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Sea quest Similar, yet quite different * January 25, 2008 Texas’ Premier Outdoor Newspaper Volume 4, Issue 11 * Page 12 www.lonestaroutdoornews.com INSIDE HUNTING Stretching the spawning truth Fish eggs get a line on weighty talk Many hunting accidents have BY KYLE CARTER been caused by a dog stepping on the gun’s safety Ben Matsubu, a BASS Elite Series angler from and trigger. Safety experts say Hemphill, entered the last day of the last tourna- the accidents are preventable. ment of the season trailing by a mere pound. Page 6 It wasn’t long after he left the dock on Lake Toho in Kissimmee, Fla., on a mild September morning that he hooked up with a monster. After five min- FISHING utes of coaching the bass to the boat, interlaced with moans of excitement and talk of a “hawg,” he pulled the 8-pound, 13-ounce prize into the boat. Then came what could be construed as insanity by definition. “That’s a 13-pound bass,” he said, smiling as he held a bass he knew didn’t weight more than 10 pounds. Insanity? Maybe. But he’s certainly not the first angler to make such a claim. Fishermen are renowned exaggerators, but when an angler drops the biology hammer on his claim, it’s harder to refute. Biological fact: A pregnant female is what every trophy bass angler should be looking for. She’s fat, she’s hungry and she’s full of eggs. That’s one rea- son why fisheries like Toho, Lake Fork, Sam Rayburn or Lake Amistad will produce bigger weights in the A voluntary accreditation spring while the females are spawning than it does program for fishing guides in the fall after they have laid their eggs. may soon be established in Fisherman’s fact: The difference between a preg- Texas. nant female and a female that has laid her eggs can Page 8 be whatever weight feels sufficient. In Matsubu’s case, four pounds sounded about right. CONSERVATION Unfortunately, a report published by the biolo- gists of the Southern Regional Aquaculture Center The Texas Organization of has put a number to the weight of the eggs. Wildlife Management “Usually at spawning the weight of eggs in Associations is planning females will be 10 percent or more of her body meetings to urge landowners weight,” the report stated. “Larger fish tend to to cooperate on water and have larger eggs and therefore larger fry but fewer EXTRA BAGGAGE: The eggs in a female largemouth may increase the fish’s weight by 10 to 20 percent. wildlife management. See EGGS, Page 22 This fish might have up to two pounds of roe. Photo by David J. Sams. Page 5 NATIONAL This buck is a doe! Antlered female deer shot in McCulloch County BY BILL MILLER An antlered doe is rare, state biologists said, because they are equipped with female The “Frankenstein Deer” is what Cliff reproductive organs and, yes, a set of horns. Colorado wildlife officials are Smallwood now calls the McCulloch Smallwood said he didn’t plan to shoot a feeding the largest mule deer County whitetail he shot in late November. deer on the day he encountered the strange herd in the state due to That’s because the unusual deer has doe, but he had his .270 along for hogs. extremely deep snow grown into a sensation for whitetail fans Accompanying him was a very credible eyewitness — his hunting partner, Jeff Cox, conditions. across the nation, courtesy of the Internet. But maybe Smallwood, a Longview busi- who is a Texas game warden assigned to Page 4 nessman, should start calling it the “Bride of McCulloch County. Frankenstein Deer,” because this seven- “Jeff spotted the deer and was pointing at SOMETHING AMISS: Cliff Smallwood shot this antlered doe, a See DOE, Page 23 INDEX phenomenon that occurs a few times each year in Texas. pointer was actually a doe. Classifieds Page 19 Crossword Page 16 PRSRT STD Galveston project stirs Time Sensitive Material US POSTAGE Game Warden Blotter Page 10 Deliver ASAP PAID PLANO, TX Fishing Report Page 18 fishing quality issues PERMIT 210 Heroes Page 21 BY MARK ENGLAND Sommerlatte, a Port O’Connor- Hunting Season Dates Page 7 area fishing guide. “Then they’re going to muddy the beachfront Outdoor Datebook Page 19 A $13.5 million proposal to rebuild the beaches at Galveston from the Brazos to the Sabine. It Products Page 17 is spurring debate on whether a will kill the fishing for those who reduction in the quality of fishing like to surf fish.” Weather Page 16 will be part of the cost. Guide Jimmy Bankston, who “They’re going to destroy habi- primarily fishes Galveston Bay, Wild in the Kitchen Page 16 tat by covering it up,” said Scott See GALVESTON, Page 20 Page 2 * January 25, 2008 January 25, 2008 * Page 3 Page 4 * January 25, 2008 NATIONAL Massive effort launched to feed mule deer herd Colorado wildlife officials are mobiles and Sno-cats. launching a massive effort to feed More than 50 potential