Weekly News

Weaver Advanced Turkey-Hunting Optics

Weaver offers two new optic options that are perfectly suited for turkey hunting. A new 1-4x24mm scope features a unique reticle designed to help hunters place precise shots on turkeys, and the Micro Dot Sight is a versatile option that makes great sense for a variety of firearms. These products are available now in preparation for the 2014 spring season.

Weaver�s new KASPA 1-4x24mm Turkey Scope features the revolutionary Vertical Zone Turkey (VZT) Reticle. The VZT reticle�s straight-sided, slot shape is designed to naturally aim the center crosshair to the middle of a turkey�s kill zone. The two oval slots are designed to provide references for 20 and 40 yards. Weaver�s other new option for turkey hunters is the Micro Dot

Sight. It offers unlimited eye relief and a precise aiming point for contorted, fast-action shots turkey hunters regularly face. The red-dot sight mounts low for perfect eye alignment and features adjustable brightness settings for changing light levels.

The robust 30mm tube contains fully multi-coated lenses for amazing clarity and light transmission in the turkey woods. Tough-as-nails scope caps are also included.

About $109.00 Red Dot Sight

About $259.99 Micro Dot Sight

800-635-7656

[email protected] www.weaveroptics.com/

Alliant Powder Power Pro 1200-Rr

The .223 Shooter�s Dream

RADFORD, Va. � Nov. 19, 2013 � Shooters who burn through .223 rounds can quickly replenish their ammunition with Power Pro� 1200-R from Alliant Powder^�. Released in early 2013, the new propellant is specifically formulated for high-volume .223 handloaders who use a progressive press. It meters extremely well, and its double base provides consistent ignition and performance across temperature and humidity extremes.

Alliant Powder�s Power Pro family includes several propellant varieties tailored to specific rifle and handgun loads. The spherical powder offers improved velocity and density for more efficient metering and loading, and it enables reloaders to duplicate certain factory loaded ammunition.

1lb bottle $19.95

8 lb canister $141.95

800-276-9337 www.alliantpowder.com

USFWS announces No Fish Hatchery Closures This Year

Issues Report Highlighting Ongoing Budget Challenges

Agency to Work with Stakeholders to Put System on More Sustainable Footing

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced it does not intend to close any of the nation�s national fish hatcheries in the current fiscal year, but warned that closures may be necessary in FY 2015 given fiscal uncertainty and growing operations costs. The Service released a report today examining the challenges facing the Service�s National Fish Hatchery System (NFHS), which will serve as the basis of discussions with stakeholders on how best to operate the system in a more sustainable manner while supporting the agency�s highest fish and aquatic conservation priorities.

�This report sounds the alarm on a hatchery system unable to meet its mission responsibilities in the current budget climate,� said Service Director Dan Ashe. �In the coming months through the 2015 budget process, I have directed the Service to work with all of our partners to determine whether the options identified in the report, or others, are necessary and appropriate to put the system on a more sustainable financial footing.�

Director Ashe added that the agency intends to take immediate actions to prevent imminent closures, but noted that additional actions may be necessary to address long-term funding shortfalls.

�We are putting a Band-Aid on the hatchery system. Unless we can find a way to cover costs in a more sustainable fashion, the system will eventually need surgery,� said Ashe. �The challenges we are facing are not new; however, we have reached the point where � in the absence of long-term solutions � we will have no option but to make tough choices to bring expense in line with actual revenues.�

National fish hatchery operations have been greatly impacted by sequestration, which reduced the NFHS budget, in the face of increasing

operations costs. If sequestration continues into FY 2014, the Service will have lost close to $6 million in appropriations for hatchery operations

funding since FY 2012, while operations costs have continued to rise. In response, the Service in the fall of 2012 launched a comprehensive review of the 70 fish and aquatic species propagation hatcheries to ensure it will be positioned to address highest priority aquatic resource needs now and into the future while working within its budget limitations.

