Go Fishing, At a Fisheries Facility Near You

The U.S. Fish and Service is celebrating National Fishing and Boating Week which starts Saturday, June 4, and hosting events all around the country encouraging families to cast their rods into the water and go fishing. Most events are free and are sure to provide entertainment for the whole family. Find one close to you and join the nationwide celebration.
List of events.

An Event Old As Time

The event is as old as time – annual bird migrations. May 14, 2011 is International Migratory Bird Day, a day to go birding, a day to celebrate conservation.

So, flock to one of the 70 National Fish Hatcheries across the country, where you might be surprised to find an array of spring migrants. Uvalde National Fish Hatchery in south Texas is a gem birding destination, where colorful birds with colorful names—Little Blue Heron, Black Phoebe, Greater Yellowlegs, Blue-winged Teal, Vermilion Flycatcher—stop and recharge on their epic journey north to breeding habitats.

Waterfowl and songbirds, like this Black Phoebe, frequent the waters associated National Fish Hatcheries. USFWS

As Planet Earth wobbles back into the vernal position, it brings with it birds migrating north. You should migrate outside with your field glasses and see what you can see.

    

Dangerous Encounters with Alligator Gar

April 24-28, the National Geographic channel’s "Dangerous Encounters" with Brady Barr will be joining Ricky Campbell, manager of Private John Allan National Fish Hatchery, along with other USFWS staff, to highlight restoration efforts for the alligator gar.  They will film the dramatic capture, tagging and tracking efforts on the river, and then spawning and rearing at the hatchery.  The show also plans to highlight the Service’s work with alligator snapping turtles.

Warm Springs NFH, Mammoth Spring NFH, Baton Rouge FWCO, St. Catherine Creek NWR and the North Mississippi NWR Complex will all assist with this exciting filming event. 

The nation’s largest retailer has joined a national partnership to educate customers about the proper way to dispose of unused prescription drugs. Walmart is the first of 139 supporters to launch a national educational program in over 3,500 of their pharmacies promoting the SMAR_XT DISPOSALcampaign. 

SMARxT DISPOSAL is a partnership, led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, American Pharmacists Association and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, to inform the public about appropriate disposal of medication and the natural resource benefits of these actions.

Flushing medications down the toilet or pouring them down the drain are two of the many ways medications and other substances can enter waterways, which can harm the plants and animals that live there. One way to prevent this from happening is by increasing awareness about proper medication disposal.

Walmart has posted signs in more than 3,500 of their pharmacies, as well as online at www.walmart.com, with directions for customers on the proper disposal of their unused medications.   The company will also be printing SMAR_XT DISPOSAL information on all pharmacy bags so customers can understand how to dispose of unused medicines in an environmentally friendly way.

“We are extremely pleased that Walmart has joined us in our campaign to educate people on how they should dispose of their unused medication in their homes,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Acting Director Rowan Gould. “Walmart has millions of customers across the country, and by providing information to each of them, we are sure to have a big impact on preventing chemicals and drugs from reaching our waterways and affecting our plants, animals and ecosystems.”   

“Walmart is pleased to be an active corporate supporter of SMAR_XT DISPOSAL,” said Dr. John Agwunobi, president of Walmart Health and Wellness.  ”Our customers are looking for environmentally friendly ways to dispose of their unused and unwanted medications, and SMAR_XT DISPOSAL can provide the answers our customers are seeking.  We are proud to be part of this solution and we know that our communities will benefit from this partnership.”

The SMAR_XT DISPOSAL partnership recommends people pour their unused medication into a sealable plastic bag, add kitty litter, sawdust, or coffee grounds, and then seal the plastic bag before disposing of it in the trash. For more information on SMAR_XT DISPOSAL and how you can properly dispose of unused medicines, please visit http://www.smarxtdisposal.net/index.html.

Numerous studies demonstrate that the endocrine systems of certain fish and wildlife have been affected by exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds.  Endocrine disruption can be caused by exposure to synthetic or naturally occurring chemicals including pharmaceuticals, detergents, fragrances, fire retardants, disinfectants, plastics, resins, pesticides, and insect repellants.  The Service, along with its corporate partners, the American Pharmacists Association and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, has taken a proactive role in reducing unused medication and endocrine disrupting compounds in the environment.  Together, we have developed and implemented the SMAR_XT DISPOSAL campaign to educate the public on the environmental threats posed by flushing medicines or pouring them down the drain and provided them a safer alternative involving disposal of medications in the trash. 

