Outdoor NEBRASKA

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Editorial

All fairy stories, we learn when we are very young, should begin with the phrase—"once upon a time"—and end with—"and they lived happily ever after."

So, true to form: Once upon a time in a far away land there lived five great tribes, the Soils, the Waters, the Animals, the Men and the Plants. All got along well with the others and life was wonderful in this far away land.

But then, as sometimes happens, strife developed. The members of the Soil tribe decided that they could get along very well without the other tribes. The members of the Animal tribe got very angry with the members of the Plants tribe, and the Men became furious with the members of the Waters tribe. It was up to Man to keep control and he failed to do so.

Soon all was chaos. The Waters refused to run and play on the Soils, Men began to chop down and ruin the Plants tribe, and the Animals refused to have anything to do with any of the others. The land was bleak indeed.

But this isn't a very good fairy story because it doesn't end with "and they all lived happily ever after." In fact it's no fairy story at all, sometimes we just think it is.

Each tribe is dependent upon the other, and they all must get along or lapse into complete ruin. Man has it in his power to ruin all the other tribes—with his axe and saw he can cut down all the members of the Plants tribe, with his plow and his great numbers he can push the Animals tribe back until it no longer exists, and he can punish the Soils tribe until only the poorest members remain. By punishing the Soils and Plants Man can let the Waters tribe run away with itself, and in the end .this too will result in complete ruin for all.

No, the fairy story is in believing that we can allow such strife to happen. At times in the past we have allowed it to develop, and Man has been the tribe that has the responsibility of keeping control. By bitter experience Man has found that to live on this earth he must keep control of the other tribes, and that is no fairy story at all—just facing the truth of Nature.

Table of Contents

Outdoor Nebraska of The Air

Co-operating radio stations which carry the weekly program of the Nebraska Game, Forestation and Parks Commission are as follows, in order of broadcast during the week:

High on The Hog Eatin'--The Morel

According to a very wordy gentleman named Webster a mushroom is "any of various rapid-growing, fleshy fungi, having a stalk capped with an umbrellalike top."

But according to anyone who has had the pleasure of eating one after dipping it in egg batter, rolling it in cracker crumbs and frying it in butter, it is nothing short of Ambrosia.

MUSHROOMS, however, unlike cats, do not all look alike in the dark. There is a great deal of difference between the members of the mushroom family, but one stands out like a sore thumb at batting practice. This is the morel, the one that cannot be mistaken for any of the others and the one, in many opinions, that stands well above the others in eating qualities.

To one who has never searched the early spring woods for morels one of Nature's greatest thrills awaits you.

DON'T rush to the woods in late April or early May and begin picking all the fungi you can findsome are as deadly as rattlesnake venom. But this you can scratch on the wall with a knife—THERE IS NO REASON WHY A PERSON SHOULD MISTAKE MORELS FOR ANY OTHER KIND OF MUSHROOM! If he does he has lost his sight and his sense of feeling.

When looking for morels look for sponges. That advice is probably at least several hundred years old, but it has yet to lose its power. Morels resemble nothing in the world so much as a tiny sponge, growing on a small nearly white stalk. Their color will vary through all shades of gray and light brown, from a near-white when very tiny to a full tan when mature and ripened by the sun. And they all taste the same, whether full grown or just sprouted, pure wonderful!

THE last time I was on a mushroom hunt I wasn't mushroom hunting at all—I was fishing. Or so I thought. Until I nearly stepped on a lovely morel growing on the bank of the little stream, and from then on I was mushroom hunting with a vengeance.

A fellow bass maniac had been fasttalked into a jaunt to a small stream that flows into the Platte River in Eastern Nebraska, not a large stream, more a creek, but here and there it broke into pools of respectable size that housed hungry bass running up to two pounds.

Without success we had whipped the waters of the stream to a froth with our fly lines, when I nearly stepped on the big mushroom growing right at our feet. We were slow movers, it took us probably four or five seconds before we could toss our flyrods into the bushes and head out.

THE soil was sand and a sandy loam, ideal for the production of mushrooms, and nearly everywhere desiduous trees of all kinds grew in glorious profusion, yearly strewing the ground with a thick mat of leaves. Out from this mat mushrooms were sprouting, not everywhere, but thick enough so that we filled our hats in short order and were looking around for something with which to hold more morels.

Our makeshift bucket was a landing net, brought along in the hope that it could coax a reluctant bass to give us his freedom, and it converted beautifully to a mushroom carrier.

WE found morels scattered through* out the 10 or 12 acre patch of timber through which the stream meandered. One of the most productive spots was small cleared patches in the midst of standing timber, probably because here the sun could peep through the mat of trees to work its magic on the damp soil. Some we found right smack in the middle of a trail, others hidden deep in shade around the bases of trees, and still others right down by the banks of the "crick."

"Here's a bunch," one of us would shout, and feeling like small boys let loose in a candy store we would rush to the spot and begin picking the succulent goodies.

At the finish of our hunt we had a landing net bulging with morels, as well as a hatful each. More were about, plenty more, but we were loaded down with all we could carry.

MOREL mushrooms are a "here today, gone tomorrow" proposition. They sprout up like magic, generally after a spring shower, and in a few days are withered and useless. Look for a sunshiny day following a light shower anytime from the middle of April until the first week in May, arm yourself with a cloth bag of ample proportions and your best searching eye and head for an enjoyable time in the woods.

Preparing morels for the table is simplicity itself. Split them in easy-to-handle pieces, two or more, soak them overnight in salt water to chase tiny insects out and you are ready to cook.

Some folks prefer to dip them in egg batter, some do not. Next roll them in cracker crumbs (well crushed) or flour and fry in butter.

Mmmmmm!