The National Fish Hatchery System: Strategic Hatchery and Workforce Planning Report outlines the current propagation programs as well as problems associated with sustaining operation of the NFHS in its current configuration, and suggests possible changes to how the system could be managed under several different scenarios. The report identifies the NFHS�s focus on five priorities for fish and aquatic species propagation, including: recovery of species federally listed as threatened or endangered; restoration of imperiled aquatic species; tribal trust responsibilities; other propagation programs for native species; and other propagation programs for non-native species.

The Service will use the analysis to engage stakeholders in a discussion of the future of the NFHS. The Service is also working with the U.S. Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, Bonneville Power Administration and Tennessee Valley Authority and has put in place agreements to provide reimbursable funds for the operational costs associated with mitigation fish production on streams and rivers impacted by federal water resources projects. Congress supported these steps, in recognition that the Service can no longer fund the production of fish for mitigation of federal water resources projects within its current budget.

The report can be found at:

www.fws.gov/home/feature/2013/pdf/NFHSReview

CoverPageandReport.pdf

The appendices can be found at:

www.fws.gov/home/feature/2013/pdf/NFHSReport

Appendices.pdf

Great Lakes Biology Surveys Aid Fisheries Management

Newswise � ITHACA, N.Y. � Cornell University and Buffalo State College will be studying the biology of the Great Lakes in a multi-year research effort that will help fishery managers and policy makers determine fishing seasons, creel limits and other management decisions.

Cornell and Buffalo State researchers have received a five-year, $3.5 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency�s Great Lakes National Program Office and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to survey lower trophic levels � or organisms at the bottom of the food chain � that provide valuable insights into the health of higher species.

Specifically, Cornell researchers are using a 180-foot EPA research vessel to collect phytoplankton, zooplankton and mysid shrimp levels in all of the Great Lakes, while Buffalo State researchers will head up collecting benthos (fauna from the bottom of the lakes) levels. Other researchers are also sampling for such pollutants as mercury, nutrients from farm runoff, viruses and bacteria.

The project continues work by the New York Department of Natural Resources and the Cornell Biological Field Station to assess and research lower trophic levels in Lake Ontario.

�Part of the reason we got this large grant was because of our history of collecting data,� said Lars Rudstam, Cornell professor of natural resources and the grant�s principal investigator. �Without the longer term

dataset it is hard to determine changes in the Great Lakes.�

�We provide information to fishery managers that they use to decide how many fish they should stock and how much they should impose or relax fishing limitations,� said James Watkins, a postdoctoral researcher in Rudstam�s lab.

Data of lower trophic levels help researchers predict populations of larger fish, as plankton feed small fry, which in turn feed bigger fish. When levels of plankton drop, repercussions may be seen all the way up the food chain. For example, Pacific salmon were introduced into the Great Lakes in the 1980s, but they crashed in recent years in Lake Huron but not in Lake Ontario, due partly to declining biomass at the base of the food web.

Cornell is also sampling a layer of water called the deep chlorophyll layer, which is located at or below a steep temperature gradient known as the thermocline located around a depth of 15 to 25 meters. A long-term shift of algal primary producers from the surface layer to these depths may lead to vertical redistribution of zooplankton and higher trophic levels.

Two additional grants were funded by the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission and U.S. EPA Region 2, to continue similar sampling in Lake Ontario. These grants, one for $100,000 and another for $50,000, are part of a collaboration that includes the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, USEPA, USGS, New York DNR and Cornell.

Asian Carp eDNA in PA, WV sections of Ohio River

HARRISBURG, Pa.� State officials from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) and the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (WVDNR) have confirmed that environmental DNA (eDNA) from the invasive Asian silver carp has been found in two water samples collected from the Ohio River.

The USFWS tested 200 water samples collected from the upper Ohio River between Wheeling, W.VA and Pittsburgh on Oct. 21-22. The tests found eDNA in one Pennsylvania sample taken from the Ohio River in Aliquippa, Beaver County, about six miles upstream of the confluence with the Beaver River. A second positive eDNA result was found in a West Virginia sample near Chester in Hancock County. None of the samples tested positive for bighead carp.

