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Show __The Salt Lake Tribune OUTDOORS & RECREATION Tuesday, October 3, 1995 B4 Wildlife Offers Humans ManyBenefits there were no trucks in those days, most of the fish were planted within a few miles from where the Oregon Short Line and Rio Grande Western railroad ran. In his biennial reportto the leg- islature in 1898, Sharp wrote about the method for planting fish. Fifty barrels of 40- or 50-gallon capacity were placed in a baggage car. Air pumps andhand bellows with rubber-tube attachments to the bottom of the barrels were used to aerate the water. So were buckets. “We soon learned that the buckets were of far greater practical utility,” wrote Sharp. ‘When the fish showed signs of discomfort by coming to the top of the water, a few applications of the bucket would send them down again. This was done by dipping the water out of the barrels and pouring it back again from as great a height as possible by the attendants.” Barrels containing the fish were transferred to wagons and fish planted at the nearest possible stream orlake. Sharp also told the legislature that elk, antelope and mountain sheep were almost extinct. He chastised the legislators for bowing to moneyed interests who wanted to keep seasons open for market hunters. Finally, like many of the wildlife directors who would follow, @ Continued from B-1 Young begana long series of experiments with introductions of non-native wildlife species by planting California quail. Orson F. Whitney, in his 1892 History ofUtah, painted a picture of wildlife as something the early Mormons feared. “Great white wolves [probably coyotes] prowled around thefort, making night hideous with their howling, and attacking cattle on the range. So intolerable was this nuisance that hunting parties were finally organized to make war upon the wolves and other wild beasts. Their depredations then gradually grew less.”’ In December 1847, a hunting party of 84 men killed two bears, two wolverines, two wildcats, 783 wolves, 400 foxes, 31 minks, nine eagles, 530 magpies, hawks, owls and 1,626 ravens. During Utah’s early settlement days, the business of survivalleft few pioneers with time to study wildlife. But the 1855 observations of naturalist Jules Remyoffer a glimpse: “The greater partof the indigenous animals are few, whether as Sharp asked thelegislature for a license increase. individuals or species, which can be attributed less to the barreness of the soil than to the hunting parties of trappers and Indians. The bison is no longer found to the west of the Rocky Mountains, and the beaver has almost entirely disappeared. Small herds of antelope are to be found in the mountain districts, as well as the American eland, the Virginia deer, the black-tailed deer and the black and grizzly bear, together with another muchsmaller spe: cies. The mountain sheep has become scarce, as well as a carnivorous animal knownto the Americans underthe much tooindefinite name of panther... On the banks of the lakes are seen geese, manykinds of ducks, pelicans, herons, gulls, large cranes, water hens and plovers, Nor is there any lack of sparrows on the watercourse and in the thickets. Of reptiles, there are to be found flat-shapedlizards in abundance, and also the rattlesnake. In Lake Utah, there is salmon-trout with yellowish flesh, weighing as much as 30 pounds, There are also perch, suckers, pike, rock fish or striped bass and bullheads.Fish is searcer in the watercourses and altogether wanting in the salt lakes."" Exotics Introduced: During the late 1800s, fish and game managers experimented with many exotic and non-native fish withlittle regard for native populations, Introductions of carp and rainbow and browntrout as well as pheasants and Hungarian partridge over the next 35 years changed Utah’s wildlife sceneforever. So did the introduction of domestic livestock to the once pristine range. Battles between wildlife interests, federal land managers and ranchers started nearthe turn of the century and continue to this day. According to the U.S. Forest Service's History of Wildlife Management in the Intermountain Region, timber andlivestock grazing were the primary uses of public lands in the early days of federal ownership. Little regard was given to wildlife habitat largely because even the welleducatedhad little knowledge of wildlife requirements. Research and experimentation camelater. There was little to stop overgrazing because early 20th-century ranchers ignored regulations and grazed their stock whenever and wherever they wished. Bill Anderson,one of the early supervisors of the Ashley National Forest, wrote in 1905: “We carried on with our line survey without interruption until we reached the Strawberry