Rutherford Weekly

Thursday, February 24-March 2, 2022 www.rutherfordweekly.com 828-248-1408 Rutherford Weekly - Page 9 Email: Email: events@rutherfordweekly.com events@rutherfordweekly.com Mail or Drop-Off: Mail or Drop-Off: 157 W Main St, • Forest City, NC 28043 157 W Main St, • Forest City, NC 28043 *Publisher has fi nal decision of which photos appear in print, per available space. We Want Your Kids Sports Photos! •Basketball •Baseball •Softball •Soccer •Archery •Equestrian •Etc! We Want Your Outdoor Photos! We Want Your Outdoor Photos! Hunting, Fishing, Playing Ball, Etc. Hunting, Fishing, Playing Ball, Etc. Sportsman's Corner Sportsman's Corner Email: events@rutherfordweekly.com Mail: 157 W Main St., Forest City, NC 28043 Phone: 828-248-1408 *Publisher has the fi nal decision of which photos appear in print, per available space. The bass fi shing tournaments are getting ready to start with a vengeance. Once they begin, each weekend will offer another opportunity to fi sh for money. All bass tournaments have pretty much the same rules. Two fi shermen, one boat, and the fi ve biggest fi sh by weight, win. Some men will literally come to blows in pursuing fi rst prize. And fi rst prize can be worth lots of money, even in the smaller tournaments. As I have said before, these types of events touch both the competitive and outdoorsy side of men. It's enough fun to fi sh but add in beating somebody in the process and winning cash to do it, makes it an addictive potion. Most of the time, each team will spend the fi rst few hours on the water just trying to catch any size fi sh. The immediate goal is to get fi ve fi sh in the boat. After (or if) that is accomplished, the goal changes. Now it's time to cull the smaller ones that are already in the live well, for bigger replacements. Remember, it's the fi ve heaviest fi sh. Sometimes the technique changes just for the purpose of perhaps catching less fi sh, but bigger ones. Again, the lesser ones get tossed back in when a better quality one is caught. And there are occasions when some good fi sh are thrown back because a great one is caught. Our life is somewhat like these bass tournaments. We know we only have room for so many things in our live-well. Each one of these can be of little or great importance. Our life's pursuit and God's desire for us is to constantly add something that has a greater value than what we already have. What we have to remember, however, is sometimes we must get rid of something which is of great worth in order to add something else that is priceless. This decision always comes with a mixed sense of both loss and excitement. As we mature, we understand it just has to be that way. It's just like that exercise shirt you once wore that said, "No Pain. No Gain." This is so true. But never forget, what you give up now will not seem so great a sacrifi ce when you get to the weigh-in. These types of sacrifi ces will always put you in the money. By By Gary Miller Gary Miller Aiming Outdoorsmen Toward Christ www.outdoortruths.org gary@outdoortruths.org GARY MILLER It's prime mating season for the s e l d o m - s e e n , primarily nocturnal mustelid, which is part of the weasel family. However, mating season is the only time males and females will associate with each other; otherwise, mink are solitary animals. Minks live in a diversity of wetlands throughout North Carolina and are excellent swimmers thanks to their slightly webbed hind feet. They aren't picky when it comes to meat- based food; they dine on all kinds of small fi sh, crustaceans, reptiles, small mammals and insects as they forage along streams. A contented mink will sometimes purr and they are often mistaken for long-tailed weasels or river otters. Also known as the water weasel, the mink is often thought of as vicious. This reputation has been earned by its habit of frequently killing prey larger than itself and also killing more prey than it can eat. Mink are semi-aquatic living in a variety of wetland habitats. Historically, the mink's handsome fur has been highly prized, though the demand for wild fur has dropped in recent years. Though they are not endangered and are fairly common throughout their widespread range, mink are so secretive that they are seldom seen. They have not been intensely studied. What we do know of them usually comes from surveys and samples taken through trapping. Mink populations were probably fairly low in the early 1900s, but their pop- ulations tend to be cyclic over time and little early documentation exists. In the 1920s, increased trapping as a result of high fur prices may have further affected their numbers; however, from the 1940s through most of the 1960s, harvest records show that mink were still fairly common. Wetland availability is the primary infl uence on mink populations. Harvest records indicate a peak population in 1962, and some biologists believe that mink numbers have declined since that time largely because of the steady destruction of prime mink habitat in wetlands. Mink are distributed throughout most of North America except for arid regions of the Southwest and arctic regions of northern Canada. Historically, every county in North Carolina has had mink present and some counties have higher populations than others. Mink are solitary and highly territorial, each animal establishing a territory and defending it against other mink. Males have larger home ranges than females. Ranges of mink are given in miles, because their movements follow linear waterway routes. Due to declines in the harvest of minks in the southeastern United States, biologists from North and South Carolina, and Georgia participated in a tri- state research project to determine if certain environmental contaminants may be impacting mink populations. As a predator, mink are near the top of the aquatic food chain, making them susceptible to contamination in the food chain, due to the biomagnifi cation of toxicants. North Carolina- licensed trappers and fur dealers provided mink to N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission biologists for lab analysis. Researchers found various organochlorine insecticides and PCBs in all mink. However, researchers were unable to state conclusively whether these contaminants were associated with mink population declines due to low sample size and the fact that mink from healthy populations also contained contaminants at similar levels. Elevated mercury concentrations were found in all mink kidneys from all three states. It has been suggested that mercury can have sublethal effects on many physiological functions, such as reproduction, growth and behavior. As with other contaminants, this study was unable to determine if mercury was impacting mink physiology or mink populations. Biologists acknowledge other factors may affect mink populations, such as habitat loss due to increasing development along shorelines, which alters both mink activity and prey abundance. Further studies were recommended to see if there is a link between the presence of environmental contaminants in mink and mink populations. Article by: ncwildlife.org. Species Spotlight: Mink The Carolina Bass Club had 26 anglers to fi sh Lake Wiley February 19. The weather was pretty good for February, just a little windy. The water temp was 48 to 53, and clear. The boat traffi c was light. Here are the tournament results: 1st place- The team of Trent Killian and Braxton Spurling with a 5 fi sh limit weighing 14.13 pounds. 2nd place- The team of Brian Branch and Doyle Hudson with a 5 fi sh limit weighing 10.66 pounds. 3rd place- The team of Dean Ford and Phil Murray with a 5 fi sh limit weighing 9.96. 4th place- The team of Stan Brackett and Aaron Ruff with a 5 fi sh limit weighing 9.11 pounds. Trent Killian won the big fi sh of the day award with a 6.24 pound fi sh. Keith Shuford won the 2nd big fi sh of the day award with a 3.45 pound fi sh. The Carolina Bass Club fi shes Lake Hickory March 19. Article Provided By: Rutherford County Carolina Bass Club Fishing Report All bird enthusiasts are invited to join the Rutherford Outdoor Coalition ( ROC) at Isothermal Community College, Thursday, March 3 at 8:30 a.m. for a birding hike. This hike will be led by ROC's President, Jerry Stensland, an avid birder and ROC's Trails Coordinator, Sam Brooks, a bird enthusiast. The bird enthusiasts are going out on the trails so suitable footwear is strongly recommended. Binoculars are also highly recommended in order to get an up close view of the birds. Come learn how to identify birds by sight and sound! All those interested are asked to meet at the Foundation parking lot. For more information or to RSVP, email trails@rutherfordoutdoor.org or text/call 828-202-9811. Birding hike is March 3 Article Provided By: Jean Gordon. Photo Contributed. Small Town Friendly BIG Time Results Small Town Friendly BIG Time Results Not just a bunch of BOLONEY! Advertising that works.

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