The SMAR_XT DISPOSAL campaign recommendations have been adopted by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. 

www.fws.gov

Banking on Fisheries Conservation

The rewards of fisheries conservation are both intrinsic and material. The economic output related to the conservation successes of the Fisheries Program is responsible for 68,000 jobs in a variety of industries. Craig Springer photo

For the last 500 years, scribes have waxed poetic about the virtues and vices of fishing. Some lament the challenges and others applaud the rewards of the quiet sport. The apostle Izzak Walton wrote in his book The Compleat Angler in 1653 that fishing “will prove to be a virtue, a reward unto itself.” Fishing and conservation have inherent and intrinsic values, and they own other values that are very measurable.

Two U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service economists, Joseph Charbonneau, Ph.D., and James Caudill, Ph.D., recently made such measurements. They assessed the economic contributions made by the work performed in the Fisheries Program, nationwide, from 2004 to 2008. The numbers they reported in their peer-reviewed work were adjusted to the value of a dollar in late 2010. The numbers are stunning, and would make any mutual fund manager blush.

Results from the entire Fisheries Program and its 154 field stations account for a total economic output of $3.6 billion, coming from an investment of $128 million. In the National Fish Hatchery System, 123 million stocked fish yielded 13 million angler-days in turn spurring $554 million in retail sales, $256 million in wages of jobs created, where $37 million was returned to the federal treasury in income tax. Another $34 million was generated in state income taxes.

Better habitat means better fishing. Toward that end, the Fisheries Program has restored thousands of acres and miles of streams for the betterment of fish, and it is good for people. The economists calculate that habitat conservation has a value of $2 billion. Money changing hands means jobs. All told, the economic output related to the conservation successes of the Fisheries Program is responsible for 68,000 jobs in a variety of industries.

Five hundred years of fishing literature may have laid threadbare any questions on the value of fishing. But one thing is clear, conservation is important to the economy, and you can take that to the bank.

National Volunteer Week -- Thank You Fisheries Volunteers!

It would be misleading to say that what volunteers do for conservation in the Fisheries Program is immeasurable.

It's very measurable--they contributed 150,000 hours of service nationwide last year at many of our National Fish Hatcheries and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Offices. That’s equal to 3,750 40-hour work weeks.

Volunteers wear many hats, too, from giving guided tours to helping with grounds maintenance. They organize events; work at visitor centers; clean raceways and nets, and culture fish.

So, hats off to the many volunteers who make fisheries conservation their concern.

Happy National Volunteer Week.

More about FWS volunteer opportunities.

Read the National Volunteer Week Presidential Proclamation.     

Mountain-Prairie Region's 2010 Year in Review

The Mountain-Prairie Region's Year in Review video is now available on their web site. Visit the link below to see all the great conservation work the Mountain-Prairie Region employees and their partners completed in 2010. Sit back, relax and enjoy.

http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/r6yearinreviewvideo.html

Nature Rocks! Family Nature Club Kicks Off at Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery

Although frigid temperatures do not normally set the scene for spending much time outdoors for most people, January 2011 was a special month for Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery in Kentucky as the hatchery kicked off its 2011 Nature Rocks! Family Nature Club series. The year-long program, coordinated in partnership with the Russell County Public Library, offers an engaging family oriented activity each month to help encourage parents and guardians, along with their kiddos, to get outdoors and better connected with nature.

Intern Christin Roberson displays artwork made during a monthly Nature Rocks! Family Nature Club meeting. Photo Glenda York/Jamestown Public Library

Each month has a different theme, ranging from “Tracks and Scat, OH MY!” to “Bountiful Birding” to “Spider Web Wonders.” Healthy snacks are also provided to all participants during the free 1 ½ hour program. To help ease the driving distance and to better accommodate families who might not otherwise be able to make it, the two partnering organizations also rotate locations alternately, the hatchery hosting monthly activities during the “odd” months and the public library in Russell Springs, Kentucky on “even” months. To help purchase materials, such as good things to eat, the Friends of Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery, Inc.support the monthly meetings as well. 

Want to know more? Then visit us online, by clicking here.

Tagged lake sturgeon reveal valuable data

Tagging fish is a common fisheries management technique. Every lake sturgeon handled by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists gets a Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag. The tag has a unique 15-digit code to identify that fish.  The tag is a half inch long, and enclosed in glass.

The tag is only useful when tagged fish are re-caught in the future. The data yielded will show how far fish move, how much they grow, and give some idea of how long they live. The tags may even show how attached an individual fish is to particular habitats, like spawning sites, over time. When enough fish are tagged, biologists can accurately estimate population size.



