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Written by: Editor

Published: 17 January 2014

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Southshore Little League will hold baseball and softball sign ups this month.

Sign ups will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18, at the Lower Lake High School gym on Lake St.; 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 22, at Pogo’s Pizza, 14914 Olympic Drive in Clearlake; and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 25, at the Redbud Park ballfields; and 9 a.m. to noon Sunday, Jan. 26, at the Lower Lake High School gym.

Sign up fees are $65 for the first player in a family, $50 for each additional sibling.

Please bring each player’s original birth certificate, proof of physical address (three proofs for minors, majors, junior and senior players), and payment in the form of cash or check.

Volunteers, managers, coaches and umpires are needed.

Visit the team site at www.eteamz.com/southshore for more information including tryout dates and to print registration, medical release and volunteer forms, or call Jeremy at 707-995-1180 for more information.

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Written by: Carrie Wilson

Published: 17 January 2014

Feeding wildlife can do more harm than good

Question: Our neighbor feeds wildlife three-day-old bread on a regular basis. The wildlife consists of deer, turkey, birds and other mammals.

Although this neighbor has been told this is not good for the animals, she continues.

What can be done to stop this person from feeding people food to wildlife? (Steve S.)

Answer: While feeding human food to wildlife makes those people doing so feel good, in the long run it is often to the detriment of the animal recipients.

Although many animals will eat stale bread when offered, temporarily satisfying their hunger, in reality, many human foods – especially bread – lack the protein and nutritional components animals need for good health.

Although your neighbor may be well-intentioned, she is actually being very selfish. She’s hurting the wildlife and her neighbors by encouraging wild animals to get too comfortable around humans.

When animals concentrate around food they are more likely to spread diseases to each other and to domestic pets. When wild animals lose their natural fear of humans they can become very aggressive.

Coyotes, in particular, are well-known for eating small pets because they do not differentiate between the food you leave for them and other prey items, like dogs and cats.

People often think they are just feeding cute, furry critters, like squirrels and raccoons. If they were to put a surveillance camera out, they would likely be surprised to find out what’s actually eating the food at night.

They would probably be appalled to discover animals fighting over the food, and that they’re actually keeping the neighborhood rats fat and happy.

In addition, there may be a local ordinance that bans feeding of some wild animals. Los Angeles County, for example, has an ordinance that prohibits feeding non-domesticated mammalian predators, including but not limited to, coyotes, raccoons, foxes and opossums.

Regarding deer, there is a statewide ban on feeding big game, which includes deer, bear, elk, antelope and bighorn sheep (California Code of Regulations Title 14, section 251.3).

You may want to contact a local game warden to report your well-meaning but stubborn and misguided neighbor. Her actions may cause her to be guilty of a misdemeanor, which may carry fines or even jail time.

For more tips on preventing wildlife-human conflicts, please visit www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/ .

Fishing from my apartment without a license?

Question: I live in an apartment complex that sits on a slough in the San Francisco Bay area. Do I need a fishing license to fish off of the shore while standing on the apartment property with my child, who is under 16? (Dan S.)

Answer: Yes, you will need a license but your child will not.

Anyone 16 years or older must possess a valid California fishing license in order to legally fish the public waters of the state.

The only exceptions are the two free fishing days offered each year by the state, and fishing from a public pier in ocean waters.

Catching lobsters on a baited hook?

Question: While fishing off the jetty the other day, I caught a large lobster on a baited hook but released it because I think I remember reading that spiny lobsters could not be taken on hook and line.

Where can I find this in the regulations? (Gary K.)

Answer: You did the right thing in releasing the lobster, as the only legal methods of take for lobsters are by baited hoop net or by hand.

Baited hoop nets are the only appliance that may be used for people fishing from a boat, pier, jetty or shore.

Skin and SCUBA divers may only take crustaceans by hand and may not possess any hooked device while diving or attempting to dive for lobsters (CCR Title 14, section 29.05.).

In addition, spiny lobster report cards are required by everyone fishing for and/or taking lobsters.

Gifting wild game to family members

Question: Is the practice of “gifting” still legal? With larger possession limits for waterfowl this year, does the “gifting” limit increase as well?

Does gifting apply to mammals and upland game as well as waterfowl? Do you know the specific regulation number? (James S., Oakley)

Answer: Yes, gifting fish and game is legal. There is no “gifting limit.” Instead, the amount of game that can be gifted is determined by the possession limit for that species.

There are two primary fish and wildlife laws that relate to this practice: Fish and Game Code, section 2001, which applies to all wildlife, and FGC, section 3080, which only applies to game birds and game mammals.

Waterfowl possession limits can be found in the CCR Title 14, section 502. Details of these regulation sections can be found online at www.dfg.ca.gov/enforcement/ .

Carrie Wilson is a marine environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. While she cannot personally answer everyone’s questions, she will select a few to answer each week in this column. Please contact her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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Written by: Editor

Published: 15 January 2014

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) reminds anglers that they are required to return their 2013 sturgeon fishing report cards by Jan. 31.

Anglers are requested to review their cards carefully and complete the information as accurately as possible. Information must be submitted regardless of whether or not the angler fished for or caught sturgeon.

Anglers can submit sturgeon fishing report card data online at www.ca.wildlifelicense.com/InternetSales/CustomerSearch/Begin or submit them by mail.

Anglers who prefer to return their sturgeon fishing report cards by mail should send them to:

CDFW – Sturgeon Fishing Report Card
P.O. Box 944209
Sacramento, CA 94244-2090

Sturgeon fishing report cards are a very important part of a well-developed system to monitor the status and trends of California’s white sturgeon and green sturgeon populations and the popular white sturgeon recreational fishery.

The monitoring program uses the sturgeon fishing report card information from anglers as well as CDFW creel surveys, trip logs from party boats, trip logs from fishing guides, a CDFW mark-recapture study and CDFW scientific trawls throughout the San Francisco Estuary and Delta.

CDFW has been monitoring trends in white sturgeon abundance for decades. Nearly 80 years of trend information is available. The data reveals that large variations in spawning success (often five or more consecutive years of minimal spawning success) have been routine since the 1930s.

CDFW believes this variation is due to infrequent near-flooding flows through the Delta during spring months. Managing the population through predictable ebbs in abundance is the key to conservation of white sturgeon and the protection of its fishery.

The white sturgeon population was substantially reduced by commercial fishing in the 19th century and California's recreational and commercial sturgeon fisheries were (with minor exceptions) closed from 1901 through 1953.

Green sturgeon is a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act and fishing for green sturgeon is illegal.

Only recreational fishing for white sturgeon is allowed and the recreational fishery has become increasingly restrictive over time in an effort to protect the population and fishery.

The white sturgeon fishery is popular even though the catch rate is much lower than it was historically, because white sturgeon flesh is delicious and because, aside from a few types of sharks, white sturgeon are the largest fish anglers are likely to encounter in the San Francisco Estuary and Sacramento-San Joaquin river system.

Anglers in recent years have likely been harvesting about 10 percent of legal-sized white sturgeon each year, which is a level the population cannot sustain given observed and expected future spawning success.

White sturgeon have only reproduced well twice in the last 15 years (1998 and 2006) and the forecasted drought this year is likely to further reduce spawning success.