Researchers use eDNA analysis as a tool for the early detection of Asian carp, which include silver and bighead carp. The findings indicate the presence of genetic material left behind by the species, such as scales, excrement or mucous. But eDNA does not provide physical proof of the presence of live or dead Asian carp.

�Unfortunately, the test results provide some evidence that this invasive species could be in the upper Ohio River in Pennsylvania,� said PFBC Executive Director John Arway. �This is an early warning sign, since we don�t know for certain the origin of the genetic material. We don�t know if the eDNA came from live or dead fish or if it was transported from other sources, like bilge water or storm sewers, or even waterfowl visiting the basin.�

�The states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia have been cooperatively working over the last two years to address Asian carp

upstream migrations in the Ohio River,� added Curtis Taylor, Chief of the West Virginia Wildlife Resources Section. �These efforts have focused on fishing down these species at the population�s leading edge by using contracted commercial fishermen. The main reach of this effort has centered in the Meldahl and Greenup navigation pools that span the river between Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia.� This cooperative effort will continue in 2014.

Asian carp are a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems because of their voracious appetite and ability to quickly reproduce. Once in a waterway, they devour much of the microscopic algae and animals that other species rely on for food, effectively decimating other species. This, in turn, can harm local economies which rely on the revenue generated from sport fishing and boating.

Because of the destructive nature of the Asian carp species, officials urge anglers and boaters to help slow the spread. Anglers and boaters should thoroughly clean gear and boats before entering new waters and learn how to identify Asian carp. A video teaching people how to identify bighead and silver carp is available from the USFWS on YouTube at http://youtu.be/B49OWrCRs38.

Anglers and boaters are urged to contact the PFBC or WVDNR if they suspect the presence of Asian carp. Both agencies maintain a website for easy communication: PFBC - http://fishandboat.com/ais.htm and WVDNR - www.wvdnr.gov/fishing/asian_carp.shtm.

Additional information is available on the national Asian carp website at: http://asiancarp.us/.

More information about the Clean Your Gear educational campaign is available at: www.fishandboat.com/cleanyourgear.htm.

Instant Bacteria Forecasts Great Lakes Beaches safer

Rapid, highly accurate water-quality predictions can help better prevent recreationalists from getting sick at Great Lakes beaches, according to a new U.S. Geological Survey report.

USGS scientists and partners tested the performance of near-real-time water-quality assessments known as nowcasts at 42 Great Lakes beaches in 2012. According to the new report, the nowcasts perform better than the current method of predicting beach water-quality because they work faster and are more accurate. Managers can use nowcast information to make educated beach closure and advisory decisions, which benefit public health and the local economies that rely on beach recreation.

"Informed decisions can prevent beachgoers from coming into contact with contaminated water or beaches from being closed unnecessarily," said Donna Francy, USGS scientist and lead author of the report. "Like weather forecasts, nowcasts provide the percent chance that water bacteria will reach unsafe levels at Great Lakes beaches."

Managers issue water-quality advisories or beach closings in the U.S. when concentrations of indicator organisms, such as E. coli, exceed state-designated safety standards. Indicator organisms are present in sewage and waste, and signify the possible presence of pathogens, or disease-causing organisms.

Current methods to determine levels, or concentrations, of E. coli take at least 18 hours to complete because they involve culturing the organisms. During this period, E. coli concentrations in water can change dramatically. This means that a beach site may be closed unnecessarily, or an advisory may not be posted on a day when the risk of pathogen exposure is high.

Nowcasts are different because they use environmental and water-quality variables that are easily and quickly measured in near-real-time through mathematical models, rather than relying on the previous day�s E. coli concentrations. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency developed a software program, available free to the public called "Virtual Beach," that can be used by those with little modeling or statistical knowledge to develop these mathematical models for beaches.

