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Show CLIPPER Friday, August 6, 1993 21 Outdoors Masked beauty threatens wetlands OUTDOORS A masked beauty is threatening Utah's wetlands. It is a weed called purple loosestrife that invades and gradually takes over wetlands, said Drish solos for wildlife platoo Sales have bees reported as brisk for the new Utah wildlife license plates, which went on sale July .1, Plate buyers may choose from three attractive decals a Rocky Mountain elk, a cutthroat trout or a pair of great blue herons, The plate requires a minimum $25, donation annually to the Division ofWildl ife Resources. , To get a wildlife plate,, people come to any DWR office, pay their money and fill out a certificate for the plate.: They then lake the certificate to the DMV where they buy their plates; A DMV renewal form and fee are also required. The wildlife license plate certificates may also be purchased by mail, c Money from: sale; of the plates goes directly into wildlife management and conservation programs throughout the state. This voluntary program gives allUtahns a chance to show their support for wildlife, whether theyre hunters, anglers or birdwatchers. Steve Dewey, Utah University Extension I'Jildlifo board to moot The Utah Wildlife BoaM will meet Wednesday, 'Aug; 1 at J p m. in the Monty L,: Bean Museum at Brigham Young University in Provo to gadtet public; input on the cougar and furbearer proclamation., The public Swill be allowed to address the board directly. On Thursday, S: t Aug. 2, the Board will meet at 9 amL at the Bean Museum to set the proclamations for cougar,; furbearers and waterfowl.1 Also on the agenda are b request for approval of falconry meets,5 a request from; Alta, Utah, to close .their city to hunting, and approval of a big. game transplant priority list proposed by the Division of Wildlife Resources. 1 1 How Dl7n regional suporvisor Dr, Jordan Pederson has been named the new Division of Wildlife ; Resources1 (DWR) Central region supervisor, A twenty-eigyear veteran with the Division Dr, Pederson took over the role Aug; 2, replacing retiring Rodney Johni Thc DWR central region office is in Springvillc. Dr; Pederson has worked as a DWR conservation officer; and .was; a game manager in the central region for IQ years. He spent two years in the region collecting wildlife impact data for the Central Utah Project, Fof the past five years Dr. Pederson has worked in the DWR Salt Lake office coordinating; Statewide native wildlife mammal ht ferret and programs, ineluding the rehttroductioit of the black-foote- d the river otter.:; He holds a doctorate in wildlife management from. Brigham Young University- - ; The Division of Wildlife Resources fisheries section has scheduled a roundtable meeting Wednesday; Aug. 4. at 2 p m, to discuss Utah angling regulations or black bass,: The meeting will be held in the; Department of Natural Resources auditorium, 1636 W, North Temple.; Fisheries biologists want public input and ideas for standardizing rules for black bass harvest and, protection. Public input from the meeting will he considered in proposed rule changes for 1994. ... Logan River lagging study LOGAN Some Logan River anglers have already caught and released cutthroat trout wearing tags attached by Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) fisheries biologists. Cartier this summer. The tags were placed behind the dorsal fins of 600 spawning cutthroat trout Researchers are requesting that anglers catching a marked fish record the tag number, location and date and report the information to any DWR office. Tag returns and the follow-u- p information will help determine migration patterns pf spawning cutthroats and help identify which Logan River tributaries are most Critical to the fishery. An intensi ve creek surveyisalso m progress this; summer on the Logan River. Biologists will work the river 20 days per month gathering creel data (fish catching success) as well as angler opinions about current regulations cm the river. ' Ampithcatro at Mirror Labe Forest Service employees and volunteers .from Mountain , Fuel ,, outdoor Supply teamed up Saturday, July 3 1, to construct a .The to' Mirror the take;: Campground,; amphitheater ;adj acenf of the W asatch-- i District Kamas the on is located Ranger campground Forest Service employees and Cache; National Forest,; T wenty-fiv- e between 50 to 70 Mountain Fuel volunteers participated in the all day , , project. , When complete, the amphitheater will feature a 12x25 ;Stage, a slide projection screen and be wheel chair accessible. In addition to the , Fuel volunteers also amphitheater,: Forest Service crews and Mountain boardwalk, and path around wilj construct a ;wbceichair-accessibl- e Mirror; Lake;; A wheelchair accessible path currently runs from the site. ; campground and fishing area parking lot to the amphitheater scenic Lake Mirror the of is The Mirror Lake Amphitheater part as it area of the cultural the on focuses history Byway Plan, The plan . walks relates to the natural history of the Uintas. Interpretive offered the of programs ; originating from the amphitheater will be part' ' at the amphitheater. will be Sept. , Saturday, Lake Mirror the Dedication of Amphitheater 4 at 7;30 p.m. Following the dedication, the popular. Mountain Men,, if Ihe Uintas live program will be presented.. The event is free and , open to the public. 