magazine issue may/june 2011

7/31/2019 Magazine Issue May/June 2011

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Connecticut Wildlie 1May/June 2011

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONBUREAU OF NATURAL RESOURCES

DIVISIONS OF WILDLIFE, INLAND & MARINE FISHERIES, AND FORESTRY

May/June 2011

PAUL J. FUAll Rights Reser


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2 Connecticut Wildlie May/June 2011

The Eastern box turtle is o conservation concern in all o the statesat its northeastern range limit, including Connecticut. See page 19 tolearn more about the box turtle.

Photo courtesy o Paul J. Fusco

Cover:

onnecticut

ildlifeCW

Published bimonthly by

State o ConnecticutDepartment o Environmental Protection

Bureau o Natural ResourcesWildlie Division

www.ct.gov/dep

CommissionerDaniel C. Esty

Deputy CommissionerSusan Frechette

Chie, Bureau o Natural ResourcesWilliam Hyatt

Director, Wildlie DivisionRick Jacobson

Magazine Sta

Managing Editor Kathy Herz

Production Editor Paul Fusco

Contributing Editors: George Babey (Inland Fisheries)Penny Howell (Marine Fisheries)

James Parda (Forestry)

Circulation Trish Cernik

Wildlie Division

79 Elm Street, Hartford, CT 06106-5127 (860-424-3011)Oce o the Director, Recreation Management, Technical Assistance,Natural History Survey

Sessions Woods Wildlie Management AreaP.O. Box 1550, Burlington, CT 06013 (860-675-8130)Wildlie Diversity, Birds, Furbearers, Outreach and Education, HabitatManagement, Conservation Education/Firearms Saety, ConnecticutWildlie magazine

Franklin Wildlie Management Area391 Route 32, N. Franklin, CT 06254 (860-642-7239)Migratory Birds, Deer/Moose, Wild Turkey, Small Game, WetlandsHabitat and Mosquito Management, Conservation Education/FirearmsSaety, Wildlie Diversity

Eastern District Area Headquarters209 Hebron Road, Marlborough, CT 06447 (860-295-9523)

State Land and Private Land Habitat Management

Connecticut Wildlie magazine (ISSN 1087-7525) is publishedbimonthly by the Connecticut Department o Environmental ProtectionWildlie Division. Send all subscription orders and address changes toConnecticut Wildlie, Sessions Woods WMA, P.O. Box 1550, Burlington,CT 06013. Subscription rates are $8 or one year, $15 or two years, and$20 or three years. No reunds. Periodical postage paid at Burlington,CT, and additional entry oces. Postmaster: Please send all addresschanges to Connecticut Wildlie, P.O. Box 1550, Burlington, CT 06013.

Web site: www.ct.gov/dep/wildlieE-mail: [email protected]

Phone: 860-675-8130

Copyright 2011 by the Connecticut DEP Wildlie Division. The Wildlie Division

grants permission to reprint text,not artwork or photos, provided the DEP WildlieDivision is credited. Artwork and photographs printed in this publication are

copyrighted by the CT DEP Wildlie Division. Any unauthorized use o artwork and

photos is prohibited. Please contact the managing editor at the Sessions Woods ofce

to obtain permission or reprinting articles.

Printed on recycled paper

The Federal Aid in Wildlie Restoration Program was initiated by sports-

men and conservationists to provide states with unding or wildlie

management and research programs, habitat acquisition, wildlie man-

agement area development, and hunter education programs. Connecticut

Wildlife contains articles reporting on Wildlie Division projects unded

entirely or in part with ederal aid monies.

The DEP is an armative action/equal opportunity employer and serviceprovider. In conormance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, DEP

makes every eort to provide equally eective services or persons with

disabilities. Individuals with disabilities who need this inormation in an

alternative ormat, to allow them to benet and/or participate in the agencys

programs and services, should call 860-424-3051 or 860-418-5937, or e-mail

Marcia Bonitto, ADA Coordinator, at [email protected]. Persons who

are hearing impaired should call the State o Connecticut relay number 711.

Volume 31, Number 3 May / June 2011

From theDirectorsDesk

From theDirectorsDesk

What does it mean to celebrate diversity? TheFreeDictionary.com

denes celebrate as to praise publicly, and diversity as the stateor quality o being dierent or varied. These denitions comportwith the interpretation o an Arican-American riend o mine whosecar carried the slogan as a bumper sticker. To him, it meant thatwe should revel in our racial and ethnic dierences. For others, theocus shits to rejoicing a world rich in the diverse array o naturalresources our wonderul state has to oer. To me, it means all o thoseand more.

We are a community bound by an aection or wild things. Yet, thosepassionate about our shared natural resources bring remarkablydiverse and oten disparate perceptions to the role o humans in ournatural world. For some, watching wildlie is a ullling experience

and the notion o taking a wild animal, whether or ood, ur, orwildlie management action, is untenable. For others, harvestingwild animals is the highest and most sensible use o a publicly heldrenewable natural resource. Paradoxically, these perspectives comerom a deep, heart-elt connection with our natural world.

There is remarkable strength in that connection and, i we chooseto use that strength, we can accomplish great things, includingconserving wild places, and ostering restoration o natural habitatsand a resurgence o our native fora and auna. I we choose tosquander it, we will ail, regardless o the parochial battles won. It iswith that in mind, as we debate the various actions we take, each ous is encouraged to celebrate our diversity, as in it lies our strength.

Rick Jacobson

What we have to do... is to nd a way to celebrate our diversity anddebate our dierences without racturing our communities.

Hillary Clinton

Connecticut WildlieCan Now Be Ordered OnlineThinking about ordering a subscription to Connecticut Wildlie or a

riend or amily member? The magazine can now be ordered onlinewith a credit card through the DEP Store (www.ctdepstore.com). While

you are visiting the DEP Store Web page, take some time to explorethe great selection o books and other environmental items that areavailable through the store.


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Childrens Art Contest and More Planned or theYear o the Turtle

What You Can Do to Help Turtles Leave turtles in the wild. They should never be kept as pets. Whether collected singlyor or the pet trade, turtles that are removed rom the wild are no longer able to be areproducing member o a population. Every turtle removed reduces the ability o thepopulation to maintain itsel.

Never release a captive turtle into the wild. It probably would not survive, may not benative to the area, and could introduce diseases to wild populations.

Do not disturb turtles nesting in yards or gardens.

As you drive, watch out or turtles crossing the road. Turtles ound crossing roads inJune and July are oten pregnant emales and they should be helped on their way and notcollected. Without creating a trac hazard or compromising saety, drivers are encouragedto avoid running over turtles that are crossing roads. Also, still keeping saety precautionsin mind, you may elect to pick up turtles rom the road and move them onto the side theyare headed. Never relocate a turtle to another area that is ar rom where you ound it.

Do not litter. Turtles and other wildlie may accidentally ingest or become entangled ingarbage (especially plastic garbage) and die.

Learn more about turtles and their conservation concerns. Spread the word to otherson how they can help Connecticuts box turtle population.

The DEP WildlieDivision and theFriends o Sessions

Woods, as part o the Yearo the Turtle awarenesscampaign with Partners

in Amphibian and ReptileConservation (PARC),are sponsoring a turtleart contest or children inkindergarten through thgrade. Children enteringthe contest should draw,paint, or sketch a turtlespecies native to Connecti-cut. Entries will be judgedin three age groups: K-1stgrade, 2nd-3rd grade,and 4th-5th grade. First,second, third, and honor-

able mention prizes will beawarded in each age group.The Connecticut Sci-ence Center, in Hartord,has graciously donated aFamily Pass package oreach rst place winner. The Friends oSessions Woods Paul Petersen MemorialFund has donated various turtle-relatedprizes, such as ribbons and books, or thewinning pieces o artwork (rst throughhonorable mention). First place winnersalso will have their artwork published inConnecticut Wildlie magazine.

All o the artwork will be on displayat the Wildlie Divisions Sessions WoodsConservation Education Center, in Bur-lington, at a special Year o the TurtleDay, scheduled or Sunday, June 26,rom 1:00-4:00 PM. Award winnersalso will be announced to the publicduring Turtle Day. Educationalprograms on turtles, live turtles, andkids crats are all planned or TurtleDay. More inormation about theevent will be on the DEPs Year othe Turtle Web page at www.ct.gov/dep/yearoturtle as it becomes avail-

able.An entry orm, art contest guide-

lines, and the list o native turtles thatcan be illustrated are available on theDEPs Year o the Turtle Web pageat www.ct.gov/dep/yearoturtle. Thisinormation also can be obtained bycontacting the DEP Wildlie Divi-sions Sessions Woods oce at P.O.Box 1550, Burlington, CT 06013;

860-675-8130 (Mon-Fri, 8:30 AM-4:30PM). All entries must be postmarked byJune 8, 2011. The native turtles that canbe illustrated or this contest include thebog turtle, Eastern box turtle, commonmusk turtle, common snapping turtle,

The Northern diamondback terrapin is the only species o turtle in North America, including Connecticut, thatspends its lie in brackish water (water that is less salty than sea water). Diamondback terrapins are mostabundant in tidal estuaries west o the Connecticut River.

Attend Year o the Turtle Day at Sessions Woods

WMA on June 26, rom 1:00-4:00 PM. Visit www.ct.gov/dep/yearoturtle or call 860-675-8130 tolearn more!

painted turtle, spotted turtle, wood turtle,Northern diamondback terrapin, Atlanticridley sea turtle, Atlantic green sea turtle,loggerhead sea turtle, and leatherback seaturtle.

