Field Notes

Massive Dead Whale Shark Washes Ashore in Pakistan

Online Editors — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:22:54 -0500

--Chad Love

A dead whale shark--largest fish in the sea--recently washed up on the shores of Pakistan.

From this story in the Los Angeles Times:

A massive whale shark is now on view in a Pakistani seaport after fishermen hauled the 15,000-pound fish from the water on Tuesday. The fishermen's haul was greeted with enthusiastic applause at a harbor in the city of Karachi by a crowd numbering in the hundreds, according to NDTV, which cited the Press Trust of India. It took more than four hours to lift the fish, which fishermen said was found dead in shallow water. Reports on the length of the fish varied from 35 to 40 feet

The Inanimate Objects Are Against Us!

Online Editors — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 10:06:35 -0500

--Chad Love

Do you have a piece of gear that you just don't get along with? You know, the one that you can never seem to find, and when you do find it, it never seems to work the way it's supposed to? Do you sometimes feel like the thing is actually trying to irritate you? Like it's got some life of its own, and the purpose of that life is to tick you off? That may not be as crazy as it sounds...

Resistentialism (ri-zis-TEN-shul-iz-um) noun: Resistentialism is a jocular theory in which inanimate objects display hostile desires towards human beings. For example, objects that cause problems (like lost keys or a fleeing bouncy ball) exhibit a high degree of resistentialism. In other words, a war is being fought between humans and inanimate objects, and all the little annoyances objects give people throughout the day are battles between the two.

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Research: Parasites Possible Cause for Declining TX Quail Pops

Online Editors — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:55:52 -0500

--Chad Love

Where did the quail go? That is the question that everyone in quail country, especially Texas, is asking. Even with the recent drought, many Texas quail hunters reported seeing quail early in the year, especially in 2010, when weather was favorable--only to then discover those quail were gone come fall. As in completely gone. Roanoke Island gone.

But now researchers with the Rolling Plains Quail Research Ranch (RPQRR) in Texas may have discovered a potential (and partial) explanation for the bobwhite's troubling disappearance. It's gross, but fascinating.

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British Police on Lookout for Wolfman

Online Editors — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:05:44 -0500

--Chad Love

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Animal Rights Activists Will Use Drones in SC to Film the "Horrors" of a Pigeon Shoot

Sarah Smith — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:33:00 -0500

--Chad Love

Apparently, drones aren't just for taking out terrorists and spying on citizens any more. An animal rights group says it will launch a remotely-piloted helicopter to videotape the unspeakable horrors of a South Carolina pigeon shoot.

From this story in the (Orangeburg, SC) Times and Democrat:

Live pigeon shoots scheduled this week at a private plantation near Ehrhardt are ruffling the feathers of two animal rights groups. Press releases put out by SHARK (SHowing Animals Respect and Kindness) and PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) say the Broxton Bridge Plantation event, scheduled for Feb. 9-12, should be halted. They have called upon Gov. Nikki Haley and both the Colleton and Bamberg County sheriff's departments to intervene to stop it. Steve Hindi, president of SHARK, said investigators from his agency will be videotaping what he called the "cruel and inhumane live pigeon shoot."

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NC Officials Consider Coyote, Feral Pig Night Hunt

Sarah Smith — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:41:14 -0500

--Chad Love

Coyote hunters in North Carolina might soon be able to go nocturnal for 'yotes and feral pigs if a proposal being considered by the state wildlife commission passes.

From this story on charlotteobserver.com:

Coyote-haters, here's the news you've been waiting for. North Carolina wildlife officials are considering expanding the time when coyotes could be hunted. At a time of increasing complaints from urban residents across the Southeast about the increasing coyote population, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is proposing that coyotes -- along with feral pigs -- could be hunted at night. It is not clear how the proposal would affect residents in Charlotte and other urban areas, where the use of firearms and archery equipment is limited by law. Coyote hunting is legal in North Carolina, with no limits, except that it must take place during daytime.

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Report: Radioactive Fish Found in VT Linked to Weapons Testing, Not Nuclear Plant

Sarah Smith — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:07:44 -0500

--Chad Love

Two years ago the discovery of radioactive fish near the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant caused an uproar (and some "Simpsons" jokes. Sorry, Vermont...)

At the time there was speculation that proximity to the power plant was the cause, but in a nod to the old saw that "correlation does not necessarily mean causation" a new batch of radioactive Vermont fish have been discovered - 150 miles away from the power plant.

From this story on wptz.com:

A new report finds fish in the northern part of Vermont are radioactive like the fish living in the waters near the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. The significance of this finding is not just that these fish have radioactive elements in their bones, it's that the ones found up north have no physical connection to those in the Connecticut River by Vermont Yankee.

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Ohio's Deer Harvest Numbers Down by 20,000 Since 2011

Online Editors — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:07:36 -0500

--Chad Love

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A Field & Stream Exclusive: THE ROYAL WULFF MURDERS by Keith McCafferty, Part Five

Sarah Smith — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:34:42 -0500

Belly up to a bar in West Yellowstone or Ennis and you might find yourself talking to a creatively profane fishing guide, a down-on-his-luck artist who can't afford rent, the millionaire owner of a streamside log-cabin mansion who uses it only two weeks a year, or a pretty woman with a box of trout flies and a cryptic background.

That’s the kind of people you meet in Montana’s trout fishing country. And that’s why The Royal Wulff Murders ($27; us.penguingroup.com), field editor Keith McCafferty’s new novel, features such an eclectic bunch.

Why would McCafferty--a talented elk hunter, survival expert, and unabashed steelhead bum who has written nearly 500 articles for Field & Stream--enter the fiction business?

“I decided to write a book the night I slept on the ground on a mountain for a Field & Stream assignment,” says McCafferty, a 30-year Bozeman resident. “It was so cold in the middle of the night that rather than get up, I peed myself. [Editor’s note: Sorry, Keith!] That did it.”

The following is an exclusive online-only excerpt from McCafferty's novel. It is the fourth of five parts. Look for Part Five next week. --Mike Toth
WARNING: The following excerpt contains adult language. Reader discretion is advised.

Martha Ettinger groped for the phone.

“Ettinger.”

“Sheriff, it’s Doc Hanson. Sorry to call so early, but something’s been nagging me about the autopsy.”

“What is it, Bob? He drowned, right?” She glanced at the bed stand clock radio. 5 a.m.

“Yea, he drowned. But, well, there’s a couple a things . . . I could explain, but it’d be easier if you came down to the morgue.”

Click here to read the rest of this excerpt from THE ROYAL WULFF MURDERS by Keith McCafferty.

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Fewer Snow Geese In Texas, Fewer Hunters

Sarah Smith — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:43:00 -0500

--Chad Love

Hunter participation in Texas' post-season conservation order snow goose hunts has plummeted, as the number of birds wintering in Texas has declined dramatically.

From this story in the Houston Chronicle:

During the 2000 snow goose conservation season, almost 28,000 waterfowlers went afield in Texas. They took, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department surveys, a little more than 102,000 geese. The next two years, participation fell a bit, to about 18,400 in 2001 and 21,700. Then things changed, drastically. In the early 2000s, the number of snow geese coming to the Texas coast nose-dived as the birds began a major shift in wintering grounds.

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