I own two Ben Pearson bows now and love them. I wish they’d get more of a presence here in Arizona. ~DesertRat

Ben Pearson’s Predator

The world’s top predators attack with deadly stealth and speed. Few escape these silent hunters and all fear their presence. The same can be said for Ben Pearson’s Predator. New for 2010, the Predator not only features Ben Pearson’s innovation, quality and performance, but it’s affordable as well.

Tired of bows getting more and more out of your price range? Ben Pearson hears you loud and clear and has created the 2010 Predator in response. It comes with the smooth-as-butter Z-7 single cam and can be outfitted with a Copper John Battle Axe 3 Pin sight, drop-away arrow rest, peep sight, Sims S-coil stabilizer, wrist sling and Bohning quiver.

Available as a bow only or in a complete hunting package, the Predator is the best way to reach the top of the food chain.

The Predator Package Includes:

Copper John Battle Axe 3 pin all-aluminium sight
Bohning Archery Lynx 4-arrow, quick detaching quiver
Fully-machined, aluminium drop-a-way rest
Sims S-Coil stabilizer & silencers
Peep sight & bow sling

Specs:

I.B.O. speed 303-294 fps
Axle-to-Axle 30 inches
Brace Height 7 1/4 inches
String Length 83 11/16 inches
Cables (2) 31 5/8 inches
Draw Weights 40, 50, 60, & 70 lb. (75% Let Off)
Draw Lengths 26 1/2 – 30 1/2 inches (half-inch increments)
Weight 3.3 lbs

Available Colors:

Mossy Oak Obsession

For more info, check out http://www.benpearson.com.

This just in from Sparky over at M2D Camo ~DesertRat

“I just received the new M2D CAMO Snow pattern. I have very limited supplies, like only 55 sets.

I am selling as a set only to the first come first serve. Pants are Med, Large, or XL Jackets are Large, XL , and XXL Hats are one size fits all

You get a
6 pocket pant
Lightweight Jacket
and Ball Cap

Price is $80.00 for the whole set, and shipping. Shipping should be $12.00 for one outfit.

For those of you that waited on buying fleece, you know this will not last long. We may never make this again, so if you really want a good snow pattern, you better get it now.

Thanks

–
Sparky

www.m2dcamo.com Camo Products”

I found this description of how they (AZGFD) do game population estimates over on my friend Amanda’s great message board at CouesWhitetail.com. This was graciously posted by Jim Hinkle from AZGFD and I found it very informative! ~DesertRat

Jim Hinkle, Big Game Management Supervisor for AGFD asked me to post this since he has seen questions in this forum about how surveys are done. Thanks Jim for taking the time to write this up!!

If you guys have more questions after you read this, I am sure he would be glad to try and answer them.

Amanda

Game Surveys and Management

I’m told there is great interest by members of this web site regarding how Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) conducts game surveys and how that information is used to prescribe harvest and permit numbers. While it would take a book length dissertation to cover the full theory, practice, and statistical considerations of assessing wild populations, I will attempt to cover the basics within this post.

The bottom line for those of you whose personalities, professions or avocations lead you to seek absolutes; be prepared – absolutes are rare in game management! We cannot count all our wildlife nor can we absolutely know how many animals our hunters are taking. Everything we do relies upon estimates. I know that doesn’t make some of you feel very warm and fuzzy, but it is the truth. We do the very best we can given the tools at our disposal and the financial and human resources we have to use them, but we will never possess the precision that many of our critics would like.

Herd Counts (not really)!
The most important rule of surveying game populations is:

YOU CAN’T COUNT THEM ALL!

This is why we call them surveys, not counts.

No matter how many helicopters or observers you have, you will never be able to count all the deer, elk, etc. in the state. Why? Because the state is just too big and many of the habitats are difficult to observe in (think mixed conifer forest or ponderosa pine with a juniper-oak understory). Also the critters don’t enjoy being counted so they do things to frustrate game surveyors like hiding or leaving the country before they can be seen.

So if you can’t count them all, what do you do? You count a portion or subset of them and measure a population parameter other than total number. The population parameters that we and other states have found most useful for the antlered and horned mammals are male to female and young to female ratios. It works like this. Give a couple of wildlife managers a helicopter, a pilot and enough Jet A fuel to fly around for a few hours. The WMs map out a survey route ahead of time that uses either a series of line or block transects to cover a portion of the various habitat types in their unit. They go fly around counting and classifying (is it a male, female or young-of-the-year?) everything they see and generally have a great time when they’re not puking. They come back to earth with filled out survey sheets of their observations. Those observations are then totaled into an annual survey for the unit.