PAUL J. FUSCAll Rights Reserved


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Connecticut, along with sev-eral other state partners romMaine to Virginia, is about

to embark on a multi-year study to

better identiy critical areas or tidalmarsh bird conservation and identiywhich tidal marshes and species inthe Northeast/Mid-Atlantic are themost sensitive to land and seascapechange. This is a wide-ranging andambitious project, bringing togethera diversity o partners, all with acommon goal. The partners in thisproject include state and ederalagencies, ve major research univer-sities, and many non-governmentalconservation groups.

Importance o Tidal MarshesTidal marshes are critically

important ecosystems that orm thedominant transition zone betweenterrestrial and marine communitiesthroughout eastern North America.In act, the eastern North Americanshoreline possesses the highest levelo vertebrate biodiversity o any tidalmarsh region in the world. Easterntidal marshes are home to 83 breedingvertebrate species, 22% o which occuronly in tidal marshes, or possess subspe-cies ound only in tidal marshes. How-

The Conservation o Tidal Marsh Birds:

Written by Min T. Huang, DEP Wildlife Division, and Chris Elphick, Associate Professor, University of Connecticut

Guiding action at the intersection o our changing land and seascapes

ever, our tidal marshes also are undersome o the greatest environmental stresso any ecosystem in the world.

There are a myriad o actors that

negatively impact these sensitive ar-eas, including continued developmentinringement; nitrication; contaminationby heavy metals; spread o invasive plant

From let to right are the saltmarsh sparrow, seaside sparrow, and Nelsons sparrow. Connecticut may harbor 15-20% o the worlds breedinpopulation o saltmarsh sparrows.

The clapper rail is a secretive marsh bird that nests exclusively in salt marshes. Its close relativthe king rail, is a reshwater marsh nester.

PAUL J. FUSAll Rights Reser

PAUL J. FUSCOAll Rights Reserved




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sparrows. These data will help in thedevelopment o population models thatwill be used in conjunction with regionalhabitat loss scenarios (e.g., sea level rise)to conduct population viability analy-ses across the study area. The resultingproducts will inorm managers across thestudy area about the importance, rom aregional and local perspective, o tidalmarshes in their states and their regional

contribution to the overall persistence othe species being studied. A standardizedsurvey protocol also will be established toprovide a platorm or long-term monitor-ing and assessment.

Ultimately, this study will enhanceour understanding o the current extinc-tion risk aced by tidal marsh bird speciesand identiy potential ways to minimizerisk at local, state, and regional scales.The resulting inormation will allow im-mediate actions to be taken where theyare most likely to guarantee success,and will quantitatively show both what

success should look like and how best tomanage local tradeos with economic,development, and conservation concerns.More inormation about the study can beound at www.tidalmarshbirds.org.

This project is unded, in part,through the competitive State WildlieGrants Program.

and animal species; increases in aviannest predators; widespread ditching andother hydrologic alterations or insectmanagement; and increases in salinitydue to the retention o river fows orhuman use. The single greatest threatto our tidal marshes, however, is likelyclimate change and associated sea levelrise. Apart rom altering the vegetativestructure and composition o salt marsh-

es, climate change also may impact theunique bird assemblage o the tidal marshby increasing the requency and intensityo fooding. Periodicity o fooding andthe resulting water levels in the marsh arestrong determinants o avian nesting suc-cess and productivity, and thus, long-termpopulation viability.

It is estimated that over 50% oConnecticuts original tidal marsheshave been lost. Remaining marshes arein various states o degradation due topast alteration (grid ditching), develop-ment, and other actors. The situation

is similar throughout the northeasternUnited States. It is unlikely that we couldever substantially increase the amounto unctional tidal marsh to benet themany obligate marsh species that areat high risk. Thereore, it is critical thatthe relative importance o tidal marshesthroughout the region be assessed so thatthe limited resources that are available toconservation can be best put to use.

Study Will Provide AnswersThe new, multi-year study aims to as-

sess avian species and tidal marsh sensi-tivity to various stressors, and determinethe regional importance o each area.To accomplish these goals, the projectwill estimate the distribution and relativegeographic abundance o bird speciesbreeding in tidal high marshes romMaine to Virginia using a combination o

passive and broadcast surveys designedby the North American Secretive MarshBird Monitoring Program. The major-ity o eort will be concentrated on vehigh marsh obligate species (saltmarshsparrow, Nelsons sparrow, seaside spar-row, willet, and clapper rail). Eorts alsowill be made to assess abundance o theAmerican black duck and black rail. Ad-ditionally, surveys will be conducted or athird suite o species that includes wadingbirds, Virginia rails, and some o the highmarsh ringe songbirds, such as yellowwarblers.

Understanding distribution and abun-dance, however, is only a small part oactually being able to determine vulner-ability to climatic change. Managementhistories o each marsh, where available,will be used to examine current speciesdistribution and abundance relative topast and current management actions. Wewill then assess nesting density, nestingsuccess, and adult survival o the marsh

lets readily use salt pannes or oraging in salt marshes. Wetland restoration eorts that restore tidal fow also create/improve salt panne habitat.



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Historically,re has had aproound im-

pact on Connecticutslandscape. Periodicres were once integral

to sustaining easterngrasslands, oak savan-nas, much o the oakorest, and pitch pine/scrub oak orests. Theelimination o re inrecent times has ledto instability in theseecosystems. Withoutre or mowing, woodyvegetation quicklyreclaims grasslands.Grassland habitat hasdiminished so much

in New Englandthat some butterfies(e.g., ritillaries) andgrassland birds (e.g.,eastern meadowlark)have experienced sharppopulation declines.

Grasslands wereonce created in avariety o ways. NativeAmericans purposelycreated extensivegrasslands in southernNew England by setting requent res.

The natives also used re in abandonedagricultural elds to provide habitat orgame animals. Numerous smaller inlandmeadows were created naturally through

Prescribed Burning on State Lands in Connecticut

Written by Emery Gluck, DEP Division of Forestry

the work o beavers. These beaver mead-

ows appeared ater beavers abandonedtheir dams and the water behind the damswas able to drain out.

Ater a long period o re suppressionon state land, theDEP Divisiono Forestry hasreintroducedprescribed resto Connecticutstate orests,wildlie manage-ment areas, andstate parks as

an ecologicalmanagementmeasure. Re-peated pre-scribed burns arecurrently beingdone to maintainlittle bluestemand other nativewarm season

grasses along the Connecticut coast and

Connecticut River, where eastern grass-lands historically occurred.

Creating an Oak SavannaIn addition to coastal grasslands,

other elds are burned repeatedly to o-set the loss o early successional habitatto development and orest succession.Prescribed burns are currently being ap-plied at a site in Nehantic State Forest, inLyme, to simulate an oak savanna. Oaksavannas (open, grassy woodlands) wereprobably common around Native Ameri-can villages in southern New England,

as the natives requently burned orests.The orest was burned to improve habitator game animals, increase berry pro-duction, acilitate gathering o rewoodand acorns, ease travel, drive game, andeliminate cover that potentially concealedtheir enemies. Oak savannas have disap-peared in Connecticut primarily becauseo re exclusion.

Ater several burns at the Nehantic

Prescribed re, in combination with a harvest o white pine, is used to help restore a pitch pine/scrub oak orein Hopeville Pond State Park Natural Area, in Griswold.

Prescribed burns create early successional habitat, which benets manyspecies, including the prairie warbler.

P.

J.

FUSCO



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State Forest site, the thin-barked trees(e.g., maples and birches) have suc-cumbed or been weakened by re injury,while the thick-barked oaks are surviving.The aects rom the re are stimulat-ing the growth o herbaceous vegetationwhile eliminating or suppressing thewoody understory vegetation.

Perpetuating Oak ForestsPrescribed re also is being applied

to help perpetuate oak orests. Excepton the driest sites, oak orests are notcurrently sustaining themselves. Oldgrowth orests on mesic (well-balancedsupply o moisture) sites depend onrequent res and other disturbances toallow new generations o oak to developand grow into overstory trees. Fire and/or other disturbances are needed to allowadequate sunlight to reach oak seed-lings and reduce the competitiveness o

shade-tolerant tree and shrub species inthe understory. Connecticuts existingoak orests have ormed ater widespreadclearcutting, res, the abandonment oarmland, and the chestnut blight that oc-curred near the beginning o the twentiethcentury. Noticeably under-represented inthe present orest are the vigorous, youngunderstory oaks and substantial patcheso young oak orest. This can be tracedto a precipitous decline in the amounto orest res, clearcuts, and abandonedarmland in recent years.

An adequate amount o disturbanceis needed to sustain oak orests becausedense shrubs (e.g., mountain laurel, pep-perbush, or hophornbeam) and shade-tolerant understory trees (e.g., Americanbeech) likely prevent oak seedlings romgraduating to the overstory. Prescribedre oten top-kills the understory vegeta-tion, only providing a short window oroaks to develop vigorously in the under-story. Disturbance in the upper canopy

that creates a gap in the overstory isnecessary or understory oaks to succeedto the overstory. Historically, canopy dis-turbances in southern New England havebeen caused by windthrow rom severestorms or mortality rom insect and/ordisease inestations.

A supervised commercial harvest canmimic the disturbance needed in the over-story. Prescribed burns have been per-ormed in conjunction with commercialharvests to promote the development o

even-aged, two-aged, and multiple-agedpatches in oak orests. These treatmentsshould help sustain the oak community aspart o the orested landscape.