1 50-se- at : : 5 weed specialist. ; Dass regulations may change State Because of this threat, 10 private and government organizations in Utah are asking for immediate help from residents to document infested sites. "Quick and effective use of biological and chemical control measures will only be possible in those area where there is good documentation," he said. While most people associate weeds with agricultural concerns, Dewey said the presence of purple loosestrife in wetland areas may drastically change this way of thinking. "The impact can be severe," he said. "In states where it's been allowed to spread, dense loosestrife growth often covers entire marshes, eliminating the open water needed by waterfowl." Because of the impenetrable nature of loosestrife stands, waterfowl nesting sites are also eliminated. Even muskrats are affected by the way this weed crowds out cattails needed by the animals for material, nest-buildi- he said. Purple loosestrife is a large herbaceous perennial introduced into the United States from Europe. It's competitive nature has allowed it to invade and dominate marshes, canals, ditches and similar aquatic sites over much of the East and upper Midwest, he said. "Purple loosestrife has beautiful blossoms and some varieties are even cultivated as ornamentals," he said. "Its beauty, however, is deceiving as it slowly chokes out and replaces almost all other vegetation in affected sites." As of now, control of the weed is possible if swift action is taken. Recent surveys of Utah wetlands show less than 200 acres in seven counties infested, he said. "Most infestations are still relatively small and isolated, but appear poised for an explosive spread into essentially all Utah marshes, he said. Patches found in Cache, Box Elder, Weber, Davis, Salt Lake and Utah counties pose imminent danger to such major waterfowl areas as the Bear River Bird Refuge, Willard Bay, Farmington Bay and .Utah Lake. Large infestations in Emery county threaten to invade all of the downstream San Rafael, Green and Colorado river systems, he said. Purple loosestrife has been declared noxious in at least 10 states. These states prohibit the sale and distribution of seeds, plants or plant parts of wild and horticultural SEE WETLANDS ON PG.22 Tackle show provides a glimpse Utah Outdoors by Mike Hemingway Two weeks ago, the American Fishing Tackle Manufacturers Association met in Las Vegas for their national convention. The convention hall was loaded with all kinds of rods, reels, lures, waders, float tubes, and every other type of fishing tackle. For me, walking through the convention was kind of like being a kid in a candy store. Everywhere you looked was something new and exciting that invited you to try your luck at catching bigger and better fish. The major manufacturers such as Berkley and Johnson covered ample floor space to show their wares. There were also numerous smaller companies with small booths and big ideas. Berkley came to the show with some new additions to an already expansive tine of tackle. Probably the most exciting is the new Power Rattle which is a rattling head crank bait that has a1 soft plastic tail. This lure combines the lifelike appeal of soft plastic lures with the casting and diving abilities of the hard plastic crank bait. The Power Rattle has an extra bonus over other plastic baits because the tails arc made of Berkley Power Bait. Luhr Jensen is another manufacturer that has been doing their homework this year. They introduced a crank bait that is called the 'Hot Lips.' This bait is unique because the plastic lip on the front of the lure has been redesigned to make it dive quicker and stay in the range of the fish longer. The lure gets to the fish earlier in your cast, and stays in their range until you start to reel it in at the boat, which means more opportunity to catch fish with every cast. Along with the developments by major manufacturers, there were some interesting products brought to market by small companies. I stopped at the booth of Lewis Enterprises which is based in Pleasant Grove, Utah. Being a HOOK TAMER: Produced by a Utah company, it is designed to safely store hooks while still attached. former resident of Pleasant Grove, I was interested to see something from Utah at the show. Lewis Enterprises has developed a device called the Hook Tamer, which is a small plastic cylinder that attaches to your rod with a heavy rubber strap. When you are storing your rod, or moving from fishing hole to fishing hole, the cylinder opens so that your hook can be safely placed inside. Using the Hook Tamer will end having to work hooks out of the carpet, car seat, lifejackets, or your finger. It is a good idea to solve the age old problem of being snagged by a fish hook. Lewis Enterprises can be reached at Another Utah company at the show was Liston Concepts, from Salt Lake City. They introduced the Jakstrap which is an adjustable headband that is designed to hold a miniflashlight. The Jakstrap has the advantage over other flashlight headbands in that it will hold a light at several different angles. Wearing a light on your head will free your hands for climbing, working, or safety when traveling at night. Last weekend, I was at a scout camp, and on the wuy back to camp after a program, 1 wished I had a Jakstrap with me. It would have made my night hike much easier. For more information about Jakstraps call 972-828- 2. Pelsue, the company that manufacturers the yellow tents used by the telephone company while working on the phone lines, has taken their simple design to create the Pitch N' Fish Instant Shelter for ice fishing. The design allows the shelter to be put up in about 15 seconds. It only weighs 21 pounds and is very portable. Having dragged around a heavy ice house, this design is a great improvement when it comes to ice fishing. Another interesting idea is the fishing lure retriever. This device is designed to get back the crank baits, spinners, and lures that find their way into snags and tangles. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the device, the inventors drove a jig hook into a log. Using the retriever, they were able to work the hook loose and rescue the lure. The retriever has a 12 foot telescopic handle, but is going to be made with one that is 16 feet, which is long enough for retrieving most, jigs and crank "Go-Get-I- t" SEE OUTDOORS ON PG.22 |