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VOLUME 15, NO. 1 WINTER 2005/06 A Walk In The Woods Random Casts Nova Outdoors FREE With Membership See Page 21 ® OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE NOVA SCOTIA FEDERATION OF ANGLERS AND HUNTERS NSFAH Annual Fundraising A Success Check Ice Thickness Before Fishing Mailed under Canada Post Publication Agreement No. 40050030

A Walk In The Woods Outdoors Fundraising A Success NSFAH ... · compliments of the Atlantic Fly Fishing School valued at approx. $400.00 compliments of Fishing Fever Fly & Tackle

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Nova Outdoors 1Winter 2005

VOLUME 15, NO. 1WINTER 2005/06A Walk In The Woods

Random Casts

NovaOutdoors

FREEWith

MembershipSee Page 21

®

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE NOVA SCOTIA FEDERATIONOF ANGLERS AND HUNTERS

NSFAH AnnualFundraising A Success

Check Ice Thick

ness

Before Fishing

Mailed under Canada PostPublication Agreement No. 40050030

2 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

WANTED

First Place Winner will receive $1000.00 Canadian in CASH

nd2 Place will receive a Loomis Fly Rod

rd3 Place will receive a fly tying package

www.novascotiafishing.comwww.sportsandrvshow.com

www.flyschool.netwww.nsfah.ca

www.fishingfever.ca

compliments of the Atlantic Outdoor Sports & R.V. Show

compliments of the Atlantic Fly Fishing School valued at approx. $400.00

compliments of Fishing Fever Fly & Tackle Shop

The Nova Scotia Government has been asked to proclaim the winner as Nova Scotia's official fishing fly.

For a complete copy of the Official Rules and the address where to send the flies, please visit one of the following sites:

THE OFFICIAL PROVINCE OF NOVA SCOTIA FLY

Please join with The Atlantic Outdoor Sports & R.V. Show

Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers & Hunters The Atlantic Fly Fishing School

Fishing Fever Fly & Tackle ShopNovascotiafishing.com

N.S. Dept. of Agriculture & Fisheries

in the search for our very own “Province of Nova Scotia Fly”

The search is on for a STREAMER OR WET FLY

(two dimensional) that will be championed to become the

Official Fly of Nova Scotia….

Please note that this competition is open to all fly tiers, both professional and amateur with the exception of members and/or family members of the judging panel. EACH fly must be accompanied by the tiers name; address; telephone number; and the list of materials used in tying each fly. All flies entered into the competition become the property of the Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers & Hunters

There are exciting prizes available to be won in this fly tying competition!

Nova Outdoors 3Winter 2005

NSFAH President’s Messageby Darlene Caldwell _______________________________ 4

Executive Director’s Voiceby Tony Rodgers __________________________________ 5

Habitat Conservation Projects ApprovedDept. Natural Resources _____________________________ 6

A Walk In The Woodsby Don Cameron __________________________________ 7

Individuals Charged Under Endangered SpeciesDept. Natural Resources _____________________________ 8

Random Castsby Don MacLean _________________________________ 9

Winter BOW, Come Out Fishing!by Tara J. Crandlemere ____________________________ 10

Nova Scotia Bats

by Hugh Broders _________________________________ 11

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

First Annual Fundraising Banquet a Success

by Tony Rodgers __________________________________ 12

$527 Million Wasted

_____________________________________________ 15

Study to Investigate Impact of Chronic Wasting

Disease on Humans

_____________________________________________ 16

Man’s Best Friend

_____________________________________________ 17

New Logo for NSFAH

by Tony Rodgers __________________________________ 17

Fast-Growing Tree Plantations

by Don Cameron _________________________________ 18

Our Response

by Tony Rodgers __________________________________ 19

Nova Scotia Habitat Conservation Fund

Dept. of Natural Resources __________________________ 19

Lyme Disease

Deptartment of Health ____________________________ 20

To place your ad in the next issue (Spring, 2006) of Nova Outdoors,please call (902) 468-6112, or call Tony Rodgers of the

Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers and Hunters at (902) 477-8898.

Cover photo: Black bear, Courtesy of US Fish & Wildlife Service, National Image Library.

WINTER 2005

4 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

NovaOutdoorsOfficial Publication of theNova Scotia Federationof Anglers and Hunters

Vol. 15, No. 1Winter 2005/06STATEMENT

OF PURPOSE

Mailed under Canada PostPublication Agreement No. 40050030

Letters and/or contributionsmay be sent to the editor c/o:

Nova OutdoorsP.O. Box 44028, 1658 Bedford Hwy.,

Bedford, NS B4A 3X5Ph: (902) 468-6112

E-mail: [email protected]

Published quarterly by

Design and productionAngela LovittDavid Mullins

Rob PhilpMeghan Stewart

The Nova Scotia Federation of Anglersand Hunters is interested in all aspects ofthe out-of-doors and is dedicated to thefostering of sound management and wiseuse of the renewable resources of theProvince. We want to ensure that theireconomic, recreational and aesthetic valuesmay continue for the benefit of this and allfuture generations.

Nova Outdoors is the registeredtrademark of Nationwide Promotions. Theopinions expressed in the magazine do notnecessarily represent the official views ofthe Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers andHunters nor its publishers. Nova Outdoorsis published quarterly and will be madeavailable free of charge to the membershipand selected retailers, government offices,libraries and other seasonal outlets.

Special thanks to our many contributorswho have assisted in this project - yourcontinued support will be appreciated.

We cannot be held responsible forunsolicited articles or advertisers claims.

David BoutilierRoss McQuarrie

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President’s MessageBy Darlene Caldwell

If you havenot already doneso, I ask that youtake a minuteand read ourstatement ofpurpose just tothe left of this

page in the masthead.You need not be a hunter, angler or

trapper in order to be a supporter of theNSFAH.

“We care”. I find it amazing just howmany people do not realize that we arethe ones striving relentlessly for the con-servation of wildlife and habitat. We worktogether with government and other or-ganizations to help ensure that our “state-ment of purpose” is fulfilled. We have avoice in the prosecution of poachers andother offenders to the wildlife act. TheNSFAH makes a difference.

I am honoured to be a part of thisFederation. As a female, I of course havemany friends that are women. None ofwhom hunt, but through our friendshipand learning about my personal ethics,etc., support me wholeheartedly as ahunter. They understand that I am a con-servationist. It’s all about education.There are so many misconceptions outthere it is astonishing.

One of my own personal goals hasalways been to help change these “mis-

conceptions”. My experience is that it canbe done. I know because I have done so.It all takes time and certainly does nothappen overnight.

I have only a little more than a yearleft as your President. Therefore, I amasking for your help. There’s an old say-ing “It takes a village to raise a child.” Getinvolved and make a difference. We needyour support so that we may continue ourwork on your behalf. The NSFAH is yourvoice, addressing issues and concerns thatotherwise would remain silent.

One of our past presidents summedit up quite nicely once by saying “Agreeto disagree”.

It’s virtually impossible to please allthe people all the time. We need to keepin mind who we are and not forget thebig picture and move forward, alwaysmove forward.

I would like to take this opportunityto sincerely thank the Hon. RichardHurlburt for his donation to the NSFAH.This will help us to continue our work inconservation.

I also wish to thank our ExecutiveDirector, Executives, Directors and all ofour members for their continued supportand kindness. I truly hope the holidaysand the New Year bring both you andyours health, happiness and prosperity ...until next time.�

Yours in conservation,K. Darlene Caldwell

Nova Outdoors 5Winter 2005

ExecutiveDirector’s Voice

ExecutiveDirector’s Voice

By Tony Rodgers

“Speaking with one voice” is thephrase that ran through my mind when Ilistened to federal politicians recentlyjousting once again for a federal election– the election is called for Jan. 23, 2006.

Why speaking with one voice? Well,it’s because as a fraternity, we have failedto speak as one when it comes to deliver-ing a strong message to our candidates.As an anglers and hunters organization,for the most part we got it together andtend to speak the same message and raisethe same problems and make the samerequests, but when it comes to puttingthe X on the ballot, we fail to supportpeople who represent our views.

As a hunter or gun owner, you wouldhave to have been sleeping under a prettyheavy rock not to get up on your feet andstate your argument against the need forthe current firearms legislation. But, wehave had three federal elections since thelegislation was introduced, passed andrammed down our throats but the partythat gave it to us is still in power.

Why? Because we didn’t support thepeople who said they would make changesfor us. There was always that doubt thatthey were liars, not realizing the lying hadalready taken place from the mouths ofthe governing Liberal party. When Iwould ask someone if they would sharehow they voted the quote would be “I al-ways vote Liberal because my mother andfather always voted Liberal so I’ll continueto do so”. Yes, believe it or not in manydiscussions I’ve heard, this is a commonexcuse for not defeating the government.I guess it’s better the devil you know.