Nebraska Record Fish

LARGEMOUTH BASS: 9 pounds, 3 ounces. Caught by Wentworth Clarke, Omaha, in Fremont State Lake No. 4 in 1943. (World record: 22 pounds, 4 ounces.)

SMALLMOUTH BASS: Open. (World record: 10 pounds, 8 ounces.)

WHITE BASS: 4 pounds, 4 ounces. Caught by Barbara Momach, Grand Island, in McConaughy Reservoir in 1952. (No authentic world record but catches up to 5 pounds reported.)

BLUEGILL: 2 pounds, 8 ounces. Caught by party consisting of Walter Beckman, Carl Buck, Bill Adams and Ervin Krueger, all of Garland, in Monroe power canal in 1949. (World record: 4 pounds, 12 ounces.)

BUFFALO: 32 pounds. Caught by L. Ashbaugh, Wilber, in Blue River near Wilber dam in 1944. (No world record available.)

BULLHEAD: 2 pounds, W2 ounces. Caught by Don Smith, Lincoln, at Cedar Bluffs in September, 1955.

BLUE CATFISH: 58 pounds. Caught by O. P. Nielson, Bloomfield, in the Missouri River near Bloomfield in 1954. (No world record available.)

BROOK TROUT: 4 pounds, 8 ounces. Caught by Vernon Zimmerman, Avid, Colo., in Lake McConaughy in 1953. (World record: 14 pounds, 4 ounces.)

BROWN TROUT: 11 pounds, 4 ounces. Caught by L. B. Eby, Sidney, in Otter Creek in 1950. (World record: 39 pounds, 8 ounces.)

CHANNEL CATFISH: 31 pounds, 12 ounces. Caught by Bob Nuquist, Broken Bow, in Lake Erickson in 1944. (World record: 55 pounds.)

YELLOW CATFISH: 46 pounds. Caught by Leo Wozny of Columbus and Roy Hamilton of Lincoln in Loup River power canal at Columbus in 1950. (World record not available.)

CRAPPIE: 3 pounds, 4 ounces. Caught by A. E. Hueppelsheuster, Lincoln, across Lake McConaughy from Otter Creek in 1947. (No world record available.)

FRESH WATER DRUM: 17 pounds, 1 ounce. Caught by Edward Woolsey, Omaha, in Carter Lake in 1952. (No world record available.)

NORTHERN PIKE: 25 pounds. Caught by R. O. DeFord, Ogallala, in McConaughy in 1951. This record was tied by O. D. Moon, Sterling, Colo., in McConaughy in 1951. (World record: 46 pounds, 2 ounces.)

RAINBOW TROUT: 12 pounds, 4 ounces. Caught by J. C. Wickard, Brule, in Sports Service Bay near Kingsley Dam. (World record: 37 pounds.)

WALLEYE PIKE: 14 pounds, 8 ounces. Caught by Otto Weigel, McCook, in Maloney Lake in 1956. (World's record: 22 pounds, 4 ounces.)

SAUGER: 6 pounds, V2 ounce. Caught by Roy. E. Peterson, Wausa, in tailwaters of Gavins Point Dam in 1956.

YELLOW PERCH: 1 pound, 8 ounces. Caught by Fred McMurtry, North Platte, in Sutherland Reservoir inl957. (World record not available.)

1957 Regulations on Fish

JUG FISHING and float lines (except jugs or floats made of glass) and throw lines, trot lines and bank lines are legal, unless otherwide posted. Hook and line limits as listed below also apply to this type of fishing.

HOOKS and LINES: It is unlawful for any person to use, while fishing in this state in any lake, pond or reservoir or in their inlets, outlets and canals within one-half mile of such lake, pond or reservoir, more than two lines with two hooks on each line. One hook shall mean a single, double, or treble pointed hook, and all hooks attached as a part of an artificial bait or lure shall be counted as one hook. THIS DOES NOT APPLY TO ICE FISHING.

ICE FISHING: Stream fishing regulations of 15 hooks apply to ice fishing.

STREAM FISHING: In stream fishing, it is unlawful for anyone to fish with a line having more than five hooks thereon, or more than 15 hooks in the aggregate or with artificial bait having more than three triple-ganghooks.

SPEARING: Carp, buffalo, suckers and other non-game fish may be speared between sunrise and sunset from April 1 to December 1.

SNAGGING: Snagging any fish externally with hook and line is unlawful, whether game or nongame fish.

AGE: All persons sixteen years of age or older must have a fishing permit for the current year. All non-residents must have a fishing permit for the current year, regardless of age.

SHORT TERM PERMITS: Short term non-resident permits are available. They are reciprocal with other states with a minimum of $3.00 for a 10-day permit."

TRANSFER OF PERMIT: It is unlawful for any person to borrow or use the permit of another or to lend or transfer his permit to another.

ANISE OIL and other scents that do not stun, kill or harm fish are legal to use.

GAME FISH AS BAIT: Any game fish, taken by a legal method, may be used for bait. No seining of game fish of any size is legal.

Twenty-Four Whooping Cranes Back On Refuge After Migration Flight

Reports which seemed to indicate the possibility of three family groups of whooping cranes in the southern migration have not been verified, the Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior has reported.

Only two family groups of whoopers, both of which are safe at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas, have been located, the Service said.

During their long migration from Wood Buffalo Park near Great Slave Lake in Canada to their winter home in Aransas, the flight of the rare whooping cranes was logged by hundreds of persons interested in their welfare.

SOME of the earlier reports suggested the possibility of three family groups but a check of all available data indicates that the only families in the migration are the two now on the refuge.

The crane which was wounded or otherwise injured during the flight south and which was reported at several places along the migration route valiantly trying to reach the refuge has not arrived nor has there been any report on it for weeks.