Valley, where I received noticeto removeail the livestock area from the Forest area that had beenpermitted to graze there by the Indian department. The experiences we had and the opposition we metup with is a long story. We were bluffed, threatened and the offer of bribery was an every day occurrence; none of which, I am proud to say, changed ourcourse of fair administrationin the least. There were daily occurrences of strife with Forest users and their men, some moreorless humorous and somenot so funny.” Early Wildlife Laws: Utah’s provisional government slowly set about managingor protecting wildlife. The first legal mention of wildlife came in 1851 when the Legislative Assemblyof the Territory of Utah passed a law authorizing the court in each county to regulate all bounties on wolf and fox. An 1853 law required counties to prevent the needless destruction of fish. In 1874, the assemblycreateda system of county game wardens and offered protection of quail and other imported wild fowls. The first game bird and big gameseasons were established in 1876. Species protected included quail, partridges, grouse and wild ducks. According to Rawley, elk, deer, mountain sheep and antelope could be hunted from July through December. By 1888, county game commis sioners were appointed. The law required these first game wardens to “see that all laws of this territory for the protection offish and game are faithfully enforced.” A. Milton Musser was hired for an annualsalary of $500 as the territory's first fish and game commissioner. When Utah becamea state in 1696, a tradition of fish and game laws slowly evolved. A Committee of Fish and Gamewasestablished and John Sharp appointed as the first State Fish and Game Warden. Sharp was given $500 to stock the lakes and streams of Utah with black bass from Utah Lake. War on Predators:Livestock overgrazing changed habitat and created dark days for some big game animals. Ranchers and hunters alike declared war on predators, another commonpractice that continues to this day. In the early 1900s, a forest service researcher wrote that the philosophy was simple: “Destroy the beasts that killed creatures desired by man. In the minds of most early Americans, every grizzly, coyote and wolf was a horse killer or stock slayer, jus- tifiable reason to exterminate them forever.”” Asearly as 1888, bounties were offered on predators. In that year, rewards “not to exceed one dollar each onlynxes, grey wolves and wild cats, 50 cents on coyotes, five dollars on mountain lions and bears, two cents on jackrabbits ‘Early Fish Planting: Since Valuable Cayo e "Valuatle Cusco and ground squirrels, 10 cents on muskrats, minks and weasels,five cents on gophers and one quarter of a cent on English sparrows’’ were offered. By 1913, $54,472 was paid to bounty hunters for killing predators. By 1917, federal trappers were actively eliminating predators. The cougar did not becomea protected game animaluntil 1967. To this day, many hunters blame the mountain lion for declining game populations. Old Ephraim,the last Utah grizaly, waskilled on Aug. 22, 1923, in Cache County. A monument now sits over his remains. Wolves wereeliminated by the late 1930s and the war on coyotes, cougars and foxes has almost been continuous. As gamelaws wereestablished and moreresearch wasdone, big gamepopulations slowly began to come back. Thefirst deer license — which cost $1 — was established in 1907. The deer season remained closed from 1908-13. Thatwasfollowedbylegislatively mandated buck-only hunting until 1950. The U.S. Forest Service changed someofits pro-livestock policies in 1919 and gavewildlife moreconsideration. Antelope, bighorn sheep and mountain goats — all aided by transplants from other states — also made slow recoveries from their near extinctionat the turn of the century. Elk transplants into native forest lands from Yellowstone and Jackson, Wyo., brought that big game animal back. From 1912 to 1915, elk were released in six parts of Utah with hunters and ranchers paying to ship the animals into thestate. A NewBoard:Burgeoning elk populations also caused concern among ranchers who thought the big animals were eating too much forage. In 1927, the Utah legislature established the Board of Elk Control. Six yearslater, the Board of Big Game Control was established, giving ranchers, hunters, federal land managers and wildlife biologists a say in big game management. The board heldits last meeting in the spring of 1995 before being replaced by a sevenmemberwildlife board. Utah’s first fish hatchery opened on the Spring Runs near the currentsite of the Oceansrestaurant in Murray on December 30, 1899. The land was purchased for $1,000 and the hatchery built for $922. By 1924, the Fish and Game Department had