That’s what I mean by “speakingwith one voice”. If all we are willing todo is make threats via our anglers andhunters groups, all we can expect is moreof the same.

The second most used excuse for notvoting the government out is “my votewouldn’t count anyway, I’m just one per-son”. Well that is a sad statement.

As a block of voters, hunters and an-glers could, if they put their energies to-gether, become the single most influencialvoice in the province.

I recently spoke to a person in Natu-ral Resources in Halifax about the changeover from the Hunter Firearms Card (or-ange card) to the new Wildlife ResourcesCard. The change was needed to weedout from the 250,000 names in their sys-tem who are still the hunters in the prov-ince.

The old orange cards didn’t have anexpiry date. Therefore, anyone in the sys-tem stayed in the system. People whohave passed away, military and RCMPpersonnel who once served here andmoved away to other provinces, and thosewho decided not to participate in the sportany longer remained on the books asqualified or trained hunters.

At this point in the change over,some 64,000 people have already re-quested their new cards to keep themselvescurrent. The card is free to hunters sim-ply by calling 1-888-729-2917 up untilthe end of 2005. After that, there will bea charge. Future five-year renewals of thecard will also cost about $5 to $6.

But I digress ... 64,000 hunters (andcounting) represents 7 percent of the pro-vincial population, a group larger than

many single interest groups in the prov-ince.

Political pundits will tell you that asimple swing of 4 percent in most ridingswill swing the vote.

However, what it comes right downto is getting those 7 percent out of thetree stands to the polls to get the job done.

I hate getting phone calls from hunt-ers who are suffering from the effects ofthis firearm legislation. Most of them areseniors. I know that it has torn the verysoul out of good men and women whowill not hunt fearing that they may begoing something wrong and don’t wantto go through the embarrassment of get-ting a wildlife ticket. In most cases, it’sjust their imagination, but in many moreit’s real because they chose not to licensethemselves.

It’s not only the question about the$2 billion waste on the firearms laws thathave to challenged at the polls; there areother pieces of legislation. Bill C 50, thegovernment’s animal cruelty bill, is beingdebated in the house now. The govern-ment is trying to send it to the commit-tee before debating it at second reading.This has the ability to have all changesmade in committee and returned to thehouse for second and third readings. Thechanges may be harmful to us because theagendas of the anti hunting/fur-farmingcrowd is being heard in committee.

Lead sinker legislation, endangeredspecies legislation, explosives legislation(affects black powder hunters) are all fed-eral issues that will have an impact on thefuture of angling and hunting.

In Nova Scotia we have the proposed

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6 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

Habitat Conservation Projects ApprovedDepartment of Natural Resources

Projects that will help restore plantand flora habitat and help protect the ro-seate tern and river otter are among the14 wildlife conservation projects approvedfor a total of almost $106,000 in fundingunder the province’s Habitat Conserva-tion Fund this year.

The fund — which is generatedthrough the required purchase of a $2wildlife habitat stamp on all hunting li-censes in Nova Scotia — is designed tohelp finance projects that protect and en-hance wildlife habitats.

Projects can receive up to 75 per centon a cost-shared basis, to a maximum of$25,000, but must fall into one of fourcategories: purchase of land for the ben-efit of wildlife, habitat improvement,wildlife habitat research and related edu-cation programs.

“Hunters in Nova Scotia support thisfund, that is used to sustain our wildlifeand wildlife habitat,” said RichardHurlburt, Minister of Natural Resources.“All of the funds collected are used di-rectly for habitat conservation.”

Since the program was initiated in2001, almost $500,000 has been directedto wildlife conservation.

The project applications are reviewedand recommendations are made by anindependent board of directors consist-ing of members from hunting, naturalistand academic associations.

The fund has been getting more re-quests each year and many worthy projectsgo unfunded. As a result, the fund’s board

of directors requested an increase in thefee for the wildlife habitat stamp from $2to $3. The change will be effective for thisfall’s hunting season.

Applications for the 2006 HabitatConservation Fund can be submitted tothe Department of Natural Resources,wildlife division, between Dec. 1, 2005and Jan. 31, 2006. Submission guidelinesand application forms can be obtainedfrom any Department of Natural Re-sources office or on the website atwww.gov.ns.ca/natr/wildlife/habfund<http://www.gov.ns.ca/natr/wildlife/habfund> .

Information on the 2005 recipientsand on past projects is also available onthis website.

Successful projects and recipients offunding for 2005 are:

— Small Marsh Restoration in An-napolis Valley, Ducks Unlimited

— Mercury in River Otter, SarahSpencer

— Mahone Bay Roseate TernHabitat Recovery Project, BluenoseCoastal Action Foundation

— Woodcock Habitat Enhance-ment Project, Woodcock ConservationSociety

— Coastlines Natural History Col-

umn, Ecology Action Centre— Habitat Friendly Farming,

Clean Annapolis River Project— Plants on the Edge: Securement

and Stewardship of Atlantic Coastal PlainFlora Habitat (Phase 2), Nova Scotia Na-ture Trust

— Kings County Riparian FencingProject, Friends of the Cornwallis RiverSociety

— Wildlife and forage-quality ben-efits of a late-maturing hay cultivar, SorenBondrup-Nielsen

— Conservation of criticallakeshore habitat in the Tusket River wa-tershed, Sara Good-Avila

— Community EducationThrough Awareness, Cape Sable Impor-tant Bird Area Committee

— The utility of eastern pipistrellesas indicators of landscape level change atlarge spatial and temporal scales, HughBroders

— Adopt-A-Class Wetland Educa-tion Project, Ducks Unlimited

— Role of Riparian Buffers in For-est Bird Conservation, Cindy Staicer.�

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Nova Outdoors 7Winter 2005

Do

n C

amer

on

A Walk in the WoodsHow much have we progressed,and will we learn from the past?

“Each time history repeats itself, theprice goes up.”

—Ronald Wright

Not a daygoes by whensomeone doesn’tmake referenceto the question-able things thatwe do to ourplanet. Our so-ciety has been

very hard on the natural environment,especially in recent times.

This past spring while enjoying someof my favourite Appleton chocolates, I wasgiven a book to read during the relaxedsummer season. After discussing thetrends of our recent history Allan felt thatI would enjoy it - A Short History ofProgress by Ronald Wright. The book iswritten based on the Massey Lectures Se-ries, co-sponsored by CBC Radio and hasaired on the radio show “Ideas” series inNovember, 2004.

The book takes a critical look at pastcivilizations, with respect to how theytreated their natural environment - andeach other - and what ultimately hap-pened to them. Wright describes thehuman history as an ongoing experimentthat is moving very quickly on a colossalscale. For instance, in less than a centurythe world’s population has multiplied byfour. Its economy - a reflection of thehuman impact on nature - has increasedby more than 40. He argues that we must

bring the experiment under control toguard against present and future dangers.Since we have the power to make the nec-essary decisions, it is up to us. If we failto do so, we could likely blow it up ordegrade the biosphere so it can no longersustain us. As Wright states, “Nature willmerely shrug and conclude that lettingapes run the laboratory was fun for a whilebut in the end, a bad idea.”

The book sadly acknowledges thatthus far mankind has caused so many ex-tinctions of various plants and animals,that our time on earth will appear in thefossil record as similar to the effect of anasteroid collision. If we keep going onthe road we have been travelling for thelast 100 years or so, the long term effectwill be much worse, perhaps similar tothe large asteroid that brought the dino-saurs to their knees.

Did you ever stop to think how for-tunate we are to be living in this modernera? When one considers all the obstacles,dangers and possibilities of the past forour forefathers not surviving, it is trulyincredible that we are some of the luckysurvivors. History has shown that, in gen-eral, nice folk didn’t usually survive inearlier, more dangerous times. Wrightstates the case that, “We are at best theheirs of many ruthless victories and atworst, the heirs of genocide. We may wellbe descended from humans who repeat-edly exterminated rival humans - culmi-nating in the suspicious death of our Ne-anderthal cousins some 30,000 years ago.”

The use of the land for feeding our-selves started roughly 10,000 years ago.Environmental conditions have been rela-tively stable over that period of time whichhas made it possible for the evolution of

agriculture to occurso that it could feedthe expansion ofcivilization.

Before this pe-riod of time theearth’s climatewould sometimes

fluctuate wildly - breaking from an ice age,or plunging into one - not over centuriesbut in decades. Since that time, humanshave been making the most of the goodgrowing and living conditions, despite thefew blips along the way such as huge vol-canic eruptions which have blocked sun-light for extended periods.