A recent winter count showed only 23 whoopers but the 24th crane which had been noted last fall and then lost for several weeks has been sighted on that portion of the huge King ranch nearest the refuge. There are three whooping cranes in captivity, making a total of 27 birds still living out of the thousands which once lived in North America.

UNTIL about Christmas time, refuge personnel report, the birds had been erratic in establishing territories. In fact, for two weeks or more during November several of the whoopers were not sighted in aerial or ground survey of the refuge. However, the 24 cranes now seem to be settled. These include four which are probably the pair of adults and twins observed last year, two pairs each with one young-of-the-year, five other pairs and three additional adults, plus the one just located on the King ranch.

A year ago there were 28 cranes on the refuge. Six of these were young. One adult crane disappeared during the winter, presumably a victim of a predator. One remained on the refuge or near it all during the summer, and one was injured and is now in the zoo at San Antonio, Texas. Out of the group which went north last spring four have failed to return and have not been seen elsewhere.

The highest number of cranes on the refuge since 1938 has been 34; the lowest, 15.

There is another development with respect to the whoopers. Tidal marshes and sloughs within that part of Matagorda Island close to the Aransas Refuge have been used consistently by some of the whooping cranes in previous years. However, these areas, under private control, were diked during 1956 and no cranes have been observed on that portion of their former range following the dike construction.

CARRYING CAPACITY

The other day a farmer friend of mine remarked "There's been quail on my farm for years, but always just one covey. 'Bout a dozen birds down there by the creek. Wonder why they don't build up."

At first it does seem mysterious that the number of birds stayed just about the same year after year. Surely the farm was not "filled up" by twelve quail, — or was it? Let's save this question until after we have the meaning of an important term tucked under our toupees — carrying capacity.

To a technician carrying capacity is the maximum density of game that a particular piece of land will support throughout the year.

IT is safe to say that any species, whether it is quail, cow or man, can survive only in places where all everyday needs are furnished within the limits of daily movements. In the case of quail there must be a good supply of nutritious food and ample grass and weeds or brush to protect them against weather and predators, all within a radius of about two city blocks.

If we were to take a trip over my friend's farm we would find that there are actually several places where quail might get along for a while, but not through the tough months of late winter and early spring. Chances are, we could find quail in some of these places in early fall but before spring, some would have moved while others would have been lost to starvation, the cold and predators as a result of the poor habitat. It probably wouldn't make much difference if Mother Nature blessed the farm with a top-notch hatch for a whopping fall population.

DURING the winter she would pare away at them, getting them whittled down to fit the available living space. And by spring the quail population would be right back at par — that one covey of about a dozen birds down by the creek.

Now, for that question. Is the farm "filled up" by a dozen quail? With the habitat that is there, the farm has all the quail it can hold throughout the year. It has a carrying capacity of only twelve quail.

Hunting, Fishing Permit Records Hit

Once again a record has been set in the number of license holders for sport fishing and wild game hunting in the United States, Secretary of the Interior Fred A. Seaton said.

California replaced Minnesota as top ranking state in fishing licenses, but Michigan, the only state to record more than a million hunting license sales, retained its lead in hunting.

Fish and Wildlife Service compilations show, Secretary Seaton said, that during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1956, there were 33,163,831 hunting and fishing license holders in this country, an increase of 117,470 over the previous record set in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1955.

An increase of 270,296 hunting license holders is responsible for the new record. Fishing license decreased by 152,826. In spite of the drop in fishing and the gain in hunting licenses, fishing is still the more popular sport.

A total of 18,701,983 licenses were sold for angling compared with 14,461,848 for hunting. Conversely, the hunters paid the greater amount for their licenses, tags, permits and stamps—$46,638,220 compared with $12,149,674 for fishing licenses, permits and stamps. During the year previous, the total cost to hunters for all licenses was $42,790,687 and to fishermen $39,501,838.

There were 14,088,608 resident hunting license holders and 373,240 nonresident; those holding resident fishing licenses total 16,039,876 and the nonresidents total 2,662,107.

Based upon the total number of license holders, the "big ten" states for 1954-1955 and for 1955-1956 were:

Under the Federal Aid formulas for the distribution of Pittman-Robertson funds for the restoration of game and the Dingell-Johnson funds for the restoration of fish, the number of license holders (not the amount paid for licenses) is one factor considered.

Attached are lists of hunting and fishing license holders by states. The fourth column of each table includes not only the total amounts received from license sales but also the totals of money from the sale of permits.

Ten Per Cent Of Americans Are Hunters

About ten per cent, or 11,184,000, of the 118,366,000 Americans who are 12 years or more of age are hunters.

Recently-released U. S. Department of Interior statistics gleaned from a nation-wide survey in 1955, points out that in that year, one in every five men 18 years old or more took to the field for game, and one in every 128 women in the same age bracket went along. Eleven-and-a-half per cent of the nation's 14,579,000 12-to-17 yearolds are nimrods.

OTHER interesting figures were reported by the Federal government:

Big game — antelope, bear, deer, elk, javelina, moose, mountain goat, mountain sheep, wild boar and wild turkey — was hunted by 4,414,000 persons.

Small game — fox, opossum, rabbit, raccoon, squirrel, dove, grouse, partridge, pheasant, pigeon, prairie chicken, quail, rail, snipe, and woodcock was hunted by 9,822,000 persons.

Waterfowl — coot, duck, gallinule (marsh hen), and goose — was hunted by 1,986,000 persons.

THE Interior Department's Fish and Wildlife Service, which sponsored the survey, points out that many hunters hunted more than one kind of game. Therefore, the sum of hunters in all categories exceeds the total number of hunters listed.

The survey disclosed a "tremendous economic factor" resulting from the amount of money hunters spent for their sport during the survey year.