How and When
Throughout my 25-year career I have surveyed every big game species, except buffalo, by every method possible. I have conducted hundreds of hours and thousands of miles of foot, horseback, vehicle, fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter surveys. My mule tracks are all over the Blue Range Primitive Area. Without a doubt, helicopters are the most effective method for observing the most animals in the shortest amount of time. Period. Fixed-wing aircraft work almost as well for pronghorn (flat open country) at a third of the cost of helicopter time, which is why we do our pronghorn surveys with airplanes. Foot, vehicle and horseback surveys which we still employ in certain circumstances simply require too much man-power time to be our primary survey technique.

We do surveys for herd animals during their breeding season, so that we have the best chance of observing mixed-sex groups. When one of the main goals of your survey is to measure the male to female ratio, you want the boys to be with girls and not off hiding out in bachelor groups playing cards and smoking cigars. For deer this means we survey in very late December and January. Elk during late August and early September. Pronghorn during late July and August. You get the picture. The other benefit of surveying during the rut is that young of the year are still small enough to be easily distinguished, but they are also old enough to be running with the herds and past the point of the greatest mortality. Most mortality in fawns, calves or lambs occurs within the first few weeks of life. Once they are several months old, their chances of surviving to adulthood is much greater. Surveying young of the year at several months old gives us a better idea of what will survive and recruit to adulthood vs. what was born.

Comparing Apples to Apples
So now you have your survey numbers, but not total population count, so what do you do with the numbers? To explain, let’s use an example. Assume you have a herd of pet deer on a farm. Within your herd you have 10 bucks, 50 does and 25 fawns. You neighbor also has a deer herd. His herd has 12 bucks, 70 does and 25 fawns. Which herd is in better shape? Tough to tell from the raw numbers, so we convert the numbers into standard ratios based on the number of does. Bucks divided by does multiplied by 100 equals the number of bucks per 100 does. Fawns divided by does multiplied by 100 equal fawns per 100 does. Trust me on the math. Converting our two deer herds into standard ratios yields:

20 bucks: 100 does: 50 fawns for farm #1 and,

17 bucks: 100 does: 36 fawns for farm #2.

Biologically speaking, farm #1 has a healthier deer herd, even though farm #2 has more total deer. Why is farm #1 better? Keep reading.

What’s in a Ratio?
So what do the ratios mean? The young to female ratio is representative of a population’s ability to maintain numbers or grow and is influenced by a variety of factors such as nutrition and predation. Generally speaking, for mule deer it takes about 40 fawns per 100 does measured in mid-winter to replace natural mortality. Herds with less than 40:100 are declining and herds with greater are growing. This fawn to doe measurement is an indicator of herd trajectory based largely on environmental factors (precipitation, forage quality/quantity, predation, disease, etc.). Hunt management has little to no effect on young to female ratios, especially for those species where only males are harvested.

Conversely, male to female ratios are a reflection of what our hunt management has done to the herd. A deer herd in an un-hunted state would have buck to doe ratios of near 100 bucks per 100 does. Our harvests maintain these ratios at considerably lower levels. The keys to buck: doe ratios are 1) maintain enough bucks to ensure all of the does are bred (biological) 2) manage buck numbers to balance hunter opportunity with hunting experience (social).

Research studies suggest that ratios as low as 5-10 bucks per 100 does are adequate to ensure that all does are bred. Low male to female ratios are not, nor likely have ever been a biological limitation in Arizona’s elk, deer, antelope or sheep herds. Socially, the effects of male to female ratios on hunting experience can be quite different. A deer herd managed for high buck: doe ratios, say 40 bucks per 100 does, would result in a superior hunting experience (high hunter success, high number of bucks observed, high number of older age class bucks) at a cost of limited hunter opportunity (only a few hunters are able to go). Our alternative management units like the AZ Strip and the North Kaibab are managed this way. Conversely, a deer herd managed for lower buck: doe ratios, say 10-20 bucks per 100 does, would result in near maximum hunter opportunity with the cost of a diminished hunter experience (lower hunter success, lower number of bucks observed, lower number of older age class bucks), which is how our standard management units are managed under the current Commission approved guidelines for hunting seasons. If you have never seen our hunt guidelines, they are posted on our website (see link below).

http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/hunt_guidelines.shtml

The guidelines are the “recipe” for how we manage the hunted species in Arizona. The guidelines web page also does a good job of explaining how the guidelines are developed and approved. If you are dissatisfied with specific or general hunting experiences in Arizona, getting involved in the hunt guideline development process is the best way to influence positive change.