Our civilization would be better offwith a stable climate. However, scienceis showing us how we are upsetting theenvironmental balance which seems to behaving detrimental impacts. Throughfossil fuel emissions and other man-causeddisturbances, we are causing the break upof ice sheets at both poles and the thaw-ing of glaciers in the tallest mountainchains. Droughts and unusually hotweather, intermingled with damaginghurricanes and floods, has caused worldgrain output to fall or stagnate for nearlya decade. During that same period of timethe world population increased by 800million. If we completely upset the cli-matic balance - back to what it was like10,000 years ago - of extreme highs andlows - crops will fail everywhere, and sowill we.

The last sabre tooth tiger; the lastmammoth; the last dodo; and soon per-haps the last gorilla and fish. As Wrightviews it, “on the basis of what police call“form,” we are serial killers beyond rea-son.”

Although there are many examplesof previous civilizations crashing due totheir own greed or poor decisions of thepast, he asks if we are doomed for he same.He strongly feels that we must learn fromprevious civilizations to not repeat simi-lar mistakes. Whether it be poor farmingpractices causing repeated soil erosion,overuse of soil, livestock denuding oncelush landscape, or polluting once cleanwaters, there are innumerable things tobe learned from previous civilizations.

As time goes by the potential conse-quence of our inaction grows in severity.As Wright points out, “the collapse of thefirst civilization on earth - the Sumerian -affected only half a million people. Thefall of the Roman Empire affected tens of

millions. If ourswere to fail, it wouldof course, bring ca-tastrophe onbillions.�

Don Cameron is aRegisteredProfessionalForester.

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8 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

Individuals Charged Under Endangered Species ActNova Scotia Department of NaturalResources

Eight people will appear in provin-cial court in December to answer tocharges of hunting mainland moose.

The charges are the result of a focusedinvestigation by Department of NaturalResources’ conservation officers to pro-tect mainland moose, which were declaredan endangered species in 2003.

“Officers gathered intelligence oncomplaints and suspected illegal moose-hunting activities, which resulted in adetailed project entitled Operation Cross-road,” said Natural Resources enforce-ment director John Mombourquette.“Twelve officers from across the provincehave been working on this operation formore than two years.”

Illegal harvesting of mainland mooseis believed to be one of the primary fac-

tors in the diminishing size of the herd inNova Scotia.

Six of the individuals charged arefrom Guysborough County, one is fromPictou County and one is fromCumberland County.

A conviction under the EndangeredSpecies Act can carry a fine of up to$500,000 and a prison term of up to sixmonths. �

All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) changes andmany people calling for the banning ofATVs in all parks and protected places.

All of the Wilderness Protected ar-eas were to have their own individualmanagement plans in order to address theconcerns of everyone involved. The lo-cals in which the area is located shouldhave a chance to express this point of viewon how that area should be used. It’s tooeasy to sit in Halifax and say keep ATVsout.

This legislation has been in placesince 1998 and only two of the 32 areashave had any sort of work done on themanagement plans. I hope governmentdoesn’t believe that those two will be tem-plates for all of the rest of the sites. Thoseshoes may not fit.

As an example of why it is impera-tive that these plans be developed soon isthe Cape Breton Highlands, where block-ing the use of ATVs in the highlands willhave a negative impact on the whole en-vironment up there.

Because of the large numbers ofmoose in the highlands, many of the pro-tected areas are being eaten to the groundby these very large herbivores. ATVs areneeded by hunters to get into these re-mote areas to harvest moose so that thenumber of animals doesn’t grow too greatto exceed its carrying capacity of the land.If ATVs are stopped from getting in then

get ready for a drop in hunter participa-tion in those areas and a predicted increaseof moose and a further decline in the habi-tat. That does not make for wise use ofthe resource.

I agree you have to control wherethese ATVs can go, but that is what amanagement plan would do. Managethose questions. Again, this is just oneexample.

I’m cautious of actions done for myown good, that’s why I’ll never stop ques-tioning these good intentions.

It’s once again time for the speech.Join political parties and participate intheir meetings. Make sure you and yoursport are being heard at the grass roots.Help them develop and make policy.

Get involved with your local anglersand hunters club. The same goes for help-ing them develop positions that help boththe environment/wildlife and protect yourhunting and angling opportunities.

Hunting and angling clubs should bethe front lines on the defense of your sportat the local level ensuring that municipalgovernments are not trying to enact by-laws that will negatively impact you, butif you’re not inside you can’t have yoursay.

These clubs for the most part spendtheir time doing positive things for na-ture and looking out for lies being spreadby the anti-hunting groups that will harmyour participation in angling and hunt-ing.

There will be plenty of fights aheadfor all of us with people who seek to endour sports so it’s important we spend ourenergies on them. Hunters arguing withother hunters over anything like equip-ment used or the species they hunt worksonly into the hands of the antis.

Please be careful during the rest ofthe hunting season and stick up for yoursport. Hunters and Anglers pay for con-servation in Canada and we have no rea-son to hide in the shadows about it. I’ma proud angler and hunter and I hope youare too. �

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Executive Directors Voice...Continued from page 5

Nova Outdoors 9Winter 2005

Random CastsGreat White Sharks

By Don MacLean

The report of an angler hooking a whiteshark off the coast of Antigonish last sum-mer has renewed interest in this species. Eversince the movie Jaws shocked theater goers30 years ago with its story of a great whiteshark terrorizing a seaside town, this fish hasfascinated people like no other.

White sharks, or as they are commonlyknown, great whites, are found throughout

the world and, contrary to their name, onlytheir belly is white, the rest of their body isgray or black. White sharks have been re-ported off the coast of the four Atlantic prov-inces but are not often found near our coast-line. The fish off Antigonish was an excep-tion but other white sharks have also beencaught or reported over the years. One fish,five meters in length, was caught in a netoff Prince Edward Island in 1983. Otherwhite sharks have been caught in the Bay ofFundy and one attacked a dory off Fourchuon Cape Breton Island in 1953 which leadto the drowning of a fisherman. That fish,

which became known as the FourchuRammer, was never caught but was identi-fied from teeth left in the wood of the dory.

Great whites can tolerate wide rangesin water temperature from near Arctic con-ditions to sub-tropical and are found inwaters with depths ranging from the sur-face down to over 1,000 meters as they pur-sue food. These big fish do not usually comeclose to our shoreline except in the summerand fall when they are attracted by plentifulfood such as herring and mackerel. Whitesharks prey on a variety of food items suchas salmon, hake, halibut, mackerel and tunaas well as harbour porpoises and seals. How-ever, they have also been known to eat othersharks, sea turtles and sea birds. One whiteshark, caught off Deer Island in the Bay ofFundy in 1971, was found to have threeporpoises, all with their tails bitten off, inits stomach.

Great whites can reach some impres-sive sizes, especially off the coast of Austra-lia, where fish up to eight meters in lengthhave been reported. The average size forthis fish, however, is around four meters. Ashark that size would weigh around 1,500lbs. White sharks are believed to be fairlyslow growing, long lived fish. Females ma-ture around 12 years of age and give birthto up to 14 pups at a time.

They are such infrequent visitors toour shores that every report raises quite abit of interest but the chances of ever en-countering one are extremely rare. How-ever, the fact that they are so rare adds totheir appeal, at least it does to me. In theirbook on marine fishes of Atlantic Canadaauthors, Scott and Scott described thewhite shark as follows: “A large, roving,solitary predator whose overall biology,including regular movements or migra-tions, is not well known.” The fact thatwe know so little about this great fish addsto their mystery. �

Tight Lines

Don MacLean is a Nova Scotiabiologist who writes on sportfishingtopics. His book, Discover NovaScotia Sportfishing, was published in2003.©2005 Don MacLean.

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10 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

Winter BOW, Come out Fishing!By Tara Crandlemere

Becoming an Outdoors-Woman(BOW®) is a workshop primarily aimedat women and is an opportunity for any-one 18 years or older to learn outdoorskills - skills usually associated with hunt-ing and fishing, but useful for many out-door pursuits.

BOW® is active in most states andprovinces. It was started in 1991 in re-sponse to the recognition that barriersexist, which discourage women from par-ticipating in some outdoor activities. Allsessions are at an introductory level andequipment is provided. Instructors arespecifically chosen for their experience andability to create a comfortable and funlearning environment.

The popularity of the Becoming anOutdoors-Woman® workshop continuesto grow. Since 1997, we have had morethan 450 women participate in one ormore workshops. Now we have morethan 1000 women in the database. Theprogram’s partners are Nova Scotia De-partment of Natural Resources, NovaScotia Department of Agriculture andFisheries, Nova Scotia Health Promotion,Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers andHunters and Cross Country Ski NovaScotia.