Restoring Pitch Pine/Scrub OakEcosystems

The pitch pine/scrub oak sand plainorest is one o 13 imperiled ecosystemsin Connecticut. Pitch pine is also knownas candlewood or torch pine becausethe early settlers and Native Americansused pitch pine staves and pine knots astorches and candles. Candlewood Hill,Candlewood Mountain, and the severalCandlewood Roads around the state areso named because o the tree that popu-lates these locales. Prior to the AmericanRevolution, the pines were tapped or tur-pentine and burned in dirt covered kilnsto produce tar and pitch. The numerousTarkiln Roads and two Tarkiln villagesin southern New England are witness tolocal pineries rom the past. Historically,

pitch pine ecosystems were more preva-lent in the pre-settlement orest becausethey were sustained by the relativelyrequent res. An estimated 95% o thepitch pine/scrub oak orest has been de-veloped or gravel pits and commercial orresidential housing. The remaining pitchpine orests are losing out to succession.Pitch pines are oten shaded over by morecommon and taller trees, such as whitepine. Summer res historically consumedthe thick pine litter layer, creating a

good seed bed or pitch pine seeds andproviding adequate sunlight by killing asubstantial number o trees.

DEP is currently using a combina-tion o harvests and prescribed burns tosustain the pitch pine/scrub oak ecosys-tem. Commercial harvests remove theovertopping white pine and other trees.The harvest increases the chance thatthe ecosystem can be restored with rebecause the logging slash provides anadequate amount o uel and the openingsallow the uel to dry out.

The land use history o the past 300plus years and elimination o re have al-tered the historic disturbance regime thatmaintained Connecticuts orest ecosys-tems. With a combination o well-plannedland use practices, such as mowing, thejudicious harvest o trees, and the ap-plication and management o prescribedre, there will be a greater likelihood osuccess in sustaining a diverse landscapeon Connecticuts public lands.

According to historical accounts, oak orests near Native American populations hadopen grassy understories. This grassy understory (above) developed ater a regeneration

harvest and prescribed burn at Nehantic State Forest.

Ater a long period ofre suppression on stateland, the DEP Division oForestry has reintroduced

prescribed fres toConnecticut state orests,wildlie managementareas, and state parksas an ecologicalmanagement measure.

E.

GLUCK,

DEPFORESTRYDIVISION


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The northern pike (Esox lucius) (a.k.a.waterwol, snake, northern, the luce)is the largest predatory reshwater shin Connecticut. It also is one o the mostpopular gamesh across North Americaand elsewhere around the globe. The

pikes sleek body, n placement, low-

slung jaw, and razor-sharp teeth make it aast, ecient predator. It is this voracity,plus its ghting ability, that endear thissh to so many anglers worldwide.

It may be the shs behavior, or pos-sibly its appearance, that seem to createa shroud o mystery surrounding thepike. Present day stories rom anglers, aswell as tall tales in olklore and mythol-ogy, abound. The Mannheim Pike, orexample, supposedly lurked in the moatsurrounding a medieval German castleand was purported to have lived or267 years while growing to a shocking550 pounds (dont go or a swim in thatmoat!). But, the pikes place in mythol-ogy is only hal the story. There also areaccounts o alchemists using pike heartsand galls to cure pleurisy, pike ashes totreat burns, and pike bones as talismansagainst witchcrat.

Meet the Waterwol

Written by Ed Machowski, DEP Inland Fisheries Division

Mythological accounts and olkloreaside, pike are capable o growing to in-credible sizes or a reshwater sh species(World Record55 lbs; North AmericanRecord46 lbs; CT State Record29 lbs).While pike are considered a cool water

species, they are adaptable to a wide

range o environmental and water qual-ity conditions. This adaptability allowsnorthern pike to be the most circumpolarspecies o the ve-member Esocidae am-ily (the other members are redn pick-erel, chain pickerel, muskellunge, andamur pike). The only two environmentswhere pike seldom grow well or surviveare lakes that are extremely cold and oli-gotrophic (poor in nutrients and plant lie,but rich in oxygen) and shallow watersthat mostly remain very warm. Anythingin between these two extremes is suitableor pike survival.

In Connecticut, historic recordsindicate that pike were introduced intothe Connecticut River in the mid-1800s.However, the rst waterbody activelymanaged or pike was Bantam Lake, inLitcheld and Morris, beginning in 1970.Adult pike were procured rom Minneso-

ta and stocked into Bantam Lake to helpcontrol an out-o-balance (stunted) perchpopulation. This management strategyworked and, at the same time, created anexciting pike shery. As the pikes popu-larity soared, the DEP Inland Fisheries

Division expanded the program to meetdemand. Five morelakes, plus the Con-necticut River, weredestined to becomepike sheries. Lakeswere selected based ona need or a top preda-tor, habitat suitability,geographic location,and orage sh abun-dance. Today, northernpike provide anglerswith more than 20,000

hours o shing un inConnecticut, with mucho this occurring duringice-shing season.

Although pikecan spawn naturallyin Connecticut, twoelements severely limitnatural reproduction: 1)many marshes wherepike could spawn havebeen cut o by roadcrossings and develop-ment; and 2) water

levels in most marshesdrop precipitously ol-lowing spring reshets,

causing unhatched eggs to desiccate anddie. Without help rom Inland FisheriesDivision biologists, there would be veryew pike around. Rather than purchasingjuvenile pike ngerlings rom out-o-state sources, biologists use Connecticutmarshes to help pike boost their ownpopulations. As a result, nearly 55 acreso managed marshes in Litcheld, Kent,Haddam, and Manseld allow adult piketo produce an average o 15,000 home-grown progeny annually.

How It WorksPike spawning coincides with ice-out

conditions, snow melt, and spring rains.Marshes and backwater locations in riversbecome warm sooner than surroundingdeep-water habitats. This temperature di-erence helps guide pike to their spawn-ing grounds. Emergent grasses, hummock

Inland Fisheries Division biologist Ed Machowski releases an adult emale pike into a managed spawning marsh.

DEPINLAND

FISHERIES

DIVISION


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The DEP Inland Fisheries Divisionhas maintained the Trophy FishAward Program or more than 46

years. Three years ago the Annual TrophyFish Award Ceremony was establishedto honor these exceptional anglers. TheAward Ceremony recognizes anglers orcatching the largest sh in several catego-ries. Those categories include marine andinland species o sh.

The catches have become moreimpressive each year. Several individu-als stood out rom the crowd during theAnnual Fish Award Ceremony, held onJanuary 19, 2011.

Trophy Fish Award Program

Written by Bill Gerrish, DEP Inland Fisheries Division

Daniel E. S. Kornegay III, o EastHampton was recognized as the Angler othe Year. Mr. Kornegay III also receivedan award or catching and releasing thelargest walleye (30.0 inches) and the larg-est rock bass (11.75 inches). Harry C. Barber, o Middleeld, waspresented with an award or receivingthe most Trophy Fish Awards in oneyear. Mr. Barber earned nine awards orhis skill in harvesting channel catsh in2010. He also was given the rst LietimeAchievement Award ever issued by theDEP or being the recipient o 74 TrophyFish Awards. Since 1983, Mr. Barber has

earned awards or winter founder (1),white catsh (1), largemouth bass (3),northern pike (5), brown trout (11), andchannel catsh (53). Nathan Dean, o Wallingord, was pre-sented with an award or harvesting thelargest tiger trout (5 pounds, 0 ounces;24.0 inches) o any youth in 2010. A tigertrout is a brown trout/brook trout hybrid.

The rules and application orm orentering the Trophy Fish Award Programcan be ound in the 2011 Anglers Guideand at www.ct.gov/dep/shing.

grass, and submerged brushy vegetationound in shallower marsh areas are neces-sary or successul spawning. Pike do notcreate a nest like trout or bass. Instead,emales broadcast small eggs into thewater over submerged vegetation wheremales ertilize them. The eggs stick tothe vegetation, keeping them in oxygen-rich water and out o the mucky, marshsediment.

Each spring, biologists collect adultpike in nets and traps to stock themdirectly into the managed marshes. Thetotal number o spawning pike needed isbased on the size o emales captured andthe size o each marsh. Biologists gener-ally stock 1020 pounds o emale pikeper acre in each location, while also add-ing two males or each emale. They alsomonitor conditions and return the adultsto the lake/river where captured once the

spawning activity ceases.The speed at which the eggs hatch

is dependent on water temperature. Thewarmer the water, the quicker they hatch.Generally, this process takes about twoto three weeks. Newly-hatched pike areascinating in that they are born with asucker disc-like mouth. This is anotheradaptation which keeps the non-swim-ming young pike attached to vegetation

and out o the bottom mud. They begin toswim and actively eed on zooplanktononly ater the yolk sac is absorbed. Thengerling pike grow to approximatelyour to ve inches long by late June. Atthis time, the water in each marsh is slow-ly released through a trap at the marshsoutlet. Biologists capture, count, andmeasure the ngerlings, stocking them invegetated areas outside the marsh. Stock-ing densities are predetermined or each

lake and range rom two to 15 ngerlingsper acre.

While the managed marshes haveproven successul in producing ngerlingpike, there is a tremendous amount oyear-to-year variability in annual produc-tion. Many environmental and biologicalactors (e.g., ertilization success, pHchanges, temperature changes, andfooding) ultimately control ngerling

production on a yearly basis. The InlandFisheries Division is currently investi-gating more ecient ways o managingour marshes and developing methods toreduce annual variations in production. Inaddition, the Division will be monitoringnatural pike reproduction in ManseldHollow Reservoir (and possibly Win-chester Lake) to determine i natural re-production alone can support recreationalsheries at those locations.

Open House at Rainbow Dam Fishway in WindsorVisit the Rainbow Dam Fishway, in Windsor, on June 4, 2011, rom 10:00 AM-3:30 PM. Visitors will be allowed into the

counting house to watch migrating fsh through the viewing window. Take I-91 to exit 40; go west on Rt. 20 to the HamiltonRoad South exit; turn let, then right onto Rainbow Road; the area is 1/4-mile on the let (look or signs).