A Simple Hunt Recommendation
Armed with your new-found knowledge, let’s see if you can follow a simple deer hunt recommendation. Your unit has a current buck to doe ratio of 20:100 and a fawn to doe ratio of 40:100. Your target buck to doe ratio is 10-20:100. You are right at the top of the target buck to doe ratio range. With 40 fawns per 100 does you are replacing natural mortality, but not growing. Given that information, would you increase, decrease or leave harvest (permits) the same as last year? You got it…no change. If your buck to doe ratio was higher than 20:100, you could increase tags, especially if you had a fawn to doe ratio of higher than 40:100. Obviously if the buck to doe ratio was lower than 10:100 you would decrease tags. At the most basic level, it’s all about keeping the ratio within the target range.

But Really, How many are there?
Refer back to the rule, you can’t count them all. But you can count them in ways that lead to an estimate of how many there are. The method we are now implementing on most aerial surveys involves the use of a simultaneous double-count recording technique to estimate the observation rate of the surveyors (e.g. a 65% percent observation rate means that of every 100 animals that are within visual distance of the aircraft, only 65 are actually seen). Secondly, by GPS mapping our survey flight and animal observations, we can establish a number of animals observed per unit area and then expand it out to the area of the management unit. Combining the observation rate and density expansion works like this:

We fly 100 linear miles of helicopter deer surveys and record every deer observed within 1/8 mile of the flight path (220 yards on either side of the ship). The exact distance from the flight path to the animal is easily verified using the helicopter’s GPS unit. So the total flight area is 100 miles long x ¼ mile wide = 25 square miles. Say we see 112 deer on this flight but using the simultaneous double-count method to determine our observation rate, it is determined that we only see 75% of the deer that are actually there (remember the rule!). So 112 deer observed divided by a .75 observation rate equals 150 deer estimated to be within the survey area. We then divide the 150 deer estimate by the 25 square miles surveyed and determine an average of 6 deer per square mile of habitat surveyed. If the deer are equally distributed within our unit, and our unit is 1000 square miles in area, we multiply 6 deer per square mile by 1000 total square miles and end up with a population estimate of 6000 deer. Simple, right? Not really. This is an over-simplified example but gives you an idea of what can be done. The simultaneous double count stuff is really quite complicated. Just so you know I’m not making this up, do a Google search for “simultaneous double count” and you will find several scientific publications documenting the use of this technique.

That’s all I’m going cover for now. Post back with questions and I’ll do my best to answer. At some time in the future I’ll do other pieces on the hunter questionnaire program, use of long-term data sets and population modeling to further refine population estimates and assist in hunt recommendations.

Good Hunting,
Jim

If you’d like to ask a question or join in the conversation, you can view the thread HERE.

Public forums, open houses scheduled for 2010 fall hunting regulations

The Arizona Game and Fish Department is hosting a series of public forums followed by open houses across the state to allow constituents an opportunity to provide their input, learn about the process, and then see the preliminary hunt recommendation package before it is set by the commission in April.

“If you have ever wondered why the department recommended an increase or decrease in harvest in your favorite unit, these public forums offer that level of explanation,” said Brian Wakeling, chief of game management. “You will hear from a representative who has the knowledge from the survey data, hunter surveys, as well as the on-the-ground reports from wildlife managers.”

Wakeling added, “This improved hunt recommendation process allows us more flexibility in hearing from our constituents and making modifications, if they are warranted, before presenting the package to the commission.”

Each Arizona Game and Fish region will be hosting a public forum and providing details about the populations within their jurisdiction. This means that if you have interest in a particular unit, you will need to attend the public meeting in that region to discuss management direction.

Public forums will be held on the dates below:

March 4 – 6-8 p.m. – Yuma regional office, 9140 E. 28th St.
March 4 – 6-8 p.m. – Tucson regional office, 555 N. Greasewood Road
March 8 – 3-5 p.m. – Flagstaff regional office, 3500 S. Lake Mary Road
March 10 – 6-8 p.m. – Mesa regional office, 7200 E. University Drive
March 15 – 6-8 p.m. – Pinetop regional office, 2878 E. White Mountain Blvd.
For those interested in attending the forum in Flagstaff, ask at the front counter about the meeting, and expect an informal atmosphere because of ongoing construction on the conference room at this location.