grown to 24 employees, 14 who worked on propagation and 10as law enforcement officers. There were now fish hatcheries in Logan, Murray, Springville, Timpanogos, Whiterocks, Glenwood, Beaver and Panguitch. Utah also became a leader in protecting waterfowl habitat, especially on the shoresof the Great Salt Lake. Fearful that waterfowl hunting in Utah might become an activity enjoyed only by the wealthy, the state began setting aside state and federal lands for public hunting in 1911. The Public Shooting Grounds, constructed in 1923 on the northern shore of the Great Salt Lake are believed to be thefirst U.S. marshlands developed so average citizens would have a place to hunt. The Bear River Bird Refuge, established in 1928, was one ofthe first federal refuges. Ogden Bay, Farmington Bay and Locomotive Springs were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. Ogden Bay becamethefirst project built with federal Pittman-Robertson funds. Those funds, now staple for U.S. wildlife projects, were generated by a tax on hunting equipment. The importance of habitat to wildlife began to be understood in the 1940s and 1950s when researchers began looking at ways to improve range conditions for wildlife andlivestock. The 1950s and 1960s were halcyon days for Utahdeer hunters. Periodic hard winters and continued developmentcaused declines. Growth Hurts Wildlife: The problemsof growthstartedto hit Utah hardin the late 1970s, foreing morerestrictive hunts, Fishing and hunting success in many places began to decline. By 1994, the Board of Big Game Control @ Vaaake pS ss es FACTORY OUTLET “We put the store in the lab” Lowest Prices Guaranteed | Easy Freeway Access 1901 W. Parkway Blvd. (2495 So.) 972-0203 goa) | 4. Our complete Series 2020 eye exam! 2. A complete pair of single vision glasses! 3. A second pair of a put a cap on the number ofelk and deer permits. “Whenever deer numbers are down and hunters don't have the success they expect, they blameit on management,” said Rawiey. “So manyfactors,like severe winters, ean affect wildlife. The building of homes higher and higher on the foothills up into the mountains is taking awaya lot of our habitat. Highways and freeways have an impact by creating barriers to the movement of the wildlife. The range for wildlife is becoming morerestricted so you can’t produce the big game numbers like has been done in the past, even with good manage- ment.” Norm Hancock, a long-time wildlife manager and historian, noticed another trend that began in the 1970s and continues until today. Utah became urbanized andits citizens began to be disconnected from wild places and lands, Whenthe Division of Fish and Game became the Division of Wildlife Resources on May 10, 1971, the change became complete. It reflected a new emphasis on all types of wildlife, not just the species sought by hunters and anglers. At a time when major national environmentallegislation like the Wilderness Act, Endangered Species Act and National Environmental Policy Act were being adopted, non-hunting wildlife enthusiasts demanded that their needs be met. “Until the last 20 years, there has been practically no concern [for non-consumptive wildlife species], says University of Utah professor and bird expert William Behle. “It's only been the last couple of decades when the bird watchers and raptor specialists started showing concern. People became interested in the environment, birding, outdoorrecreation and camping. Theystarted looking at something else besides the economic impact.” Those changesin valuesled to inevitable clashes between nonhunters, anti-hunters and traditional hunting and fishing interests. Debates over federal and state predator control, wildlife budgets, sandhill crane hunts, cougar and bear regulations and threatened and endangered species raged on manyfronts. And, as has been the casesince the early 1900s, politics played a big role in wildlife management. “Back in the late 1930s and early 1940s, biologists couldn't do their jobs without politics getting into it,” said Hancock. “People were fired because they made statements that didn’t settle with the political people of the time. WhatI see nowis the emasculation of the Fish and GameDivision throughthepolitical process, whichis sad. What was built up in all the years has gone down the tube.” Today's political leaders don't agree. They express optimism that the new seven-memberwildlife board coupled with regional wildlife advisory councils and a newly reorganized Division of Wildlife Resources will help prepare the wildlife agency to cope with the promised growth of an upcoming new century. One thing is certain. Wildlife remains as important to modern people as it was to the Anasazi, Fremont, mountain men and early pioneers. Values