Inland Fisheries Division Director PeterAarrestad (let) poses with Daniel E. S.Kornegay III, o East Hampton.

Bill Gerrish (let) o the Inland FisheriesDivision poses with Harry C. Barber, oMiddleeld.

Inland Fisheries Division Director PeterAarrestad (let) poses with Nathan Dean, oWallingord.

PHOTOS

PROVIDED

BYDEP

INLAND

FISHERIESDIVISION


10/24


Scientists have estimated that approximately 4,000 beespecies are ound in North America. Many people aresurprised by this act as the image o a European honey

bee or a bumble bee is what typically comes to mind. In actual-ity, bees vary in size, coloration, and habits, much like birdsdo. There are sweat bees that can be bright green in color and

measure less than a quarter o an inch long to bumble bees thatare yellow and black and well over an inch long. There are beesthat only specialize on particular types o fowers, and thosethat do not create nests at all but lay their eggs in other beenests. The dierences are amazing, but the common thread isthat they all drink nectar or sustenance and emales use a nestand provision it with pollen and nectar (or the ospring to eat)that they gather rom fowers.

Native bees are thought to be responsible or more than90% o the pollination o North American wildfowers. Theseplants, in turn, provide ood and cover or a multitude o wild-lie species. Having such an important role in nature is whybees are considered to be keystone species that is, a speciesthat helps to support an ecosystem o which they are a part.

What makes a bee a bee? Although related to wasps andants, bees dier rom their close insect relatives in that theyhave branched hairs all over their bodies, giving them a uzzyappearance (sometimes only seen under a microscope). Thesebranched hairs are responsible or making bees such great pol-linators. Bees fy rom bloom to bloom, collecting pollen ortheir nests and drinking nectar or energy, all the while carryingexcess pollen on their urry bodies. This excess pollen is whatpollinates the next ew fowers the bee visits. It is an ingenioussystem o plants providing a reward, in the orm o nectar, tolure bees to visit them. The bees, subsequently, transport pol-len to other plants, ensuring gene exchange among individualplants.

Bee Lie HistoryThere are social bees and solitary bees. Most bee species

in North America are solitary creatures, meaning that they donot live socially like the European honey bee does. Europeanhoney bees (Apis melliera) are domestic bees that live in a hivewithin a highly-ordered social system that benets the hive as awhole. Female solitary bees by themselves will make a nest,provision that nest with ood or their larvae ater hatching,and sometimes guard nests rom predators and parasites likecuckoo bees. In good nesting habitat, solitary bees may nest inclose proximity to one another, giving the appearance o socialbehavior. However, this aggregation is not social behavior butmerely taking advantage o prime real estate.

Approximately 70% o solitary bee species nest in the

ground. The other 30% nest in wood, hollow plant stems, or theabandoned nests o other animals, such as small mammals andbeetles. Oten, the nest is merely a hollowed out chamber inwhich the emale constructs a gallery o compartments. An eggis laid in each compartment, typically on top o a ball o pollen,sometimes call bee bread, that she has collected. Once an egghatches, the larva eats the bee bread as it develops into an adultbee.

Based on recent research, scientists believe that approxi-mately 324 species o bees are ound in Connecticut. Following

Whats the Buzz About Native Solitary Bees?

Written by Laura Saucier and photography by Nelson DeBarros, DEP Wildlife Division

are descriptions o a ew groups o solitary bees that can beound in your backyard, some noticeable and some less so!

Large Carpenter Bees (Genus Xylocopa)Only one species represents this group in Connecticut,Xy-

locopa virginica. This carpenter bee is large, with a shiny black

abdomen. It sometimes is considered a nuisance to homeown-ers when it chooses to excavate a nest in a structure. Femalesexcavate nest tunnels in sot or rotten wood and typically willnot reuse old nest tunnels. The emale will create multiple eggchambers (cells) in a row within the tunnel. Males are protec-tive o the nest that their mate has created and will aggressivelydeend it, oten rightening people by buzzing by them. Thisbehavior is purely or show because male carpenter bees can-not sting (only emale bees can sting and carpenter bees rarelysting). Carpenter bees have a habit o robbing nectar romfowers that they cannot t their body into. Because the beedoes not enter the bloom but instead cuts a hole at the base o itto gain access to nectar, the fower does not get pollinated.

Squash Bees (Genus Peponapsis)Squash bees are the best pollinators or our native cucum-

bers, melons, pumpkins, and squashes. These medium-sized,golden yellow bees are ground nesters that emerge in late sum-mer when squash blossoms begin to appear. Unlike other beesthat preer the warmth o late morning, emales orage or pol-len and nectar in the early mornings. Males can oten be oundsleeping in squash fowers in the aternoon.

Mason Bees (Genus Osmia)Mason bees are small to medium-sized, typically metallic

or iridescent, and green to blue in color. They nest in cavities inplant stems or wood. These bees have readily adapted to nestingin blocks o wood with man-made holes drilled in them (called

bee blocks). Mason bees construct their nests inside these holeswith various materials, such as pieces o leaves and mud. Ma-son bees are ecient pollinators, especially o orchard crops,such as apples.

Mining Bees (Genus Andrena)Andrena bees are called mining bees because they are

ground nesters. These medium-sized bees are typically green orblack. Andrenids are interesting in that they are partial to certaintypes o plants, unlike most bees that are generalist pollinators.Some species will only collect pollen rom a limited range oplants, some only one species o plant.

Green Sweat Bees (Genus Agapostemon)

Green sweat bees are small (around one-third inch in length)and can be entirely bright green or green on the upper bodywith a yellow and black abdomen. They are ground-nestersthat are known to pollinate many dierent fowers, includingstrawberry plants. Sweat bees are oten attracted to human per-spiration, and will land on our skin to collect the salts that areexcreted when we sweat.

Lea-cutter Bees (Genus Megachile)Lea-cutter bees are medium-sized and typically have dark


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abdomens with light-colored bands.These bees may nest in hollow stems orin the ground, but what unies this groupis that the emale will chew o pieces oleaves to use in the construction o a nest.Males are oten territorial and will guarda particular patch o fowers, musclingother males away rom their fowers.Lea-cutter bees also can be ound nestingin man-made bee blocks.

Cuckoo Bees (multiple genuses)Cuckoo bees are a ascinating group

in that they are cleptoparasites. Clepto-parasites lay their eggs in nests o otherbee species (like cuckoo birds do to otherbirds) so that their ospring will hatchand consume provisions let by the hostbee. This earns them the name clepto asthey are stealing the resources o the hostlarva. Cuckoo bees in the genusNomadaspecialize in parasitizing the nests oAdrena species. Female Nomadids can beseen fying low to the ground searching

orAndrena nests to parasitize. Cuckoobees lack the typical uzzy bee appear-ance and can vary widely in coloration,rom a reddish brown to yellow andblack-striped.

Bee ConservationSince the 1990s, scientists have

detected a decline in bee species that wereonce quite common. The spread o or-eign diseases to our native bumble beeshas been implicated in some declines. Thereason or the decline in other bee speciesis still unclear. Native bees, like most

wildlie species, are susceptible to habitatragmentation and degradation by pollu-tion, pesticides, and other environmentalstressors. These stressors all take their tollon a species ability to adapt to its chang-ing environment.

You Can Help Native Bees Avoid pesticides around your homeand garden. Pesticides kill more than justpests they kill many other benecialinsects. Learn about organic lawn careand gardening, and put those techniques into practice. I pesticides are necessary, apply them when the plants are

not in fower to reduce bee exposure. I the plant is in fower,apply pesticides in the evening when bees are not actively orag-ing. Use the minimum amount o chemical needed or eective-ness. Provide ood or bees by planting a variety o native wild-fowers that will bloom throughout the growing season. Provide nesting habitat in your yard by leaving bare patcheso soil (ree o mulch) that receive sun. This will provide nestingopportunities or the 70% o bees that nest in the ground. Also,leaving wild (unmanicured) areas in your yard will provide

dead, woody stems that many other bees use or nesting.Will attracting bees to your yard mean more opportunities

or getting stung? Bees get a bad reputation or causing pain-ul stings, yet wasps, yellow jackets, and hornets are the morelikely culprit. For the most part, solitary bees are not aggressivebecause they do not deend a hive like wasps or social bees do.Also, only emale solitary bees sting; males do not have thesame ability.

To learn more about native pollinators, visit the Xerces Soci-ety Web site at www.xerces.org.

(Let) Bees, like this metallic green sweat bee come in many colors and patterns -- notjust yellow and black-striped. (Right) Seventy percent o bee species nest in the ground.Leaving sunny areas o your yard ree o mulch will benet bees like this mining bee.

(Let) Green sweat bees are oten attracted to human sweat and will land on us to drinkit or the salt content. (Right) Squash bees are specialists on the fowers o the squashamily (Cucurbitaceae). Mating actually occurs inside the cucurbit fowers.


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The Bird with the Bubbly Song - The Bobolink

Article and photography by Paul Fusco, DEP Wildlife Division

he bubbly, plinking song o themale bobolink brightens a springmeadow as the bird perches, sing-

ing rom the taller weeds that rise abovethe grass. Te bobolink song is a longseries o bubbling notes rising in pitch.

When one male begins his song, othersanswer with their own version. At times

they will take to the air, hovering in fightlike a helicopter, as they sing rom anelevated height above the thick grasses otheir territories.

Description

Bobolinks are small members o theblackbird amily. They are slightly larger

than a house sparrow. Their short tailhas sti, pointed eathers, and they havepointed wings. Bobolinks are sometimesalso known as reed birds or rice birds.