We had a very successful fall work-shop this year and are preparing for thewinter BOW® in Cape Breton. The win-ter BOW workshop will be held at theNova Scotia Gaelic College of Arts andCrafts in St. Ann’s on February 17-19,2006. Some of the winter workshopclasses are ice fishing, cross country ski-ing, winter camping, wild edibles in win-

ter, winter travel, and winter tracking andsurvival.

Winter angling opportunities inNova Scotia are endless. For those wholove the outdoors, ice fishing is an idealwinter sport. In response to a growinginterest in the provinces’ wintersportfishery the Nova Scotia Departmentof Agriculture and Fisheries has contin-ued to expand winter angling opportuni-ties in the province for stocked rainbowtrout, chain pickerel, white and yellowperch.

A recent survey on sportfishing inCanada found that Nova Scotia anglersspend an average of 9.5 days angling dur-ing the winter; the highest in the coun-try. Fishing licenses for 2005 are validuntil March 31, 2006. The bag limit forrainbow trout during the winter fisheryis two (2) per day, and for chain pickerel,white and yellow perch, twenty-five (25),per day.

If you have never experienced the funice fishing brings, sign up for the WinterBOW® program and learn at an introduc-tory level: angling gear required for icefishing, how to make a hole in the ice,winter fishing seasons, species targeted,bag limits and safety procedures whengoing onto ice, proper footwear and cloth-ing.

The program runs from the eveningof Friday February 17, 2006 to 1 p.m. onSunday February 19, 2006 at the NSGaelic College of Celtic Arts and Craftson St. Ann’s Bay, Cape Breton, NovaScotia. The college is situated on a beau-tiful, wooded peninsula, jutting into St.

Ann’s Harbour. The facility provides acomfortable retreat after a winter day out-side, complete with a warm meal andcrackling fire.

Cost is $199.00. The fee includes,three classes with equipment, all mealsand accommodations for the weekend.Some partial scholarships are available.

Please inquire for more details by contact-ing Krista McLarty at (902) [email protected] or TaraCrandlemere at (902) 485-7028.�

Tara Crandlemere is a FisheriesTechnician with the Nova ScotiaDepartment of Agriculture andFisheries, Inland Fisheries Division inPictou, NS.

(Photos courtesy of the Nova Scotia Departmentof Agriculture and Fisheries)

Photo above shows a Family ice fishing.

Little boy ice fishing.

Little girl ice fishing.

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Nova Outdoors 11Winter 2005

Nova Scotia Bats: Numbers, Behavior And VulnerabilityBy Hugh Broders

Although often a maligned group ofanimals, bats are fascinating to those whospend the time to learn about their uniqueecology and experience their mastery ofthe night. The 1,000 or so bat speciesworldwide encompasses a huge biologi-cal diversity. Body sizes range from the 2g bumblebee bat of Thailand, the small-est known mammal in the world, to the1.5 kg flying foxes with a wingspan of upto 5-6 feet. Diet of the various speciesinclude fruit, nectar, fish, frogs, rodentsand blood, but most species, including allthose in Nova Scotia feed on insects. Batscan live a long time. For example, to datethe maximum recorded lifespan of thelittle brown bat, which weighs approxi-mately as much as a toonie, is 34 years.

Here in Nova Scotia, there have beenseven species of bat recorded but prob-ably only 3-4 of these have significant andregular summer populations. Herein Iwill attempt to provide some insight intowhat my students and I have learned aboutthe numbers, distribution, behavior andvulnerability of these species in NovaScotia over the last few years.

During the summer months bats re-plenish fat reserves depleted during hiber-nation, reproduce and prepare for theupcoming winter. Because of the inhos-pitable nature of our winters (cold with

no food) it is not possible for the bats ofour region to remain active during thistime. As a group, local bat species have 2strategies to cope with these conditions:move to warmer climates as is done bymany birds (i.e., migrate) or build up fatreserves and move to a suitable cave ormine and hibernate. Unlike the amountof information we have on bird migra-tion, relatively little is known about mi-gration for bat species that make the longflights. Several important cave and minesites that are used as hibernacula have beenidentified in Nova Scotia, but we feelmany such sites remain to be discovered.Important hibernacula may contain thou-sands of bats during the winter, and atthis time they are very vulnerable to hu-man disturbance. Destruction of the sitecould lead to instant mortality of all indi-

viduals. A more subtle and common formof disturbance is caused by people visit-ing hibernacula. Such visits may awakenbats causing them to use valuable fat re-serves that they need to survive the win-ter and therefore increasing the probabil-ity that they will not survive until spring.

The speciesThe species that most everyone sees

flying over the local waterways, aroundstreetlights and maybe emerging from theattics of older buildings at dusk (and ifyou are up, entering at dawn) is most

likely to be the little brown bat. It is ageneralist bat meaning that it feeds in avariety of habitats on many insect types.They roost (spend the day) in attics, un-der shingles, and many other human-cre-ated structures as well as in trees (underbark, in cavities, etc.). During the sum-mer, female little brown bats form ma-ternity colonies of up to 200-300 indi-viduals in attics, tree cavities, etc. wherethey each give birth to, and care for theirsingle pup. Males roost solitarily duringthe summer and do not seem to assist inthe rearing of young. Starting aroundmid-August bats will begin to leave sum-mering areas for hibernacula where theywill mate and continue to put on fat re-serves. Although mating occurs in the fall,sperm is stored over winter and the egg isnot fertilized until the following spring.Most adults that we capture at the en-trance to hibernacula are in good bodycondition. Juveniles however, are oftenvery scrawny (skin on bones) and we of-ten capture them when it is very cold andthere are few, if any insects visible. Rarelywere adults active during such times. Itseems likely that these juveniles were at-tempting to make the best of a dire situa-tion- they are “dammed if they do anddammed if they don’t”, so to speak. Ifthey don’t hunt they probably won’t haveenough fat reserves to make it until spring,but if they do hunt the likelihood of suc-cess is low and they are going to be usingvaluable energy in the process. I expectthat over winter mortality of first yearanimals is really high.

Previously believed to be rare in NovaScotia the northern long-eared bat num-bers seem to rival those of the little brownbat. Although, to the untrained eye theirappearance might seem similar to the littlebrown bat, ecologically it is very differ-ent. The northern long-eared bat is a for-est dependent species that is adept at navi-gating through our “cluttered” forests incomplete darkness. They hunt for flyingmoths, beetles and other insects but alsoglean their prey from vegetation. Theyseem to roost exclusively in trees. Likelittle brown bats, males are solitary andtypically roost under loose bark, and fe-males form maternity colonies of up to80-100 individuals in tree cavities. Pre-liminary insights from ongoing researchon a single large maternity colony at Dol-lar Lake Provincial Park with MSc candi-

Shown here is Lucifugus perched on a finger.

Continued on page 14

12 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

First Annual Fundraising Banquet A SuBy Tony Rodgers

The Federation would like to thankthe following companies and individuals formaking our first banquet a huge success.Next year’s date has already been picked -September 14, 2006. Watch for details.

We would like to thank the following:AIL Canada InsuranceAtlantic Audio ProAtlantic Fly Fishing SchoolBell & GrantBig Game Society of Nova ScotiaBluenose LongbeardsBob Bancroft and Alice ReedBob Mangott - ACLBrian OsgoodBritish Columbia Wildlife AssociationBug-Me-NotChef Ray BearDairy Queen - Bayers LakeDave GreenwoodEarl and Sheila YoungDelta Waterfowlers - local chapterDon MacLeanDusan KadlecEastern Woods & WatersEric ThompsonEvelyn RodgersFarmland Outfitters

Goodwood Family Golf Centre - StevenMavonGrohman KnivesHalifax Fire & Emergency ServiceHalifax Regional MunicipalityHalifax Regional Search and RescueJD’s Shooting and Fishing SuppliesJim LawleyJoanne SolwayJohn and Cindy KingwellKings County Wildlife AssociationLightsmith Photography & FramingLewis HinksMike BonangNational Wild Turkey FederationNoel Shore Game Protection AssociationNorth Saskatchewan Outfitting Ltd.Nova BassmastersNova OutdoorsNova Scotia Department ofAgriculture & FisheriesNova Scotia Department of Environment& LabourNova Scotia Department of Natural Re-sourcesPetersbrook Outdoor ProductsPrivateers Harley-DavidsonQueen’s County Fish & Game AssociationRobert Moore - Pastaman Wholesale

Nova Outdoors 13Winter 2005

A Success

Saskatchewan Wildlife AssociationScotia Fuels Ltd.Sherman HinesShelburne County Fish & GameAssociationShubenacadie River Runners Ltd.

