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Recreation
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – California's popular red abalone sport fishery season will open April 1 in most waters north of San Francisco Bay.
However, new regulations effective last year closed parts of Fort Ross State Historical Park to the take of abalone. A map of the closed area can be seen below.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) also enacted regulations last year that changed the start time from one-half hour before sunrise to 8 a.m.
People may travel to fishing locations before 8 a.m. but may not actively search for or take any abalone before that time.
The limit on abalone cards was also reduced from 24 to 18, but only a total of nine can be taken from Sonoma and Marin counties.
The changes were made because abalone abundance at eight index sites monitored by CDFW has declined over the years and the Abalone Recovery and Management Plan required a reduction in take.
The 8 a.m. start time was proposed by CDFW wildlife officers who were witnessing large numbers of fishermen every low tide, and because it was becoming more difficult to find legal sized abalone (seven inches or greater measured along the longest shell diameter).
During the search for legal sized abalone, increasing numbers of undersized abalone were being removed for measurement. It is likely that many abalone do not survive handling.
The later start reduces the number of low tide days available for taking abalone, as well as the numbers of abalone taken and the number of undersized abalone killed during the search for legal sized abalone.
A complete list of abalone fishing regulations is available in the 2015 Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet, which is available wherever fishing licenses are sold or at www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/sportfishing_regs2014.asp .
Abalone licenses and report cards may be purchased online at www.wildlife.ca.gov/licensing/fishing .
Cards should be returned to CDFW's Fort Bragg office, 32330 North Harbor Dr., Fort Bragg, CA 95437-5554. The return deadline is Jan. 31, 2016 but cards can be submitted early.
The licensing webpage linked above also has a tab for reporting abalone catch online which may be done in place of returning the card by mail.
Abalone report cards must be returned even if no abalone were taken or no attempt was made to take abalone.
Abalone cling to rocks, from wave-swept intertidal ledges to deep ocean reefs, where they feed on kelp and other algae. It can take 12 years or more for abalone on the north coast to grow to legal size for harvest and biologists have concerns about the ability of the fishery to sustain current catch rates.
Similar to rockfish, abalone are a long-lived species but have generally low rates of reproduction. The last major recruitment event for red abalone occurred more than 25 years ago and recent dive surveys have recorded lower densities of abalone at eight index sites.
Currently, the only ongoing abalone fishery in California is in the northern region of the state, which has remained productive for nearly 60 years.
In 2013, the last year numbers are available, the catch estimated from abalone cards and telephone surveys was 230,000.
The average catch has been about 254,000 annually for the past 12 years.
2014 Fort Ross Red Abalone Closure Area
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California's recreational salmon season will open in ocean waters on Saturday, April 4, from Horse Mountain (40° 05' 00" N. latitude) south to the U.S.-Mexico border.
The daily bag limit is two Chinook per day and no more than two daily bag limits may be possessed when on land.
On a vessel in ocean waters, no person shall possess or bring ashore more than one daily bag limit.
Between Horse Mountain and Point Arena (38° 57' 30" N. latitude), the minimum size limit is 20 inches total length. For areas south of Point Arena, the minimum size limit is 24 inches total length.
For anglers fishing north of Point Conception (34° 27' 00" N. latitude), no more than two single-point, single-shank barbless hooks shall be used, and no more than one rod shall be used per angler when fishing for salmon or fishing from a boat with salmon on board.
In addition, barbless circle hooks are required when fishing with bait by any means other than trolling.
Additional ocean salmon fishing regulations for the 2015 fishing season will be decided next month by the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) during its April 11-16 meeting in Rohnert Park, and by the Fish and Game Commission at its April 17 teleconference.
Final sport regulations will be published in the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) 2015 Supplemental Fishing Regulations booklet, which will be posted online in May at www.wildlife.ca.gov/regulations .
Three alternatives are currently being considered for California's 2015 commercial and recreational ocean salmon regulations, including season dates, size limits, bag limits and quotas.
The public is encouraged to comment on any of the proposed alternatives, which can be found at the PFMC Web site at http://goo.gl/oemIur .
CDFW reminds anglers that retention of coho salmon is prohibited in all ocean fisheries.
For complete ocean salmon regulations in effect during April, please visit CDFW's ocean salmon Webpage at www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/oceansalmon.asp or call the Ocean Salmon Regulations Hotline at 707-576-3429.
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FORT BRAGG, Calif. – Cal Fire's Mendocino Unit Jackson Demonstration State Forest (JDSF) has two exciting opportunities for volunteer campground hosts at two of its campgrounds located off Highway 20 between Fort Bragg and Willits.
JDSF was established in 1949 and is the largest of the state demonstration forests at approximately 50,000 acres of beautiful coastal redwood forest.
The campgrounds are located adjacent to tributaries of Big River and Noyo Rivers and offer endless opportunities for recreational hiking, mountain biking and equestrian trail rides.
The volunteer campground hosts provide basic operational services and information to the campground visitors.
Volunteer campground hosts generally work approximately 20 hours a week and, in exchange for those services, the hosts are provided with a campsite during their stay.
Hosts, using their own recreational vehicle or trailer, reside temporarily in a designated campground host location.
Host campsites have nonpotable water, sewer and telephone hookups but do not have any other utilities available.
The campgrounds are generally open to visitors between Memorial Day and Labor Day of each year.
As with all volunteers, hosts are provided direction by Cal Fire personnel and receive orientation and training to perform the duties of a volunteer campground host.
To apply as a volunteer campground host, please contact the JDSF office at 707-964-5674. Office hours are 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Multiple uses of JDSF for a wide variety of activities that benefit the public, the economy and natural resources are what our demonstration forests are all about.
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California's 2015 general spring wild turkey hunting season opens statewide on March 28 and extends through May 3, with the archery season extending through May 17.
Hunters who have a current junior hunting license may also hunt the weekend before the opener, (March 21 and 22), and the two weeks after the general season (through May 17), using shotguns or any other legal method of take.
Please note that the season is closed to all hunters from March 23 to March 27.
Shooting hours for spring turkeys are from one-half hour before sunrise to 4 p.m. Both a hunting license and upland game bird stamp are required to hunt turkeys, although an upland stamp is not required for hunters with junior licenses.
The bag limit is one bearded turkey per day and no more than a total of three turkeys during all seasons (general, archery and junior) combined.
The statewide population of wild turkeys is estimated at 240,000 birds. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) estimates about 36,000 hunters bag about 28,000 turkeys in the spring season each year statewide.
Wild turkeys are found in most counties in California, with the top 10 for spring harvest being Shasta, Butte, Placer, El Dorado, Tehama, Sonoma, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada and Lake counties.
For places to hunt turkeys and additional tips and information, hunters should refer to the "Guide to Hunting Wild Turkeys in California" on CDFW's upland game hunting Web page at www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/uplandgame/ .
Hunters are also encouraged to check CDFW's special hunts Web site for more information at https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/DFGSpecialHunts/Default.aspx .
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