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LOU ANA mwmimM March/April 2003 $2.50 r*-* ~tdJedijfiteclftathe-egfiser'vationaiufresiomticfliofLopsump'sm^ttttmlffsesoitra ^s^^m .^Publishedth/thePublicInformation lînyMjjQm'Jimp\i n i IofWildlifeiui^^wri^ LouisianaConservationist Comments ISSN0024-6778 Volume55,No.2 BatonRouge,LA 70808 M.J."Mike"Foster,Governor ByPhilBowman JamesH.JenkinsJr.,Secretary AssistantSecretary,Wildlife JPhaimlesBoPwatmtaonn,,UAnssdte.rsSeeccrreettaarryy JohnRoussel,Asst.Secretary TheDepartmentofWildlifeand WildlifeandFisheriesCommissioners Fisheries manages 56 Wildlife TerryD.Denmon,Chairman,Monroe ManagementAreas BillBusbiceJr.,Lafayette (WMAs)consistingof1,316,085acres LeeFelterman,Patterson withanannualmaintenancebudget ThomasE.Kelly,Jeanerette ofjustover$4.5million. Ofthis HenryM.Mouton,Lafayette acreage635,140isstate-ownedland WayneJ.Sagrera,Abbeville withtheremainingacreageevenly JerryStone,M.D.,BatonRouge distributedbetweenothergovern- mentagenciesandtheprivatesector DivisionAdministrators byfreeleaseagreement. Thequality BennieFontenot,InlandFisheries andquantityofhuntingon KarenFoote,MarineFisheries Louisiana'sWMAsistestimonyof TommyPrickett,Wildlife almost270,000huntereffortslastyearofthe670,000visitordaysrecorded. BrandtSavoie,Fur/Refuge ThesamecanbesaidofthepopularityoffishingontheWMAswithnearly Col.WintonVidrine,Enforcement 200,000daysofuse. onthBeutdidfefseprietnecetshbeeptowpeuelanrWitMyoAfWanMdAspr,ivLatDeWlFancdornetgiunluaetsiotnos.beWquheystairoened MagazineStaff WMAsmanageddifferentlythanprivatelands? Whycan'twerideour MarianneBurke,InformationDirector ATVswherewewantonWMAs? JaniceCollins,Editor ratchelvasuetobruTaaortgofceaem3ns,hay0uif0nnot0ttriiaafmnicuergntenusscro.tleaumbTbgloheeuranseetguraasatlmtahlieamyonenphs3osa,0pisuzcmloeeeardntmteWaibiomenMnersmAmsefbaramesroaruemryhpeyuehsenraatmvr1iue0nts0ogftiayovcebenraeetrstot.haae1knT0eadhnvt.apeitrrmAoaemtngseeecatthnsaisttzhee JJTLoeihefnlofdmDCaeaoGAsurlralGtfenrfnee,,ys,hPCuiaArbmucl,duiilcAoasI/tsniVooficnosiruaMmtaaaeltnEiMadoaginnetaoOrrfgfeircer mitshaednedeyer,phausnrqtuteimrrersne.ltsT,shctihuserdkiuneltyeessnossrehooptrrhteesirsnutgreaenmsoeen,stcehaaensonanovsatibfloearbslWueMsrtAeassion,uerdcwehfsio,lrewlhosneegta.hseoTnrhsuitos,n rWeislpdCloinofspeiybralinegdfhotFri2suh0ne0sro3ileisbc.yitTtehhdiesmLaponuuubislsciircaaintpaitosDn,epipsahrnootttomgernatphofs privatelandsarelongerbecauseoflesshuntingpressureonthesame orothermaterials. availTahbeleornelsyouwraceys.tohaveequalnumberofdaysforbiggamehunting(deer bimoInhtehlIyoubiyîtahiieaL(o.u"ii's/i/'a.nnavi!D//eip>ma-r:_/t/m-epnutbloifsWhielddlife whaauilnntldthoetwlrueosrdtktweteyaorsnyp)tahrouttnnoitcbWisepMawatAheb.elsenTatphosaehrpturdiinecvtpiaapttarehtteliimoarennnfdagtsvroedirasoitettlsoeyltWeihxmaMcitteAnetdohsaewnsnyatutfoiemambleliemirdimtuiosrt.fiehdnBugdunetttghemerroesset aBPC7oan0Ont8dsS0oeFSnTri,vMsRah2Aoet2uriS5igoTe/ensi,E,7s6RtL25,:0A-02Psa.90enO1n.Q8ddu.BaaadPoiddexldirrtiD9eior8sodi0sniv0acec0la,h,lmaBpBanaoaigtsltetoiosannnggtReoRooopLfuufaogigiucedeie,s,sa.iLtLaAnAa season. Sotheanswerisshorterseasonsthatalloweveryonethe 70898. opportunitytoparticipatewithoutareductioninthequantityofgame. RegulationsoftheU.S.Departmentofthe ThesamecanbesaidforATVuseonWMAs. WithoutproperATVreg- Interiorstrictlyprohibitunlawfuldiscriminationin ulationandsizelimitsonWMAs,mosthunterscouldnothuntwithout departmentalfcderalhiassistedprogramsonthe