St. Mary’s River SmokehousesT.D. Canada TrustTrail Blazer Outdoor Products

Photos courtesy of W.J. Woods,Lightsmith Photography.

14 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

date Colin Garroway suggests that acolony uses dozens of trees over the courseof the summer, with tree characteristicsused varying with time of year (which isrelated to varying weather conditions andreproductive status). This, combinedwith results from my previous researchefforts, suggests that to maintain localpopulations of this species we require,generally, diverse forests with lots of treesof varying conditions (size, species, decaycondition) with cavities.

In the summer of 2001 I docu-mented a significant concentration of east-ern pipistrelle bats in Kejimkujik NationalPark. Although this species had previ-ously been recorded in the province thisconcentration came as a bit of a surprise.Since that time we have studied this popu-lation in greater detail. Generally, ourresearch to date suggests that the localpopulation is small (I predict fewer than2000 females), geographically restrictedand they appear different from otherpopulations of the same species. MSccandidate Greg Quinn studied the ecol-ogy of the species in Kejimkujik NationalPark and discovered that in the park dur-ing the summer the population consistsalmost entirely of females and that femalesform maternity colonies of 3-15 individu-als in old mans beard lichen. FormerHonours student Lisa Rockwell and cur-rent MSc candidate Lesley Corning havedetermined that their provincial summerrange is restricted to southwest NovaScotia and Lesley is currently examiningthe factors that affect the provincial dis-tribution of the species. Based on the

work to date I predict their abundancewill be dependent upon the presence ofmature low-lying softwood forests that areproximal to rivers and/or lakes. Althoughwe predict that the species does hibernatein the region and we have recorded a fewindividuals at hibernacula it seems wehave yet to identify a significant hiber-nacula for this species.

The only other bat species that mayhave a regular summer population in theprovince is the Hoary bat. The hoary batis the largest of the bats that occur inCanada at around 30 g. It is a migratoryspecies that we have recorded at a num-ber of sites throughout the province. Itappears that they are low in numbers andtheir occurrence is widespread. We arenot yet able to determine if they have aresident population that returns to theprovince year after year, or if individualsthat occur here are those that wander fromthe intended migration course and findthemselves beyond the species normalrange. If the latter is the case we wouldexpect that there is year-to-year turnoverin the local individuals and high between-year variability in local population size.

The other species that have been re-corded here in the province include thered bat, silver-haired bat and big brownbat. Our research suggests that these spe-cies do not have any regular or significantpopulations here in the province and pre-vious records were likely from vagrants,beyond the normal range of their species.

Pipostrelle in moss hanging from a tree.

ConclusionsBats are an abundant and fascinat-

ing group of animals that appeals to na-ture enthusiasts worldwide. From a con-servation perspective, population sizes ofmany species have experienced dramaticreductions in size due to human-createdalterations in the ecosystem structure.Here in Nova Scotia there are at least 2species, the northern long-eared bat andthe eastern pipistrelle bat, that are depen-dent on mature, but different forest con-ditions. It is possible that we can use therelationship of certain bat species to ma-ture forest conditions as an indicator orforest landscape ‘health’. There are amyriad of other species that are also de-pendent upon similar forest conditions.Therefore, by gauging the presence and/or abundance of certain bat species wecan determine how successful currentmanagement practices are for maintain-ing local biodiversity.

If you have any questions about batsa very reputable source of information isthe Bat Conservation Internationalwebsite at www.batcon.org.

I am very thankful to those organi-

zations that support our research. My re-search program on bats here in NovaScotia has been supported by the NovaScotia Habitat Conservation Fund, ParksCanada, Mersey Tobeatic Research In-stitute, Natural Sciences and Engineer-ing Research Council of Canada andSaint Mary’s University.�

Nova Scotia Bats...Continued from page 13.

Above image shows Pipistrelle clinging to rock face. (photos courtesy of Hugh Broders)

Nova Outdoors 15Winter 2005

WITHOUT WETLANDS, CAN WE KEEP THE TRADITION

ALIVE?

Become a member of DUC now. Call us toll-free at 1-866-384-DUCK

or visit www.ducks.ca.

Hunters who are conservationists support Ducks UnlimitedCanada (DUC). Wildlife need Nova Scotia’s wetlands and weneed your help to conserve them. Up to 70 per cent arealready gone in settled areas of Canada.

Invest in wetlands today, and keep the tradition alive.

With a $35 DUC membership, you’llbe contributing much-needed dol-lars to conserve Nova Scotia’s wet-land habitats. As a DUC memberyou’ll receive a one-year member-ship, subscription to DUC’s quarterlyConservator magazine, plus twoFREE gifts—a handy sportscaribiner and a waterfowl identifi-cation guide. Refer to special offercode N005.

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$527 Million Wasted On Gun RegistryComputer Contracts“Will it take the Auditor Generalor a ‘Gomery’ to find out why itcost so much?”

Recently, Garry Breitkreuz, MP forYorkton-Melville and Conservative Fire-arms Critic, released a 14-page documentlisting more than $527 million in com-puter contracts issued by the Canada Fire-arms Centre since 1997. The 133 con-tracts and contract amendments were is-sued to five companies. “How can thegun registry computer systems possiblycost more than half a billion dollars?”asked Breitkreuz. “The size of these num-

bers never ceases to amaze me. After all,it cost only $8 million to register 40 mil-lion cows and that registry actuallyworks.”

The documents (see link below) ob-tained through an Access to InformationAct request show the following:

• SHL & EDS Systemhouse: 13 contractstotaling$ 39.2 Million

• EDS Canada Inc: 62 contracts totaling$150.5 Million

• BDP Business Data Services: 20contracts totaling$17.4 Million

• CGI Information Systems: 29 contractstotaling$ 2.0 Million

• TEAM CENTRA (CGI & BDP): 5contracts totaling$318.2 Million

“This isn’t all the computer con-tracts, but these are the biggest players inthe gun registration scheme,” saidBreitkreuz. “Major sub-contractors onthe project include Bell, NexInnovations,Aliant and Compaq, but we don’t knowthe total value of their contracts yet.”

“This has the potential to be an evenbigger scandal than Adscam. We hopethe Auditor General will answer many ofour fiscal questions when she tables thefinancial update of the firearms fiasco inFebruary. Failing that, I’m afraid it’s go-ing to take another public enquiry to getto the bottom of this mess,” concludedBreitkreuz.�

Canada Firearms Centre 14-PageATI Response – File: A-2005-0035http://www.garrybreitkreuz.com/publications/2005_new/29.pdf

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16 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

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Study to Investigate Impact of ChronicWasting Disease on HumansBinghamton University, StateUniversity of New York

Researchers at Binghamton Uni-versity have a first-ever opportunityto determine if Chronic Wasting Dis-ease (CWD) in deer can be spread tohumans who ingest “infected” meat.

Ralph M. Garruto, professor ofb iomedica l anthropology a tBinghamton University, State Univer-sity of New York, is heading up astudy to monitor the health implica-tions of a group of people who areknown to have consumed venison in-fected with CWD. Recently discov-ered in both wild and captive deerherds in New York, CWD is similarto mad cow disease in that it concen-trates in the spinal cord and brain andis caused by a virtually indestructiblemutated protein called a prion. “Wedon’t know if CWD can be transmit-ted to humans,” said Garruto. “So thisgroup, some of whom we know forsure ate infected meat, offers us aunique opportunity. I’m hoping thestudy will allow us to determine if thisdisease can affect humans in the sameway mad cow disease has been shownto cause neurological disease in thosewho consume infected beef.”

The study focuses on a group ofpeople who attended a Sportman’sfeast in Verona, NY, earlier this year.It is known that at least some of theattendees, all of whom were offered avariety of entree choices, consumedvenison from a deer infected withCWD. Upon hearing of the dinner,Garruto approached the OneidaCounty Health Department (OCHD)to determine if they would assist in ascientific examination of the peoplewho ate the meat.

“Although not everyone involved

was particularly concerned or fearful,it is important for us to protect thehealth of all county residents,” saidKen Fanelli, OCHD representative.“Professor Garruto’s study is a proac-tive response to determining what, ifany, will be the long-term health ef-fects, which is one of our most im-portant responsibilities.”

Over 50 individuals have alreadyindicated their interest in being partof the study that will involve an ini-tial interview and completion of aquestionnaire to help assess risk, in-cluding the role played by individu-als at the dinner, what they ate, theirplace of residence, occupation, medi-cal history and other activities. Thestudy will monitor the health of theparticipants over a period of six years.No invasive testing will be performedand identities will be kept strictly con-fidential.

“The people who take part in thisproject can be assured that every mea-sure will be taken to ensure their pri-vacy,” said Garruto. “Their contribu-tion is vital to the success of this ‘firstof its kind’ research that may holdworldwide significance in the study ofCWD and similar prion diseases.”

