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Reel in the 2008 Wisconsin Fishing Report

MADISON – Anglers can reel in the latest fishing reports, tips and techniques in the 2008 Wisconsin Fishing Report.

This annual 16-page fishing forecast newspaper is now available online and at Department of Natural Resources service centers and regional offices. It is also included in the April 2008 Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine, now available online and at many Wisconsin newsstands.

“The fishing report is a reminder that inland fishing season is just around the corner”, says Mike Staggs, Wisconsin’s fisheries director. “It’s a great resource for avid anglers and newcomers to the sport as they start planning their fishing outings.”

This year, anglers again will be able to learn about fish populations – and fishing prospects – from the fish surveys results DNR fish biologists provide for many popular waters statewide.

They’ll also find “A Year of Fabulous Fishing [PDF],” a year-round guide to angling opportunities. From January to December, there’s always a place to fish, fish to catch, and fishing fun to be had.

Musky hunters hoping for success this season should read “Musky Mania,” for tips of the trade from an accomplished musky angler. Or check out “Year-round shore fishing on Lake Michigan” for seasonal fishing opportunities, without ever leaving land.

Rounding out the fishing report this year is a kids section for the future generation of anglers. Find ideas for family outings, tips on taking kids fishing, coloring pages and fishy fun on EEK!, the DNR’s award winning environmental education Web site for kids.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Alisa Lopez (608) 264-6028

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Wisconsin Lakes Convention set for Green Bay April 17-19

Nationally known champion of river cleanup headlines event

GREEN BAY - The lake enthusiasts gathering here in mid-April for their thirtieth annual convention will hear from a kindred spirit – a man whose dedication to the nation’s waterways led him as a teenager to found an organization that has since pulled more than 4 million pounds of junk from the Mississippi and other major rivers.

Chad Pregracke, founder of the nonprofit Living Lands and Waters and a National Geographic Live speaker, headlines the Wisconsin Lakes Convention. The event runs April 17-19 at the K I Convention Center in Green Bay.

“Anybody who wants to be inspired will enjoy listening to Chad,” says Kim Becken, convention coordinator. “If you haven’t seen his work on ‘National Geographic,’ or ‘60 Minutes,’ you owe it to yourself to see him in person, particularly if you work with volunteers.”

In addition to Pregracke, convention attendees also will hear from Department of Natural Resources Secretary Matthew Frank, and Gov. Jim Doyle has also been invited to speak.

Pregracke started pulling junk out of the Mississippi River, a stone’s throw away from his Illinois home, when he was a teenager. Media coverage of his efforts spurred corporate donations, and now, 11 years later, sponsors from more than 60 major companies and foundations help underwrite his operation of four barges, nine employees and scores of volunteers.

Chances are, Pregracke will be impressed by his audience. The Wisconsin Lakes Convention is one of, if not the largest, gathering in the nation of lake volunteers, educators and professional managers. Many of the people have attended for all those years to exchange information, inspire one another, and learn about proven strategies to protect and improve Wisconsin’s lakes.

“Lakes in Wisconsin are much better off for the tens of thousands who have dedicated time to protecting waters, be they tribal people, people in lake organizations, resource professionals,” Becken says.

Workshop sessions include early detection and rapid response to the discovery of zebra mussels, Eurasian water-milfoil, and other invasive species in a lake, successful projects in Wisconsin to get youngsters involved in lake protection activities, and positive actions lakeshore property owners can take to improve their properties.

John Molinaro, president of the Wisconsin Association of Lakes (WAL), has attended the conventions for the past 25 years. “For me, the best part is seeing people from around the state, seeing how they deal with their lake problems, how we’ve dealt with ours, and sharing solutions.”

He says the convention allows the partnership of WAL, DNR and the UW-Extension “to get a lot of our staff together in the same place to see how we’re doing and how to meet the challenges ahead.”

The lakes convention is sponsored by the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership (exit DNR), comprised of DNR, the Wisconsin Association of Lakes and the University of Wisconsin-Extension.