Male bobolinks have an elegant andunique look during the breeding season.

Their plumage is black below and mostlywhite above, and they have a buy nape.They are the only North American song-bird whose plumage is dark below andlight above. Females are quite dierentand suggestive o a large, bu-coloredsparrow with dark streaking on the backand fanks and crown stripes. Femaleshave a large, pinkish bill, while maleshave a black bill. Males have a similarappearance to emales ater the breed-ing season. Immature birds are similar toadult emales, but are more yellow withless streaking on the fanks.

In mid- to late summer, bobolinksgather into focks that may gradually be-come very large as the birds get ready orthe all migration. At this time, they canbe heard giving their typical fight call, ametallic pink.

BehaviorDuring the breeding season, bobo-

links are ound in extensive open grass-land habitat, usually wet meadows andhayelds with thick vegetation. They willuse agricultural elds and weedy eldswith grasses during all migration. Their

all migration takes them as ar south asArgentina, where they spend the winter.Amazingly, their round trip journey is11,000 miles, the longest o any NorthAmerican songbird.

Bobolinks are insectivorous duringspring and summer, switching to grassseeds, weed seeds, and grain in all. Inact, large migratory focks o bobolinkshave a history o being destructive to un-harvested grain, including rice. Althoughthey have a reputation or causing dam-age to grain crops, bobolinks provide anincalculable benet by consuming large

amounts o harmul insects and noxiousweed seeds.

BreedingMales arrive at their grassland breed-

ing areas in early May, about a weekor two beore emales. Nesting beginsshortly ater the emales arrive. Simple,open-topped nests are constructed ograss and built on the ground next to

During the breeding season, male bobolinks are unique in that they are the only songbirdsthat are light on top and dark on the underside.



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clumps o thick grass or other vegetation.The nests are well concealed.

Bobolinks are polyandrous, meaningthat nests may contain eggs that weresired by dierent males. The normalclutch size is our to seven eggs. Incuba-tion takes about 12 days. Young are edby both adults and they leave the nest a-ter about 10 days. Young tend to wanderaround in the grass or a ew more daysbeore learning to fy. At this stage, theyoung birds are extremely vulnerable.

ConservationUnortunately, the bubbly song o

the bobolink has been disappearing romConnecticuts landscape as the bird hasexperienced a widespread decline in theNortheast. The bobolink is listed as aConnecticut Species o Special Concern.

In the early twentieth century, beoremigratory bird protection laws wereenacted, bobolinks were shot in largenumbers in the southern states during allmigration. Farmers would kill the birdsby the thousands when they stopped toeed on grain and rice crops beore thecrops could be harvested. It was common

Female bobolinks are slightly larger than a sparrow. They have dark crown stripes, streaking on the back and fanks, and a pinkish bill.

practice or armers to wait until the birdshad the chance to atten up beore killingthem so that they would etch a higherprice at market.

Although those days are long gone,bobolinks have never recovered theirormer numbers in our region. They noware acing new threats rom early hayingpractices that impede their breeding suc-cess and habitat loss due to successionand development. Bobolink populationsalso are aected by pesticide use andheavy hunting on their South Americanwintering grounds, where they are stillconsidered agricultural pests.

When hayelds are mowed can makethe dierence between sustaining a bobo-link colony or losing it. Bobolinks havehigh site delity, meaning that birds romsuccessul breeding colonies return to thesame site year ater year. Sites with birdsthat are unsuccessul in breeding andraising young will die out. Farmers whohave bird conservation in mind know thatthe proper time to mow a bobolink eldis two weeks ater young have fedgedthe nest, which in Connecticut is in earlyto mid-July. This time rame gives the

young birds time to build their fightmuscles and gain strength. O course, theinsects that bobolinks depend on or oodare also aected by mowing.

The Wildlie Division has been, andis currently, monitoring grassland birdpopulations. The DEP began a statewideGrassland Habitat Initiative in 2006 withunding rom the ederal State WildlieGrants Program. By partnering withother state agencies, agricultural groups,and non-governmental organizations,a working committee was tasked withestablishing grassland conservationgoals. Ongoing eld surveys, mapping,data collection, and land use assessmentshave allowed sta to assign conservationpriorities.

Maintaining and managing healthygrassland habitat is a top priority thatwill benet all o Connecticuts grasslandspecies. The bobolinks uture in our statedepends on the stewardship o declininggrassland habitat and ensuring that eldmowing schedules are enabling the birdsto raise their young successully.



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Zebra mussels(Dreissenapolymorpha)

are small bivalve

mollusks native todrainages o theBlack and CaspianSeas in Russia andEastern Europe. Theywere rst introducedto the United Statesduring the late 1980sin the ballast o shipspassing through theSt. Lawrence Seaway,and are now one othe most ecologicallysignicant invasive

species in NorthAmerica.

The InvasionThe rst records

o zebra mussels out-side their native range are rom the lateeighteenth and early nineteenth centuries,when they spread through canal systemsacross Western Europe. Zebra musselswere rst ound in North America inLake St. Clair, between Lake Erie andLake Huron, in 1988. By the mid-1990s,they were documented throughout theGreat Lakes region and in 20 states in theUnited States, having moved as ar eastas the Hudson River in New York, LakeChamplain in Vermont, and East TwinLake in northwestern Connecticut.

In the Northeast, zebra mussels re-mained primarily within the Hudson andLake Champlain watersheds until 2009,when they were discovered in LaurelLake in the Housatonic River in Massa-chusetts. Most recently, during all 2010,limited numbers o mostly young animals(less than 20 millimeters in length)were ound at several locations in theimpoundments o Lake Lillinonah andLake Zoar in the lower Housatonic Riverin southwest Connecticut. It is likelythese animals were only just introduced,and while they may have come rom anupstream source or been transported byrecreational boaters, their exact origin isunknown.

Adult zebra mussels rarely reachmore than 50 millimeters in length. Their

Zebra Mussels in Western Connecticut

A well-known aquatic invader expands its range in New England

Article and Photography by Barb St. John White, Research Biologist, Biodrawversity LLC

black-and-white striped shells consist otwo valves joined by a hinge, the sameas other bivalve clams and mussels. Theventral side, or bottom, is fat, and themussels attach to rocks or other hardsubstrates by bers called byssal threads.Zebra mussels can inhabit both lakes andrivers, although they preer lake habitatsor areas o slow-moving water. Theymay occur sparsely or in high densities,completely covering the suraces theycolonize. They eed by ltering algae,small zooplankton, bacteria, and otherparticulate matter rom the water. Asingle adult can lter approximately oneliter o water per day.

As veligers, or larvae, zebra mus-sels are no more than 200 thousandthso a millimeter in size, invisible withouta microscope. In one season, a singleemale mussel releases several hundredthousand veligers directly into the water.The microscopic larvae foat reely andare dispersed by currents, easily movingmore than 50 miles downstream in a riverbeore settling in new locations. Adult ze-bra mussels have ew natural predators osignicance in North America, althoughsome sh and aquatic birds are known toconsume them in moderate quantities.

While zebra mussels seem to spreadeasily, research tells us they are not likely

to become establishedin waterbodies with apH below 7.4 and cal-cium levels less than

12.0 mg/liter. Streamsand lakes with cal-careous underlyinggeology, includingthose in the WesternNew England MarbleValleys o the upperHousatonic River inMassachusetts andnorthwest Con-necticut, are highlysusceptible to colo-nization. Lake Zoarand Lake Lillinonah,

urther downstream,are less alkaline andat lower risk. In both

impoundments, pHis near 7.5, just overthe minimum zebra

mussels require. Calcium concentrationsin Lake Zoar are approximately 17.0mg/L, and 23.0 mg/L in Lake Lillinonah,making them moderately susceptible.Continued monitoring o the populationsin the impoundments and vigilance on thepart o local residents and visitors will beimportant in preventing urther coloniza-tion.

Ecological ImpactsZebra mussels can have signicant

ecological impacts. They will attach toany hard underwater suraces, includingrocky substrates, boats, dock installa-tions, water intake pipes, and even nativereshwater mussels. They may occurat densities as high as several thousandadult mussels per square meter, and canseverely alter availability and quality ohabitat o the benthos (bottom) o streamsand lakes.

Aside rom physical changes that areeasily seen, zebra mussels also transormecosystems in drastic ways that maynot be noticed by the casual observer.Because zebra mussels lter vast quan-tities o suspended material rom thewater and digest and deposit this mate-rial on the bottom as pseudoaeces, oodsources or bacteria and invertebrates andultimately other organisms are depleted

This zebra mussel was one o several discovered in the Housatonic Riverimpoundments o Lake Zoar and Lake Lillinonah in southwest Connecticut duringall 2010.


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With an area o just a little over 5,000 square miles,Connecticut has 107 state parks and 32 state orests,quite remarkable or the third smallest state in the na-

tion and the ourth most densely populated. Within 10 minuteso most peoples homes is the opportunity to visit one o theseabulous locations. Wildlie viewing is just one o the many

activities you can do in Connecticut State Parks and Forests.Whether you are looking or a marsh wren or a little blue heron Sherwood Island State Park in Westport is the place to go.Stop by the Sherwood Island Nature Center to see the exhibitsand also take some time to appreciate the beautiul bird photo-graphs on display by A.J. Hand.

Connecticut State Parks Adventure is Waiting or You

Written by Diane Joy, DEP Division of State Parks & Public Outreach

The DEPs No Child Let Inside (NCLI ) program hasteamed up with the Connecticut Library Consortium to provideState Park Day Passes or each o the 169 town main libraries.Similar to checking out a book, you can check out a State ParkDay Pass. Show your Day Pass at the ticket booth and it willallow you to park or ree at the sites where there is a parkingee or obtain access or a limited number o people to Dinosaur,Fort Trumbull, or Gillette Castle State Parks.

