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Outdoorlife living & DFG and partners save bear cub orphaned in Ojai Saturday, October 20, 2012 – Daily News 3B California Outdoors Q&A Courtesy photo from California Department of Fish and Game The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and two wildlife organizations worked together over the weekend to save the life of a bear cub near Ojai. DFG wardens received a call from the Ojai Raptor Center in Ventura County about a young bear cub that had been brought to their facility. The cub was brought to the Ojai Raptor Center by an employee of a nearby ranch who had seen the cub without its mother for three days and thought it had been orphaned or abandoned. Upon arrival the warden and wildlife rehabilitation personnel exam- ined the cub and determined it to be a female, approximately 3-months-old and weighing just 10 pounds. The cub was alert and otherwise healthy. The warden inspected the area where the bear cub had been seen over the past several days and did see large bear tracks but did not find any evi- dence (scat, rooting damage, bed/den- ning behavior, etc.) of a female sow in the area. Based on the evidence DFG con- cluded the bear cub was abandoned or orphaned by its mother and due to its small size would not survive in the wild without her. The cub was taken to The California Wildlife Center in Calabasas, another DFG-permitted wildlife rehabilitation facility, where it was evaluated by a wildlife veterinarian. With concurrence of DFG wildlife veterinarians the bear cub was approved as an excellent can- didate for rehabilitation and release. The bear cub was held at the California Wildlife Center for the weekend and on Monday morning the cub was trans- ported by DFG natural resource volun- teers to Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care, where it will be cared for over the win- ter before release back into the wild. As the state agency responsible for the care and management of wildlife, DFG's preference is to keep animals in the wild whenever possible. In special circumstances the department has part- ners that provide support and services to help injured, orphaned or abandoned wildlife return to their natural habitat. Fall is prime time for trout fishing in the Sierra Nevada BY MAREK WARSZAWSKI The Fresno Bee (MCT) FRESNO — Fall is offi- cially here, with a shiver. After months of swelter- ing temperatures in the val- ley, I awoke at 7,600 feet elevation to a strange and unfamiliar feeling: Cold. Delta Question: I was recently told that I can hunt anywhere along the San Joaquin Delta for water- fowl as long as the boat is not moving and I don't use a motor to retrieve the ducks and geese. I am wondering if this is true or are there only specific areas where waterfowl hunting is allowed? (Ryan S.) Answer: Many areas of the San Joaquin Delta are open to waterfowl hunting from a boat, but gen- eral laws do apply so you could not hunt or shoot a firearm within 150 yards of an occupied dwelling, cannot hunt on private property or within prohibit- ed areas such as municipalities. It is important to research your specific hunting area and know legal access points. No person shall pursue, drive, herd or take any bird or mammal from any type of motor-driven air or land vehicles, motorboat, air- boat, sailboat or snowmobile (California Code of Regulations Title 14, section 251). Exceptions are also listed, including 1) When the motor of such motorboat, airboat, or sailboat has been shut off and/or the sails furled and its progress therefrom has ceased, and it is drifting, beached, moored, resting at anchor, or is being propelled by paddle, oar or pole. Although you cannot shoot a bird while your boat is under power, you can use your motor to retrieve dead waterfowl. Hunting from a Boat along the San Joaquin Carrie Wilson New Lobster Report Card For Every Trip? Question: I have a question regarding lobster report cards. I was wondering if I have to buy a new one every time I go out. The lady at the sport- ing goods store said I had to. This doesn't seem right because the limit is seven lobsters and there are about 100 spaces to fill out. Please let me know as I don't want to keep buying these every time if I don't really have to. (Ryan T.) Answer: No, you do not need to buy a new report card each time you go on a lobster trip. Here are some basic tips for filling out your card prop- erly: Sure, it was nice and toasty inside my down sleeping bag. But the water bottle left overnight in my tent's vestibule was partially frozen. Time to layer up and start the day. Fall has always been my favorite season in the Sierra Nevada. The crowds are long gone and so, too, are the mosquitoes, although pesky meat bees still hang tough. Deciduous trees show their colors. Trout fish- ing is at its best. And with the sun tracing a lower arc across the sky, mountains, forests and meadows are bathed in soft, yellow light. Fly fishing guide Jimmie Morales passes by a few scattered tree stumps and the slow trickle of Mono Creek on his way to the back end of Edison Lake to fish for German brown trout. Loom- ing above are the Vermilion Cliffs. It really is a great time to be outdoors. My main reason for being up here was to target German brown trout in Edi- son Lake, which is currently at its minimum pool (5 per- cent capacity), thanks to last winter's weak snowpack and Southern California Edi- son's ramped-up hydroelec- tric production in Septem- ber. I'm told the lake hasn't been this low since the dam was built in the 1950s. Last month, I wrote about the allure of