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Australia: No place to hide, marlin

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 03:02:10 -0200

STEVE Thomas, owner of game fishing boat Amokura is approaching Lake Macquarie’s Bigfish Bonanza game fishing tournament this weekend armed with a special weapon, 14-year-old daughter Jacinta.

The laid-back dad reckons if there’s marlin out there, his girl, overall champion angler at Lake Macquarie Game Fishing Club for the past two years, will find them.

‘‘While ever she’s on board, we’re a chance,’’ he said. ‘‘She’s won plenty of trophies over the years.

‘‘She could find marlin in a schooner glass.’’

The forecast for the tournament is looking pretty bright, with reasonable conditions predicted both days.

Steve was keeping tactics close to his chest yesterday but was prepared to tip ‘‘a hangover on the Saturday and maybe another on the Sunday’’.

‘‘Iona, Tim Dean on Calypso, Running Bear – all the usual suspects will be there, so the competition will be fierce during the day, but we’ll catch up for a bit of socialising each night.

‘‘It will be a great way to kick off the tournament season.’’

Like many local anglers, Steve intends to fish all major tournaments over the next month, including the Luhrs Shootout and Interclub.

But like a number of bigger boat owners, he’s been forced to relocate Amokura, skippered by Chris Jolly, to Newcastle for the duration of the event due to the dredging situation in the channel.

‘‘It’s an absolute joke what we have to contend with and the local authorities need a good kick up the proverbial,’’ he said.

‘‘They got $300,000, or something, to deal with it recently, but the size of the dredge they got ... you’d be better off with a bucket and spade.

‘‘We have to travel to Newcastle tomorrow night and we’ll stay there Saturday and Sunday due to the tides in the lake.

‘‘We need a 1.6-metre tide to clear the channel and the best one for us is on Monday.

‘‘We don’t want to be coming back through the channel Sunday night.’’

Furthermore, Steve intends to base Amokura, which he works as a charter boat, out of Port Stephens for the next four months.

‘‘It used to be you could jump on the boat out of your front door [Lake Macquarie] and go fish, but not now, you have to worry about whether you can get back in and what not with the channel, it’s a real problem for bigger boats.’’

Steve’s been taking Amokura up to Cairns for the past two years for charter and entertains a lot of local lake anglers.

Parked out there

Another game fishing gun, Luke Stansfield, from boat TJ Mann, is fired up and ready to roll this weekend buoyed by reports from out wide over the last few days.

‘‘There’s a few marlin out there,’’ he said.

‘‘I heard there were 15 Bay [Port Stephens] boats out last Saturday and they all did all right. Seeka might have got four or five. A few others did all right.

‘‘So I reckon there’s plenty of fish sitting out there on the Carpark.’’

Luke’s also a big rap on Jacinta Thomas.

‘‘Mate, she goes very well indeed, that girl.’’

Rainlovers cluster

HATS off to nine-year-old Jacob Hoschke, of Blackalls Park, who caught a 106cm cobia and his first jew in Lake Macquarie last Friday.

Hopefully there’ll be a few more about this weekend in local estuaries.

There’s certainly plenty of whiting, bream and flathead about.

There were a few jew caught in the harbour last weekend too, and with all the rain, they should still be on.

Flat out competing

FORTY-seven boats, with a minimum of two anglers per boat, competed in the Newcastlefishing.Com Flathead tournament on Lake Macquarie last Sunday.

The event, based on total length not weight, was taken out by Team Ronald and Grimace, who were Shane (Brodo79), from Redhead and Mathew (Hammo), from Mereweather, with a total of four fish measuring 2580mm.

Team Rapala, Greg (Fishlips) and son Oscar, from Lambton, managed three fish totalling 2170mm in second place. Young Oscar bagged the biggest lizard, measuring one metre, which was duly released.

Team Hells Bells, Paul (Booty) and son Sonny, from Charlestown, finished third with a total of 2140mm.

A bit Murrayed

PETER Hatzidimitriou headed up to Seven’s River near Inverell recently – a round trip of about 1500km – to chase Murray cod.

After a bit of intelligence gathering at his local motel, Pete was able to hook up with a local farmer who shared his passion and gave him access to the river section on his property.

"After having a good chat with the motel owner about my passion to catch one of these magnificent fish he offered to have his father-in-law take us to a few of his secret spots," Pete reported.

"These are accessed by private property on the back of farms/properties and not accessible by the public.

"We met the entire family and they were truly the epitome of classic friendly and accommodating country folk ... very very lovely genuine people!

"Ron has been fishing for murray cod for over 40 years and had a lot of stories to tell!"

Pete got a couple of nice MCs for his troubles, but they didn't come easy.

"My total tally of fish was four in three days of fishing with each day lasting around 6-8 hours’ worth of fishing ... but all worth it!" he said.

