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REGION 5 WILDLIFE AREAS
Shillapoo Wildlife Area:
South Unit Pump Station: Wildlife Area Manager Calkins completed and submitted
a Proof of Appropriation Form to the Washington Department of Ecology to record
a water right for the South Unit pump station, which was built in 1999. Before
a water right can be recorded, applicants must demonstrate that water has been
put to full beneficial use. In this case the water is used to improve habitat
in a number of wetland basins on the unit for waterfowl. After the initial construction
of the pump station a number of problems surfaced that prevented us from meeting
the full beneficial use criteria. The issues caught the interest of technical
specialists in WDFW's habitat program who were instrumental in developing a
plan to upgrade the pump facility. The work was later completed by WDFW's engineering
program and has allowed us to be much more effective in managing water levels
in the wetlands.
Cost Share Reporting: Wildlife Area Manager Calkins submitted cost share information to Bonneville
Power to document monetary and in-kind contributions of WDFW and other entities
in managing the Shillapoo Wildlife Area. Bonneville Power provides the bulk
of the funding used to manage this Wildlife Area through their wildlife mitigation
program. Reporting cost share information is one of many required documents
required annually in Bonneville's contracting process.
Mt. St. Helens Wildlife
Area:
Forage Enhancement: Wildlife Area Manager Calkins, Assistant Manager
Hauswald, and Volunteer Mike Braaten recently met to work on two elk forage
enhancement projects on the Mt. St. Helens Wildlife Area near the west end of
the mudflow. Braaten applied lime to a twenty-acre site referred to as Lower
Bear Creek, which is a project he received funding for through WDFW's volunteer
cooperative grants program. This work was in preparation for planting the site
next spring. Lime and fertilizer were also applied to the area known as the
"golf green" which is a project funded through a grant to WDFW from
the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation where seeding had occurred last spring. This
second project is now considered complete. The value of both sites, in terms
of forage production for elk, had diminished significantly over a period of
several years due to a lack of funding for maintenance materials. WDFW appreciates
the efforts of Mr. Braaten and the support of the Elk Foundation, without which
this work may not have been possible.
Nellie Corser Wildlife
Area:
Road Management Report: Wildlife Area Manager Calkins submitted the
annual RMAP report for the Nellie Corser Wildlife Area to the Washington Department
of Natural Resources (DNR). The Nellie Corser Unit is a satellite of the Mt.
St. Helens Wildlife Area located in Skamania County on Duncan Creek. The Road
Management and Abandonment Plan for this area requires maintaining the road
which runs through the property which is approximately 1/4 mile in length. The
road was upgraded in 2005 by WDFW to meet DNR's forest road standards and remains
in good condition.
Klickitat Wildlife Area:
Property Survey: Manager VanLeuven facilitated the survey of the property
lines at the Swale Creek Unit. Adjacent owners were contacted to secure access
for the survey crew. Printed maps of the work plan were provided to the lead
surveyor and the major access routes to the unit as well locations of where
other survey work has been done were delineated for the crew.
Road Management Report: Manager VanLeuven completed and submitted the Annual Road Maintenance and Abandonment
Plan for the Wildlife Area to the Department of Natural Resources.
GAME DIVISION
Black Tailed Deer Meeting: Biologist Miller, Prince, and Holman attended
a scoping meeting for a future study on Black Tailed deer. Topics ranged from
what literature and existing work are available to potential study topics. Fieldwork
is expected to begin in the spring of 2009 and Cliff Rice will be the principal
investigator. Study areas will be located in western Washington.
Pheasant Release Site
Census: Volunteers conducted a survey of vehicles using Clark and Cowlitz
County pheasant release sites on Saturday October 25th. This information is
collected three times per season at the Western Washington release sites and
is used to make adjustments in the allocation of birds between sites in future
seasons. At total of 24 vehicles were at the Woodland Bottoms site and 133 were
at the Shillapoo Wildlife Area. Pheasants will continue to be released at these
sites through late November.
GIS Meeting: Andy
Duff traveled to Region 5 and presented an overview of GIS technology to R5
Wildlife Program staff and responded to inquiries for GIS needs in Region 5.
The information presented was valuable and very informative. Staff very much
appreciated having a new colleague come to us and ask what he can do to help
us and be a willing part of the process to share information with the public
using GIS technology.