may be changing, but interest remainshigh. Next Week: Developing a Conservation Ethic CONSUMER CORNER Calamity Jane 20 Degree Sleeping Bag Description: A three-pound mummy-shapedsleeping bag with Lite Loft insulation designed specifically for women. Sized regular for womenup to 5-feet 5-inches and long for women up to 5feet 10-inchestall (the long weighs three pounds two ounces). Coloris red with black trim and a charcoal lining. Pro: The Velcro closure tab located at the hoodis shielded so thatit will not snag hair, which is a major boon for women with long hair whohave, until now,battled with hook and loop closure systems for years. Designed by women for women, the bag is cut to fit a woman’s unique shape meaningit is narrowerat the shoulders, widerat the hips andslightly shorterin length than a comparable man’s bag. Oneof mytesters reported that of four women on an expedition, she was the only one who could move comfortably in her bag andnotfeel confined. Anothertester reported that she has used a numberofbags, but until now had not enjoyed a completely comfortable and warm night’s sleep. Perbapsthis is due to Sierra Design's (SD) construction which adds insulation at the footandcreatesa tighter shinglingofinsulationat the torso to minimize heatloss. Theliningis cut differentially which meansit is smaller than the outer shell allowing for maximum insulation loft and greater warmth. Con:Mytester on the expedition was using a Gregory internal fram e backpackwith a fairly generoussleeping bag compartment (as far as internals go) and had trouble shoving the sleeping bag into the pack. The effort each morning did get her heart rate up though which meantthe bag kept her warm twice. Of course, this is not a problem particularto the SD bag,but a challenge with any syntheticfill sleeping bag. Stuffing one into a confined space can be a challenge. To solve the dilemma, I would recommend purchasing a compression stuff sack which will simply and easily compressthe bulky load into a more manageablesize designed for stuffing into small spaces. Comments: Althoughinitially retailers looked with raised eyebrowsat SD's gamble to introduce women’sspecific sleeping bags to the market, they are not looking askance at the concept any more. Womenarelining up to buy the bags and for good reason — they work! When my daughter, now age12,is just afew year older and graduates from herkid’s bag,I'll buy her a Sierra Designs bag designed for women without hesitation. Suggestedretail: $150 Company:Sierra Designs, 1255 Powell Street, Emeryville, CA 94608; 800 736-8592 This feature is written by Michael Hodgson, a free-lance writer based in San Jose, Calif., who specializes in outdoor consumer reporting. His work appears in Backpacker, Outdoor Retailer and Adventure West magazines, and the San Jose Mercury News. Big Game Permits Still Plentiful As the Oct. 11 Utah open bull elk opener andOct. 21 rifle deer season approach, there arestill plenty of over-the-counter permits available from license agents and Division of Wildlife Resourcesoffices. More than 12,000 spike-only elk tags and 1,600 open bull elk tags remain unsold for the upcoming open bull season. Wildlife officials are reminding elk hunters that the anybull permitis valid only on certain general season units. General season “any bull” permit holders may huntonly those units designated in white on page 21 of the Big GameProclmation. The any bull permits are not eNOS valid on the the spike only or limited entry hunts. The generalrifle elk season ends Oct. 19. Where deer are concerned, there are nearly 12,000 permits left in the northern region and 3,000 in the central region. Under 500 deer permits remain in the northeastern part of the state which will likely join the southern and southeastern regionsin selling outall tags. Deer hunter numbers are capped at 97,000 this year. Since as late as three years ago in the last season before the cap went into place well over 100,000 permits were sold for the rifle deer season, big game hunting interest in Utah appears to be declining. ER SCHOOL! We've solved the major problems that prevent kids from getting braces © Holladay ® Sandy © West Valley "1-800-411-4451 % Serving Utah families for 25 years UTAH'S WILD BIRD STORE EVERYDAY LOW PRICE ON B.0, SUNFLOWER 50 LB, BAG $17.32 THE BESTTHINGS IN LIFE ABE FREE. {LIE, FOR EXAMPLE, THEFUN BUSESTO WENDOVER NEVADA} Get back more than you pay whenyou buya roundirip ticket to the State Line/Silver Smith Resorts in Wendover, Nevada Just call and ask for a “State Line/Silver Smith Fun Bus Pack.” Onarrival, we'll give you $11 cash on weekdays, $7 on weekends. Plus over $10 in credits. Not to mentionallthe fun you'll have. 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