No Child Let Inside has been actively engaging amiliesin the pursuit o outdoor adventures or the past ve years.

This year there is a slightly new twist to the NCLI GreatPark Pursuit it is the Great Park Pursuit Outdoor RecreationChallenge. A booklet has been created that will serve as youramilys passport to the challenge. Within the booklet is a list o10 or more state park and orest locations that have been deter-mined by DEP sta to be the best or shing, swimming, hik-ing, biking, camping, letterboxing, boating, birding, picnicking,winter activities, and historic sites. A box containing a stampwill be at each o the locations so you can keep track o all yourvisits. To download a copy o the Great Park Pursuit: OutdoorRecreation Challenge passport or or additional inormation onFamily Days associated with the challenge, go to www.NoChil-dLetInside.org. Whether you want a challenge or a walk in thepark Connecticut state parks and orests are wonderul places

waiting to be discovered.

Purchase a Season Pass or State ParksMany o the state parks and orests do not charge a parking eeand others charge only on weekends and holidays. The requentpark visitor can purchase a Season Pass or only $67 (CTresidents), which allows unlimited vehicle access. Purchase thepass online at the DEP Store (www.ctdepstore.com) and ax itto the window o your vehicle. Connecticut residents 65 yearso age or older can get a ree Charter Oak Pass, which allowsunlimited access to state Parks and orests.

You can enjoy the sun and sur at Rocky Neck State Park inEast Lyme; catch a trout at Southord Falls in Southbury; paddlea canoe or kayak in Mashapaug Pond at Bigelow Hollow inUnion; or enjoy a picnic lunch and hike to the tower at SleepingGiant in Hamden. Perhaps you preer bicycling or horsebackriding on the Air Line Trail, which travels along an old railroadroute or over 50 miles in eastern Connecticut, rom SalmonRiver State Park in East Hampton all the way to the Massachu-setts border just past Quaddick State Park in Thompson.

Are you a history bu? Take a step back in time as you visitPutnam Memorial State Park in Redding, the site o the 1779Continental Armys winter encampment. Love dinosaurs? Thentravel back 200 million years to the Jurassic Period when di-nosaurs roamed the earth and let their tracks at Dinosaur State

Park in Rocky Hill.Whether you preer waking up to the smell o salt air at

Hammonasset Beach State Park (Madison), located on Long Is-land Sound, or hearing the roar o the Farmington River as youcamp at the Austin F. Hawes Memorial Campground (Barkham-sted), the opportunities are endless. There are campgrounds at11 state parks and two state orests. Reservations can be made atwww.ReserveAmerica.com or by calling toll ree at 1-877-668-CAMP (2267). Find out more inormation about camping atwww.ct.gov/dep/camping.

Trying out shing during the No Child Let Inside: The Great ParkPursuit, at Squantz Pond State Park, in New Faireld.

A beautiul summer day at Rocky Neck State Park in East Lyme.

S.BATTISTINI,DEPSTA

TE

PARKS

LIFEGUARD

PROGRAM


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The growth rings on a six-year-old winter founder otolith (ear bone) are airly clear (right) when magnied whole under a microscope.But, the otolith rom a 10-year-old required cross-sectioning (let) to reveal clearer thick and thin rings. The image is more highly

magnied in a microche reader with a built-in measurement scale.

How Old Is this Fish?

Written by Penny Howell,

DEP Marine Fisheries Division: Photos providedbt DEP Marine Fisheries Division

DEP marine biologists use several techniquesto age dierent species o sh so their rate ogrowth and reproduction can be tracked. Fish

grow aster when the water is warm, but grow slower,

or not at all, when it is cold. Various growth periodsshow up dierently on the shs scales, bones, or otherhard parts. During ast growth periods, the scale orbone is laid down thinly with little color, while a slowgrowth period leaves a thicker, dark ring.

Oten, these rings can be seen by holding a cleanedsh scale in ront o a bright light. A more accuratecount requires magnication and, i the sh is old,sometimes the thicker bones may need to be cross-sec-tioned with a specially designed diamond-blade cutter.

To make accurate measurements o a shs growth, scales or bones aremagnied with a specialized projector so the annual growth rings areeasier to see, measure, and count.

Bones, like these operculars (gill covers) rom a tautog, showlarge growth rings at the base when the sh was young. Smallerrings can be seen on the edge when the sh was older and itsgrowth slowed. A large bone is needed to age tautog becausethey can live to be 20 to 30 years old.

This magnied image o a summer founder scale shows very clearannual growth rings. The image is a negative o the actual scale sothe light lines mark every all when growth stops, and the darkerareas represent ast summer growth.


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Injured Golden Eagle Rehabilitated and Released in CT

Dr. Todd Katzner and Emily Christianson rom Tuts Wildlie Clinic prepare to release the eagle atMohawk State Forest.

In late March 2011,Audubon Sharon, theDEP Wildlie Division,and rehabilitators romTuts University releaseda golden eagle at MohawkState Forest in Cornwall.The eagle had been ound

by snowmobilers in earlyFebruary in Amenia, NewYork, near the New York/Connecticut border.The bird had sustainedmultiple puncture woundson its leg (possibly roman animal it was tryingto capture). It was trans-ported over the borderby the people who oundit and taken to the Sha-ron Audubon Center inSharon, Connecticut. The

nature center sta tookit to Kensington AnimalHospital or examinationand then to rehabilitatorMary Beth Kaeser in Ash-ord, who then transerred it to the TutsWildlie Clinic and Center or Conserva-tion Medicine in North Graton, Mas-sachusetts. The bird was cared or by themedical sta at Tuts or over a month,

eventually making a complete recoveryand regaining ull mobility o its injuredleg and oot. The eagle was tted witha leg band and GPS-GSM telemetry byDr. Todd Katzner, a proessor at West

Virginia University. Dr. Katzner has t-ted about 25 golden eagles with telem-etry gear since 2006 or the purposeo studying the eastern population oNorth Americas golden eagles. This

population is small,geographically sepa-rate, and potentiallygenetically distinct

rom western popula-tions. Eagles rom theeastern populationbreed in northeasternCanada and winter inthe southern Appala-chians, so it is onlypossible to nd thisspecies in Connecticutduring migration or inthe winter.

This successul releasewas a team eort that in-cluded volunteers at SharonAudubon Center who caredor the bird, Connecticutveterinarians who donatedtheir time and eorts, therehabilitator who trans-ported the bird to TutsUniversity, the veterinarianat Tuts, Dr. Katzner, andthe DEP.

Solar Powered SatelliteTransmitter Used in Eagle

ReleaseThe solar powered transmitter was attachedto the birds back with a harness (seen inphoto at right). It records GPS location pointsrom satellites and transmits those datapoints throughcell phonetechnology.The map showsthe eaglesmovementsover the threeweeks ollowingits release. Aterremaining in thearea or a while,the bird travelednorth, up theHudson RiverValley, over theAdirondackMountains inupstate NewYork, and oninto southernQuebec.


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Eastern Box TurtleTerrapene carolina carolina

Wildlife in Connecticut Notebook

DescriptionThe eastern box turtle is probably the

most amiliar turtle ound in Connecticut.It has a high-domed carapace (top shell)with irregular yellow or orange blotches ona brown to black background that mimicsunlight dappling on the orest oor. Theplastron (bottom shell) may be brown orblack and have an irregular pattern ocream or yellow. The length o the carapaceusually ranges rom 4.5 to 6.5 inches, butcan measure up to eight inches long. Theshell is made up o a combination o scalesand bones, and it includes the ribs andmuch o the backbone.

Each individual turtle has distinctivehead markings. Males usually have redeyes and a concave plastron, while emaleshave brown eyes and a at plastron. Boxturtles also have a horny beak, stout limbs,and eet that are webbed at the base. Thisturtle gets its name rom its ability to completely withdraw into itsshell, closing itsel in with a hinged plastron.

Habitat and DietThis terrestrial turtle lives in a variety o habitats, including

woodlands, feld edges, thickets, marshes, bogs, and streambanks. It is typically ound in well-drained orest bottomlands andopen deciduous orests. Wetland areas also are used. Duringthe hottest part o a summer day, box turtles will fnd springs andseepages where they can burrow into the moist soil. Activity is re-

stricted to mornings and evenings during summer, with little to nonighttime activity, except or egg-laying emales. Box turtles have alimited home range where they spend their entire lie, ranging rom0.5 to 10 acres (usually less than 2 acres).

Box turtles are omnivorous and will eed on a variety o ooditems, including earthworms, slugs, snails, insects, rogs, toads,small snakes, carrion, leaves, grass, berries, ruits, and ungi.

Lie HistoryFrom October to April, box turtles hibernate by burrowing into

loose soil, decaying vegetation, and mud. They tend to hibernatein woodlands, on the edge o woodlands, and sometimes nearclosed canopy wetlands in the orest. Box turtles may return to thesame place to hibernate year ater year. As soon as they come outo hibernation, the turtles begin eeding and searching or mates.

The breeding season begins in April and may continuethrough all. Box turtles usually do not breed until they are about10 years old. They have a long liespan, which can range up to50 to even over 100 years o age. Females do not have to mateevery year to lay eggs as they can store sperm or up to ouryears. In mid-May to late June, emales will travel rom a ew eetto more than a mile within their home range to fnd a location todig a nest and lay their eggs. The three to eight eggs are coveredwith soil and let to be warmed by the sun. During this vulnerabletime, skunks, oxes, snakes, crows, and raccoons oten raid nests,sometimes destroying the entire nest.

