Road Kill Scholars
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Road Kill Scholars
How do you get schoolkids interested in wildlife and science concepts? For
Brewster Bartlett of Loudon, N.H. -- "Dr. Splatt" to his students at Pinkerton
Academy and his many fans -- the answer is ROADKILL!
Bartlett's award-winning RoadKill project is designed to engage students and teachers in the scientific monitoring of a specific environmental parameter -- roadkill -- and in doing so, teach them lessons from scientific disciplines ranging from biology to statistics. When you're a student of the RoadKill curriculum and reporting database, "Unidentified Road Pizza" is both a scientific term and a means to learning more about animals' interaction with wild and not-so-wild habitats.
Through the RoadKill project, students can compare their scientific findings with those from other areas, while learning to recognize local species and beginning to understand concepts like migratory patterns; reciprocal effects between humans and wildlife; and the ecological importance of small and large mammals, reptiles and birds.
To learn more, visit www.edutel.org/roadkill.
Wild
Ways: Lead-Free Fishing
When host Lisa Densmore says "get the lead out," she's not urging you to hurry
up. Lisa shows us how lead-free fishing tackle, in addition to being essential
for catching lunker bass, saves the lives of New Hampshire's loons by keeping
poisonous lead out of the birds' habitat.
Jim Migliozzi from Rocky Ledge Bass Tackle in Pittsfield <www.rockyledge.com> shows off the latest in lead-free spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and jigs.
For the sake of the law -- and the loons -- anglers should safely dispose of their old lead sinkers and jigs and replace them with non-lead alternatives. In 2000, New Hampshire became the first state to ban lead sinkers and jigs to protect common loons and other diving birds. The law bans the use of lead sinkers 1 ounce or less and jigs less than 1 inch long on freshwater lakes and ponds.
The ban was enacted to protect loons and other birds that mistakenly pick up lead sinkers as they ingest stones to churn up food in their gizzards. Once in a loon's system, one lead sinker can kill the bird within two weeks.
Though some of New Hampshire's loons are still dying from old lead tackle on lake bottoms, the general loon population is doing pretty well, according to Kate Taylor, a biologist for the Loon Preservation Committee. An estimated 675 of the state-threatened birds now live in New Hampshire. In 2000, 176 chicks hatched and 128 survived, Taylor said.
How can you help? Get the lead out! Check your tackle box, and safely dispose of lead sinkers and jigs by taking them to:
- All Fish and Game regional offices (Concord, Durham, Keene, Lancaster, and New Hampton) and state fish hatcheries (for locations, call 603-271-3211).
- Household Hazardous Waste Collections held throughout the state from now through June. Call the Department of Environmental Services at 603-271-3503, or visit www.des.state.nh.us/hhw.
- The Loon Preservation Committee's visitor center on Lee's Mills Road in Moultonborough.
- Recycling centers and transfer stations in more than 30 communities that belong to the Northeast Resource Recovery Association, 603-225-6996.
Tending Trout
There's a certain kind of culture being bred at the Berlin Fish Hatchery. Up
in the North Country, fish culturists are raising trout to stock lakes and streams.
In a special insider's look, Wildlife Journal follows the hatchery workers
as they tend the trout from broodstock to egg to their eventual release. You'll
see underwater footage of the fish in different stages of development, the raceways
where they are reared, how fish are stocked in lakes and streams, as well as
people fishing for and catching trout!
This program segment depicts a project that was funded in part by your purchase
of firearms, ammunition, archery equipment, fishing tackle and motorboat fuels
through the Federal
Aid in Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Programs.
Wild
Places: Contoocook River
The Contoocook River winds for 71 miles through south-central New Hampshire,
with mixed sections of easygoing flatwater and sections of boiling fastwater.
The legendary "Freight Train Rapids" comprise a 2-mile stretch of water that's
so heavy in spring that it's one of the largest and most reliable whitewater
river runs in New England, nationally known among kayakers.
The aquatic habitat along the Contoocook is diverse, supporting both warm and coldwater fish and plenty of macroinvertebrates or aquatic bugs to keep the fish well-fed.
In the Hopkinton - Everett Lakes area ("Hop-Ev"), a 10,000-acre flood control area managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, lakes were created by dams that provide flood control protection for the larger river basin. Along the shoreline you're likely to see a blue heron hunting in the shallows, and if you're a lucky maybe a fox or coyote along the woods' edge.
There are many access points along the Contoocook where you can fish, boat
and watch wildlife; and there are some fine hiking, hunting and snowmobiling
opportunities at Hop-Ev. A good map, such as Delorme's New Hampshire Atlas
and Gazetteer, is your best "where-to-go" resource. Click
here to download a map of a short stretch of the Contoocook River through Henniker
and Hopkinton.