catching a big brown trout from a Prior to beginning lobster fishing activity, you must record the month, day, location and gear code on the first available line on the report card. When you move to another location, switch gear or finish fishing for the day, you must immediately record on the card the number of lobster kept for that loca- tion using a particular gear type. New lines must be used when changing locations, days or gear types. Enter only one gear type per line. Even if multi- ple gear types are deployed simultaneously, each gear type must be entered on its own line with the catch correctly split between the gear types. Only a handful of cards are returned to DFG each year with every single line filled in – using new lines for each instance of changing gear, location, etc. will NOT cause you to have to buy a new card! Make sure to write the correct information in MCTphoto Fly fishing guide Jimmie Morales passes by a few scattered tree stumps and the slow trickle of Mono Creek on his way to the back end of Edison Lake to fish for German brown trout. Looming above are the Vermilion Cliffs. kayak. But after two days of paddling, 16 inches was the best I could do. Then I had the good for- tune of running into Jimmie Morales, the fly-fishing guide who spends four weeks every fall at Mono Hot Springs running his Wild Trout Camp. On one of his rare free days, Morales invited me to join him on Mono Creek, prima- ry fall spawning grounds for the Edison browns. Saying "yes" took about a nanosecond. Mono Creek is the pri- mary inflow of Edison Lake, but this year just getting back there is a challenge as it involves plenty of hiking. But what a hike. Strolling on the dry lake bed, past sparse- ly spaced tree stumps, it's not hard to imagine what this valley must've looked like before it was sacrificed in the name of "progress." With Edison Lake so low, I wondered whether Mono Creek still flowed into it. Of course it did. The creek was just a trickle at first. But as we neared the high-water mark, flows increased and larger pools started to appear. Morales began pointing out fish hold- ing against the current, but all my untrained eyes saw were rocks and moving water. Brown trout are known for their nervous, wary behavior and for not striking at anything that doesn't resemble their natural food. You have to sneak up on them. And if the fish doesn't bite on the first or second cast, forget about it. "They're extremely skit- tish, spooky fish," Morales said. "Any movement, and they're gone. Or they freeze up." protect the spawning browns, both Mono Creek and Cold Creek (which also feeds Edison Lake) were closed to fishing Monday_one month before the general statewide stream closure. After trolling the lake in a kayak, sight fishing in a creek using a dry fly with a single barbless hook was especially challenging. Just getting the fly to land in front of the fish required some skill. So did setting the hook. Pull up too soon, and you'll yank the fly right out of the fish's mouth. Morales didn't target every fish we came across, skipping females who were hovering over "redds" (spawning beds) and instead going after larger males. To In all, Morales and I caught and released 13 brown trout in about five hours of fishing and hiking. (Yes, he caught most of them.) It's such a thrill to see their distinctive black, red and orange spots glisten in the sunlight — always wet your hands first — and an even bigger thrill to let them go. each field (for example, don't enter the location code where the number of lobster is supposed to be). Use the location code number – do not write in the name of the location. Fill in all of the fields. For example, if two loca- tions are fished on the same day, fill in the date for both locations. If no lobsters are taken, fill in "0". An additional lobster report card may be pur- chased in the event an individual fills in all lines and returns the card. All lobster report cards need to be returned, even if no lobster were taken. In the event a card was bought but not used, you should write, "did not lobster fish" across the card, and turn it in. DFG will accept late cards but the data is impor- tant for monitoring the fishery, so returning it by the deadline helps greatly. One last thing, don't forget to use indelible ink. was a big problem on Mono Creek as groups of greedy, lazy anglers dragged treble hooks and snagged browns by their gills. This practice isn't just illegal, it's pathetic. Fortunately, Morales said he hasn't seen as much of that in recent years, although we did come across one toilet- paper strewn campsite. All in all, it was the per- Not long ago, poaching fect fall day. Almost made me sad winter is just around the corner. hunting? Question: I am a person who does everything by the book and I have a question regarding sidearms while hunting. Is it legal to carry a sidearm for pro- tection while upland game bird and/or small game hunting or is it considered a method of take and illegal? If it is legal, does the lead-free ammunition restriction apply when in the condor range? (Bao N.) Carrying a sidearm while upland and small game Answer: Yes, it is legal to carry a sidearm for protection while upland game bird and/or small game hunting as long as you don't use it to take the game. If hunting in condor country, the ammuni- tion for your sidearm must be lead-free. Carrie Wilson is a marine biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game. While she cannot personally answer everyone's questions, she will select a few to answer each week. Please contact her at CalOutdoors@dfg.ca.gov.