bpeoiwnegrfduilstAuTrVbse,dbwyeirgehgiunlgarhAuTndVretrdasffiocf.pWoiutnhdsthaenedvoclauptaibolneoofflhaarugelrinmgohruen- Abnaanstyiesdpoaefgrrasaiocnnes,twchoiolnorab,nelyniaeptvrieoosngahrleamoo,rrigsaichnte,ivhaiagtsyebooerrefnhaacdinildsiictcryaipm.i- dredsmore,damagetothetrailsystemswouldbeinevitablewithoutregula- operatedbyarecipientoffederalassistanceshould tions. EvenonprivatelandstherearegenerallysomerulesregardingATV writeto:Director,OfficeforEqualOpportunity, use,althoughitisusuallywhenyoucanrideratherthanwhere. U.S.DepartmentoftheInterior,Washington,D.C. Louisiana'sWMAsgenerallyproduceaharvestverysimilartothatof 20240. prgnrreeieqcvauetaisetrsreeasrnlyaluenmtsdosbs.emtiirHmnooeiwfmetpiovezeaoerdp,ehlquewuniuattstehiernltcgyhoenWrfellMaaiccrAtghses.hraanrtuveamsbgteiqvrueoontfathsiu.mne,tAelrreosgnuuglsawitinitgohnWstMhaerAesit T$cdpFhio5uosis1bchstle,uir7omspi5fhuee1sebna.,ldl6tli02c.ap0trwA0iiapan0psntirQnoaugpxavuiieoblmrflaaDittgrhseeiihlsveyepd,dr2io6nBcft,aoui0trnm0oge0nDnccetoRopsoptauairvgeoeetstr,moae$fgLn2eot3tus,i9s$ao1i2fva03en.,ra4W9a,4i1g.l0de7.lT04ih8>f40ee.8,tTaohtnbiadysl sttiaotneoIrnnegtdaharteedcsi,ongmtiitmnhegesw2a0en0e3dk-sp0l4LahcDueWsntFsienesgtpafsafegawesilo3ln2hrioenlg"dulCpaoutnibsolenirscv.amFteoierotnimnNogorsteeasir.n"ofuonrdmat-he saLucSacUnotrGdrtaaonpchR.ieSc.wSi4et3rh:v3i1ct.ehser,PpTrprthiiroinnosttpviirinnmosggaivtooibefndyrseitsahitloinafsftwoemTaraiamsttgaleeterpniiroca4inli3netowsenodafesosiuttnptahbuedalorcioccLsrhoohaureoisddpseapipdnoaucrnrie--an RevisedStatutes. Cm .» 3S-J niri • . onservationist mmmm^ PWîimi FEATURES 100Years Later—Still Flying High TheU.S.FishandWildlifeServicecelebratesitscentennialanniversary ontwenty-threewildliferefugesthroughoutLouisiana. ByJackCurryJr. Who NeedsBelize? KayakingLouisianabayousoffersnewwaystoobserveandbecome partofnature. ByJennyEUerbee TalkingTurkey Turkeyseasonopensthismonthandallforecastsindicateabountifulyear. ByFredKimmel Books, PostersandSubscriptions It'snevertooearlytostartshoppingforMother'sDay,Easterandgiftsfor theClassof2003. Checkoutthesespecials. !fi LNaAtiOofnfaelrsWiOlpdploirfetuRneiftuigeessF:oArAslplecNiaatlurtewoLopvaegrespull-outguide Birding Basics Welcometotheabsorbingandfascinatinghobby,sportorscience ofbirdingwithtipsfromaDepartmentbiologist. By JimmyErnst Delta's Dawning NortheastLouisianaoffersamirageofrecreationalactivitieswiththe futureinmind. ByEdwinBruce Ted's Land: TheTrembling Prairies ThemysteryofLouisiana'sfloatingmarshes. ByGuerryHolmJr. DEPARTMENTS NationalWildlife RefugeProfile BayouSauvageNWR SpeciesProfile FrontCover RoseateSpoonbill PresidentTheodore RooseveltatBreton Conservation Notes Island,circa1904. WildlifeandFisheriesNewsBriefs PhotocourtesyofU.S. FishandWildlifeService Lawlines TurkeyTips BackCover ByMajorKeithLacaze CypressTreeonCat IslandNationalWildlife C'estBon Refuge RecipesfromtheOfficialLouisianaSeafoodand PhotocourtesyofLA WildGameCookbook OfficeofTourism C,o\aJ 1.1: PublishedbytheDepartmentofWildlifeandFisheriesintheinterestofconservationofLouisiananaturalresources. M p I & !S 1 One hundredyears ago President Theodore Roosevelt learm White Egrets living on a tiny island off Florida's coast were b feathers. Taking action to protect the birds and their habitat executive order establishing Pelican Island as the first nation later, President Roosevelt created the nation's second refuge Refuge on Louisiana's southeastern coast. 