REGION 5 WILDLIFE AREAS
Mt. St. Helens Wildlife Area:
Duck Lake Unit, Unlawful Posting: Wildlife
Area Manager Calkins spent a day researching boundaries and hiking into the
Duck Lake Unit in the LaCenter Bottoms, a satellite of the Mt. St. Helens Wildlife
Area, due to a waterfowl hunter's call who had encountered No Trespassing signs
there. For the public, the unit is only accessible by boating up the East Fork
of the Lewis River and then walking across undeveloped County Park property.
With permission of Parks staff, Calkins was able to drive in part way then walk
into the site and located three no trespassing/no hunting signs, which were
removed. He also used GPS coordinates to place WDFW property boundary signs
on trees near the NE and SE property corners. Due to the small size (40 acres)
and difficult access, this unit does not receive a lot of public use but offers
good waterfowl hunting opportunities for those who go the extra mile to get
there. The unit is also extremely difficult to traverse, with dense reed canary
grass to walk through interspersed with old drainage canals with soft bottoms.
Of particular note, users of the site should pay special care when walking near
the canals as old collapsed beaver and nutria dens are common. Calkins saw many
of these but also fell into several that were covered with matted vegetation.
An interesting note on wildlife using the site is the number of snipe present
of which he saw at least 30.
Klickitat Wildlife Area:
HCP Activities: Manager VanLeuven participated in the HCP activities assessment
for all the units in the Klickitat Wildlife Area with the HCP staff from Olympia.
Outreach: Manager
VanLeuven was interviewed by KLCK 1400 am radio in Goldendale for a 20 minute
radio program highlighting the Klickitat Wildlife Area.
GAME DIVISION
Elk Season: District Biologist Anderson reports very poor hunter success
in the South Cascades GMU's, including Lewis River, Siouxon, Wind River, and
West Klickitat for this year*s modern elk season. Large numbers of hunters were
out on opening weekend but few elk were harvested. Mid-week snow levels improved
hunting opportunity but hunters still reported very little sign. 22 elk have
been reported taken so far in units surrounding the Trout Lake/Mt Adams area.
During previous seasons the reported harvest would normally be closer to 75-80
elk.
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| The
opening day of SW Washington goose season was very successful with over
80 geese checked at the Vancouver and Woodland check stations. |
SW Washington Goose season: The goose season in area 2A began this weekend in Wahkiakum, Cowlitz, and Clark
Counties. The opening day was very successful with over 80 geese checked at
the Vancouver and Woodland check stations. Most of the geese taken were Cacklers
and large numbers of Cackler flocks have been observed in SW Washington. Hunters
are reminded that they need to record all geese taken, not just Canada geese,
and present them at a check station prior to 6:00 pm. Check station employees
will examine the birds and identify subspecies of geese. If a Dusky Canada goose
is taken the hunter will have his permit to hunt in Area 2A and 2B invalidated.
The season will extend into late January on selected days. Hunters should review
the regulations for this hunt on page 19 of the 2008-2009 Migratory Waterfowl
and Upland Game Seasons pamphlet.
REGION 5 WILDLIFE AREAS
Klickitat Wildlife Area:
Burn Piles: The Department of Natural Resources
forester issued a burn permit for the Klickitat Wildlife Area to burn the 22
piles of debris that were consolidated with the help of the WCC crew this summer.
Conditions have been good lately for this activity so Manager VanLeuven hopes
to complete this activity soon as part of the fire hazard reduction effort on
the Wildlife Area.
DIVERSITY DIVISION
Watchable Wildlife: Large flocks of lesser Sandhill cranes are feeding
in the Woodland Bottoms as they move south to wintering areas. The birds have
a distinctive call and flight pattern that are great fun to watch and hear.
They are easily observed from the Dike Access road in the Woodland Bottoms.
GAME DIVISION
St. Helens Land Access Program: So far this year, just under 50 volunteers
have signed up as WDFW volunteers and participated in facilitating weekday motorized
access to the northern portion of the Weyerhaeuser St. Helens Tree Farm during
special permit elk hunts. Hunters have been very appreciative of the effort
and volunteers from many volunteer groups have enjoyed the opportunity. The
volunteer groups participating in the program include SW Land Access Coalition,
Cowlitz Game and Anglers, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Eyes in the Woods,
Yacolt Burn Sportsmen Club, Vancouver Wildlife League, WA State Archer Association,
and WA State Bowhunters. We would like to thank all of the volunteers for all
their time and effort and look forward to continuing to work collaboratively
in implementing a safe and successful program.