American hunters had expenditures of $936,687,000 in 1955, and the average spent per hunter was $79.49. The Interior Department breaks down the average spent per hunter as follows:

For hunting equipment, $29.78; for other equipment incidental to the sport, $11.68; for trip expenditures, food $3.27, lodging, $1.35, transportation (auto), $7.97, and other, $8.72; for license, lease fees, and duck stamps, $3.95; for dogs, $10.56; and for other expenditures, $2.21.

Mouse 'Education' May Save Our Forests

Potential savings of millions of dollars are believed possible through protection of forest seeds from destruction by mice, the Department of the Interior said.

Extensive field tests being conducted by the Department's Fish and Wildlife Service are designed to "educate" the mice through nonlethal treatment of seeds, to discourage the foragers from further destruction of newly planted fir, spruce and pine seeds. In addition to the monetary saving, there could be direct benefits in rehabilitation of deer ranges and wildlife habitat.

THE "education" program takes into consideration the tendency of animals to protect their territory from invaders. It was undertaken when conventional methods of controlling mice in areas being reseeded to timber were not successful, largely because when one population of mice was eliminated other populations from adjoining areas moved in and continued eating the seeds.

Hence there was a search for some method which would keep the mice from eating the newly planted seeds and yet leave them alive and fit to prevent invasions from more of their kind from the next hillside.

REPELLENTS were tried, but the white-footed deer mice completely ignored them and continued to eat up to 90 per cent of the seeds planted.

Then the Service biologists at the Denver Research Laboratory hit upon the idea of "education." Nonlethal amounts of toxic chemicals were included in material used to coat the seeds before they were planted. The mouse which ate a few seeds did not die—he merely got a severe stomach ache—which taught him never again to eat those little seeds but get his food somewhere else. And he was still around to repel "un-educated" invaders of his territory. The result was that tree seed-eating is appreciably reduced. Reforestation with treated seed appeared to be a practical technique.

AFTER more tests, a new four-purpose seed coating was devised. This is being field tested now and Service personnel and lumbermen have high hopes of its success. The toxic material which sickens and "educates" mice is—in addition—fatal to some insects; another chemical added to the coating gives protection against a fungus common to the tree seeds. Still another ingredient in the coating makes the seed unattractive to birds.

The "education of the mouse" technique may well provide the longsought solution to this problem.

THE DON'TS OF BOATING

Arbor Lodge - - The Living Memorial

Historically, Arbor Lodge State Park owes its origin and development to a brilliant young conservationist, who in 1854, together with his young bride, arrived in Nebraska Territory.

The significance of this particular section of Nebraska and the ambitions of J. Sterling Morton are inseparable. His activities, political and agricultural, ran parallel to the growth and development of the state. The foresight of the man, coupled with his treeplanting ideas and his strong convictions, were largely responsible, not only for the changes which took place on the prairie land of the Morton preemption. Others were thoroughly convinced of the need for that type of land improvement.

EARLY in the spring of 1855, the Mortons built their first house, which was supposed to have been the only shingle-roofed house between the Missouri River and the Rocky Mountains. This four-room house was the beginning of what was to become the Morton Mansion and to many visitors the most interesting feature of Arbor Lodge Park.

Previous to the building of the house, Morton had filed on his quarter section of land, one mile west of the 17 SPRING ISSUE   business section of Nebraska City. Morton described the land as "native prairie with no sign of white man's settlement." This was soon after the Kansas-Nebraska Bill was passed and Nebraska Territory was organized.

After they were settled in the new home, trees and shrubs were planted and one of the earliest attempts at home landscaping in Nebraska was tried. In 1858, an orchard was started along with shade trees, pines, and a flower garden.

BEING a journalist by profession and the editor of the "News," the only paper published in Nebraska Territory at that time, Morton found the proper medium he needed to spread his agricultural information and treeplanting convictions with vigor and enthusiasm. The pioneers, predominently from the wooded country of the east and knowing as they did the need of shade, protection from wind and the great demand for lumber and fuel, joined in the tree planting movement.

On January 4th, 1872, J. Sterling Morton, later known as the author of Arbor Day, presented his resolution to the State Board of Agriculture, calling for an annual tree-planting day to be known as "Arbor Day." On March 31, 1874, Governor Robert W. Furnas issued the first Arbor Day proclamation. Not long after that, the Mortons hit upon the name of "Arbor Lodge" for their place.

AS time went on, the house was remodeled several times, the most important being in 1871 and 1878. In 1888, Morton deeded to Nebraska City 23 acres of natural timber land to be used as a public park. It was later named Morton Park.

At the death of J. Sterling Morton, the property passed into the hands of Joy Morton, his eldest son, who again remodeled the house, converting it into the colonial-type mansion as it now is.

The Lodge was designed by the famous architect Jarvis Hunt, of Chicago. The furnishings have been kept in their original condition and arrangement. The colors are the same; oriental rugs, carpeting, oil paintings, portraits, drapes, tapestry and period furniture are much the same as they were when used by the Morton family.

IN June, 1922, Joy Morton, at a conference with the State Board of Parks at Arbor Lodge, formally offered the property to the State of Nebraska 18 OUTDOOR NEBRASKA   for use as a State Park. The State Legislature in 1923 accepted the gift. Nebraska City, at a special election held later, voted to return the 23-acre Morton Park to the estate so that it too might be included as a portion of the State Park. On September 27, 1923, the deeds were presented by Joy Morton and accepted on behalf of the State by the Governor.

Undoubtedly the second feature of the park in point of interest to the average visitor is the $10,000 stables building erected in 1900. This structure was made and used to house around twenty to twenty-five fine horses, the best harness money could buy and several expensive carriages and buggies; also, an overland stagecoach which was used in transporting eastern guests from the railroad station out to the country home.