"As my dad would say, 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained.'

http://www.theherald.com.au/blogs/sky ... /2441982.aspx?storypage=0

New Zealand: New Zealand trout dwarf their California relatives

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:59:27 -0200

THE AIR WAS as still as an oil painting, and across the lake in the mountain silence could be heard the gulping of large rising trout, feasting on an afternoon insect hatch. I stood knee-deep and motionless, for the trick in such quiet, clear waters is to lay out a fly line without sending every fish in the lake into hiding for the day — and there's no sense casting until a fish is spotted.

Only when the gulp of a trout sent a ring expanding over the surface just 30 feet from me did I cast; a flick of my wrist sent my fly line shooting out across the water and the fly settled without a sound. Perfect — and then gulp.

The fluffy brown bundle of deer hair and feathers vanished in a swirl. I lifted my arm, and that living resistance that has captured anglers' imaginations for centuries put a deep bow in the rod. A second later, a 20-inch trout leaped from the water, shaking its head wildly in protest.

I slowly backed up and brought the trout toward the bank. The fish was spent within just a minute — it was a rather sluggish old brown trout, as many here are. Though I've been releasing most fish lately, this female was bound for the frying pan.

Such trout are monsters by a Californian's standards, but this is New Zealand, where three-pounders are about average. Indeed, to raise a Kiwi's eyebrows one must catch an eight- or 10-pounder.

Suffice it to say, I'm easily satisfied in this land of monster browns and rainbows, as I cycle with camping gear and a fly rod strapped to the rear of my bike. My latest off-highway trek took to me to the mountains about 70 miles west of Christchurch, where I camped among a cluster of mountain lakes that I won't bother naming. Hey — I found them on my own; you can, too.

Funny about trout in New Zealand: They're an introduced species, as are Chinook salmon — and though neither was ever intended by nature to live here, these fish flourished remarkably. The trout, especially, are abundant like in few other places — and so huge.

Sad, then, that in California, although a brilliant array of native salmonids were established and thriving when we got here, we've squandered the resource and now can barely hang onto what's left. Heck, even the introduced ones are dwindling — like the striped bass — and the California Department of Fish and Game's misguided plan to loosen fishing restrictions as part of a striper eradication program is not going to help matters.

In New Zealand, introduced trout surely displaced native fish when they colonized local waterways — but no one here talks about that. It's history, and the fish are here to stay as a treasured game species. As an angler, I can't help but wonder what these waters would hold if trout did not rise here or salmon not spawn here. I, for one, am happy that they do. I just wish things were so good back home.

http://www.marinij.com/sports/ci_19880937

Zambia: Govt Wants Safari Hunting Cartels to End

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:56:05 -0200

THE Government has called for an end to the formation of cartels by some safari hunting businesses which has restricted the entry of new safari hunting enterprises.

Ministry of Information, Broadcasting and Tourism Permanent Secretary Amos Malupenga said some companies had been bidding for hunting concessions under different names resulting in the same investors holding on to hunting concessions for a long period of time.

Mr Malupenga, who was speaking when he officiated at a consultative meeting of the Zambia Wild Life Authority (ZAWA) with local communities on the expiry and allocation of hunting blocs, said such unethical business practices coupled with the failure to utilise the allocated quotas, had been detrimental to the viability of the hunting business as it reduced revenue that would have accrued to the local communities and the nation.

"I challenge this meeting to deliberate and find workable solutions to these and other hurdles facing the safari hunting industry," Mr Malupenga said.

He told the meeting that was attended by 31 traditional leaders from 21 hunting blocs that the Government wanted to consult on the allocation of hunting blocs as the 10 year period for most hunting concessions would soon expire adding that lessons had been learnt over the 10 years.

And in an interview, Chief Chipepo of the Tonga people of Chirundu District called for the inclusion of the local communities in the selection of safari companies as they were the ones that lived with the operators and observed their performance.

Chief Chipepo said it had been observed that some operators were criminals who used the safari business to launder their money before moving to their next venture.

Chief Chipepo, however, implored the Government to ensure that the operators' existence in the hunting blocs benefited the local communities who were the custodians of the wildlife.

He said unless the community benefited from the wildlife, poaching would continue to be a problem in the game management areas.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201201300197.html

USA: Anti-hunters would love species to death

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:54:12 -0200

On Sunday, the CBS news program 60 Minutes highlighted the killer instinct within animal rights/anti-hunting organizations.

Friends of Animals President Priscilla Feral was allowed to explain how she's worked to help enact rules requiring a federal permit to hunt the endangered scimitar-horned oryx in the United States.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service posted an explanation of the new rule — including a list of myths and explanation of the new red tape the rule requires — after the 60 Minutes report aired.

At face value, this appears to be a noble cause to Feral's financial supporters. After all, why would anyone want to hunt an endangered antelope species that's on the brink of extinction?