People can attend all three days of the conference or just one or two. For more information on the convention or to register, go to [Wisconsin Lakes Convention [exit DNR] or contact UW-Extension Lakes at (715) 346-2116.

“It’s our thirtieth and it’s going to be a great time,” says Jeff Bode, who leads the Department of Natural Resources lakes program. “I always get rejuvenated. It launches me off on the next season.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeff Bode, DNR – (608) 266-0502; Tami Jackson, WAL - (608) 662-0923; Kim Becken, UWEX - (715) 346-2116

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Prepare now – gypsy moths will return soon

MADISON – With the approach of warmer weather, state forestry officials are urging homeowners to begin preparing to battle gypsy moths. In late April and early May, a new generation of gypsy moths will hatch in some areas of Wisconsin.

“At high numbers, gypsy moth caterpillars can be a tremendous nuisance and strip trees of their leaves, which may contribute to tree dieback or death in stressed trees,” says Bill McNee, a gypsy moth suppression coordinator with the Department of Natural Resources in Green Bay. The insect’s favorite food is oak leaves, but it will feed on many other tree species such as birch, crabapple, and willow.

Forestry officials say gypsy moth populations have risen to damaging levels in northeast and central Wisconsin, as well as parts of south central and southeastern Wisconsin. In response to the threat of high populations, many property owners and local governments participate in a state suppression spray program for this pest. Maps of the areas that will be sprayed by planes this May are available at on the state gypsy moth Web site [exit DNR]

“There’s a lot more spraying this year because last summer’s weather was so favorable for the caterpillar’s survival,” McNee says.

People can find certified arborists in their area by searching at the Wisconsin Arborist Association Web site [exit DNR].

More information on the gypsy moth’s life stages and control options for yard trees and woodlots is available on the state gypsy moth Web site [exit DNR].

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill McNee, DNR Gypsy Moth Suppression Coordinator, (920) 662-5430 or Mark Guthmiller, DNR Gypsy Moth Suppression Coordinator, (608) 275-3223

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Don’t prune oaks April through July to avoid oak wilt

MADISON – People who value their oak trees should not prune them from April through July, according to the latest recommendations from state forestry officials. Spring and early-summer pruning makes oak trees vulnerable to oak wilt, a serious and almost-always fatal fungal disease of oaks.

Special care should also be taken to avoid wounding oaks from April through July, according to Kyoko Scanlon, Department of Natural Resources forest pathologist. Any action that might provide an opening into the tree, she says, such as carving initials into the tree or attaching a birdfeeder or clothes line, could provide an opportunity for the oak wilt fungus to invade and establish itself in the tree.

Scanlon said builders and developers should also be very careful as many oak wilt infections and deaths have occurred through inadvertent damage to roots, trunks, or branches during the construction process. If an oak tree is pruned from April through July, a wound dressing or paint should be applied to the cut surface as soon as the wound is created. Even half an hour can be enough time for beetles that transmit the disease to land on a fresh wound and infect your tree, Scanlon said. While the risk of spreading oak wilt is low after July, Scanlon said homeowners should avoid pruning or wounding oaks until autumn, to be on the safe side.

“Oak wilt can spread from a diseased tree to a healthy tree through a connected root system as well as by insects,” according to Scanlon. “Very small sap beetles transport fungal spores by landing on fungal mats found beneath the cracked bark of trees that died the previous year. The spores are then transmitted from the beetle onto the fresh wound of a healthy oak tree while the beetle is feeding at the pruned or damaged site.” A beetle that transmits oak wilt disease is not capable of boring into a tree, Scanlon added.

If a wound is left unprotected, Scanlon said, a new oak wilt pocket may develop in a location where oak wilt did not previously exist and will radiate to other oaks through the connected root systems. If no management steps are taken, Scanlon said the pocket could continue to expand year after year. Once oak wilt exists in an area, control of the disease is both difficult and costly. The prevention of oak wilt is the best approach.

