Alfalfa needed for pygmy rabbit project

The following was received from James A Chandler, Wildlife Volunteer Program Manager for Fish and Wildlife:

"Hi Dennis, I am trying to help Penny Becker, the person working on the project, find a local farm that could supply two bales of fresh alfalfa a week for the next three months.

"The alfalfa needs to be as fresh as possible, still green and moist, with leaves on. She's willing to pay for it. Do you have anyone in mind?"

How about it alfalfa farmers, anyone willing to work with Penny? Send me a note at: dclay@atnet.net or give me a call at: 762-5158.

Rock doves

The rock dove, rock pigeon or just pigeon is common in the Columbia Basin. These birds hang around farms and grow in numbers to be a nuisance.

I have a friend who considers these pesky pests to be a culinary delight. The two of us would like to help landowners, who have too many of these birds, get rid of a few.

Contact me by the means listed in the alfalfa story.

Turkey

The spring turkey hunting season will continue for another six days, through May 31.

Volunteer work party

The Washington Waterfowl Association is planning a work party to set up duck traps on the Yakama Reservation near Toppenish in early June. If you know of anyone who might be interested in participating, please have them contact Abel Cortina atabelcortina@gmail.com.

More about the project: It looks like there will be a work party to set out the banding traps for the summer season Saturday, June 9th. The date is not firm yet, but it is the anticipated date.

It has been indicated they have enough traps built from last year. The need is to get them set out, the netting tied and baited up. If enough people attend, it can probably be done in one day. If you have members that have an interest in attending, please let Abel Cortina know, so we have an idea on number attending. They want to start banding earlier than usual this year.

As the banding starts they will take all the help they can get. You just need to let Abel know in advance.

Spring chinook

fishery opens on lower Columbia River

Sport fishing for spring chinook salmon will reopen this tomorrow and Sunday, May 26 and 27, on the lower Columbia River below Bonneville Dam.

Fishery managers from Washington and Oregon agreed to reopen the fishery for these two days to boat and bank anglers from Buoy 10 to Beacon Rock. Bank anglers will also be allowed to fish from Beacon Rock upriver to the deadline at Bonneville Dam.

The daily limit is two adult hatchery salmon, two hatchery steelhead, or one of each. However, anglers may retain only one chinook salmon as part of their daily limit. All wild salmon or steelhead with an intact adipose fin must be released.

Anglers are expected to catch about 825 hatchery-reared spring chinook, including 715 from upriver stock, during the two-day opening.

The spring chinook fishery below Bonneville Dam has been closed since April 13, when the last fishing period ended. It is possible the fishery will be opened for additional days of fishing, depending upon the numbers of the run next week.

The current projection of spring chinook headed upriver beyond Bonneville Dam is 216,500 fish. Fishery managers will meet next Tuesday, May 29, to determine whether that projection is still on track.

The catch allocation above Bonneville Dam in the Columbia and Snake rivers has been met, so additional fishing opportunity is limited to the lower Columbia River.

Raffle permit hunts

Besides the special hunt permits, hunters may apply for raffle permit hunts. These hunts are a way to raise money for the species which the hunter applies.

Fish and Wildlife states: "Proceeds from the sale of single-species raffle tickets will be used for the management and benefit of that species. Proceeds from the sale of multiple-species raffle tickets will be used for general game management."

This is a great way to raise money. There is no limit on the number of tickets a person may purchase. The person buying one ticket may win or the person buying 100 tickets may win. As with any raffle, the more tickets a person purchases, the better her chances to win.

An example of a hunt includes a three-deer raffle where the winner may harvest one additional buck black-tailed deer, an additional mule and an additional white-tailed deer. The season is Sept. 1 through Dec. 31. A ticket costs $6.

Another example is a mule deer hunt in any Game management unit open to mule deer hunting, entitling the hunter to one additional buck mule deer. The hunt dates and ticket cost are the same.

There are raffle hunts for black-tailed deer, white-tailed deer, elk sheep and goat. An interesting raffle-hunt species is moose. The hunt dates are the same, the hunt is open in any open moose unit, two permits are available and the tag allows the hunter one moose of either sex.

Deadline to purchase raffle tickets is July 13.

More from Fish and Wildlife:

Parts of Yakima River open to spring chinook

Beginning May 16, the lower Yakima River opened to fishing for hatchery spring chinook from the Interstate 182 Bridge in Richland to the Grant Avenue Bridge in Prosser.

Last Saturday the salmon fishery expanded to the upper Yakima River from the Interstate 82 Bridge at Union Gap to the railroad bridge below Roza Dam.

The lower river is expected to remain open through June 30, while fishing in the upper section will likely continue through July 31. Fishery managers are predicting a return of approximately 5,000 adult hatchery chinook to the Yakima River.

Anglers will have a daily limit of two adipose-fin-clipped hatchery chinook. All wild salmon, identifiable by an intact adipose fin, must be released unharmed and must not be removed from the water prior to release. The same is true for all steelhead.

Anglers are required to use single-point, barbless hooks with a hook gap from point to shank of 3/4 inch or less when fishing for salmon. Use of bait is allowed.

To participate in the fishery, anglers must possess a Columbia River Salmon/Steelhead Endorsement, along with a valid fishing license. Anglers also have the option of purchasing a two-pole endorsement to fish with two poles during the fishery.

Anglers who have hooked a spring chinook may be approached by a scientific technician as they reel in the fish. If it's a wild fish with an intact adipose fin, the technician will offer to assist in unhooking and releasing it after tagging it and recording information on the fish.

The technicians will also be fishing to catch fish for the study and will release all fish they catch once they have been tagged. At the end of the spawning season, survival rates for all spring chinook that have been tagged and released will be compared against a control group of fish that have not been hooked by anglers.