Woods and Water: Snakehead fish found in Tennessee waters
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The Fisheries Division of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency received a report that a fish appearing to look like a snakehead had been found by a fisherman in Poplar Tree Lake in the Meeman?Shelby State Park near Memphis. Park Manager Steve Smith reported the potential snakehead fish to the TWRA office in Nashville on December 20, 2005. Smith said that an off-duty deputy sheriff found the 17-inch dead fish floating in the lake on December 12 and scooped it up. The deputy sheriff, William Nelson, has a B.S. degree in Biology and knew that the fish was not something he had ever seen before. Deputy Nelson had read about snakeheads in Maryland and Pennsylvania in news articles over the past year and suspected that this fish may indeed be one, as well.
TWRA Assistant Chief of Fisheries Bobby Wilson spoke with Park Manager Smith about the fish.
“My first thought was that someone had probably caught a bowfin which slightly resembles a snakehead in appearances,” said Wilson. “But it became obvious that Smith was relatively familiar with the identity of a snakehead fish.”
Smith had already sent the fish to Dr. Jack Grubaugh at the University of Memphis for identification where he confirmed that the fish was, indeed, a northern snakehead fish.
Snakehead fish are native to China and Southeast Asia. The northern snakehead is a voracious predator with very few enemies and can decimate native fish populations. They can grow up to nearly four feet in length. Snakeheads can breathe air and can survive for up to four days out of water. They can also travel over land to new bodies of water by wriggling their bodies over the ground. Snakeheads are sold in the U.S. both as food in Asian markets and as pets. They are illegal to possess or transport in Tennessee and are listed as an “injurious to the environment” species.
Wilson says that the next step will be to determine if this is an isolated case or if there are more fish in Poplar Tree Lake. Electrofishing samples will be conducted in the lake soon and will continue through the Spring to look for other adult fish or evidence of reproduction.
Adds Wilson, “I hope that this was a case where this fish was someone’s pet and it outgrew its tank and rather than killing it, they decided to let it go. Aquatic pet owners need to know that not only releasing fish and other exotic aquatic animals into the wild is illegal; it can also be detrimental to native fish populations as well. We already have a severe problem with other aquatic invasive species such as zebra mussels and Asian carp. We don’t need snakeheads to add to the problem.”
TENNESSEE’S WILD SIDE BACK ON IN CHATTANOOGA
Tennessee’s Wild Side, the television program sponsored by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, has started airing on WTCI Channel 45, the public station in Chattanooga.
Tennessee’s Wild Side has been on the air for five years. Until now however, WTCI chose not to broadcast the program that aired on every other public station across the state. Now, new station managers have decided to add the Wild Side program to their lineup beginning with the upcoming season that starts this week.
The program will air on WTCI-Channel 45, DT29 on Sundays at 6:30 a.m. and on their digital tier channel daily at 8:00 a.m.
Producers say that Tennessee’s Wild Side has become a viewing tradition over the past five seasons.
To find out more about scheduling in your area, suggest a story idea or locate specific episodes and segments, please visit www.tnwildside.org. Here’s a quick reference schedule for several area markets:
NPT – Nashville Public Television – Saturdays at 6:30 p.m., repeats Sundays at 9 a.m.
WCTE – Channel 22, Cookeville, TN – Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m.
PUBLIC ASKED FOR INPUT INTO HUNTING SEASONS
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) is asking the public for input into the 2006-2007 hunting seasons.
The TWRA goes through a fairly lengthy season setting process each year that always begins with suggestions from the public. The next step consists of regional meetings where field level proposals from officers, area managers, and the public are meshed into regional recommendations that are taken to Nashville. There, the four regional proposals are considered by the Nashville staff of the TWRA. Final recommendations are taken to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission (TWRC), the governing body of TWRA, at their May Commission meeting.
The TWRA welcomes public input and will take written recommendations from all interested parties until February 10, 2006. All letters should contain the proposed change and justifications for the change. These will be reviewed by the regional staff and forwarded to the Wildlife Management Division in Nashville.
In Region IV, send recommendations to: Season Recommendations, TWRA, 3030 Wildlife Way, Morristown, TN 37814.
NWTF To Host Youth Turkey Calling Championships
When most young people learn a musical instrument, practice consists of scales, meter and technique. But for those who strive to be the best in the Grand National Youth Wild Turkey Calling Championships, the notes of their recitals include the unlikely combination of yelps, clucks and kee-kees.
Young turkey callers on the competition circuit spend hours upon hours honing their calling skills. Participants must master the intricacies of their instruments ? the slate, diaphragm and box turkey calls ? if they hope to place in the championships hosted by the National Wild Turkey Federation during its annual convention.
This year’s NWTF Convention and Sport Show will be held Feb. 23 to 26 at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville.
Contestants at the Grand National Youth Wild Turkey Calling Championships compete in one of two divisions: intermediate and junior. The intermediate division is for callers 16 to 20 years old, while the junior division is for callers 15 and younger.
“These young people are the future of the outdoor industry,” said Carl Brown, NWTF Chief Operating Officer. “They are dreaming of one day becoming world turkey calling champions and continuing our hunting traditions. The NWTF is proud to be a part of their lives in guiding them to their goals and dreams.”
The contestants are judged on a number of different calls wild turkeys make, from the hen yelp to the fly-down cackle. The types of calls contestants must imitate are not announced until the day before the competition, so the contestants must be prepared for several different calls.
The intermediate division will be held at 2 p.m. Feb. 24, and the junior division competition will begin at 9 a.m., Feb. 25. Both competitions will be held in the Governor’s Ballroom of the convention center.
The top five finishers in each division will walk home with a savings bond and a trophy, not to mention they’ll be the best of their division.
For more information on NWTF Grand National Youth Wild Turkey Calling Championships, or to receive more information about the NWTF call (800) THE-NWTF or visit their web site at www.nwtf.org.