´Remov- ing bag limits for warmwater ¿sh in the Columbia -ohn Day and Umpqua rivers. In addition to the regulation changes there also will be a new format for the regulations booklet that will make it eas- ier to read. The 01 Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations will be available in early Decem- ber 01. The commission approved the 10-year update of the Ore- gon Conservation Strategy in- cluding the Oregon Nearshore Strategy component. These documents are broad overar- ching strategies for voluntary conservation of Oregon’s na- tive ¿sh wildlife and marine resources. Both documents were updated with new scien- ti¿c technology and informa- tion and had extensive tech- nical and public review and input over the last year. Along with updating the Strategy Species and Habitat sections re¿ning Conserva- tion Opportunity Areas was a major focus of the Strategy revision. These areas are key landscapes where voluntary conservation actions will have the most impact on conserving native species. The Nearshore compo- nent was better incorporated into the Strategy resulting in several changes. Species lists and habitats were modi¿ed and estuaries were included in the Nearshore Strategy. The revision also will include sup- plements on potential effects of global climate change and ocean acidi¿cation. The Oregon Conservation Strategy including the Near- shore component will be sub- mitted to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by Oct. 1 and available in a new web appli- cation upon USFWS approval. The commission also up- dated the rules for commercial bay clam harvest. The current commercial harvest rules had been in place since 199. The new rules are based on recent ¿sheries landings and stock as- sessment data and include ad- justments to commercial land- ing quotas minimum sizes species taken and allowable harvest areas. This integrated package of shell¿sh actions will improve the management of these species and reduce potential conÀicts between different user groups. Finally the commission approved funding for three Access and Habitat projects that will provide hunter access. ell Meadows Wildlife Area Manager Bryan Swearingen helps the department man- age the herd’s winter habitat and provide supplemental feeding for Roosevelt elk and black-tailed deer The department’s man- agement plan at the wildlife area is designed to keep the elk population arti¿cial- ly low about out of a land capacity of about 00 ‘The elk have their pros and cons out here, for sure.’ Herman Biederbeck, wildlife biologist Swearingen said. A portion of the wildlife area near Fishhawk Creek is designated for elk refuge although some tracts are open to the public for hunt- ing. The department provides supplemental feed in win- ter to mitigate the animals’ negative impact on the land uses of adMacent properties owned by Weyerhaeuser Co. Stimson Lumber Co. and the Oregon Department of Forestry. To determine popula- tion models the department currently uses helicopters a costly and potentially risky method. The state plans to partner with Oregon State University to conduct an elk census using unmanned aerial vehicles or drones which could register data in the sky over the Youngs River basin Biederbeck said. The wildlife area will provide an outdoor laborato- ry to calibrate and test aerial equipment before expand- ing the program to nearby control sites he added. Suc- cess depends on capturing imagery with a resolution high enough to detect and classify the individual elk. Western snowy plover The western snowy plo- vers a federally recognized “threatened´ species were also of interest to commis- sioners. The small bird can be found predominantly in California Washington and Oregon and is making a comeback on Oregon’s south coast. Dining on the Protecting habitats mit- igating human issues and taking out ground predators — such as coyotes raccoons and skunks — have played roles in helping the species re-emerge. For instance Or- egon State Parks will close beaches or cage nesting ar- eas for protection. “The success of the snowy plover program es- pecially on the south coast is starting to be recognized´ Biederbeck said. 1ew rXles to ¿sK Ey The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission con- sidered the 01 sport- ¿shing regulations and revisions to the Oregon Conservation and Near- shore strategies during its meeting Sept. at the Best Western Ocean View Resort in Seaside. The commission usually meets monthly and rotates among its Salem headquarters and the congressional districts. Seaside is part of Congres- sional District 1. Many of the sport¿shing regulation changes are being considered as the result of the department staff’s eight- month effort to streamline and simplify rules for trout and warm-water ¿shing. Some proposed changes include: • Streamlining the num- ber of different seasons gear restrictions and bag limits in order to have more consis- tent rules for similar water bodies across the state. • Removing the April trout opener and opening these water bodies to year- round ¿shing. • Setting the May trout opener at May each year ensuring that trout ¿shing statewide would always be open Memorial Day week- end. • Removing bag limits for warm-water ¿sh in the Columbia -ohn Day and Umpqua rivers. Additionally the com- mission approved a 10-year update of the Oregon Conser- vation Strategy including the Oregon Nearshore Strategy component. The documents which are broad strategies to conserve the state’s native ¿sh wildlife and marine re- sources are to be submitted as required to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by Oct. 1. The commission also up- dated the rules for commer- cial bay clam harvest. Based on recent landing and stock assessment data department staff proposed adjustments to commercial landing quo- tas minimum sizes species taken and allowable harvest areas as an integrated pack- age of shell¿sh management actions. A complete list of the proposed changes for 01 is on the Oregon Depart- ment of Fish and Wildlife website at http://bit.ly/1M- mL0Xi. 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