CWD was first discovered inColorado in 1967 and has since beendocumented in several Rocky Moun-tain and Midwest states. This year,New York State became the first statewest of the Mississippi t report CWDin both privately owned and wild deerherds found in par t s o f OneidaCounty. Most recently in September,West Virginia reported its first casesof the disease. How the disease isspread from deer-to-deer and how itmay impact the environment in whichinfected animals graze is unclear.

“We’re looking at an issue that

could have multiple impacts,” saidGarruto. “Human health and keepingthe food supply is of primary concern.But we also have to monitor how tokeep this epidemic from spreadingamong deer and across species, fromdeer to cattle, both of which couldhave huge economic as well as healthimplications.”

Garruto notes that although aprion disease appears to be transmit-ted through direct animal-to-animalcontact and/or indirect exposure, in-cluding contaminated water, soil andbrouze by saliva, urine and feces, it isstill unclear as to how it’s transmit-ted.

“CWD demands a lot more atten-tion than it’s been getting,” saysGarruto. “Too little research has beendone so far to be sure humans can’tcontract the disease and we do notknow if transmission from deer tocattle who share the same grazing landis possible. This is an important miss-ing link as cow to human cross-spe-cies transmission does take place, evi-denced by the mad cow and variantCreutzfeldt Jacob Disease epidemicsin Europe. This study will give ussome solid conclusions and allow usto determine how to manage therisks.”

Binghamton University is one ofthe four university centers of the StateUniversity of New York. Known forthe excellence of its students, faculty,staff and programs, Binghamton en-rolls about 14,000 students in pro-grams leading to bachelor’s, mastersand doctoral degrees. Its curriculum,founded in the liberal arts, has ex-panded to include selected profes-sional and graduate programs.�

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Nova Outdoors 17Winter 2005

New Logo for NSFAHBy Tony Rodgers

As readers of Nova Outdoors, you have undoubtedly no-ticed that the Federation’s logo has been changed and is nowfeatured in all areas of the magazine.

Our old logo was actually shared with one of our mem-ber clubs, The Halifax Wildlife Association. They are theregistered owners of that logo and a number of years ago askedthe Federation if we would find another logo so that theycould use it exclusively.

The Federation began a quest for a new logo and aftersome deliberation and searching we settled on a design byGraham Whiteman of Dartmouth.

The Osprey is Nova Scotia’s official bird and is now ourofficial logo. It is both a hunter and an angler and will be dis-played on all Federation letterhead, envelopes, hats and banners.

We wish to thank everyone that submitted suggestionsfor the new emblem and congratulate the NSFAH Board ofDirectors on its selection.

5502

6L

Official Opposition NDP Critic for Natural Resources

John MacDonellMLA - Hants East

Tel: 1-902-883-7308Toll Free: 1-888-827-2212

Fax: 1-902-883-7627Email: [email protected]

P.O. Box 330, 202 Hwy #2, Unit 5,Enfield, N.S. B2T 1C8

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Darrell Dexter, MLADartmouth - Cole Harbour

971 Cole Harbour Rd., Dartmouth,NS B2V 1E8Phone: 462-5300 / Fax: 462-5306

Constituency Office:

Suite 1001, Centennial Building,1660 Hollis St.Box 1617, Halifax, NS B3J 2Y3Phone: 424-4134 / Fax: 424-0504

Caucus Office:

email: [email protected] www.ndpcaucus.ns.ca

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Hon. Robert ThibaultMember of Parliament / Député

West Nova / Ouest Nova

Édifice de l’Ouest,pièce 259Ottawa (Ontario)B5A 4P4Tél: (613) 995-5711Téléc: (613) [email protected]

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Man’s Best Friend’s Worst EnemyFall is here and the crisp air and chang-

ing colours mean that we want to spend evenmore quality time outdoors with our caninecompanions. However, this season also bringsa risk for both dogs and their human fami-lies: leptospirosis.

What is leptospirosis?Leptospirosis is a serious and potentially

fatal bacterial disease which attacks a dog’sliver and kidneys, causing irreversible dam-age and organ failure. Symptoms to watchfor include fever, vomiting, lethargy, abdomi-nal pain and increased urination.

In the past year, reported cases of lep-tospirosis have increased across Canada andthe United States. Although treatment ispossible, the disease is extremely difficult todetect. This means that by the time lep-tospirosis has been diagnosed, it may alreadybe too late.

How is it spread?There are several strains of the lep-

tospirosis bacteria. The disease is carried bywild animals such as raccoons and squirrelsand is transmitted to dogs when they comeinto contact with the infected animal’s flu-ids.

For example, urine found in bodies ofstill water, like puddles, can be ingested by athirsty pup out for a walk or playing in hisback yard. Your dog can also catch leptospiro-sis from contact with an infected dog, and itcan be passed to people through urine andsaliva. For this reason, it’s important to en-courage your pet to show affection withoutgiving kisses near your mouth.

We live in the city. Is my dog safe?City dogs are just as likely to contract

leptospirosis as rural ones. Through urbandevelopment, wildlife in Canada has beendisplaced and, more than ever, tends to livein cities. Squirrels can be found in most ofour favourite walking spots, from parks toside streets. Raccoons thrive in cities andboldly go through Fido’s domain to get to

his food dish or a garbage can.Rainfall helps create the ideal conditions

for the leptospirosis bacteria to flourish. Re-cent flooding in the Prairies and Maritimesand heavy rainfalls in Quebec means thatthese regions are particularly vulnerable toleptospirosis.

What should I do to protect mypooch?

Talk to your veterinarian about vacci-nation which is the best way to prevent thisserious disease. Ask for a vaccine such asLeptoVax 4, which offers the broadest pro-tection against the different strains of lep-tospirosis bacteria.

Also, be sure to keep your dog on a leashwhen going for walks to prevent it from con-tacting wild animals or unvaccinated dogs.Consider bringing water from home with youon your walks, to make sure your pet is drink-ing safely.�

- News Canada

18 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

Fast-growing tree plantations in CanadaBy Don Cameron

“The secret to life is to live it.”(Unknown)

Canadians have been planting treesfor as long as people have lived here. It isnot a new concept. Reports of organizedtree planting on the Prairies date back tothe 1830s, and Canada has been involvedin research on tree improvement since theearly 1950s. In the late 1960s and early1970s, provinces and industries startedinvesting in ways to grow trees morequickly, from a smaller land base, andcloser to wood-processing centres due toan energy crisis that drove up transporta-tion and production costs.

This research has continued since theenergy crisis, encouraged by various issuessuch as using wood as an alternate formof fuel, fast-growing wood for the forestindustry, and carbon sequestration. Un-til this time, however, large-scale indus-trial use of fast-growing trees has not beenundertaken.

Worldwide, other forest nations arecontinually increasing their fast-growingplantation area. Canada has been assess-ing its current situation to determinewhether it should follow the same trend.

Producing fast growing tree speciesBecause of Canada’s cold winters and

short summers, only a few tree specieshave been bred for fast growth and high-

volume yield. The most commonly usedspecies is hybrid poplar, a mix of nativeand non-native poplar species. The spe-cific qualities of the site to be plantedwould determine which tree species ismost appropriate.

Current average hybrid poplargrowth rates in Canada varies from 9 to25 cubic metres per hectare per year, de-pending on the site and the trees used.On better sites, tree growth is reported tovary from 15 to 35 cubic metres per hect-are per year, much higher than the cur-rent average yield in Canadian forests ofabout 1.7 cubic metres per hectare peryear. Yields vary widely across the coun-try due to factors such as soil quality, cli-mate, damaging agents such as insects,disease, forest fires and the intensity ofmanagement.

Fast-growing tree plantations inCanada

Small-scale plantings of hybrid pop-lar are found in southern Quebec, east-ern Ontario, southern Manitoba,Saskatchewan, southern British Colum-bia, and on Vancouver Island. Other spe-cies have been planted in these and otherareas of the country.

For example, here in Nova Scotiabetween 1970 and 1995, there were mil-lions of Norway Spruce seedlings plantedacross the province. Research had shownthat this imported species could outper-form our native spruce species by a large

margin in most growing conditions.However, experience has shown us

that there are risks and possible down-sides involved with planting exotic spe-cies like Norway spruce, including: over-sensitivity to frost, suffers significant dam-age from a girdling insect - the white pineweevil, often seems to be the preferredfood for browsing deer and hare, doesn’tgrow well under shade, and they don’tproduce viable seed for nearly 50 years.As well, its structural strength has beencalled into question due to its rapidgrowth.