4 LouisianaConservationist The National Wildlife RefugeSystemis 100yearsoldthisyear. Tocelebratethe nation's onlynetworkoffederal lands dedicated to wildlife conservation, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) will throughouttheyearsponsoreventshighlight- ingwaysinwhichthenation'srichvarietyof fish,wildlifeandplantsareprotectedat536 refugesintheU.S.anditsterritories.Totaling approximately95millionacresinLouisiana, this means the nearly two dozen federal refugesinthestatehaveputoutthewelcome matonnearlyhalfamillionacresofswamp, marsh,bottomlandhardwoodforest,upland pine forest and just about every habitat in between. Thiswarminvitationtovisitthestate'sfed- eralrefugesisnot,byanymeans,achangeof heartonthepartoftheUSFWS. Itisjustthat the word that refuges are for everyone has beenalittleslowingettingout. "Alotofpeople,eventhosewholiveneara nationalwildliferefuge,havenoideawhata nationalwildliferefugeis,and don'tunder- standtherecreationalopportunitiestheyoffer. DuringtheearlydaysoftheNationalWildlife Refuge System, the gates of many refuges wereclosedoraccessgreatlyrestrictedtopro- videsanctuaryforwildlifeandreducehuman disturbance. Today,compatibleprioritypub- licuseshaveincreasedrecreationalopportu- nities while still providing wildlife sanctu- ary," said Glenn Harris, refuge manager at CameronPrairieNWR. Timeshavechanged. Over1.4millionpeo- ple visit a national wildlife refuge in Louisianaeachyeartoenjoyhunting,fishing, boating,wildlifeobservation,naturephotog- raphy and environmental education programs. Hiking, canoeing and kayaking can alsobeenjoyedatselectedrefugeswhilefans ofoff-roadcyclingcanenjoytheirsportata growingnumberofNWRs. Refugevisitorswhointend toventure far t Brown Pelicans and from the parking lot should take somepre- cautions to insure theirexplorations will be laughtered for their safeandenjoyable. evelt issued an wil"dRleiffeugpeospualraetwiiolndspalnadcest,hecirrehaatbeidtatto.prDootne'ctt Tife refuge. A year emxopmeectnttoyfoiundgeatwtahitresrty,f"ousnatidainByrriognhtFoarttitehre, ton National Wildlife supervisory park ranger for southeast Louisiana refuges. "But with just a little STORYBY preparationanyonecanenjoyavisittothese great places. If you are unfamiliar with a JACKCURRYJR. March/April2003 5 * «!&feg . PhotobyJasonSaucier TahnedTreenfsoarseslNtaseWtdRcfoo(nracmbeeonrvtera)agtriisicoaunlsmtiuorxfalotfhfeioeptldhesrn.eawIattteiensre,adlwsLoooouhdiolsaimnaendast,oBlocanrceokpolBfaentadhrse. hreafpAupngeyy,otnoceotnetltlaacyktionutghwethhareetbfayucgoekucsnotueanfeftd.rtyTohrekoynu'otlwle.bb"ye foot, on a bicycle or in a canoe or kayak shouldhavewiththemplenty ofdrinking water, snacks for energy, a refuge map, a Swamptours compassandbugrepellent.Anticipatesud- andcanoeing denchangesintheweatherbypackingrain areverypopular gearand an extra layer ofwarm clothing. BayoauctiSvaituiveasgaet Long-sleevedshirtsandlongpantsarewise weNllWaRs(craigmhpt)inags yinesaerc-trboiutnesd.aWsadteefrepnrsoeofagsahionesstosrunbbooutrsnmaanyd andhiking.Itis be needed for wetter trails and bicyclists partofthe shouldwearhelmetsandhavethetoolsand largestswamp tubes to fix a flat. Each kayak and canoe inAmerica. mustcarrya PFD foreachpassenger, and the wise will wear them. Hunter orange vestsandhatsareasmartfashionaccessory duringhuntingseasoninrefugesthatallow hunting. Thesefewcommonsenseprecautionswill helpopenthedoortoaworldofwilderness enjoyment. Vasttreelessfreshwatermarshes insouthernLouisianateemwithducksand geese in the winter. Sometimes flooded, sometimes dry, bottomland hardwood forestsoftoweringbaldcypressandtupelo treesarehometotheLouisianablackbear 6 LouisianaConservationist . whilepineforestspreservethehabitatofthe Red-cockadedWoodpecker. Theactual"birth"ofwhatwouldbecome theNationalWildlifeRefugeSystemwason March14,1903,thedayPresidentTheodore Roosevelt set aside