Joshua Schloesser with the Ashland Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office carefully injects a lake sturgeon with a PIT tag, just under its skin. This fish was caught in near Ontonagon, Michigan. USFWS photo

Smaller than a dime is tall, PIT tags are of great value to fish biologists. USFWS photo



According to fish biologist Joshua Schloesser at the Ashland Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office in Wisconsin, PIT tags work well for lake sturgeon in the Great Lakes because the fish can live over 100 years and have the ability to move long distances. The Wisconsin DNR recently recaptured a lake sturgeon in Chequamegon Bay, Wisconsin, that was originally PIT-tagged near L'Anse, Michigan.

Lake sturgeon are in fact very mobile. 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to Break Ground on “Green” Aquatic Conservation and Education Center

Mammoth Spring National Fish Hatchery, in Mammoth Spring, Arkansas, will soon be home to one of the most energy efficient buildings ever built by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

A ground-breaking ceremony will take place at the future site of the Aquatic Conservation and Education Center on March 23, 2011. The event begins at 10:00 a.m. at the hatchery, located at 302 Fish Hatchery Lane. The public is invited to attend.

The center will feature energy-efficient mechanical and electrical systems, recycled and locally available building materials, educational exhibits and meeting space, storm water capture and re-use, and native plantings. It is expected to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certification. Click to view a larger scale sketch of the building plan.   

“But we’re shooting for Gold certification,” said Richard Shelton, manager of the hatchery for the past 26 years. “This building will be the bricks-and-mortar embodiment of our conservation mission. We are really proud of the design.”

LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system. In addition to its sustainable design features, the center will include an environmental education classroom, retail sales space, additional office space, fish habitat displays and interpretive exhibits, and outdoor features such as a display pond and viewing areas.

“This new state-of-the-art center will be something that the community can be proud of, a place where people, and especially children, can connect with nature and learn about conservation and environmental issues,” said Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. “In addition, it will provide a boost to the local economy, creating new jobs with stimulus funds.”

Contacts:
Richard Shelton, Manager, 870-625-3912
Tom MacKenzie, USFWS, Tom_MacKenzie@fws.gov, 404/679-7291.

Anorexic bass and what the science says

It's still March but soon enough, smallmouth bass will be on the nest--late April in Arkansas, and early June in Wisconsin. Ardent anglers know that nest-guarding smallmouth bass put all their attention in guarding their young, with little energy put into feeding. Now, fish physiologist Dr. Kyle Hanson at the Abernathy Fish Technology Center in Washington knows why. Hanson and colleagues Drs. Alfonso Abizaid and Steven Cooke from Carleton University delved into the cause and consequence of anorexia in smallmouth bass. The answers were found in looks at blood chemistry and manipulations in feeding. Their findings were published in the science journal, Hormones and Behavior.

Hanson and his colleagues caught nest-guarding male bass and took blood samples over the course of the period that offspring progress from eggs to fry and their eventual independence from the parent. They tested the blood for the hormone, gherlin, which is known to regulate appetite. They learned that the hormone is lowest in guarding males when their offspring are in the egg stage. It increased as the young grew toward independence, a period that lasted about three weeks.



Dr. Kyle Hanson and colleagues tested the aggressiveness of anorexic smallmouth bass, and published their findings in the science journal, Hormones and Behavior. Marie-Ange Gravel/Carleton University



The scientists also injected groups of nesting bass with gherlin and force-fed crayfish to others and tested their swimming abilities and aggressiveness toward nest predators. Fish with full bellies didn’t swim as well; similarly, sated bass were less aggressive after eating. The research reveals that anorexia actually allows male smallmouth bass to better protect offspring.

Genetics data essential for sicklefin redhorse

Dr. Greg Moyer at the Warm Springs Fish Technology Center, in Warm Springs, Georgia, led research into the genetic makeup of a fish that ironically remains unnamed by science. Moyer and colleagues Mark Cantrell, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and J.D. Rousey, Valdosta State University, published their research in the North American Journal of Fisheries Management.



The sicklefin redhorse remains unnamed by science. Steve Fraley NCWRC photo

Commonly called the sicklefin redhorse, the fish is aptly named. Its head is horse-like and the fins of breeding males are brick-red, but Moyer and colleagues looked deeper, into the genetic diversity of populations in the Little Tennessee River and the hatchery broodstock being used to restore this fish that is depleted in the wild.

The scientists learned that the fish in the wild and the hatchery were not different in their genetic diversity, and that fish held in the hatchery were not related. Conserving this genetic diversity is important in restoring fish populations, so as to ensure healthy populations. Moreover, the scientists say their research points to the utility of genetic data in fisheries management.