feeding the largest mule deer herd in the sites will be spread out over 60 state. Biologists say the herd faces a miles in all directions. DOW per- massive die-off because of sonnel are packing down snow extremely deep snow and cold with Sno-cats and snowmobiles. temperatures in the Gunnison Some limited feeding has start- Basin. ed, but is being done mainly as a Division of Wildlife biologists way to begin getting animals predict that unless the agency accustomed to human activity and feeds the 21,000 deer, 30 percent of to the feed. the adult female deer will die and The department’s request for as a direct result, 70 percent of the help was answered by more than fawns born in 2007 will die. The 250 volunteers, meeting the need. effects would also result in 50 per- The work is expected to continue cent of the bucks dying. for at least a month. MORSELS FOR MULEYS: Deep snow has necessitated the feeding of Colorado’s largest mule deer herd. Photo by Colorado DOW. The DOW believes it can reach about 8,000 of the deer on snow- — Staff reports. Paid hunting license holders up slightly The National Hunting License Report released from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows a slight increase in the number of paid hunting license holders, from 14.57 million in 2005 to 14.62 million in 2006. Seven states that passed youth- and apprentice-friendly hunting laws between 2004 and 2006 saw increases — Kansas, Minnesota, Florida, Kentucky, Michigan, Tennessee and Utah. The report also shows a 4.1-per- cent increase in gross dollars reported for the purchase of hunting licenses, tags, permits and stamps, from $723.71 million in 2005 to $753.57 million in 2006. — National Shooting Sports Foundation report. Kids All-American Fishing program makes its last cast Hooked On Fishing Interna- tional, best known for its Kids All- American Fishing programs, announced it is ceasing operation after 20 years of service. HOFI president Daniel Johnson said the decision to close was a dif- ficult one. “Any time you have to do something that impacts our country’s youth and the next gen- eration of anglers, it’s not an easy thing,” he said. “But due to chang- ing corporate priorities and market conditions, our program’s key part- ners have chosen to devote their resources elsewhere, and we weren’t successful in securing new alliances in time for us to continue into 2008.” HOFI was founded in 1987 to introduce and promote the recre- ation of fishing to young people and their families. Through the support of corporate partners, the organization provided KAAF fish- ing derby support kits and other planning and promotional resources to communities nation- wide for the purpose of hosting on- water fishing events. In its first year, HOFI supported 60 fishing derbies in 28 states. Twenty years later, nearly 2,000 events were held across the coun- try. Over the history of the pro- gram, KAAF and its network of vol- unteers helped put rods and reels in the hands of more than 8 mil- lion youngsters. — Hooked on Fishing International report. January 25, 2008 * Page 5 CONSERVATION Paddling trail opens on Guadalupe Construction of the Victoria- Garden can take out at the new Cooperative stewardship Riverside Park Paddling Trail on the ramp near the old water plant after Guadalupe River is complete, and a a 4.25-mile paddle on the river. dedication ceremony was held Jan. The trail will be designated as an 23. official “Texas Paddling Trail” — the The new ramp is located next to fifth inland paddling trail and 12th is focus of conference the old water plant near the Stayton trail overall — recognized by Texas Street entrance to Riverside Park. Parks and Wildlife. Paddlers entering the Guadalupe Across Texas, a shift in land dees become better stewards of lands. Other speakers include River at the boat ramp near the Rose —Texas Parks and Wildlife report. ownership is transforming the natural resources. A common Matt Wagner, Ph.D., TPWD landscape. Bigger ranches are theme is the advantages of man- Wildlife Diversity program giving way to ranchettes, result- aging resources cooperatively director; Doug Mason, Oakridge ing in loss of open range and the and what landowners can Ranch Wildlife Management fragmentation of wildlife habi- accomplish by working togeth- Association predator control tat. One solution is landowners er. manager and co-founder of Publisher/Editor: CRAIG NYHUS banding together for common Carter Smith, newly appoint- TEAM HOGS hunger relief pro- Design Editor: DUDLEY GREEN benefits, the focus of the Texas ed executive director of Texas gram; and Jenny Sanders, Texas Associate Editor: MARK ENGLAND Organization of Wildlife Parks and Wildlife, will lead off Wildlife Association conserva- Management Associations the program.

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