Eggs hatch in late summer to early all (about 2 months ater

being laid). I they hatch in all, the young turtles may spend thewinter in the nest and come out the ollowing spring. As soon asthe young turtles hatch, they are on their own and receive no carerom the adults. This is a dangerous time or young box turtlesbecause they do not develop the hinge or closing into their shelluntil they are about our to fve years old. Until then, they cannotentirely retreat into their shells. Raccoons, skunks, oxes, dogs,and some birds will prey on young turtles.

Conservation Concerns

The box turtle was once common throughout the state, mostlyin the central Connecticut lowlands. However, its distribution isnow spotty, although where ound, turtles may be locally abun-dant. Because o the population decline, the box turtle was addedto Connecticuts List o Endangered and Threatened Species asa species o special concern when the list was revised in 1998.The box turtle also is protected rom international trade by the1994 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species(CITES) treaty. It is o conservation concern in all the states at itsnortheastern range limit, which includes southern New Englandand southeastern New York.

Many states, including Connecticut, have laws that protect boxturtles and prohibit their collection rom the wild. State regulationsprovide some protection, but not enough to combat the even big-ger threats these animals ace, such as loss and ragmentation o

habitat due to deorestation and suburban development; vehiclestrikes on the busy roads that bisect the landscape; and indiscriminate and illegal collection o individuals or pets. Loss o habitat orshelter, eeding, hibernation, and nesting is probably the great-est threat o all to turtles. As remaining habitat is ragmented intosmaller pieces, turtle populations can become small and isolated.

Adult box turtles are relatively ree rom predators due to theirunique, hard shells. However, the shell is not hard enough to pro-tect turtles that are run over by vehicles. Most vehicle atalities arepregnant emales searching or nest sites.

State Species of Special Concern



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Wildlife in Connecticut Notebook

Wood TurtleGlyptemys insculpta

State Species of Special Concern

Background and RangeWood turtles may be ound

throughout Connecticut, but they havebecome increasingly rare due to theircomplex habitat needs. Wood turtlesalso have become more scarce inFairfeld County due to the ragmen-tation o suitable habitat by urbandevelopment.

Wood turtles can be ound acrossthe northeastern United States intoparts o Canada. They range romNova Scotia through New England,south into northern Virginia, and westthrough the Great Lakes region into

Minnesota.

DescriptionThe scientifc name o the wood

turtle, Glyptemys insculpta, reers tothe deeply sculptured or chiseled pattern ound on the carapace(top shell). This part o the shell is dark brown or black and mayhave an array o aint yellow lines radiating rom the center oeach chiseled, pyramid-like segment due to tannins and mineralsaccumulating between ridges. These segments o the carapace,as well as those o the plastron (bottom shell), are called scutes.The carapace also is keeled, with a noticeable ridge runningrom ront to back. The plastron is yellow with large dark blotchesin the outer corners o each scute. The black or dark brown headand upper limbs are contrasted by brighter pigments ranging

rom red and orange to a pale yellow on the throat and limbundersides. Orange hues are most typical or New Englandswood turtles. The hind eet are only slightly webbed, and the tailis long and thick at the base. Adults weigh approximately 1.5 to2.5 pounds and reach a length o fve to nine inches.

Habitat and DietWood turtles use aquatic and terrestrial habitats at dierent

times o the year. Their habitats include rivers and large streams,riparian orests (adjacent to rivers), wetlands, hayfelds, andother early successional habitats. Terrestrial habitat that is usu-ally within 1,000 eet o a suitable stream or river is most likelyused. Preerred stream conditions include moderate ow, sandyor gravelly bottoms, and muddy banks.

Wood turtles are omnivorous and opportunistic. They are notpicky eaters and will readily consume slugs, worms, tadpoles,insects, algae, wild ruits, leaves, grass, moss, and carrion.

Lie HistoryFrom late spring to early all, wood turtles can be ound

roaming their aquatic or terrestrial habitats. However, oncetemperatures drop in autumn, the turtles retreat to rivers andlarge streams or hibernation. The winter is spent underwater,oten tucked away below undercut riverbanks within exposedtree roots. Dissolved oxygen is extracted rom the water, allowingthe turtle to remain submerged entirely until the arrival o spring.Once warmer weather sets in, the turtles will become increasing-

ly more active, eventually leaving the water to begin oraging orood and searching or mates. Travel up or down stream is mostlikely, as turtles seldom stray very ar rom their riparian habitats.

Females nest in spring to early summer, depositing any-where rom our to 12 eggs into a nest dug out o sot soil,typically in sandy deposits along stream banks or other areas oloose soil. The eggs hatch in late summer or all and the youngturtles may either emerge or remain in the nest or winter hiber-nation. As soon as the young turtles hatch, they are on their ownand receive no care rom the adults.

Turtle eggs and hatchlings are heavily preyed upon by a widevariety o predators, ranging rom raccoons to birds and snakes.High rates o nest predation and hatchling mortality, paired withthe lengthy amount o time it takes or wood turtles to reachsexual maturity, present a challenge to maintaining sustainablepopulations. Wood turtles live upwards o 40 to 60 years, pos-sibly more.

Conservation ConcernsLoss and ragmentation o habitat are the greatest threats to

wood turtles. Many remaining populations in Connecticut are lowin numbers and isolated rom one another by human-dominatedlandscapes. Turtles orced to venture arther and arther romappropriate habitat to fnd mates and nesting sites are morelikely to be run over by cars, attacked by predators, or collectedby people as pets. Other sources o mortality include entangle-ments in litter and debris let behind by people, as well as strikesrom mowing equipment used to maintain hayfelds and otherearly successional habitats.

The wood turtle is imperiled throughout a large portion oits range and was placed under international trade regulatoryprotection through the Convention on International Trade in En-dangered Species (CITES) in 1992. Wood turtles also have beenincluded on the International Union or Conservation o Natures(IUCN) Red List as a vulnerable species since 1996. They arelisted as a species o special concern in Connecticut and pro-tected by the Connecticut Endangered Species Act.



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Hunters have many choices regard-ing which game species theywould preer to hunt during the

all period. Based on permit issuanceand overall harvest, all wild turkeyhunting oten takes a back seat to deer

and small game hunting. However, orthose individuals looking or a chal-lenge, Connecticuts allarchery and rearmsseasons oer that.

Fall Archery SeasonMany bowhunters

purchase a all archeryturkey permit hoping ora chance encounter with aturkey while deer hunting.The archery turkey anddeer seasons run concur-

rently, extending to theend o January in someareas o the state. A totalo 1,862 permits wereissued during 2010 and50 birds were harvested.Forty-seven hunters har-vested at least one turkeyor a 2.5% statewide suc-cess rate. The all archeryharvest consisted o 40%adult emales, 28% adultmales, 23% juvenileemales, and nine percent

juvenile males. Harvestincreased by 22% rom2009 and permit issu-ance dropped by 26%. Only three archerswere successul in harvesting two birds.At least one bird was harvested rom 38o Connecticuts 169 towns. Newtown (5birds) and Thompson (3 birds) recordedthe highest harvest. On a regional basis,wild turkey management zones 11 (16birds), 5 (8 birds), and 1 (5 birds) re-corded the highest harvest.

Results or the 2010 Fall Wild Turkey Hunting Seasons

Written by Michael Gregonis, DEP Wildlife Division

Fall Firearms SeasonThe all rearms turkey season con-

tinues to be the more popular o the allturkey seasons. A total o 2,444 permitswere issued in 2010 and 64 turkeys wereharvested, resulting in a statewide success

rate o two percent. Private land hunt-ers harvested seven times more birds

Turkey management zones 4A (11 birds),2 (8 birds), and 5 (8 birds) recorded thehighest harvest.

Connecticut continues to have liberalall turkey hunting seasons and baglimits. A all hunter could potentially

harvest two birds with archery equip-ment, and one bird on state land and two

Report Turkey Brood SightingsThe Wildlie Division conducts the annual Wild Turkey Brood Survey to estimate the average number o turkey poults (young-o-the-year) per hen statewide and to assess annual fuctuations in the turkey population. This index allows the Division to gaugereproductive success each year and to evaluate recruitment o new birds into the all population. Weather, predation, and habitatconditions during the breeding and brood-rearing seasons can all signicantly impact nest success, hen survival, and poult survival.

Whats involved? From June 1 to August 31, volunteers and Department sta record all o the hens and poults observed duringnormal travel. Each observation is categorized by total number o hens observed, total poults, and total number o hens with poults.Observations o male (tom) turkeys are not requested or this survey. I you would like to participate, download a DEP Wild TurkeyObservation Form to record your observations (www.ct.gov/dep/wildlie; click on Volunteer Opportunities under the Featured Linksbox on the right). Instructions are on the data sheet. This is a great way to partner with the Wildlie Division to help monitor the stateswild turkey population.

than state land hunters (56 birds versus8 birds). Harvest did not change rom2009; however, permit issuance declinedby 26%. The harvest included 36% adultemales, 22% juvenile emales, 22%juvenile males, and 20% adult males.Turkeys were harvested rom 35 townswith Staord and Willington (both 4birds) reporting the highest harvest.

birds on private land with a shotgun. Theall archery season length in some areaso Connecticut can run or over 120 daysand the rearms season runs rom therst Saturday in October to the end othe month. Besides the challenge o allturkey hunting, the rewards o enjoyingthe all oliage and ne table are are alsooutstanding.