One public forum was already held in Kingman on Feb. 24.

The final draft of the hunt recommendations will be made available for public review through six regional open houses prior to being presented to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission. No formal presentation will be made. However, a knowledgeable staff person will be available to discuss regional hunt recommendations.

A PDF version will be available at the Game and Fish Department’s Web site beginning Saturday, April 3 at www.azgfd.gov/huntguidelines.

Open houses will be held from 3-5 p.m. on the dates below:

April 7 – Kingman regional office, 5325 N. Stockton Hill Road
April 12 – Pinetop regional office, 2878 E. White Mountain Blvd.
April 12 – Flagstaff regional office, 3500 S. Lake Mary Road
April 12 – Yuma regional office, 9140 E. 28th St.
April 12 – Mesa regional office, 7200 E. University Drive
April 14 – Tucson regional office, 555 N. Greasewood Road
Each year, the department makes recommendations to the commission regarding the management of game species for the annual hunting and trapping regulations, which establish the seasons, dates, bag limits, open areas, and hunt permit-tag allocations based on the framework of the hunt guidelines set by the commission every two years.

The final proposed recommendations will be presented to the commission for consideration during its April 16-17 meeting in Phoenix at the department headquarters at 5000 W. Carefree Highway, Phoenix (1.5 miles west of I-17). The agenda will be posted at www.azgfd.gov/commission under commission agenda.

Arizona hunting and fishing licenses now available online

They’re back: Arizona hunting and fishing licenses are available online once again.

It’s simple and easy: just visit the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Web site at www.azgfd.gov to decide what license or license package suits you or your family best, and make the online purchase using your Visa or MasterCard from the convenience of your own home or office.

“It’s been a long time coming, but the timing is superb for hunting and fishing conditions,” said Game and Fish Deputy Director Bob Broscheid. “Our interior lakes are filling and spilling. There’s a lush green-up in the desert low lands. Plus we have a tremendous snow pack in the high country.”

A $1.50 Internet fee will be charged for buying a license online, which will pay for the service expense. Be sure to have a printer hooked up; you must print out the license you purchase online (color or black and white will work).

If you need help while purchasing the license online, telephone assistance is available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday by calling (602) 942-3000.

There are lots of hunting and fishing license options available, including some exceptional deals on Family Licenses. Be sure to shop online at “Buy a License” for the license package that works best for you.

You will also find lots of online help deciding where to go on your hunting or fishing adventures.

The Game and Fish Department’s Web site is full of where-to and how-to fishing and hunting information. In fact, you can even subscribe to the weekly Fishing Report or the Hunter Highlights e-news products and have them delivered directly to your computer.

Online license sales and other online services were suspended almost three years ago due to workload difficulties the former vendor experienced during the online big game draw process. There is no projected date for when the online hunt draw process will be available online again, although agency officials are actively working on the issue.

A couple of years ago, Camp Patriot was a fairly new organization and I made some efforts to help promote their awesome group. I have reconnected with the Clarks, and friend Bill was kind enough to provide an update. We promised to stay in better touch, so that I can help spread the word about Camp Patriot! ~DesertRat

From Bill Clark:

Camp Patriot is moving along nicely. In 2009 we climbed Mt. Rainier with three new injured vets. Two Army Green Beret’s (SF) who were both badly wounded in Iraq and a third Army Officer Ranger that months before the climb was paralyzed from the neck down and told he would never walk again. Video of some of the climb can be seen on our web site at www.camppatriot.org under the 2009 Rainier Climb.

There are a number of still photos there and at the bottom of the entire page; you will find a link to the video. On the Video the first person you see is Ryan Job, wearing a light blue t-shirt with a grey pack. Ryan was our National Spokesman that we tragically lost this past September 24, 2009 from complications in surgery. Ryan was a Navy SEAL totally blinded during a fire fight from a snipers round. Ryan left behind his young bride and their unborn baby. We miss him terribly. The other vets are in the video as well as the climbing team.

We took two more vets on an elk hunt at a ranch in Idaho. On our web site there are news clips and photos of that hunt. A Navy SEAL that had lost a leg, has severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and is mostly confined to a wheel chair along with an Army Reservist from Illinois who had lost a hand and forearm. Both bagged beautiful bull elk.

We did a motor cycle ride through Glacier National Park with two injured soldiers from Ft. Lewis WA.

Other functions in 2009 included taking vets fishing, attending some Seahawks’ games and hunting in Texas.