The USGS has cooperated with local agencies on the Ohio Nowcast project since 2006, and has been involved in past nowcast systems in Wisconsin and Indiana. During the USGS study, nowcast systems were added to beaches in Illinois and Pennsylvania.

"We found that nowcasts were effective at the majority of beaches we tested," said Francy. "The USGS will continue to collaborate with local agencies to expand nowcasting to more beaches around the Great Lakes."

For more info: website beach monitoring research

Weekly Great Lakes Water Levels for Nov 22

WEATHER CONDITIONS

Temperatures were well above average in the Great Lakes Basin last weekend. In fact, they climbed 15 degrees above average on Sunday. High winds and precipitation accompanied the relatively high temperatures. However, the next day, temperatures fell sharply throughout the region and would remain below to near average through Wednesday for the entire basin. In addition, not much precipitation has fallen during the work week. Temperatures will generally be near average in the basin at the start of this weekend, but are predicted to drop substantially on Saturday and Sunday to as much as 20 below average in areas like South Bend, IN and Duluth, MN. Most of the region will experience rain on Friday, and snow on Saturday or Sunday.

LAKE LEVEL CONDITIONS

Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are 12 and 13 inches, respectively, above their levels of a year ago. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 11, 6, and 12 inches, respectively, above what they were at this time last year. Over the next month, the Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are forecasted to decline 3 and 2 inches, respectively. The levels of Lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are predicted to each fall 2, 2, and 3 inches, respectively, during the next 30 days.

FORECASTED MONTHLY OUTFLOWS/CHANNEL CONDITIONS

Lake Superior�s outflow through the St. Mary�s River is projected to be near average for the month of November. Lake Huron�s outflow into the

St. Clair River and Lake St. Clair�s outflow into the Detroit River are both

expected to be below average throughout the month of November. The outflow of Lake Erie into the Niagara River is expected to be near average while the outflow of Lake Ontario into the St. Lawrence River is predicted to be above average in November.

ALERTS

Official records are based on monthly average water levels and not daily water levels. Lake Michigan‑Huron is at chart datum and expected to remain below datum over the next several months. Users of the Great Lakes, connecting channels and St. Lawrence River should keep informed of current conditions before undertaking any activities that could be affected by changing water levels. Mariners should utilize navigation charts and refer to current water level readings.

	Superior	Mich-Huron	St. Clair	Erie	Ontario
Level for Aug 4	601.71	577.46	573.56	570.77	244.72
Datum, in ft	601.10	577.50	572.30	569.20	243.30
Diff in inches	+7	0	+15	+19	+17
Diff last month	-2	0	+1	-3	-2
Diff from last yr	+12	+13	+11	+6	+12

Illinois Concealed Carry classes

Planning to take a concealed carry class in or around Chicago or in the northern Illinois area?

Take our approved curriculum for the 8- or 16-hour concealed carry class authorized by the new Illinois Firearm Concealed Carry Act HB 183. Classes are $125 a day plus range fees; and if you show your current fishing or hunting license, you will get a $10 discount.

Illinois Concealed Carry Part 1

Illinois Concealed Carry Class Part 1 is scheduled for Nov 12, 16 & 24

Price: $125.00 plus range fees

Illinois Concealed Carry Part 2

Illinois Concealed Carry Part 2 is scheduled for Nov 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 23 & 26. (You must have 8 hours of prior approved training or be Active or Honorably discharged from the military prior to taking this class.)

Price: $125.00 plus range fees.

No refunds, credit for future classes only.

Call or e-mail [email protected], 708-233-0211, Cell 708-212-3067 for a registration form

More Classes are being scheduled as the need arises

If you have a class of 10 or more, we will travel to your hall or meeting location and give the class in your neighborhood. The criteria for an Illinois law to determine whether you take 16 or just the 8 hour class is determined with the following Illinois schedule.