ALSO in the building was a coachman's residence and an office. A similar to the old time office found in livery stables or on the large eastern horse farms. There was a basement section where some of the best coach horses or the favorite riding horses were.

Just south of the stables is a rather large greenhouse where they grew roses, garden plants and cutting flowers for the house vases and other decorating purposes. There was a propagating room in one end of the building and a basement where the steam heating boiler and the coal bin were located.

Between 1868 and 1900, Morton had accomplished one of his main hobbies the successful growing of white pines in Nebraska. In 1871, many of the white, Scotch, and Austrian pines, also several species of spruce trees, firs and an eastern hemlock were planted in front of the mansion. These are still growing and in good condition. In 1900, he tried out his idea of a simulated forest planting of about five thousand white pine seedlings. Some of these passed out during the drouth of the 1930's.

IN 1903, Joy Morton established the Arbor Lodge Arboretum, landscaped by the famous landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmstead, one of the Olmsteads who designed Central Park in New York. The Arbor Lodge planting contains nearly two hundred species and varieties of trees and woody plants, ranging from white pines to the great bald cypress. A tree trail winds throughout the entire arboretum. Tree groups are labeled with aluminum plaques carrying the botanical, as well as the common names.

The formal gardens south of the mansion are of the terraced type, containing specimen trees, roses of different varieties from the old fashion SPRING ISSUE 19   ramblers to the florabundas. Besides these are border plants, beds of flowering plants, shrubs and clipped hedges. All together the park has about one thousand feet of hedges.

THE Morton Memorial and statue in the eastern part of the park was designed and executed by a famous sculptor and friend of J. Sterling Morton, Mr. Rudolph Evans. The statue stands on a large pedestal in the center of the plaza which is surrounded with some of his favorite trees. Behind the statue is a curved stone bench decorated with bronze tablets in bas relief, depicting historical events. Along the back of the seat is the following quotation from Morton: "Love of Home is Primary Patriotism. Other Holidays Repose Upon the Past, Arbor Day Proposes for the Future." This momument was unveiled and dedicated in October, 1905, in the presence a group of distinguished visitors as well as a great throng of neighbors and admirers. Ex-President Grover Cleveland delivered the principal address.

ACROSS the road to the south is an old log cabin built in 1890 as a memorial to the pioneer settlers of the community. A log was furnished by each relative of a pioneer settler. The names, written on metal plates, are attached to the inside of the logs.

The park opened to the public for the first time on April 1, 1924. Today, Arbor Lodge Park stands as a memorial to one of Nebraska's outstanding pioneer statesmen and conservationists. The park provides a place where thousands come from every state and from many foreign lands to enjoy their vacations and visit the mansion.

Is Interest Dropping Off In Your Pet Rifle Club?

A continuing problem for many rifle clubs is "How do we attract and keep new members?" Not infrequently, once a club is organized and going, interest begins to die out. A hard core of enthusiasts may keep things going but many occasional shooters fall by the wayside and new members are hard to find.

"Our files contain many letters from groups like these and, in most cases, their question to us is 'What can you suggest to help us revive interest in our club that we can continue to grow and expand?'," says Ted McCawley of Remington Arms Company, Inc.

"THERE'S no all-inclusive answer to this query, but there is one solution that can and has worked. There are millions of people in this country who own 22 caliber hunting rifles, most of whom do not belong to rifle clubs and who seldom, if ever, go near a range. If asked why they don't do any target shooting, most of them would reply 'How can I compete with those "hotshots" with their fancy target rifles when all I own is a light sporting rifle?' The answer, of course, is they can't, but that isn't the whole story.

"In many parts of the country, gun clubs are sponsoring programs for sporting rifles. Open only to guns of the hunting class, these programs put no premium on equipment and make it possible for anyone to participate and have fun.

"IN MOST CASES, guns are limited to open sight rifles weighing seven pounds or less which can be loaded single shot. Since the emphasis is on hunting equipment, firing is almost always done from the standing position. Several successful programs are based on organized leagues of five-man teams with shooting done on indoor ranges in the winter on a regularly scheduled basis, similar to bowling leagues.

"Targets vary all the way from novelty ideas and moving animals to the standard paper variety. Many different handicapping systems are used, depending on the type of shooting being done.

"SINCE these sporting rifle programs are not yet officially recognized forms of competition, there are no hard and fast rules. Each sponsoring club must decide on the type of shooting they want and, by using their imagination and ingenuity, develop it accordingly.

"As a specific example, the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, whose headquarters are at 158 Beresford Road, Rochester 10, New York, has been sponsoring a Sporting Rifle Program among their member clubs with great success. They have developed their own targets and rules and over 75 clubs representing more than 2,000 shooters have expressed interest in the idea.

"THE main thing to remember is that sporting rifle events can appeal to a wide variety of shooters and, as a result, are an ideal means for increasing interest in a club's program. They need not replace regulation small-bore events. Rather, they should be a supplement to them as one means of attracting and keeping more members.

"The appeal of these events is not limited to senior clubs, however. Most junior shooting groups start youngsters off with hunting guns anyway. Sporting rifle programs, open to shooters of all ages, are an excellent means of expanding these organizations into activities that are attractive to participate in a recreation activity together, thus broadening the base of the club's activities.

"Whether your club is a junior or senior group, here's an ideal way of giving it a 'shot in the arm' and attracting new members. Why not start a sporting rifle program this year?"

It's Tree Planting Time Again

This spring again finds Nebraska living up to her honorary title of the "Tree Planting State" as hundreds of individuals, with a hopeful eye on the weather, turn to the task of planting thousands of trees and shrubs.

These plantings will be of all types and sizes from single tree plantings for landscaping to multi-purpose plantings using hundreds of trees and shrubs of different species. Individuals are not working alone in undertaking this enormous task, for assistance is available from several state and federal agencies who are also engaged in tree planting activities.