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FROM THE FIELD

Wildlie Division WelcomesNelson DeBarros

The Wildlie Division is pleased towelcome a new plant ecologist to the NaturalDiversity Data Base program. NelsonDeBarros joined the Division in mid-January.A graduate o Providence College andPennsylvania State University, Nelson bringsa diverse knowledge o plant ecology andconservation. He has worked with the NewEngland Wildfower Society on rare andstate and ederally listed plant conservation,and the Association to Preserve Cape Cod toidentiy and monitor the fora and auna otidal-restricted coastal saltmarshes. Nelsonalso has taught plant identication at both theundergraduate and graduate levels.

An expert in the fora resourceprovisioning o wild bees, he has publishedtechnical papers and general outreach

materials on bee conservation, habitatenhancements or pollinator conservation,and landscaping or benecial insects. Amonghis many activities, Nelson has helpeddesign and establish a community gardenand does technical illustrations o plants.Despite his short time on the job, Nelson hasalready provided assistance in completingenvironmental reviews or state-listed plantsand rare ecological communities and hasstarted to make headway on the numerousplant conservation projects that were puton hold when Ken Metzler retired rom theDivision in 2009. Other wildlie sta arelooking orward to the 2011 eld season and

the ability to have a plant ecologist aid in themanagement and conservation o wildliehabitats.

Jenny Dickson, DEP Wildlie Division

Call or HelpDo you have a bat house/colony on your

property, or enjoy watching bats emerge in theearly evening to orage? I so, please consider

being a bat citizen scientist or the WildlieDivision! Assistance is needed with summermaternity roost counts and the Division isasking or your help. Please contact JenPacelli at the Sessions Woods oce (860-675-8130) to express your interest in volunteeringor to report your bat colony.

In addition, i you nd a dead bat, pleaselet us know as we may want to collect thespecimen or additional research. We also areinterested in collecting other specimens, suchas small mammals, weasels, and owl pellets.

The Wildlie Division appreciatesany help citizen scientists can provide aswe continue to gather knowledge about

Connecticuts bats and other small mammals.Jen Pacelli, DEP Wildlie Division

Peregrine Watch at theTravelers TowerBirders, students, and any others

interested in the peregrine alcon havean opportunity to once again monitor theprogress o a nesting pair o alcons on theTravelers Tower in Hartord. The PeregrineWatch at the Travelers Tower web cam is upand running, providing constant views o thenesting platorm. As o March 29, the emalewas tending to our eggs in the nest. The webcam can be accessed at www.alconcam.travelers.com. You also can visit the DEP Website to learn more about peregrine alcons(www.ct.gov/dep/wildlie; click on LearnAbout CTs Wildlie) The peregrine web camis possible through a partnership among TheChildrens Museum, Travelers Insurance, andthe DEP.

Junior Naturalist Series at the Belding Wildlie Management Area

The Junior Naturalist programs at Belding WMA in Vernon are or children o all ages. There is no ee to participate and children can signup or one or more programs. Registration is required; please call 860-306-5418. Programs start at 9:00 AM and end by 12:00 noon. Parkingor Belding WMA is on Bread and Milk Road in Vernon.

June 30 Birds. What makes a bird a bird? Where do birds live? What kinds o homes do they make? See and hear a variety o birds, lookat bird homes, and play a bird game or two.

July 7 Butterfies, Dragonfies, Ladybugs, Beetles! How many dierent kinds o butterfies are there? What do dragonfies eat? Can you

make a hoverfy land on your nger? Walk the wildfower meadow looking or all kinds o ascinating insects.July 14 Plants. Take a walk around the elds, orest, and wetlands to see where dierent plants grow and learn how to identiy them.Learn about native plants vs. ALIENS! Ater the walk, use certain plants to make plant artwork.

July 21 Stream Lie. The streams at Belding WMA are ull o creatures you just have to know how to nd them. Get your hands wetlooking or stream-dwelling animals.

July 28 Signs o Wildlie. Animals are all around, but many avoid being seen by humans. Look or evidence o wildlie and learn toidentiy the signs that dierent animals leave when they pass through. Go on a wildlie scavenger hunt.

August 4 Nature Photography. Photography is a great way to learn about nature. Learn some basics o nature photography and then headout into the wildfower meadow or some great shots. Return ater lunch or a viewing o everyones photos.


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Subscription Order

Name:

Address:

City: State:

Zip: Tel.:

1 Year ($8.00) 2 Years ($15.00) 3 Years ($20.00)

Please make checks payable to:Connecticut Wildlie, P.O. Box 1550, Burlington, CT 06013Check one:

Check one:

Renewal

New Subscription

Git Subscription

Git card to read:

Calendar of Events

Donation to the Wildlie Fund:

$ ___________

Help und projects that beneftsongbirds, threatened and endangeredspecies, reptiles, amphibians, bats, and

other wildlie species.

May-August .............Respect enced and posted shorebird nesting areas when visiting Connecticut beaches, and also when viewing freworks

displays near these areas. Keep dogs and cats o shoreline beaches to avoid disturbing nesting birds. Herons and egrets are

nesting on oshore islands in Long Island Sound. Rerain rom visiting these areas during the nesting season.

................................Dispose o fshing line in covered trash containers or specifcally marked recycling receptacles. Improperly discarded fshing

line is a hazard or wildlie. A list o recycling receptacle locations is available at www.ct.gov/dep/whatdoidowith.

June 4 .....................National Trails Day, sponsored by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association (CFPA). Hikes and other events will be held

throughout the state. To learn more, visit the CFPA Web site (www.ctwoodlands.org) or call 860-346-2372.

June 4 .....................Rainbow Dam Fishway Open House in Windsor, rom 10:00 AM-3:30 PM (see page 9 or more inormation).June 25 ...................Pollinator Walk, at the Wildlie Divisions Belding WMA, in Vernon, starting at 9:00 AM. Take a walk to fnd various pollinators

during Pollinator Week. Parking is on Bread and Milk Road in Vernon. Call 860-306-5418 or more inormation.

June 26-July 2 ........National Mosquito Awareness Week go to www.mosquito.org or more inormation. Visit Connecticuts mosquito Web pageat www.ct.gov/mosquito to learn more about mosquitoes and West Nile Virus.

Programs at the Sessions Woods Conservation Education CenterPrograms are a cooperative venture between the Wildlife Division and the Friends of Sessions Woods. Please pre-register by calling 860-675-8130

(Mon.-Fri., 8:30 AM-4:30 PM). Programs are free unless noted. An adult must accompany children under 12 years old. No pets allowed! Sessions

Woods is located at 341 Milford St. (Route 69) in Burlington.

May 14 ....................Charcoal to Iron: An Interpretive Hike, starting at 1:30 PM. Join Master Wildlie Conservationist Shirley Sutton or a hikingtalk, eaturing Sessions Woods and the importance o the charcoal industry. Shirley is an avid educator about the history

o Connecticuts past land use. She has presented programs on the Leatherman and Native Americans in Northwest

Connecticut. This program will include a slide presentation indoors and an outdoors hike to view signs o past land use.

May 25 ....................Plants and their Wildlie Value, rom 10:00 AM-12:00 PM. Join Jack Hamill on an interpretive walk to identiy plants andshrubs and their use to wildlie as ood or shelter. A mile or so in length, this program will traverse mild terrain. Please wear

appropriate outdoor gear and meet in the exhibit room.

June 4 .....................Trails Day Educational Walk at Sessions Woods, starting at 1:30 PM. Sessions Woods will be participating in National Trails

Day with an educational walk to learn about wildlie and wildlie habitat on a one-mile hike to the beaver marsh. Participants

can return the same way or continue on their own to complete a three-mile loop o the property. Meet leader Laura Rogers-

Castro at the agpole in ront o the Conservation Education Center.

June 26 ...................Year o the Turtle Day, rom 1:00-4:00 PM. View artwork submitted or the Turtle Art Contest or Kids. Also planned or theevent are educational programs on turtles, a display o live turtles, and crats or kids. More inormation about the event will be

on the DEPs Year o the Turtle Web page at www.ct.gov/dep/yearoturtle.

July 9 ......................Butterfies o Sessions Woods, starting at 10:00 AM. Visit the owers and felds at Sessions Woods to identiy the local

buttery auna with Wildlie Division Natural Resources Educator Laura Rogers-Castro. Participants will learn the basics to

buttery identifcation, including tips on distinguishing the various buttery amilies.

Sept. 24 ..................Connecticut Hunting & Fishing Day. Save the date! Stay tuned to the Web page at www.ct.gov/huntfshday to fnd out more

details about this un, ree, amily event.

Hunting and Fishing Season DatesApril 27-May 28 ......Spring Turkey Hunting Season. Consult the 2011 Connecticut Hunting and Trapping Guide or specifc season dates and

details. Printed guides are available at more than 350 locations statewide -- including town halls, bait and tackle shops, DEP

acilities, and commercial marinas and campgrounds. The guide also is available on the DEP Web site (www.ct.gov/dep/

hunting). Go to www.ct.gov/dep/sportsmenlicensing to purchase Connecticut hunting, trapping, and fshing licenses. The

system accepts payment by VISA or MasterCard.


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Connecticut Department o Environmental ProtectionBureau o Natural Resources / Wildlie DivisionSessions Woods Wildlie Management AreaP.O. Box 1550Burlington, CT 06013-1550

A emale gray ox usually gives birth to a litter o our to ve pups in spring. Gray ox dens are typically located in dense brush, cavities in stumpsnd trees, rock crevices, or under out-buildings, such as barns and sheds. The pups stay in the den until they are about our to ve weeks o age,ter which they emerge and begin to play outside the den entrance At about 12 weeks o age the pups are weaned and join the adults on hunting

magazine issue may/june 2011

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