2010 is shaping up to be another busy year. Our Rainier Climb this year will be July 10 – 15, tentatively. We have four injured vets, three SEAL’s and one Marine. We will have our second annual fund-raising banquet at Quest Field home of the Seahawks. Camp Patriot will be working with the Pony Express memorial ride to put several injured vets on horseback for several hundred miles of that ride.

Actor Cole Houser and his brother are putting a fund-raising golf tournament on in So Cal. this summer. A local lady in SE Washington State is also planning a gold tournament as a fund raiser in honor of her son who will be discharged after honorable service in the Marine Corps, this summer.

We will be planning another Motor cycle ride this year among many other adventures.

More on Camp Patriot:

Our Mission

Camp Patriot exists to take Disabled U.S. Veterans on outdoor adventures.

The task is monumental. Today, there are over 2.3 million disabled veterans in the U.S. The number of disabled men and women veterans is growing with each day the war on terror continues.

These brave veterans sacrificed much in order to ensure our safety and freedom. All of these veterans had dreams about the future, but many of those dreams were lost due to injuries suffered in the line of duty. Outdoor activities that they hoped to do in the future have vanished due to their disability. We want to thank these veterans by showing them that with the right help, they can again enjoy the great outdoors.

Our Vision

We are attempting to provide a great gift for those Veterans among us that have paid a tremendous price for our freedom. They have provided us protection from terrorism, oppression and tyranny. Consider for a moment the world outside these United States and you will understand what I mean!

Camp Patriot wants to renew the dreams and visions of our disabled veterans for a meaningful future. We will be bringing disabled American Veterans to the great State of Montana for outdoor adventures of their choosing. However, outdoor adventures are just some of the activities we provide disabled U.S. Military Veterans at Camp Patriot. We want to create relationships for them through outdoor adventures that will promote positive, life changing experiences.

With the construction of a first-class lodge outside of Libby, MT, we will be able to accommodate up to 20 Veterans per week. We will provide a range of outdoor activities, and will be equipped to accommodate Veterans with an array of disabilities. There will be no cost to the Veteran.

Our Quest

How can we ever repay an American Veteran who has endured so much personal loss while defending our great nation?… losses that can never be replaced!

Our actions will say, “Thank You for Your Service!”

Will you help us by your actions to say “Thank You” to the millions of disabled American Veterans?

Camp Patriot is a non-profit 501(c) 3 Corporation. A simple monetary “Thank you for your service!” could help us go a long way, and bring us closer as a nation in repaying these great patriots for their service and sacrifice.

You may recall reading about my daughter’s first successful javelina hunt – “The Tale of the Sunset Sow”. As it turns out, my daughter is a better hunter than I am – so far! Anyway, with her javelina down, I asked Miky what she wanted to do with the meat. We had heard/read a lot of horror stories about javelina and its quality as table fare. The most common “successful” suggestions were chorizo, jalapeno cheese summer sausage, or meat sticks. Mikaela wanted chorizo, so that’s what we did. Two weeks and we got a call that it was done.

A couple of weeks ago, we tried it. I must say that it was with some trepidation that I thawed a package and plopped it into the frying pan. In spite of being a lifelong hunter, I have had some game meat that I just didn’t care for. For those that aren’t familiar with it, chorizo is a Mexican (a slightly different variety in Spain as well) sausage that is usually packaged “loose”. It is fairly spicy, and heavy on paprika and other ingredients that give it a dark red color. You can buy beef or pork chorizo in the stores here. I like it browned up and mixed with scrambled eggs. Miky likes it without eggs, but with potatoes – “con papas”. On this day, we made some of each, with the intent to use it as filling for some yummy breakfast burritos.

We were amazed! This chorizo tasted as good as (Mik says better) than anything we had ever bought in the store. This isn’t us trying to convince ourselves, this is the truth. It was a hit! We had the meat done at Miller’s Southwest Processing here in Queen Creek. I would definitely recommend their services.

I would guess that Mik’s pig weighed 40 pounds, or so – on the hoof; maybe down to 30 or so field dressed. We ended up with 15 pounds of chorizo. Mik’s mom has already done a cost-analysis and pointed out that based on tags, gas, bullets, etc., this isn’t “cheaper than buying it at the store”. Of course, that’s not the point of all this, is it?

In the package

In the pan

On the plate!

