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Southwest Washington Wildlife Reports
Brian Calkins, Acting Wildlife Program Manager

August 21, 2006

Region 5 Wildlife Areas

Cowlitz Wildlife Area - Wildlife Management Coordinating Committee (WMCC) meeting: CWA staff attended the annual WMCC meeting held at the Cowlitz Wildlife Area Office. Attendees included representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Tacoma Power, and Department of Fish and Wildlife. Topics included current and planned acquisitions, the abandonment plan (RMAP) for the 410 road on the south shore of Riffe Lake, Trail construction activities and a synopsis of current and ongoing CWA management activities. The committee also discussed timber-thinning needs on Peterman Ridge, the remaining acreage within the Green Diamond Resource Company’s timber reserves and the status of the Peterman Ridge RMAP work. The meeting culminated in a site visit to the location of the new low water boat ramp located on the northeast shore of Riffe Lake near Taidnapam Park. The ramp was built near a known migration route for young Western toads moving into upland habitat. Tacoma Power will be monitoring the site to establish where the young toads are leaving the water, what direction their travel routes take them and if there is a need for additional mitigation activities to minimize / prevent human caused mortality.

Cowlitz Wildlife Area - Swofford Pond Shore Parking Site Repair: Assistant Manager Vanderlip and Natural Resource Technician Morris repaired holes in parking areas of the popular fishing sites along the north shore of Swofford Pond. One hole in particular known to occasionally devour small cars was filled with approximately 14 yards of 3” crushed rock.

Cowlitz Wildlife Area - Swofford Pond Shore Parking Site Repair: Assistant Manager Vanderlip and Natural Resource Technician Morris enhanced the parking area of the Brim Bar access site. This is not an official WDFW access site but rather a popular and historic bank fishing location along the Cowlitz River of the Wildlife Area. The area receives high use and during the winter causing erosion, rutting of the surface, and runoff into an adjacent pond. The project consisted of filling a rather large depression with 3” crushed rock and then surfacing the parking area with 5/8 minus rock.

An aquatic harvester used to reduce non-native and invasive aquatic weeds

Cowlitz Wildlife Area - Swofford Pond Aquatic Weed Harvest: Tacoma Power has contracted with a private vendor to reduce the amount of non-native and invasive aquatic weeds growing in Swofford Pond. The majority of the weeds harvested include Eurasian water-milfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) and Watershield (Brasenia schreberi), which have been choking off boating lanes and access to bank fisherman over the past couple of years compelling the pubic to complain. Approximately 4 acres was cut to include those areas around the boat ramp, along the north shore bank access, and the heavy concentrations on the south shore for boater access. The aquatic harvester is a specialized barge with a cycle-bar mower mounted at the leading edge of a conveyor deck that can cut to depths up to 5 and a half feet. The aquatic plants are stored on the barge and when full, moved to shore and off-loaded on to a waiting trailer to be disposed in a local field.

Recreation Information - Riffe Lake Water Levels: Tacoma Power updates lake levels and other recreation information on its toll-free Fishing and Recreation Line every weekday at 1-888-502-8690.

Wildlife Diversity Division

Avian Influenza Monitoring Training: Region 5 wildlife staff have all recieved training to take part in the agencies plan to monitor for HPH5N1 avian influenza virus. Within the region staff will be collecting fecal samples from areas with high use by cackling Canada geese and gathering samples from hunter killed cacklers at check stations. Staff will also be responding to reprted sick or dead birds after calls are screened by agency veterinary staff.

Game Division

Status Reports: All biologists in the region have been working on game status and trend reports for 2006. Each report summarizes survey, harvest, population trend and other information for individual species. After a program review by Olympia game staff these reports are included in the Statewide Game Status and Trend Reports that are available to the public through the agency website.