The credit list of instruction classes authorized by the Act is here: Illinois CCW Prior Training Credit

Also, veterans with an honorable discharge and a DD214 or active service military members will only be required to take the one-day class.

The full law can be read here - Illinois Concealed Carry Act

Questions? Contact Mike Slevnik: [email protected], 708-233-0211, Cell 708-212-3067

www.privatedetectivechicagoillinois.com

For digital finger printing:

Williams, James

630-715-2760

[email protected]

www.biometricimpressions.com

188 Industrial Dr, Suite 214 B

Elmhurst, IL 60126

ISRA Success in securing Concealed Carry Law

Are you a member of the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA)?

The ISRA was diligent and instrumental in working with the state legislature to secure our Concealed Carry law. Join now

For online individual memberships and renewals: Click Here!

For online family memberships and renewals: Click Here!

Download ISRA Membership Application

More Info:

►Digital printing is an additional fee, but those prints are only good for 60 days, so hold off on getting them till November or December.

►Veterans with an honorable discharge and a DD214 will only be required to take the one-day class. Be sure to bring a copy of your prior training or DD214 to class.

►Active service military members will only be required to take the one-day class

►Concealed Carry License apps will be available on the Illinois State Police web site January 5, 2014

DNR Suspends Hunting Program at Des Plaines Game Center Due to Storm Damage

WILMINGTON, IL � The Illinois DNR has suspended hunting programs at the Des Plaines Game Propagation Center until further notice because of damage at the facility caused by severe weather on Sunday, Nov. 17.

The Des Plaines Game Propagation Center (GPC), located at 30550 S. Boathouse Road, Wilmington, sustained significant damage to several buildings, as well as numerous downed trees in the woodlands at the site,

causing hazards for site visitors and hunters.

Hunting programs at the Des Plaines GPC will be suspended until further notice while the IDNR proceeds with damage assessment and cleanup, including removal of dangerous trees and repairs to facilities damaged in the storm.

Hunting programs remain open at the nearby Des Plaines State Fish and Wildlife Area.

Public Hearings on Hydraulic Fracturing Rules

Additional hearings set for Effingham, Decatur and Carbondale
SPRINGFIELD, IL � The Illinois DNR has added three additional public hearings throughout Illinois to capture public comments on proposed regulations to implement provisions of the state�s new Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act.

In addition to hearings already scheduled for Nov. 26 at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) Student Center East, and Dec. 3 at the Rend Lake College Theatre in Ina, the IDNR has also scheduled hearings on Dec. 5 at the Holiday Inn Effingham in Effingham, Dec. 17 at the Decatur Civic Center in Decatur, and Dec. 19 at the Southern Illinois University (SIUC) Student Center in Carbondale (6:00 p.m. start). All hearings will begin at 6:30 p.m. unless noted. For more information please visit the IDNR website at www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/PublicHearings.aspx.

The regulations, when adopted, will include the most stringent environmental protections in the U.S. for high-volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing. The proposed regulations are now available for public review and comment through the IDNR website at: www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/Hydraulicfracturing.aspx

The proposed regulations include amendments to 62 Ill. Adm. Code

240 (Illinois Oil and Gas Act), and the new 62 Ill. Adm. Code 245 (Illinois Hydraulic Fracturing Act).

The proposed regulations have been submitted by IDNR to the Illinois Secretary of State, and were published Nov. 15 in the Illinois Register. The �First Notice� period will allow for public review and comment on the proposal through Jan. 3, 2014.

Written comments can be submitted to the IDNR by mail (Attn: IDNR Office of Legal Counsel - 1 Natural Resources Way, Springfield Illinois 62702), or through an online comment option on the IDNR website at this link: www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx

For meeting details and location: www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/PublicHearings.aspx.

Following the �First Notice� review period, the IDNR will submit the proposed regulations to the Legislative Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) for a 45-day �Second Notice� review. The committee will decide whether IDNR can proceed to adopt the rules.

Ludington Fishery Workshop

Registration Now Open:

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