tiny Pelican Island on Florida'seastcoastasthefirstfederalrefuge fionrgbitrhdes.seLcoounidsiraenfauggeet—stBhreethoonnoNrWsRfo,rhaalvs-o createdbyTRin1903. Thecentennialcelebrationwillbeincor- poratedintomajoreventsheldatindividual refuges throughout the year, including manyonMarch14. Otherimportantocca- PhotobyJasonSaucier sionsonthe2003refugescalendarinclude International Migratory Bird Day (May), line,hasbeenapprovedbyCongress. When BlueHeronsare National Fishing Week (June), Youth landacquisitioniscompleteitwillconsistof amongthe Waterfowl Day, National Hunting and fourseparateparcelstotalling54,000acres. thousandsofbirds (FiDsehcienmgbeDra-yJ,aanunadryt)heChristmasBirdCount Ttahnetbreoftutgoemlwailnldrheastrodrweoaonddhparbeisteatrvaeloinmgpotrh-e sNlaeWreRgne,sitnLowSuialibdsliiinafneea's yeaNratOiocntaolbeWrild1l2i-f1e8,ReisfutgheeWeyeeakr,'sheblidggtehsits RedEnRtirvaenrcedrationaLgoeu.isiana's NWRs is free, Creafmueger.onLoPcaaritsehd,in vent. Mostrefugeshaveopenhousesand exceptforBayouCocodriewhichchargesan SabineNWRhas lumerous other special programs at that entrance fee. Some refuges are open day- over150milesof time. Callindividual refuges forinforma- lighthoursonly. Primitivecampingisper- canals,bayous tionaboutlocalcelebrations,specialevents mittedinonlyafewrefuges. Privatecamp- andwaterways andtourstheymaybesponsoring. Agood grounds are often located near popular opentopaddlers. waytokeep upwithlastminutedevelop- refuges. Checkwith refuge rangers about mentsconcerning refuge celebrations is to licensesandpermitsbeforehuntingorfish- :lick on to thebig regionalweb site from inginarefuge. ^ Atlantaathttp://southeast.fws.gov. Refugesareoftenlocalcenters forenvi- onmentaleducationforstudentsofallages. Childrenonschoolfieldtripsareintroduced BigBranchMarshNWRinSt.TammanyParish othewondersofthewildbyexperienced providesdiversehabitatsfrompinesavannasto •angers or volunteers. At a few refuges, offshoregrassbedsinLakePontchartrain. Free adultscansignup(reservationsarealways guidedtoursareoffered,byreservation,to lecessaryforrefugeoutings) forrangeror PhotobyDonnaBush walkersandcyclists. volunteerledhikes,bicycletrips(bringyour 3wnbike)orcanoetrips. Volunteer help has been invaluable in xposingmoreandmorepeopletothejob efugesdoinprotectingprimehabitatsand ndangered species. Severalrefuges,such iZsomBplalcekx,BCaaytoIuslNaWndRN,WSRoutahnedasStabLionueiNsiWanRa aaveactive "friends" groups. Information aboutthesevolunteerorganizationscanbe aad by calling the refuge manager. Volunteering, either through a friends' roup or on your own, is a great way to xperiencetheexcitingandvaluablework hattakesplaceonrefuges. Anewrefugeisnowintheworks. Red iiverNWR, alongtheRedRiverbetween Colfax, Louisiana and the Arkansas state March/April2003 7 \ Therecoveryofthe GreatEgret populationisadirect resultofthe establishmentofthe NationalWildlife RefugeSystemby PresidentTheodore Roosevelt. PhotobyJasonSaucier PhotobyJasonSaucier LocatedinCameronandEvangeline parishes,LacassineNWRincludesa 16,000acrefreshwaterlake. Canoeing, hikingandbikingintherefugeprovide uniqueviewingexperiencesfornature lovers. Boatswithmotorsarenot allowedonthisrefuge. IouiM.inaConsendhoniM Restorationofforestsin LakeOpheliaNWRis underwayinAvoyelles Parish. Hikerscanwalk theirowntrail,the1.5 milePossumBayou Trailorshare20miles ofprimitiveroadswith allterrainvehicles. BretonNWRis thenation'ssecond oldestrefuge. Itwas establishedin1904 afterPelicanIsland inFlorida. Itishome tothelargest concentrationofBrown PelicansinLouisiana. March/April2003 9 y^n www.wlf.stalf.li x m m