Show F 6 jIM RHODY Careless Drivers Everyone recognizes that the automobile plays an important but indirect part in harvesting the annual annual annual an an- nual wildlife crop by transporting sportsmen to and from the hunting fields But comparatively few give much thought to the devastating wildlife toll tolI the automobile itself itsel takes on Americas America's highways Sure everybody who drives on highways or rural roads sees the dead bodies of rabbits opossums skunks and other game species but generally accepts these occurrences as natural tragedies of the road with no thought of the total effect Important Tools Certainly sporting firearms next to Nature itself are the most important important important im im- im- im tools in harvesting the annual annual annual an an- nual wildlife crop This is proper as the kill kilI is clean and the meat is I seldom wasted But game killed on I the highways by automobiles is al almost almost almost al- al most always a total loss a loss that mounts in importance because most of these deaths occur during the brec breeding ling and acid rearing seasons While no accurate figures are available and it would be hardly possible to obtain them it would be no exaggeration to say the total for the entire country runs into staggering numbers The Kentucky State Division of Game and Fish has just released some figures for forthe forthe forthe the first eight months of 1951 These figures are admittedly incomplete as a few of the observers in all districts of the state were not employed employed employed em em- during the entire eight months period But they show that edible game birds and animals animals animals ani ani- ani- ani mals were killed on Kentucky's highways highways highways high high- ways during two-thirds two of the past year These figures i ures do not include the toll taken from the states state's population population population pop pop- of red and gray foxes skunk mink or song birds not generally generally generally gen gen- considered as part of the sportsmans sportsman's larder Kentucky Figures Cited If Kentucky's conservative figures were to be used l as a measuring stick for the whole country and thus multiplied by 48 the loss in edible game to highway deaths would be bewell bewell bewell well over game birds or and/or animals for the period Disregarding the remaining four months of the year and using as a total which would certainly be an ultraconservative ultraconservative ultraconservative ultra- ultra conservative figure this represents a considerable poundage of ot delicious and prized highly-prized mea meat t lost to the sportsmens sportsmen's table through the carelessness carelessness carelessness care care- of thoughtless drivers The rabbit was the greatest sufferer sufferer sufferer suf suf- suf- suf ferer from this toll This is to be expected expected expected ex ex- for this species has a wide range and its inclination to cross highways and even play in them is well known The opossum was next in misfortune which is in line with observations made in other states I Conservative Estimate It would be again conservative to estimate this meat loss at 1200 pounds or 2 pounds to the bird or animal Placing a value of 2 per pound on it would bring the monetary monetary monetary mon mon- figure close t to A A A ABig Big Trout Before casting castin a fly to a feeding big trout a skilled angler may spend quite a bit of time watching the trout He observes the position of the fish as he waits for his food He sees where the trout is watching for his food He observes the current and figures out a way to approach within casting distance without disturbing disturbing disturbing dis dis- dis- dis the feeding fish Having gathered all this data he works h himself into position for the cast and then places his fly exactly where he wants it If he gets a strike at atall atall atall all he usually gets it on the first cast If It he gets no strike on the first cast he should wait quietly for a considerable length of time before making another When no evidence of a feeding trout is seen on a rile ride it usually means that the trout are feeding very close to the bottom if they are feeding there at all To work a riffle under such conditions a fisherman feels his way along combing out the water with his casts from one end of the riffle to the other If It he gets strikes from small trout he may be fairly sure that no big ones are working working working work work- ing in the vicinity If he gets no strikes at all he may be reasonably sure that no big trout are at that moment lurking in the riffles rimes Basis for this assumption is the tile fact that trout generally go into a riffle for forthe forthe forthe the purpose of feeding When they are not feeding they retire to less troubled waters Finding no success in the riffles an experienced fisherman continues his fishing in the deep slow moving water below the riffles This is the place where big trout lie up between feeding periods A A A I Imagination Pays An anglers angler's imagination Is his hb most v valuable asset in fishing a wet fly or nymph He lIe cant can't see beneath the water but he can imagine what hi hiN fly is doing aided by the movement movement movement move move- ment of the line and leader He can cantry cantry try giving it just as many different actions as his imagination can devise devise de de- de vise and frequently he will discover that only one will make the trout strike Sometimes a wet fly Is effective when skipped along the surface |