THE Nebraska Agricultural Extension Service, Soil Conservation Service, United States Forest Service, and Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Organization all offer assistance to persons desiring to establish tree and shrub plantings. Their services range from assistance in obtaining planting stock to technical and financial help. Private organizations, such as nurseries, are engaged in this activity also, primarily in the job of growing the enormous amount of seedlings required.

Nebraska's Game, Forestation and Parks Commission also has a program designed to assist landowners in establishing tree and shrub plantings. These activities are carried on under the Habitat Restoration Project. The SPRING ISSUE 21   objective of the project is to establish wildlife cover where needed and to save existing cover. Activities are carried on in close cooperation with landowners and various land management agencies throughout the state.

ALTHOUGH seedlings distributed by the Game Commission are used to establish plantings primarily for the benefit of wildlife, a great deal of care is used to insure that these plantings will have a multi-use potential. Plantings designed to provide winter cover for upland game birds can also serve as shelter for livestock. In fact, feeding livestock behind such plantings increases their value for wildlife.

In the region of the state in which multiflora rose is adaptable, hedge row plantings may be made which are highly valuable as living fences, field boundaries, and field divisions which reduce wind erosion and hold snow on fields where the moisture will be available for growing crops. Where experience has indicated that rose will not grow suitably, other species are used to form hedge rows and field divisions.

Many of the shrubs used in wildlife plantings are valuable fruit producers. Nanking cherries, sand cherries, wild plums and choke cherries all have fruit that provide excellent jam and jelly.

THE benefits of such plantings to wildlife are many and varied. Plantings of multiflora rose are especially beneficial in quail country for travel lanes and escape cover. Well planned plantings will provide access routes to crop areas where waste grain may be fed upon as well as places for nesting and sanctuary. Additional plantings of trees and shrubs in proper places will often fill requirements for winter cover.

Tree and shrub plantings are used in many ways to provide specific cover requirements for various species of wildlife. Block type plantings are especially beneficial as winter cover for upland game in some instances. Such plantings are usually located near cropland so that a food supply of waste grain and annual herbaceous seeds will be readily available. A survey of an area will quickly indicate whether winter cover developments are necessary and practical.

STUDIES being carried on by the Game Commission Research Division indicate that nesting cover may be a seriously limiting factor in the production of pheasants at the present time. Preliminary findings also indicate that roadsides are high in preference as nesting cover, although hatching success is poor.

The Habitat Restoration Project is attempting to help meet future nesting requirements by using the above data as a guide to some development plantings.

In certain areas of the state, two and three row plantings of trees and shrubs are desirable as field windbreaks. The project assists in initiating developments of this type where they can be made to simulate roadsides and prove of value for nesting. In the case of tree and shrub plantings, it is not always the tree or shrub that is required. Often it is the resulting herbaceous vegetation and ground cover found in the planting as it reaches maturity that will prove of benefit to wildlife.

The value of plantings such as these are easily apparent to the landowner who has experienced wind erosion and crop damage from hot summer winds. In many cases wildlife production is a secondary, although highly valuable benefit of such developments.

IN the Sandhill region of the state, one of the remaining strongholds for grouse in the nation, plantings of coniferous species can often be planned that will be of benefit to the rancher and wildlife. It is generally felt that areas of tall native grasses are an important requirement in grouse range. By planting coniferous species in the sod and excluding grazing, both trees and grass will grow. By nature the Sandhills are primarily un-tillable and plantings must be made in this manner in many cases. When sudden blizzards sweep across the range well planned plantings of this type may prove to be a life saver for livestock in addition to providing cover for grouse.

The many different forms developments may take often vary with each individual farm or ranch and are extremely numerous. There are many developments which may be planned around farm ponds which are highly beneficial to fish and wildlife as well as an improvement to the property. In all cases, well planned plantings of trees and shrubs will increase the material value of a farm or ranch.

ONE man in each of the five district ^^ offices of the Game Commission is assigned the responsibility for all project activities in that district. The services of this man are available to any individual or organization to assist in incorporating wildlife into any land use plans. Being qualified technicians these men are capable of planning developments for wildlife of all species.

Landowners who are interested in the continued production of wildlife in Nebraska are urged to take advantage 22 OUTDOOR NEBRASKA   of the services offered by the Habitat Restoration Project. The District Supervisor of Land will contact such interested persons and initiate complete plans for developing needed wildlife requirements on their property.

At the time this plan is being drawn up and incorporated into present farm use plans, arrangements will be made for furnishing the required materials to the landowner. Fencing material is furnished along with planting stock for the purpose of protecting plantings when necessary. Occasionally fencing material will be supplied to protect existing cover areas which have a particular wildlife value.

WHERE fencing material is required it is delivered in the early fall directly to the development site. Planting stock is delivered in early spring and cooperators are notified of the time and place where they may pick it up. In most cases planting stock will be delivered for pick-up at a central point in the county where the cooperator resides.

Once the farm plan has been drawn up actual developments may be started. Where a fence is required it should, of course, be constructed as soon as possible. In order to insure the greatest possible success with any planting there are several steps which must be conscientiously followed.

Proper preparation of the planting site is of extreme importance. Where practical, summer fallowing should always be used to insure maximum available moisture for starting growth. In some areas of the state and for some developments this is not practical and other methods must be used. The Supervisor of Land will assist in determining the most suitable preparation to be used by the cooperator.

SEEDLINGS require careful care prior to planting and it is very important that the roots be kept moist and cool before and during planting. Small plantings are often made by hand or with a plow where ground preparation has been made. Using a plow is suitable for making larger plantings too. In most counties the Soil Conservation Service has a planter and crew available and they will make plantings at a nominal cost to the landowner. Personnel operating these machines are experienced in this work and satisfactory planting is assured.

