Show w 1 i STANDARD-EXAMINE- Outdoors R SUNDAY APRIL OUTDOORS EDITOR: 1 1990 5 625-426- 6 O- rZl £' 8 l' Sty vr- - - j" J V'vUigft V ' ' r £ Coalition opposes r-r- v- ' i -' ' JA preserve ng By JIM WRIGHT I a r SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Wildlife Leadership Coalition voted Tuesday to reject a plan by one of its member organizations that calls for crewildlife preserves in the state ating Last month the Utah Wilderness Association released “A Utah Wildlife Manifesto” which is directed at expanding and emphasizing wildlife It sparked immediprograms among ate hostility from hunting groups and professional wildlife biologists largely because of the section calling for wildlife preserves The Utah Wilderness Association is a member of the Utah Wildlife Leadership Coalition which represents over 50 groups and clubs a majority of which are oriented toward hunting More than 50000 Utahns belong to the separate groups The UWLC has been instrumental in drumming up support for wildlife issues in the six years since its inception At its monthly meeting Tuesday the wildlife coalition met to consider whether to accept or reject the contents of the manifesto A majority voted to reject the manifesto while at the same time pursuing several other objectives included in the manifesto The coalition voted to develop a program for “wildlife watchers” It also voted to reaffirm its support for 35 million acres of wilderness on Bureau of Land Management lands which is nearly identical to the UW'A’s 38 million acre proposal The wildlife manifesto was drawn up by more than a dozen members of a task force put together by UWA Coordinator Dick Carter The task force included wildlife biologists foresters range experts and members of the Humane Society of Utah and the Audubon Society The UW'A manifesto has seven key points They include establishing a wildlife license to contribe ute to programs setting up wildlife preserves where hunting would be banned or allowed on a rotating basis developing new wildlife education programs setting up wildlife viewing and interpretive areas promoting the tourism values of wildlife expanding the membership of state boards that deal with wildlife and lands and reevaluating depredation programs which pay farmers and ranchers for losses caused by wildlife The section on wildlife preserves is the most controversial In the manifesto Carter wrote “One of the most fundamental methods of preserving wildlife habitat and providing sanctuaries for wildlife while at the same time allowing nonconsumptive wildlife users an opportunity to study (and) enjoy wildlife in a wild setting is through the establishment of wildlife preserves Hunting (and) trapping would not be allowed in such preserves “The emphasis would be on preserving biodiversity and allowing natural forces to dictate wildlife interactions Wilderness-depende(and) associated species such as bear cougar lynx pine marten and wolverine would benefit dramatically from such a management regime” The wildlife coalition maintains that hunting is an integral part of wildlife management and that attempting to set aside preserves is naive and improper “As far as I can tell they’ve taken d animal rights concepts and them” said Steven Johnson president of the Utah Hunters Federation “I don’t think personal values should be used as a basis for wildlife manage- - "i V 1 non-hunte- rs non-gam- nt non-hunti- anti-hunti- sugar-coate- ment” “If wildlife ever had a manifesto it’s when we Jim The Utah Wildlife Leadership Coalition voted to reject a plan by one of its member organizations that calls for creating ng started to manage it” said Doug Day executive are in the minority and that the negative actions director of the coalition of a few hunters can have a major effect on the Day a former director of the Utah Division of public’s perception of hunting Wildlife Resources said he’s since cooled down “One thing that’s highly visible is the unethical But he said he’s still offended by the tone of the treatment of wildlife by hunters" Nelson said manifesto which he characterized as insulting tovalues of “We must appreciate the ward professional wildlife management in the wildlife We need to be hunters conservationists state and environmentalists not just hunters” “When I saw that I was so damned mad I couldn’t see straight” Day said Despite serious objections to the UWA’s pro‘The emphasis would he on posal coalition officers stressed that rejecting the manifesto doesn’t create a split between member preserving biodiversity and groups allowing natural forces to dictate “This organization was founded originally by wildlife interactions’ hunters for hunters” said Bob Nelson president of the coalition “And as long as I’m around it — Dick Carter will always serve the issues of hunters It doesn’t UWA coordinator mean there’s a split if there’s disagreement this organization was structured to absorb disagreenon-hunti- ment” Nelson said hunters need to remember that they dry Fishing can release the tension because it relaxes and helps to you” Many of us already knew that of course It is common knowledge that the pedestal seat of a bass boat absorbs more than a shrink’s couch But Dr Ackley’s findings make it official This could be a major breakthrough in the treatment of nervous disorders It could make tranquilizers obsolete Job pressures piling up? Are your stress gauges Reach for the phone call the boss and say “I won’t be at work today on account of I gotta go fishing Doctor’s orders I’m about to rupture a brain gasket and the doc says I got two Wildlife authorities have confirmed what outdoorsy citizens have suspected all along: Fishing is good for you Citing skull research performed by Dr Dana Ackley a St Louis psychologist the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has proclaimed that fishing is the “perfect therapy for frazzled nerves” According to the TWRA here is what Dr Ackley discovered in his examinations of patients’ cranial circuitry: “People in businesses often don’t realize when they need a break They become irritable and their creative wells begin to run high-pressu- ‘de-stres- s’ heebie-j- eebies red-line- re g irtudLd nr d1 1 iladirrf iwhir r wildlife Doctor’s orders for the stressed-ou- t By AL DUNNING Scripps Howard News Service WrigfotStandard-Examine- preserves in the High Uinta Mountains that would protect animals like this bull moose non-hunti- choices: I can either blow my cork or float one My psychologist advises me to choose the lat- ter” The TWRA itself endorses Dr Ackley’s