Massachusetts Fishing News

The Department of Conservation and Recreation invites interested sportsmen and women, foresters, land trust and watershed association members and other conservationists to participate in their Forest Futures Visioning Process at a two-part public forum in Leominster on Tuesday, June 23, 2009, from 4 – 8 p.m. The first part of the forum will be a Walk-in-the-Woods at Leominster State Forest off Rte 31 in Leominster, the second part of the form will be held at the Doyle Conservation Center on Abbot Avenue in Leominster.

WHAT: Mid-Winter Bald Eagle Survey

WHEN: Friday, January 9, 2009, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

WHERE: STATEWIDE – Wildlife staff will be available in the field for media and interested birdwatchers in several locations. See “Contacts Information” below to find out where staff will be and when. The best areas for eagle viewing are listed below.

The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) is participating in a number of outdoor oriented shows in January and February. At most of these venues, licenses will be sold and sporting information and wildlife recreation opportunities will be made available to show attendees. This is a great opportunity for families, youth groups and other outdoor oriented people to meet agency staff and pick up some of the latest outdoor and sporting information.

Winter has made its appearance in Massachusetts, but the variable temperatures that have been experienced in the state so far this season mean the condition of ice on the Bay State's water bodies is unpredictable and could be treacherous. There have already been several instances in the state where people have fallen through the ice. The Division of Fisheries & Wildlife urges outdoor enthusiasts to play it safe and check ice carefully before venturing onto ice-covered waters. Foot traffic on a layer of 4” ice is a good safe thickness. An ice strength table is posted on the agency website at: www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/recreation/ice_safety.htm.

The August meeting of the Fisheries and Wildlife Board will be held Thursday, August 28, at 1PM at the Newburyport Elks Lodge, 25 Low Street in Newburyport. This meeting is open to the public and is handicapped accessible.

The land conservation community in northeastern Massachusetts lost a valuable resource with the recent death of Dennis McNamara, Land Protection Specialist for the Department of Fish and Game and MassWildlife. In 2006, McNamara was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Hired in the summer of 1989, McNamara worked for the Commonwealth for 19 years overseeing land protection efforts in MassWildlife’s Northeast District, a region that comprises Essex, Middlesex, Suffolk and Norfolk counties and has some of the highest land values in the state. During his tenure, nearly 5,000 acres of valuable wildlife habitat in the region were protected and are now open to recreation such as fishing, hunting, hiking, and wildlife viewing.

Massachusetts’ annual art competitions for Archery and Primitive Firearms Stamps were held at the MassWildlife Field Headquarters and this year, one artist has won both contests. Barry Julius of Brockton was selected in independent blind judging contests. When the identity of the winning artist was revealed, judges were surprised that the two winning entries had been painted by the same artist.

Michael Yacino, a long-time champion of Massachusetts sportsmen and women, recently received the Governor Francis W. Sargent Conservation Award from the Fisheries and Wildlife Board for his contributions to conserving the Commonwealth’s natural resources. Yacino, of Douglas, is the seventh recipient of the award established in 2000, by the Board to honor the former governor and noted conservationist who directed the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) in 1963 and ’64.

6,197 acres of key fish and wildlife habitat in 41 towns were protected in the past fiscal year (July 1, 2007 – June 30, 2008) through the efforts of the Department of Fish and Game and MassWildlife. These protected properties ranged in size from a .5-acre public recreation access point in Orange, to a 2,300-acre conservation easement (CE) in Montgomery and Westfield. These lands will be added to the list over 164,000 acres currently under the care and control of MassWildlife, most of which are Wildlife Management Areas (WMA). Most properties were purchased outright (in fee) but, on some properties, the agency purchased conservation easements (development rights), with the land held by the original landowner. A listing of the newly acquired FY 2008 properties is on the web at: www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/habitat/land/land_acquisitions.htm. With the exception of a gifted CE, all lands are open to fishing, hunting, trapping, wildlife observation, hiking, and other passive wildlife related recreation.

Applications for the 2008 Quabbin Controlled Deer Hunt are now available through the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) web page at www.mass.gov/dcr/waterSupply/watershed/hunt2008.htm. This will be the second year that blackpowder firearms will be allowed for use during the Controlled Deer Hunt.