Once planted, the success or failure of a planting rests to a large degree upon the care it receives. Clean cultivation is absolutely necessary for the first two years of any planting and in most cases this must be continued for a longer period. Given a good start it is not too long before trees and shrubs can compete successfully with other types of vegetation which will start in the planting.

ONCE tree and shrub plantings are able to maintain themselves the only care they require, under normal conditions, is protection from grazing and fire. Multiflora rose hedges do not even require protection from grazing after they are two or three years old, their thorny nature being sufficient protection from all forms of livestock.

Sportsmen who are not landowners but who wish to do their bit in helping provide wildlife for on of their favorite forms of recreation have an equal opportunity in the restoration project. A sportsman and a hunting companion or two who have a farmer friend or realtive on whose land they hunt should contact him to determine if he has a place where small hand plantings may be made. If such space is available, and it usually is, they can contact the District Supervisor of Land an he will inspect the sites with them and determine what can and should be done.

Usually wuch development work will be in the form of small hand plantings in odd corners and rough draws where much valuable cover has been lost. The sportsmen assume the responsibility for doing the planting and provide such care as the plantings require. This is a job that requires time and effort but the dividends can be great.

YOUTH groups too can take part in project activities. Group leaders should contact landowners where sites can be selected to make plantings that will benefit wildlife and provide good healthful outdoor activity for the group. Once a cooperator has been located, the District Supervisor of Land will inspect the area with the group leader and landowner to determine what should be done and what assistance can be provided. The group assumes the responsibility for caring for such projects until such care is no longer needed.

Nebraska's Habitat Restoration Project is financed by the people who purchase hunting permits and sporting arms and ammunition.

Seventy-five per cent of the funds are from a Federal excise tax on sporting arms and ammunition, 25 per cent from the permit fees. In this way sportsmen are providing money to help in the production of wildlife and provide additional benefits to the landowner who includes wildlife in his farm plans.

WILDLIFE is a product of the land and land will produce this product accordance with the widlife requirements which are available. If we are to continue to enjoy wildlife, and this SPRING ISSUE 23   includes song birds and other wild animals as well as those considered game, we must provide their requirements for production. A person who does not hunt for one reason or another might do well to purchase a hunting permit so that he might contribute to the effort being made to insure that we will always have wildlife available for its many benefits.

Interested persons who desire to obtain technical assistance in planning widlife developments and materials for these developments are urged to contact their District Supervisor of Land or their local Soil Conservation Service office for further information.

Two Fish Top Standing State Records

Although the 1957 fishing season is just getting underway, two state records have been toppled already this year.

One actually happened late in 1956, but was not entered for the state record until in 1957.

Roy E. Peterson of Wausa recorded a sauger of six pounds, one-half ounce for a new state record; and Fred McMurtry of North Platte took a one-and-a-half-pound yellow perch for a record in that division.

Peterson's record sauger was taken in the tailwaters of the Gavins Point Dam late in 1956, using a flyrod and a minnow-spinner bait. The fish was caught off the buoys in seven feet of water.

McMurtry collected his record perch with a minnow as bait, too. The fish was 14 inches in length and was taken from Sutherland Reservoir.

To qualify for a state record a fish must be checked and weighed by a Nebraska Conservation Officer or recorded in a sworn affidavit. If possible a close-up picture of the fish must be sent in with the other information concerning it, and then it can be entered as a new state record.

LEGISLATIVE REPORT Federal And State Lawmakers Busy on Wildlife Front

Initial steps to amend the Coordination Act, including provisions which would authorize the acquisition of lands at Federal water development projects for fish and wildlife purposes, were taken by Secretary of the Interior Fred A. Seaton.

The Coordination Act. Secretary Seaton points out, is a piece of legislation of vital importance to the nation's fish and wildlife resources, since it gives these resources an opportunity to develop hand in hand with agricultural and industrial progress.

Nebraska Legislature Working On Overhauling Game Code

Nebraska sportsmen have a real stake in proposed legislation this year. Here is a brief summary of some of the bills before the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature that will have a real effect on those folks who enjoy Nebraska's outdoor activities.

LB 40 - As now amended, this bill, if passed, would raise the cost of the hunting and fishing permits to $2.50 for hunting, $2 for fishing and $4 for the combination. Sportsmen from all over the state supported this measure which will enable the Commission to make some real progress for those who love hunting and fishing.

LB 41 is an act the archers will like. In addition to making it legal to snag fish with hook and line, it also permits archers to take carp, suckers and other non-game fish with bow and arrow, between sunrise and sunset from April 1 to December 1. Governor Victor Anderson has approved this bill and it went into effect this April.

LB 43 is what the deer and antelope nunters have been waiting for; the elimination of the "once every three years" rule on deer and antelope hunting. As now amended, the bill would provide that a hunter over sixteen can apply every year for deer and antelope permits. If necessary, a drawing will be held, but those who are unlucky will have first priority on the next year's permits.

LB 118 creates a state water pollution control council with wide powers to control and prohibit all kinds of pollution of all surface and underground waters.

LB 139 was an act to remove the mourning dove from the protected song bird class, to which eminence it was raised in 1953. The bill was killed in committee.

LB 472 would require the purchase of a permit or stamp good for one year for those using our state parks and recreation areas. Those using our recreational areas would therefore be bearing directly a portion of the cost of upkeep and maintenance of these areas.

LB 511 is an omnibus bill that revises several sections of the game code. The most important features include:

LB 538 adds the Great Horned owl to the list of Nebraska non-game birds.

These and many other bills may be of interest to Nebraska hunters and fishermen. Some are important to one person, some to another, yet each one will be given careful consideration as to its merits by the Legislature. In a later issue of OUTDOOR NEBRASKA we will bring you a complete summary of all laws passed affecting Nebraska's sportsmen.