In the 60 Minutes segment, reporter Lara Logan asks that question repeatedly to the Texas game ranchers who have used high-fence ranches and hunting to help save three antelope species that have essentially gone extinct in Africa.

“If the species is endangered, why do you hunt them?” she asked.

The answer: We hunt a few for the survival of the species.

The ranchers clearly explained they have imported antelopes such as the beautiful scimitar-horned oryx to huge fenced preserves where the species has been nourished and allowed to prosper and maintain a gene pool for reintroductions into their native Africa.

Meantime, in order to pay for maintaining these herds in Texas, sportsmen pay a hefty fee to hunt and harvest a few of the oryx that have lived well into maturity and spread their genetics to numerous offspring.

Without hunting to pay the bills, U.S. game ranchers won't be able to afford to maintain oryx herds.

Simple as that, the species could go poof.

Pricilla Feral said she'd rather see extinction than hunting.

That's sick. But it's a well-funded position.

http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/outdoo ... would-love-species-death/

USA: Chris Pratt loves hunting: 'Either you get it or you don't'

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:48:10 -0200

When he's not busy shooting the latest installment of Parks and Recreation, funnyman Chris Pratt prefers to shoot "varmints" and elk, according to an interview in the February issue of Outdoor Life magazine.

Pratt, who also appeared in last year's hit Moneyball, acknowledges that "there aren't a ton of hunters in Hollywood."

For him, it's the perfect way to escape the stress of Hollywood. "Some people fast, some people go on a cruise or visit a day spa. I get out in the woods with a rifle or a bow. That's my release."

His favorite prey? "My favorite animal to hunt is probably elk. There's nothing like the sound of a bugling bull splitting the cold air at first light. And that smell is unmistakable. Once you experience their musk in the wild there's no going back! A close second would be a varmint hunt. I love long-distance shooting and I'm not sure there's anything as exciting as calling in predators."

His wife, Anna Faris, is on board with the idea since a knife she gave him ranks among the actor's favorite hunting gear.

After all the acting is over, Pratt says when he retires he "could see tanning (taxidermy) being a craft I could really get into."

And for anyone who objects to his favorite pastime, he says, "Sometimes people don't understand and I don't waste my breath trying to explain it. Either you get it or you don't. But for the most part people aren't judgmental about it. We just disagree and move on."

http://content.usatoday.com/communiti ... -you-get-it-or-you-dont/1

Indonisia: Supernatural beliefs keep hunting sustainable on Indonesian island

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:45:56 -0200

How do indigenous communities hunt without pushing target species to local extinction? In other words, how have communities retained sustainable practices over countless generations? One answer is given in a new study by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the Center for International Research in Agronomy and Development (CIRAD): supernatural beliefs. Looking at a community of indigenous people on the Indonesian island of Seram, researchers found that supernatural beliefs ensured animals never vanished for good.

"The fact is that for many communities, supernatural agencies are realities," explains Masatoshi Sasaoka, a post doctoral fellow with CIFOR, in a press release.

The people of Seram's diet is largely made up of sago, but for protein they hunt mostly northern common cuscus (Phalanger orientalis), but also timor deer (Cervus timorensis), Celebes warty pig (Sus celebensis), and a number of bird species. In order to keep track of hunting rights, the village of around three hundred people has divided their forest into over 250 lots. When a lot is hunted out they impose seli kaitahu or a moratorium on hunting in the lot to allow wildlife populations to bounce back. The moratorium is enforced not by park rangers or police officers, but by forest spirits. Any person who hunts in a lot under seli kaitahu faces punishment from supernatural forces. The fear of breaking seli kaitahu is upheld by stories of people who have ignored the moratorium and ended up paying for it, sometimes with their lives. The researchers retell a particularly graphic story wherein a hunter is killed by a falling tree for having broken seli kaitahu. This also ensures concord in the community, since punishment is not exacted by other community members, but by forces beyond them.

Notably at the time of their study 203 lots, or over 70 percent, were protected under seli kaitahu. Only forty lots were open to hunting.

There have been numerous other studies showing that supernatural beliefs of indigenous communities often rein-in resource use. Research in Guyana has found that hunters avoid potent spiritual sites, creating refuges for animals. In the Cote d'Ivoire some communities refrain from hunting or fishing on Wednesdays, which has become a day for the "spirits and other inhabitants" of the forest," according to the authors of research published in mongabay.com's Tropical Conservation Science.

"Despite the evidence of their importance," says Sasaoka, "supernatural beliefs of indigenous peoples continue to be regarded as 'unscientific' and ignored by agencies like NGOs and governments who seek to develop 'self-directed' indigenous resource management strategies with communities.”