Other non-native species that havebeen planted in the province include:Japanese larch, exotic pines, highlandwhite spruce, and jack pine to varyingdegrees of success. There has been verylittle planting of fast growing hardwoodspecies in Nova Scotia to date. We cangrow our native hardwood trees fast, theproblem is that from a forest productsstandpoint, the wood quality is generallyonly fair. In the future, there will surelybe more recognition of the potential valueof increased hardwood management.A

Don Cameron is a RegisteredProfessional Forester.

Tough Name. Tough Equipment.

357XP/XPG

1-800-HUSKY62 www.husqvarna.com

available at your local dealerCAT Rental

186 Akerley Blvd.Dartmouth, NS B3B 2B1

(902) 454-6480

M.C. Power Equipment4013 Hwy. 236

Truro, NS B2N 5A9(902) 895-2400

Wilsons Shopping Centre Ltd. Box 70, 3542 Hwy. #3

Barrington Passage, NS B0W 1G0(902) 632-2300

www.wilsonsshoppingcentre.com

Jerry’s RV Sales & Service9384 Commercial Street,New Minas, NS B4N 3E9

(902) 681-9501www.jerrysrv.com

Belmac Supply Ltd.P.O. Box 1387,

341 Welton StreetSydney, NS B1P 6K3

(902) 539-6006

The Tractor Dome Inc.RR #1, 8727 Hardwood Lands

9200 Hwy #4Milford, NS B0N 1Y0

(902) 758-2220www.thetractordome.com

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Harold’s Myers Towing

Ph (902) 857-9604 5501

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Nova Outdoors 19Winter 2005

HI-L INER

Office: 1-888-737-GEAR • (902) 457-4968Fax (902) 457-4990

155 Chain Lake Drive, Suite #9,Halifax, Nova Scotia B3S 1B3

Email:[email protected] • www.hiliner.com

5500

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Fishing Gear & Tackle Ltd.

Power Wheels of Truro160 Robie Street

Truro, NS B2N 1L1

Tel: (902) 843-40001-800-897-4440

55320D

Stewiacke Home Hardware,Building & Hunting Supplies Ltd.

Stewiacke, Nova ScotiaPh: 1-902-639-2347

Fax: 1-902-639-9045 5502

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Please return your AnglingLicense Stub & PersonalFishing Records NOW!

For information call:902-485-5056

The Honourable Chris d’EntremontMinister of Agriculture and Fisheries

If You DO NOT Ice Fish

5500

1A

Our ResponseBy Tony Rodgers

The Nova Scotia Federation of An-glers and Hunters (NSFAH) is pleased tosalute the efforts of the Nova Scotia Min-ister of Natural Resources, RichardHurlburt and his enforcement staff forcracking down on the poaching of main-land moose, which is an endangered spe-cies.

“Operation Crossroad” has been ahuge success for the department, with thelaying of eight charges related to illegalhunting activities. They will appear in

court in December.“After last year’s success in nailing

and convicting moose poachers inCumberland County, one would havethought that poachers would think twiceabout doing it anywhere else in the prov-ince. But that is not the case and we hopethat courts in Antigonish County viewthese charges with the same disgust. Thecourts have the ability to cripple theseaccused poachers from doing any furtherdamage to an already delicate situationwith fines under the Endangered SpeciesAct,” said Tony Rodgers, executive direc-

tor of the NSFAH.It is hard enough for wildlife biolo-

gists to help recover the moose herd onthe mainland without wildlife thievesstealing that opportunity from nature.The operation was appropriately namedby a lead officer on the case because themainland moose are at a crossroad in theirrecovery.

Our congratulations to MinisterHurlburt, John Mombourquette, enforce-ment director and the 12 officers whowere successful in this operation to pro-tect a valuable resource. �

We Re-Upholster MotorcycleA.T.V. and Snowmobile seats

41 “A” Ilsley AveDartmouth, N.S.

Ph: 468-8201

3200 Kempt Rd.Halifax, N.S.Ph: 455-0494

5503

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Nova Scotia Habitat Conservation FundGovernment of Nova Scotia NaturalResources

Applications for 2006 will be ac-cepted from December 1, 2005 to Janu-ary 31, 2006.

The Nova Scotia Habitat Conser-vation Fund was established under theNova Scotia Wildlife Act to assist thefunding of programs for the protectionand enhancement of wildlife and wild-life habitats. The Fund is organized un-der four objectives: Enhancement, Ac-quisition, Research, and Education.

Each objective has a set of Priority Ac-tivities. The Habitat Conservation Fundwill partner in projects on a cost sharedbasis not to exceed 75 percent of totalproject cost.

Applicants must consult the Con-ditions for Awarding Grants and Pro-posal Submission Guidelines and Appli-cation before submitting an application.These documents, and any additional in-formation that may be required, are alsoavailable from any office of the Depart-ment of Natural Resources or from thefollowing:

Habitat Conservation FundNova Scotia Department of

Natural ResourcesWildlife Division136 Exhibition StreetKentville, Nova ScotiaB4N 4E5Phone: (902) 679-6091Fax: (902) 679-6176

To be considered, the applicationmust include all information and mate-rials in the manner specified in the Im-portant Steps in Submitting a Proposaland in the Proposal Submission Guide-lines and Application.

The Board of Directors of the NovaScotia Habitat Conservation Fund re-serves the right not to recommend anaward if, in the opinion of the Board,no suitable proposal is received. Nor-mally, proposals are not funded for morethan $25,000. The submission date forapplications is December 1 through toJanuary 31.�

The Nova Scotia HabitatConservation Fund looks forward toreceiving your submission. Inpartnership, we can conserve wildlifehabitat across Nova Scotia.

20 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

ATLANTICFUNERAL HOMESDARTMOUTH

(902) 462-1434HALIFAX

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E-Mail: [email protected]

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ter the original infection. More seriousailments such as recurrent meningitis,heart problems, and arthritis may bepresent for years.

Can Lyme disease Be Treated?YES, particularly in the early stages.

Borrelia bacteria can be killed with anti-biotics. Antibiotics are also effective inresolving the arthritis and muscular prob-lems seen later in some infections.

Who Is At Greatest Risk?People who are active outdoors are

most likely to contact ticks and otherarthropods. This includes children, an-glers, hikers, canoeists, farmers, touristsand persons involved in forestry and wild-life occupations (such as loggers, trappers,and biologists). Anyone who spends timein tall grass, brush or forested areas shouldshower and/or make a thorough dailycheck of your body (particularly head,neck and groin regions) for ticks or later,the characteristic red rash.

People who travel to areas of theUnited States with epidemic Lyme dis-ease are at greater risk than those who stayin Nova Scotia. In addition, people whoare active with hunting dogs in areas ofgood tick habitat may be at risk, as aretheir dogs.

How Can I Avoid Lyme Disease?Here are some precautions you can

take without limiting your time outdoors.• Keep the grass around your house cut.• When you are outside during tick season,

avoid sitting on, lying on or travellingthrough tick habitats. Avoid sittingdirectly on the ground, and stay in thecentre of paths.

• Wear light coloured clothing to make iteasier to see ticks that may be on you.

• Tuck your shirt into your pants and yourpants into your socks to thwart a tick’seffort to crawl onto your skin.

• Always wear long pants and a long-sleeved shirt if you are in tall grass orwooded areas.

• Spray repellents containing DEET ontoyour clothing and exposed skin (other

than the face). Use with caution onsmall children.

• Inspect yourself, your children and yourpets for ticks as soon as you leave an areathat may have ticks.

What If I Find A Tick EmbeddedIn My Skin?

First, do not squash it. Squeezing aninfected tick may force bacteria out of themouth parts and into the tick bite (andyou). The best way to remove a tick is tograsp it gently with tweezers as close toits mouth as possible (the part stickinginto your skin) Slowly pull the tickstraight out - do not jerk or twist it. Notethe rumoured remedies like matches, ciga-rettes, or vaseline DO NOT WORK andmay cause an infected tick to pump bac-teria into the wound. Check the tick bitearea for at least two weeks. If a red rashappears, take the tick (if possible) and goto a doctor.

You can help in the study ofLyme disease:

To help us learn more about Lymedisease and ticks in Nova Scotia, we wouldappreciate if you could send us the tickfor identification. The deer tick is smallerthan the wood tick and does not have anywhite markings on the large part of itsbody. Ticks matching this description caneither be hand-delivered (preferred) ormailed to your nearest office of the De-partment of Natural Resources, or to theMuseum of Natural History.

Place the tick in a clean, sturdy pillbottle or film canister and add a smallamount of alcohol. Firmly tape the lidshut. Include with the package your name,telephone number and information as towhere, when and on whom (e.g. dog, per-son) the tick was found.�

Printed courtesy of The Nova ScotiaDepartment of Health. See:www.gov.ns.ca/health/publichealth/content/pubs/lymedisease.pdf.