conclusion that “nothing soothes the soul like fresh air and serene surroundings" The doctor’s prescription: “We should let that child in us play every once in a while It is absolutely necessary for our mental and emotional health" To enhance fishing’s therapeutic value the TWRA offers these suggestions to people eager to take the doctor’s advice and soak jangled nerves in the nearest fishing hole: Dress comfortably — “You’re ir ilM1r - While the new regulations went into effect Jan J on the Logan a group of Cache County anglers successfully lobbied to have the changes reconsidered by the Utah Wildlife Board this fall The DWR will hold a senes of public meetings to discuss the regulations again with the first scheduled for May 30 at the Logan City Council chambers Last November the wildlife board approved a three-trolimit two under 12 inches and one over 18 Only one trout may be a cutthroat and only artificial lures and flics may be used The new regulations apply upstream from the Card fan yon bridge which is about a mile above the third dam j ut Logan angler Dewain Berger who led the puslji to review the regulations said he believes the chattges discriminate against local anglers children and landowners along the stream j v4 non-hunti- -- r LOGAN j— Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Northern Regional fisheries manager Tom Petten-gi- ll said he’s more certain than ever that tightening fishing regulations is the only way to improve trout fishing on the Logan River ’ 'i - njl U U JIM WRIGHT $l4naaf0-EAnme- r ah- Standard-Examine- TELEVISION - 4 non-hunti- OBITUARES Regulations would help trout fishing tn mini crosswords “Out of the entire river and tributaries thtW’re leaving only seven miles from the first darn up open for all kinds of fishing” Berger said “And That Jeeves half of it is subject to being very little of the Logan open to bait fishing! and family use” j for boost the the fo regulations Pettengill pushed number and size of cutthroat trout i the ipgan River Currently few cutthroat attain a length pf J4 inches which fisheries officers class as a “quality" fish Cutthroat are also the most easily caught of the trouts making them susceptible to pverfidhing “J’m more convinced now that what we’re doing is the right thing" Pettengill said Berger said he’s fished the Logan for over 50 years and said he’s never seen “those monster cutthroat" on the upper river “It’s not capable of producing what they hope to find” Berger said “I remember as a kid going up to catch all those big fish in the spring and we never found them (The DWR) never really addressed the subject of habitat and the fish they’re capable of producing” Pettengill said that since the regulations went into effect he’s seen a Colorado Division of Wildlife study that shows cutthroat numbers can be decimated by fishing unless the JciU is controlled The Colorado study was based on streams with similar amounts of fishing pressure the Logan receives Pettengill said “W'ith very minimal estimates of mortality they found 25 percent a year minimum mortality from angling and another 25 percent natural mortality” Pettengill said “That’s 50 percent of the fish a year so every two years you completely turn over the population” The natural mortality can’t be controlled Pettengill said so only the angler mortality can be manipulated The DWR did that by banning the use of baits which are far more likely to kill released fish and reducing the daily limit “By severely reducing the harvest you can have a big effect on mortality" Pettengill said “What Colorado found was a 200 to 300 percent increase in the total number of fish and a 20 to 30 percent increase in the number of quality fish” Pettengill said the upper Logan is easily capable of producing more and bigger cutthroat but only if the kill is drastically limited “We ought to be managing waters for wild fish that are capable of producing wild fish” PettengilT said Despite holding public meetings in Logan the DWR came under fire from a group of Logan anglers who complained they’d been left out of the sion-making process After appealing to state representatives the group successfully convinced the DWR to go through the public process again on the Logan “The point I’m going to make is I wish when they come to this meeting they bring facts and not theories” Berger said “I think Mother Nature has more effect on fish and game than people do" Pettengill said he doesn’t intend to back off on the current regulations on the Logan but he said public pressure could convince the wildlife board to change the rules “It’s like the old saying ofthanging a sow’s ear to a silk purse” Pettengill said “They have the potential to have a silk purse on the Logan It’s up to them if they want to keep a sow’s ear” deci- person: Go fishing not out there to impress anyone Comfortable jeans a light jacket a sweatshirt or whatever are more practical than the latest fad in casual wear” Don’t think about future chores — “If you do you will feel rushed — and that can do more harm than good Just enjoy — a minute at a time” Tune in your surroundings — “When was the last time you admired a sunset? Listened to the sound of water splashing over rocks? Felt the soft wind in your face? Appreciate the scenery around you with all your senses you’ll find the everyday pressures of life quietly fading away” Take a friend along — “Share your break and enjoyment of the outdoors Fishing trips offer great opportunities for real conversation and communications Use lines of the time to communication with a loved one or a friend or to get to know someone better" Sounds like good advice to me It’s a cinch that wrestling a catfish on the end of a line beats "grappling with monsters of the mind If some poor uptight wretch is on the brink of coming unglued dipping minnows in a crappie honeyhole is bound to be more fun than a frontal loboto-m- y What I like about Dr Ackley’s prescription for flushing impurities from the nervous system is that it obviously requires pro- longed treatments I mean one quick trip to the local fishing hole may not be enough to rescue a real basket case from a mental meltdown' Achieving total tranquility could take months Even years Maybe a lifetime That’s OK with me If I have to be a fishing-hol- e outpatient from now until George Bush becomes a broccoli addict I guess I’ll just have to live with it If ongoing treatments on the river banks are what it’s going to take to keep me from blowing a fuse hey I don’t have any choice I’m just taking good sound medical advice V |