Oak wilt is commonly found in the southern two-thirds of Wisconsin. Oak wilt has not been confirmed in Ashland, Bayfield, Calumet, Door, Douglas, Forest, Iron, Kewaunee, Langlade, Lincoln, Manitowoc, Oneida, Price, Rusk, Sawyer, Sheboygan, Taylor, Vilas, and Washburn Counties. Every year, the disease kills many oaks in the state by interfering with the tree’s water and nutrient-conducting systems, essentially starving the tree. Leaves begin to wilt, and the tree may eventually die. Trees in the red oak group, such as northern red and northern pin oak, are especially vulnerable, and once wilting symptoms become visible, the tree loses most of its leaves and dies very quickly, often within weeks. Trees in the white oak group – those with rounded or lobed leaves – are more resistant to oak wilt, and the disease progresses much more slowly, often one branch at a time. White oaks could live with oak wilt for many years, and some trees may recover from the disease.

“Besides oaks, pruning deciduous trees in general should be avoided in the spring, as this is the time when tree buds and leaves are growing and food reserves are low,” according to Don Kissinger, a DNR urban forester. “The best time to prune any deciduous tree is winter, followed by mid-summer -- after leaves have completed their growth.”

Anyone interested in learning more about oak wilt and other forest pests as well as tree pruning should visit the Wisconsin DNR Forest Health Web pages for more information. Additional information about proper pruning techniques is available from your community forester, a University of Wisconsin-Extension agent [exit DNR], or DNR urban forestry coordinators.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Kyoko Scanlon (608) 275-3275 or Don Kissinger (715) 359-5793

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Go online to prepare for potential spring floods

MADISON – The melting of near-record snows, already saturated ground, and spring rains are combining to increase the risk that parts of northeastern, north central and southwestern Wisconsin will suffer flooding this spring.

To help people prepare for potential flooding -- and recover if it occurs -- new “Coping with Floods.” Web pages have been posted on the Department of Natural Resources Web site.

“The best thing you can do if you know flooding is on the way is to be prepared,” says David O.Woodbury, who coordinates the DNR’s emergency response effort. “We hope these Web pages can help people find key information they need to protect their families and their property.”

Information and links on the Web pages include:

• A link viewers to the latest National Weather Service flood watches and alerts.
• A reminder to owners of the 3,800 dams in Wisconsin of the steps they need to take to reduce the risk these dams will fail, and to assure evacuations will go smoothly.
• Instructions and a video for rural homeowners whose private wells may become contaminated, of the steps they need to take to assure they have safe water, including collecting a water sample for testing.
• Information and instructions on how washed out driveways and road culverts can be replaced properly to avoid more erosion and runoff problems.
• A gateway to federal and state emergency management sites loaded with general safety tips and programs available to help clean up after flooding.

More than 1,200 DNR employees – nearly half the agency’s permanent workforce -- are potential first responders, including spills coordinators, drinking water and wastewater engineers, hazardous waste management specialists, air management engineers, conservation wardens, foresters for fire suppression, dam safety engineers, parks crews, communications specialists, fisheries crews and wildlife management operations crews.

People can learn more about the state’s and the DNR’s emergency response in the December 2007 Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine article “The Hell of High Water,” which details the August 2007 flooding that led to 14 Wisconsin counties receiving federal disaster declarations.

FOR QUESTIONS ABOUT DNR FLOOD RESPONSE: David O. Woodbury (608) 266-2598

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Madison, La Crosse groups awarded environmental education grants

MADISON – The Friends of Troy Gardens in Madison and Longfellow Middle School in La Crosse have been awarded GreenWorks! Grants by Project Learning Tree, the environmental education program of the American Forest Foundation.

“These grants help get kids outdoors and involved in learning about the environment while improving their local community,” said Janet Hutchens, Project Learning Tree coordinator for the Department of Natural Resources. “It is critical that we reach children at a young age to help instill a sense of wonder about nature and a sense of stewardship about the outdoors for their protection, health and well being.”

Madison’s Friends of Troy Gardens will partner with the Dane County Focus Program, a residential treatment and service-based program for youth, for a project involving restoring, maintaining and improving natural areas in Troy Gardens. Troy Gardens is a 31-acre urban land development in Madison that integrates mixed-income housing, community gardens, an organic farm and natural areas. Focus Program participants will begin project work in April.

