Hoosier hunters still have a way to go with the whitetail deer season. As the deer firearms season winds down, we still have the muzzle loader season and the late archery season.

Even in the later seasons, many Indiana hunters will continue using tree stands. The old saying goes, “Familiarity breeds contempt,” and it is only human nature that some hunters will start taking shortcuts to safety when hunting from stands.

The early portion of the deer firearms season posted too many accidents, and Indiana Conservation officers needed to remind hunters of the necessity of tree-stand safety. There were six reported hunting accidents, including one fatality, during the first four days of Indiana’s deer firearm hunting season.

Of the six accidents, all but one involved falls from tree stands. A Jennings County man was found dead approximately 100 yards from his tree stand. Preliminary indications are he may have died from injuries suffered in a fall from the stand.

An Owen County man dropped his firearm while climbing into his tree stand and was injured when the gun accidentally discharged after hitting the ground, and the shot struck him in the buttocks. Other tree-stand accidents in Carroll, Clay and Steuben counties resulted in hunters sustaining a broken back, ruptured spleen and broken collarbone.

Elsewhere, a Lawrence County teenager was injured as his firearm discharged while he was resting the muzzle on top of his foot.
Indiana’s Conservation officers are urging hunters using tree stands to follow a few safety rules:

•Always use a full-body safety harness while climbing or hunting from a tree stand. If you lose your balance and fall, it will save your life.

•Always use a haul line to raise hunting equipment to your elevated hunting position. Never climb with a firearm or archery equipment.

•Place stands securely and inspect your equipment after every use.
Following these few rules for tree stand safety will greatly reduce the chance of accident or injury while enjoying the outdoors and the rest of Indiana’s deer hunting seasons.

DNR Web page helps hunters find Indiana locales

Using state properties as places to hunt can be intimidating. Not knowing the “lay of the land” and being unfamiliar with property rules and borders often keep many hunters reluctant to hunt “state land.”

In an attempt to better inform Hoosier hunters and make learning the properties easier, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) now offers hunters a handy online guide to public hunting areas. The DNR’s new “Where to Hunt” interactive Web map is at www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/3199.htm

Online hunters can click on the map link and zoom to properties or counties, search by game species, turn on aerial photos, or zoom in and out. Property boundaries on the “Where to Hunt” map are approximate and hunters should verify them before hunting.
Safety zones or no-hunting zones may also exist within property boundaries; click on each property icon for details and contact information.

Sportsmen with a piscatorial perchance can also get a “heads up” before ice fishing season by using the DNR “Where to Fish Finder” at www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/12816.htm

Know where you want to go, and still haven’t purchased a license?  Go online and buy your sport license at www.in.gov/ai/appfiles/dnr-license/index.html

Small-game hunting workshop at Potato Creek

A small-game hunting workshop will be presented at Potato Creek State Park on Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. EST in the Nature Center. The in-depth workshop will be a great review or a stellar introduction for beginners to small-game hunting.

The many topics covered will include the various techniques and factors involved in safely hunting rabbits, squirrel and pheasants. Indiana Conservation officers and veteran hunters will teach the workshop.

This is the third in a series of four specialty sportsmen’s workshops on Thursday evenings. The series concludes with “Turkey Hunting” on April 16, at 7 p.m. Each of the workshops focuses on tips and tricks, equipment, safety and laws for each particular game type.
The series is being sponsored by the Friends of Potato Creek. Classes are free; however, a donation of $5 per person to offset materials and refreshment costs is encouraged.

Advance registration is requested but not required.

Individuals wanting to register for the classes or needing more information about the program may call Potato Creek at 574-656-8186.

Bass stocked in Lake Everett

As part of a state-funded project to help control an overabundant population of gizzard shad in Lake Everett, a 43-acre natural lake in northwestern Allen County, the DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) stocked 4,300 largemouth bass fingerlings on Nov. 6.
The bass, which were reared at the Cikana State Fish Hatchery near Martinsville, averaged 3.8 inches long.

According to Jed Pearson, DFW biologist, gizzard shad got into Lake Everett in the late 1990s and overran the lake. Gizzard shad feed on microscopic zooplankton and compete with small sport fish for food and space.

“Once the shad took over, bass and bluegill fishing declined,” Pearson said.

To reduce the gizzard shad population, DFW biologists applied 20 gallons of rotenone, a fish toxicant, to Lake Everett in mid-September. The rotenone was applied at a low concentration, primarily targeting shad. Although several were killed, the overall impact of the rotenone treatment on the shad population will not be known until next year.

Pearson said he suspects some adult shad survived and will likely reproduce next spring. “Meanwhile, we want to make sure there are plenty of bass in the lake to feed on any young shad that are produced,” he said.

The DFW will conduct a follow-up study of the project next June.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments may contact Jack Spaulding by e-mail at jackspaulding@hughes.net or by writing to him in care of this publication.