The researchers recommend a new model for resource management that works with such beliefs, not against them. Eroding such beliefs often comes at the price of local wildlife and the people who depend on them.

http://news.mongabay.com/2012/0202-hance_selamisland_hunting.html

Liberia: Hunter Shot Dead Farmer in Grand Gedeh

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:40:49 -0200

A hunting expedition turned tragic on Monday when a 25-year-old hunter Harrison Taye, shot a farmer dead in Duogee Town, Grand Gedeh County. Suspect Taye told the New Dawn he mistakenly saw the victim Hexiphus Pajebo, like a red deer when he discharged his single barrel round, instantly killing him.

However, he said regrettably after firing the gun, he realized he has killed a human being. Police in Grand Gedeh County have launched an investigation into the incident, while defendant Taye is being held for recklessly taking the life of another person in violation Section 14.23 of the new penal code of Liberia, pending trial.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201202010564.html

South Africa: Rhino Poachers Sentenced to 25 Years

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:39:12 -0200

Three Mozambican rhino poachers have each been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment by the Phalaborwa Regional Court, says the South African National Parks (SANParks).

Aselmo Baloyi, Jawaki Nkuna and Ismael Baloyi were found guilty on four counts including illegal hunting of rhino, possession of a prohibited firearm, possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition.

SANParks CEO Dr David Mabunda said the men were arrested on 10 July 2010 in Mooiplaas, Kruger National Park.

"They were found with two freshly chopped rhino horns, an assault rifle, a hunting rifle and an axe," he added.

The poachers admitted to camping in the Kruger National Park prior to poaching the rhinos.

"The sentencing of these poachers is an indication that as a country, we are taking more stringent measures in the fight against rhino poaching. I am glad the sentence is harsher than it has been in the past," Mabunda said.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201202010841.html

USA: Teen's dying wish inspires bill for special hunting permit

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:43:26 -0200

Taylor Gramling was nearing the end of her battle with leukemia, but her zeal for life was undiminished when the teenager told her mother last fall she wanted to go deer hunting.

It was an unusual request, but one of her final wishes. The only problem: it was bow hunting season, and Taylor, who had been diagnosed in November 2009, was no longer strong enough to use a bow.

“She got to the point where she knew she didn’t have too much longer, so she just wanted to try different things,” said her mother, Andrea Moats. “I was scared for her to do it, but of course with her being sick, I had to let her do what she wanted to do.”

With the help of state and local officials, she was able to hunt with a firearm and kill a deer on her first time out.

“I was there when she pulled the trigger,” said Scott Kuhn, a family friend who took Taylor out to hunt. “It really made a difference in her life. It was like winning the lottery.

Taylor died six weeks later, on Nov. 30 – two years and two weeks after her diagnosis. She was 18.

On Tuesday, the Georgia Senate passed a bill named in her memory with her friends and family watching in the gallery. Sen. Rick Jeffares, R-Locust Grove, sponsored the bill after helping Taylor’s family secure her hunting permit.

Taylor’s Law was approved by a vote of 53-1, and the bill now heads to the House for its consideration.

The bill would authorize the state’s natural resources commissioner to issue special hunting permits for big game or alligators to anyone under 21 with a life expectancy of a year or less due to a terminal illness.

The legislation would waive legal weapons requirements, antler restrictions, quota limitations or hunter education requirements, and would allow the commissioner to impose any terms necessary to facilitate the permit. Anyone receiving the special permit would have to hunt under the supervision of an adult hunter.

The authorization would be good for one hunting season.

Taylor’s mother said after the vote that she hopes the legislation will make it easier for children with terminal illnesses to be able to hunt as her daughter wanted to.

“She was very excited,” Moats said. “She was very proud of it.”

http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/201 ... nting-permit?v=1328044057

USA: Strensall area man shot in face at pheasant hunt

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:38:11 -0200

A MAN was shot in the head when a pheasant shoot near York went disastrously wrong.

The 45-year-old, named locally as Darren Allison, of Strensall, spent Saturday night in hospital and returned home yesterday.

The incident sparked a police inquiry involving members of the shooting party and the firearms licensing authority.

The drama began shortly before noon on Saturday when a group of shooters were hunting pheasants on farmland near Woodhouse Lane, north of Strensall.

At 11.34am, the party made a 999 call that brought an ambulance crew from the Yorkshire Ambulance Service, the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and police to the scene.

Paul Richardson, duty manager at North Yorkshire Police control, said a 45-year-old man had received a “grazing gunshot wound to the head”.

After treatment by paramedics at the scene he was taken to York Hospital by road ambulance and was detained overnight. He has since been released home. Police spoke to members of the shooting party and decided no offences had been committed. No-one was arrested at the scene. Police were treating the incident as an accident.

The remainder of that day’s shoot was abandoned.

http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/94858 ... in_face_at_pheasant_hunt/