Lyme DiseaseWhat is Lyme Disease?

Lyme disease is a bacterial infectiontransmitted from infected deer ticks(blacklegged ticks) to humans. The tickswhich spread Lyme disease are smallerthan the more common wood ticks andunlike wood ticks, do not have whitemarkings on their bodies. In the wild,adult deer ticks are usually found on deer,but may be carried on domestic animalssuch as dogs, cats and horses. Tick bitesare usually painless and most people donot know that they have been bitten.Lyme disease has become a commonproblem in parts of the United States andhas been reported in certain parts ofCanada.

How is Lyme DiseaseTransmitted?

The disease is caused by a tiny spi-ral-shaped bacterium, Borreliaburgdorferi. Infection of humans usuallyoccurs after a bite by an infected arthro-pod. In most cases, the arthropod is a tick.Under laboratory conditions, horseflies,deer-flies and mosquitoes also may carrythe bacteria, but their role in transmit-ting Lyme disease in the wild is currentlyunknown.

The tick drops off most mammals,attaches to grasses and shrubs and trans-fers to animals and humans that brushpast the vegetation. The tick only trans-mits the disease after it has attached tothe human for at least 24 hours, at whichpoint it is at least partly engorged. An in-fected tick must have its mouth parts bur-ied in your skin for at least 18 to 24 hours.Thus, daily checks and removal of ticksshould virtually eliminate any risk oftransmission in Nova Scotia.

What to Look ForIn many cases, Lyme disease is rec-

ognized as a red rash starting at the tickbite and spreading out, often as a grow-ing circle. This rash can start 3 to 30 daysafter the bite. (A swollen red area thatappears immediately after the tick bites islikely a reaction to the tick and is NOTLyme disease.) The rash may be accom-panied by fever, chills, headache, fatigueand swollen lymph glands. In some cases,Lyme disease results in neurological andmuscular problems weeks or months af-

BILL’S CUSTOM GUN SHOP1697 Melbourne Rd.

Lr. Melbourne, Yarmouth Co.N.S. B0W 1B0

(902) 742-5926 5500

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Nova Outdoors 21Winter 2005

Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers and Hunters ORDER FORM

If you have order by phone (902) 477-8898.Mon.-Fri. 8am-4pm

RECEIVED

SHIPPED

office use onlyMr. Mrs. Ms. Miss.

NAME

ADDRESS

CITY PROVINCE POSTAL CODE

EMAIL

Please allow4 to 6 weeksfor delivery

Print clearly.Please indicateany changes to

name or address

MERCHANDISE (Please print clearly)

QUANTITY CODE DESCRIPTION EACH TOTAL

$4.00Please add $4.00 for handling to all merchandise ordersFOR MEMBERSHIPYou will receive a:• NSFAH Membership Card• Nova Outdoors®• NSFAH Recognition Item

Auto & HomeInsurance Discounts

Family includes husband, wife,and all children under 18 yearsof age. Names & ages of allfamily members must beincluded on an attached sheet.

MEMBERSHIPS NEW RENEWAL

QUANTITY DESCRIPTION EACH TOTALIndividual Membership

Contributing Membership

Supporting Membership

Family Membership

$20.00

$50.00

$75.00

$30.00

Add $4.00 for each membership outside Canada

HELP LINE FOR NSFAH SAY “YES”

Additional donation for wildlife conservation *

TOTAL

CAN YOU HELP? The NSFAH is always looking forvolunteers to help with its projects. Work on wildlifeor environmental committees or just to stuff andaddress envelopes. We need all types of workers.Just say “YES” on the order form. Thanks.

* Please check box if you require a tax receipt for donations over and above $20.00 membership costPlease make cheque or money order payable to and send to:

NOVA SCOTIA FEDERATION OF ANGLERS AND HUNTERSP.O. Box 654, Halifax, NS B3J 2T3

NSFAH Guarantee All our merchandise is guaranteed to give you100% satisfaction. If for any reason you are not completely satisfiedwith your purchase, just return it to us within 30 days of receipt. Wewill replace or exchange the merchandise, refund your purchase price,or credit your charge card.

Phone Orders Credit card holders may order memberships andmerchandise and make donations by calling 1-902-477-8898 between10 am and 3 pm - Monday to Friday. To ensure accuracy andconvenience please have your Visa or Mastercard handy as well asyour completed order form. Please note that this telephone number isfor placing orders only and that we do not accept collect calls.

Returns and Exchanges If you wish to return or exchange anymerchandise: 1-Package item securely. 2-Include the packing slip thataccommodated your order, if available. 3-Write a short note explainingwhy you are returning your purchase and what you wish in exchange.We will make every effort to handle your exchange as quickly aspossible. Please remember, however, that it takes time for us toreceive your goods, process your request, and ship you package backto you.

PAYMENT METHOD

TOTAL AMOUNT

CHEQUE OR MONEY ORDER

$

EXPIRY DATE

signatureX

22 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

FOLD THIS FLAP IN FIRST (A)

fold here☞NO ENVELOPE IS REQUIRED

fold here☞

Nova Outdoors 23Winter 2005

• Entrants must be 16 years or older to enter.• Open to Nova Scotia residents only.• Entry forms are to be completely filled out in ink or typed.• The licensee is subject to the laws respecting hunting and fishing in the same manner as with any hunting or fishing

license.• This license is not transferrable, and may be cancelled, suspended, or forfeited in accordance with the law.• Incomplete, illegible, or improperly filled out entries will not be accepted, and entrants will not be notified or have fees

refunded.• All entries must be postmarked no later than November 30, 2006. Entries postmarked after November 30 will be

included in the next years draw.• All entry fees are non-refundable - do not send cash. Draw date: Dec. 15, 2006

14th ANNUAL

That’s right, you could hunt and fish from Sydney to Yarmouth, from Amherst to Canso - all overthe province, every year for the rest of your life. And, best of all, you’d never have to buy another***Deer, **Fishing or *Small Game hunting license.

Announcing the 14th annual - “THE LICENSE OF A LIFETIME LOTTERY” from the Nova ScotiaFederation of Anglers and Hunters. Every year we’ll be awarding (2) lifetime licenses to 2 luckyapplicants. It’s easy to enter, just complete the attached form below, and mail it along with yourentry fee. You will receive a receipt in the mail.Tickets are $2.00 each, or 3 for $5.00. Enter asoften as you like.

“THE LICENSE OF A LIFETIME LOTTERY” is backThe New Super License includesFishing & Small Game Hunting

A $2 Ticket Could Win You The

**Fishing - Not including Salmon *Small Game - not including Migratory Birds***Presently only the Deer License is co-sponsored by the Department of Natural Resources

Name:

Address:

City/Town:

Postal Code: Phone:

You may play by using your - ❑ Master Card ❑ Visa

√ CHECK ONEOne Entry $2.00 ❑

3 Entries $5.00 ❑6 Entries $10.00 ❑

12 Entries $20.00 ❑Other $________ ❑

Card Number Expiry Date SignatureMake cheques or money orders payable to:

Nova Scotia Federation of Anglers and Hunters, P.O. Box 654, Halifax, N.S. B3J 2T3Additional applications are available from all district offices of the Dept. of Natural Resources, the NSFAH,

and most sporting good locations throughout Nova Scotia.

ENTRY FORM

RULES

YOU could spend the restof your life hunting and fishing all over Nova Scotia

FREE

24 Nova Outdoors Winter 2005

1015 Main St., P.O. Box 2039 E,Dartmouth, N.S. B2W 3X8

AuthorizedDealer

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www.Bombardier-atv.com©2003 Bombardier Inc., All rights reserved. ™Trademarks and ® Registered Trademarks ofBombardier Inc. In the USA, the products are distributed by Bombardier Motor Corporation of America. ATVs with engine size greater than 90ccare recommended for use only by those aged 16 and up. Bombardier highly recommends that all ATV riders take a training course. For safetyand training information, see your dealer or, in the U.S., call the ATV safety Institute at 1-800-887-2887. In Canada, call the Canadian SafetyCouncil at (613) 739-1535, ext. 227. ATVs can be hazardous to operate. For your safety, Always wear a helmet, eye protection and otherprotective clothing. Always remember that riding and alcohol/drugs don’t mix. Never ride on paved surfaces or public roads. Never carry apassenger. Never engage in stunt driving. Avoiding excessive speeds and be particularly careful on difficult terrain. Bombardier urges you“TREAD LIGHTLY” on public and private land. Preserve your future riding opportunities by showing respect for that environment, Local laws andthe rights of others when you ride. Ride responsibly.

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