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| Heavy
rains and snow in the higher elavations caused soil erosion and bank losses
on the Toutle River. |
REGION 5 WILDLIFE AREAS
Mt. St. Helens Wildlife Area:
Flood Damage: Heavy rains on top of snow
in the higher elevations earlier in November caused the Toutle River to rise
dramatically. As has occurred in past years during high flows, some erosion
of elk forage habitat occurred. The most significant damage during the high
water occurred to two of the woodpile structures that were placed to prevent
some of the erosion losses. Although one of the structures was severely impacted
and another appears to have a hole in it, bank losses in the vicinity of the
structures were not as significant as in some other areas. The image at left
illustrates the significant damage to the row of wood pilings. This event will
be useful in designing future similar projects, including one that we are working
on getting under way in the near future.
Shillapoo Wildlife Area:
Wetland Water Management: The water system that supplies water to wetland
basins on the Vancouver Lake Unit of the Shillapoo Wildlife Area and adjacent
County Park land has been operating for about a week and basins are beginning
to fill slowly. We have also been able to pump water on the South Unit as well
but, with a recent drop in flows in the Columbia River, we have not been able
to pump enough to get significant water into the wetlands yet. With improved
water management capabilities on the South Unit we have continued to see improvement
in the abundance of native seed producing wetland plants, which should mean
better waterfowl hunting as the basins fill.
Firearms Found: Wildlife
Area Manager Calkins recently found two firearms by one of the access sites
on the Shillapoo Wildlife Area. It is presumed that hunters left these behind
accidentally as they were leaving the area. Both guns were turned over to the
regional enforcement program and have yet to be claimed.
Klickitat Wildlife Area:
Swale Creek Unit: Manager VanLeuven and Program Manager Jonker walked
the Swale Creek Unit. While there, progress of the boundary surveying effort
was checked and fencing needs were evaluated. Three groups of deer (2, 7, and
11) as well as 7 grouse were observed.
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| Columbian white-tailed
deer herd composition surveys began this week. |
DIVERSITY DIVISION
Colombian White Tailed Deer: Biologists Miller and Prince began the herd
composition surveys on CWTD this week. We are surveying both Puget Island and
Willow Grove this year, aided by a local volunteer. The surveys contribute to
the fawn: adult ratio information for the state and federally listed deer in
SW Washington. Data will also be recorded to help locate areas for possible
transplant deer sources.
Program Manager Jonker and
Biologists Miller and Prince attended a CWTD meeting in Vancouver with ODFW
and USFWS. Survey plans, translocation, and a Recovery Plan review were discussed.
Region 5 will play a major role in surveys this year with ground and FLIR camera
work on the islands in the Columbia River near Longview as well as ground surveys
on Puget Island. FLIR technology will be used to estimate numbers of deer in
heavily vegetated areas and tests of FLIR effectiveness are planned.
Game Division 2009-11
Three-Year Hunting Season Setting Process: Regional wildlife biologists
and Program Manager Jonker met to discuss the next steps needed to continue
the process of developing Regional Big Game hunting regulation recommendations
for the next three years. Aspects of big game hunting regulations under consideration
for Regional changes include: changes to several Game Management Unit boundaries,
modifications to antler-point restrictions for deer, methods designed to address
agricultural and urban elk, adjustments to muzzleloader deer hunting opportunity,
etc. Those interested in reviewing the results of WDFW's issue scoping survey
(from September 2008) should check the WDFW website soon as the results of this
effort will be posted there shortly.
Pheasant Hunter Car Counts
at Shillapoo and Woodland Bottoms: Wildlife Area Manager Calkins conducted
the periodic car count of pheasant hunters on the Shillapoo Wildlife Area on
November 22nd. A total of 112 cars were tallied during the count, including
45 on the Vancouver Lake Unit and 67 on the South Unit. Wildlife Area Assistant
Manager Hauswald counted 24 cars at the Woodland Bottoms release site. The counts
are done periodically at all release sites in Western Washington during the
season as a mechanism to measure use of the sites. The information is used to
allocate birds between sites in future seasons.
Meeting with Puyallup
Tribe and WDFW: Olympia and Region 5 Wildlife Program staff met with representatives
from the Puyallup tribe and had a productive meeting discussing several topics
including the recently completed WDFW Game Management Plan, the 2009-2011 hunting
package proposals, current and future research efforts, status and trend reports,
and hunting co-management agreements.
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