The present Act was framed in 1946. Proposals submitted to Secretary Seaton for review would strengthen this sources among the primary purposes of these developments.

Act to the point of recognizing the conservation of fish and wildlife re

SINCE state fish and game departments also have vital concern in the provisions and operation of the Coordination Act, Secretary Seaton's first move was to request Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife Ross L. Leffler to submit these suggestions to each of the state governors for their consideration.

Preparation of the amendments in the Department of the Interior and their transmittal to the state governments for review and comment is responsive to a request made to Secretary Seaton by the International Association of Game, Fish and Conservation Commissioners. This association, the principal organization of state fish and game directors, made such a request in a resolution adopted at the association's annual convention in Toronto last September.

SECRETARY Seaton said: "I am pleased to comply with this request from the state fish and game directors. They seek and deserve an opportunity to express their views on this important legislation. We are complying with the request because it is entirely in accord with the policy of this department to recognize the state governments as active partners with the Federal government in the conservation and development of natural resources."

Besides authorizing the acquisition of land on Federal projects for fish and wildlife purposes, the proposed amendments would also authorize Federal construction agencies to incorporate in water-project plans measures for the enhancement and betterment of fish and wildlife resources.

Most fish don't reach a standard size in adulthood, but continue to grow throughout their lives.

The term, "minnow," doesn't refer to the size of a fish. Minnows are members of the carp family. There's no such thing as a "trout minnow."

for A Real Catch IN UP TO DATE Hunting and Fishing News

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Notes on Nebraska Fauna

This is the thirtieth of a series of articles and drawings depicting Nebraska wildlife. All drawings are prepared by staff artist C. G. "Bud" Pritchard.

In the lakes and streams of Nebraska, there are at least two species of catfish commonly known as bullheads. One is the extremely common northern black bullhead, Ameiurus m. melas, and the other is the yellow bullhead, Ameiurus natilus which has been reported from the streams of the southeast part of the state. Another close relative is found in the lakes and streams of our neighboring state, Iowa, and may exist in our waters, though it has not been reported. This relative is the northern brown bullhead, Ameiurus n. nebulosus.

The bullheads are easily distinguished as a group, however the identification of the different species is often in error. In general, body color is unreliable as a distinguishing characteristic, and unfortunately is the leading criterion for identification by the novice. To be more specific, it is not uncommon to find black bullheads with yellow bellies a condition brought about by the environment and feeding habit rather than a factor of heredity. Black and yellow bullheads can be easily distinguished from one another by the color of their chin whiskers (barbels). The four chin barbels of the yellow bullead will be white and those of the black bullhead will be black. The brown bullhead may be easily distinguished from the other two by the strong barbs on the pectoral fin spines; in this species the body color is useful in identification. It is olive to brown with dark mottlings on the sides fading to white or cream beneath. Brown bullheads are often called speckled bullheads.

In comparing the bullheads to size, the black bullhead is usually considered the "runt"; however, in the more fertile lakes, they may grow to two pounds or more. It is extremely uncommon to find any bullhead that weighs over two pounds, although anglers who have fished the Sandhill lakes claim to have seen three and four pound bullheads.

The range of the northern black bullhead is wide, from the Hudson Bay Watershed of North Dakot through the Great Lakes drainage, including southern Ontario and New York southward to the Cumberland River system of Tennessee and westward to northern Kansas, Colorado, and Wyoming. It integrates southward with Ameiurus m. catulus, the southern black bullhead. This fish is typically one of ponds, sloughs, and sluggish parts of streams, in shallow and often silty water.

Yellow bullheads are found over most of the range of the black bullhead, though they are somewhat more selective both for habitat and for food. The species prefers sluggish to fairly rapid streams and clear water with vegetation.

The range of the brown bullhead is from southern Canada and from North Dakota and the Great Lakes region southward to the northern part of the Ohio valley, and from New England to Virginia. A sub-species is found from southern Illinois and eastern Arkansas to the Carolinas and Florida. The species is commonly found in deeper weedy waters of lakes and larger rivers.

Bullheads are omniverous feeders, i.e., they will feed upon any kind of animal matter available to them - worms, insects and their larvae, crayfish, minnows, fish eggs, etc. Because most of these items are found on the bottom and must be picked up, there is considerable plant matter taken into the stomachs of bullheads. The yellow bullheads seem to be somewhat more selective in their feeding habit and it has been said that their flesh is more flavorful.

Spawning time is in May and early June in Nebraska. Saucer shaped nests are built on the mud or sand bottoms, preferably in weedy shallow areas. The number of eggs deposited depend on size and age of the females and may range from 2,000 to 10,000. In five to ten days, the eggs hatch and the fry swim about in tight round schools protected by the parent fish. During the time when the young are in schools, they may be subjected to the depredation of large bass that may dash, open-mouthed, through the schools. In waters with good populations of bass, bullhead numbers are often decimated to insignificance. It more frequently occurs that the bullheads are present in great enough numbers that they become the dominant species and overpopulate their environment. As a result, bullheads from six to nine inches are those that are most commonly found in the creel.

Bullheads are no longer recommended for stocking of small bodies of water. These prolific fish so often dominate the fish population and become stunted, making management difficult. In smaller ponds and lakes depopulation by seining and trapping has been attempted with moderate success in isolated cases, however, in larger lakes depopulation attempts have been generally unsuccessful.

Although the bullhead is often referred to as the poor man's fish, largely because of the simple tackle required to take it, the multitudes of fishermen that pursue bullhead fishing attest to its recreational importance and value as a game fish.

SPRING-- AND SOON THE WHOOPERS WILL START NORTH AGAIN ON THEIR ANNUAL MIGRATION TO THE NESTING GROUNDS.

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