In La Crosse, students from the Longfellow Middle School will work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to select two suitable islands in the Goose Island area of the Mississippi River south of La Crosse for reforestation. The students will plant silver maple and swamp white oak trees this spring, assess the progress of the project in the fall and establish a plan for the continuation of the project in 2009.

Since 1992, Project Learning Tree has distributed more than $500,000 to funds 730 grant projects in communities across the country. Proposals for the next round of 2008 grants are due by April 30, 2008. Grants of up to $5,000 are available. For more information about GreenWorks!, and a complete list of Project Learning Tree’s GreenWorks! Grant awards, visit Project Learning Tree’s GreenWorks! Grant awards web page [exit DNR].

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Janet Hutchens, (608) 261-8453

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Make outdoor plans with the April issue of Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine

MADISON - Looking for a weekend adventure? Readers of the April issue of Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine can review 58 day trips available on weekends from April through October. The field trips are guided by Department of Natural Resources specialists who will lead canoeing trips, wildflower walks, bird watching hikes, pontoon boat tours, and visits to catch nature at its peak throughout the year.

People itching to start scratching in the dirt can read up on how easy it is to plan a rain garden that will not only be colorful but will let rainwater filter into the land instead of running down streets and paved parkways into storm sewers.

Readers also find out which trails, parks and campsites that state park visitors voted as the best bets for a good time.

The April issue also takes aim on the newest activity in more than 400 Wisconsin school gym classes—archery! Readers will learn how the National Archery in the Schools Program is taking hold in Wisconsin and sharing the fun of target shooting with a new generation.

And a special bonus to the April issue is the 16-page DNR 2008 Fishing Report newspaper that offers forecasts for hot fishing this year and describes fish management projects statewide that will bring on better fishing in the future.

The April issue of Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine is available for $3.50 plus shipping or you can get a whole year’s worth – six big issues – delivered to your door for just $8.97. Subscribe toll-free at 1-800-678-9472, online at Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine. Subscription blanks and single issues are also available from our circulation office at PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: David L. Sperling, editor, 608-266-1510

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Friends of Sandhill Open House April 26

BABCOCK – The public is invited to join the Friends of Sandhill volunteers for a day of celebrating Sandhill Wildlife Area and its rich history and ecology. The friends group will host an open house from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 26 at the Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center.

The public is invited to bring family and friends to explore the trails by foot or bike, learn about the educational programs offered through the skills center and talk to volunteers and staff. Refreshments will be served and locally made crafts will be for sale.

More information about the Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center is available on the Department of Natural Resources Web site. For more information contact Friends of Sandhill volunteer Vicki Palen at 715-652-2950

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Orienteering workshop offered at Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center

BABCOCK – Aspiring hikers can build up their confidence and assure that they will find their way back home by signing up for an orienteering course at the Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center.

Orienteering - Fun with Compass and Map is being offered on the weekend of May 3-4. Participants will: learn how to navigate in the out-of-doors with compass and map; learn how to use orienteering compasses and read topographic maps; and enjoy several practice runs on the compass courses. On the second day, participants test their new skills on a cross-country trek of several miles they design themselves.

Participants should bring lunches and refreshments. Orienteering compasses will be supplied. Participants will be responsible for arranging their own lodging.

Registration is limited to 20 people on a first-come, first-served basis. Register by mailing in a registration fee of $35 per person by April 23. Participants may stay overnight in the center’s dorm either prior to, during or following the event for a donation of $15 per person per night. Checks should be made out to DNR-Skills Center. Include the name of each participant, and the address and daytime phone number of one person in each party. Send your registration fee to: Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center, PO Box 156, Babcock, WI 54413. Inquiries on the status of registrations may be sent via e-mail to: Richard.Thiel@wisconsin.gov.

The Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center is located 20 miles west of Wisconsin Rapids on County Highway X, 1 mile north of Highway 80 near Babcock, Wisconsin on the 9,000 acre Department of Natural Resources Sandhill Wildlife Area.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Sandhill Skills Center at: (715) 884-6333 or (715) 884-2437