I own two Ben Pearson bows and love them both! Would love to see more Ben Pearson fans in Arizona. ~Desert Rat

BREWTON, AL – Built on the company’s heritage of hunting and innovation, the Legend bow is the smoothest and quietest bow ever produced by Ben Pearson.

Hunters want a fast bow with low hand shock, a huge valley, an unbelievably solid wall and a great draw cycle, and Ben Pearson offers this with the Legend. The Legend was designed so that hunters can draw back with ease after sitting in the stand for hours on a cold morning and is easy to hold at full draw while waiting for an animal to present the perfect shot. The Legend’s valley is so deep that hunters will even forget they’re holding at full draw.

The Legend Specifications:

· IBO Speed – 332-321 fps

· Axle-to-axle – 32 3/4 inches

· Brace Height – 7 1/4 inches

· String Length – 55 1/2 inches

· Cables (2) – 37 3/16 inches

· Draw Weights – 50, 60, and 70 lbs. (75% let off)

· Draw Lengths – 25-30 inches (half-inch increments)

· Weight – 4.1 lbs.

· Colors – Mossy Oak Obsession®, Black with black limbs, Black with Obsession limbs

For more information, log on to www.benpearson.com.

Ben Pearson produces official licensed products of Mossy Oak/ Haas Outdoors Inc. Haas Outdoors Inc. is headquartered in West Point, Miss., was established in 1986 and is home of Mossy Oak (www.mossyoak.com). Mossy Oak specializes in developing and marketing modern camouflage designs for hunters and outdoorsmen. Mossy Oak patterns can be found on a multitude of products worldwide. Haas Outdoors Inc. is the outdoor industry leader in modern camouflage design, international licensing and marketing. Haas Outdoors Inc. markets its services and products under widely recognized brands including: Mossy Oak, BioLogic, Mossy Oak Productions, MOOSE Media, Nativ Nurseries, and Mossy Oak Properties.

Public forums, open houses scheduled for 2010 fall hunting regulations

Feb. 17, 2010

Hunt guidelines, science-based surveys, and public input shape recommendations

PHOENIX — The Arizona Game and Fish Department is hosting a series of public forums followed by open houses across the state to allow constituents an opportunity to provide their input, learn about the process, and then see the preliminary hunt recommendation package before it is set by the commission in April.

“If you have ever wondered, why did the Department recommend an increase or decrease in harvest in your favorite unit, these public forums offer that level of explanation,” said Brian Wakeling, chief of game management. “You will get to hear from a representative who has the knowledge from the survey data, hunter surveys, as well as the on-the-ground reports from wildlife managers.”

Wakeling added, “This improved hunt recommendation process allows us more flexibility in hearing from our constituents and making modifications, if they are warranted, before presenting the package to the commission.”

Each Arizona Game and Fish region will be hosting a public forum and providing details about the populations within their jurisdiction. This means that if you have interest in a particular unit, you will need to attend the public meeting in that region to discuss management direction.

Public forum dates, times and locations are:

Wednesday, Feb. 24, 6-8 p.m. – Kingman regional office, 5325 N. Stockton Hill Road

Thursday, March 4, 6-8 p.m. – Yuma regional office, 9140 E. 28th St.

Thursday, March 4, 6-8 p.m. – Tucson regional office, 555 N. Greasewood Road

Monday, March 8, 3-5 p.m. – Flagstaff regional office, 3500 S. Lake Mary Road
Note: When you attend this meeting, ask at the front counter about this topic. Expect an informal atmosphere because of ongoing construction on the conference room at the Flagstaff office.

Wednesday, March 10, 6-8 p.m. – Mesa regional office, 7200 E. University Drive

Monday, March 15, 6-8 p.m. – Pinetop regional office, 2878 E. White Mountain Blvd.
The final draft of the hunt recommendations will be made available for public review through six regional open houses prior to being presented to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission. No formal presentation will be made. However, a knowledgeable staff person will be available to discuss regional hunt recommendations.

A PDF version will be available at the Game and Fish Department’s Web site beginning Saturday, April 3 at www.azgfd.gov/huntguidelines.

Open house dates, times and locations are:

Wednesday, April 7, 3-5 p.m. – Kingman regional office, 5325 N. Stockton Hill Road

Monday, April 12, 3-5 p.m. – Pinetop regional office, 2878 E. White Mountain Blvd.

Monday, April 12, 3-5 p.m. – Flagstaff regional office, 3500 S. Lake Mary Road

Monday, April 12, 3-5 p.m. – Yuma regional office, 9140 E. 28th St.

Monday, April 12, 3-5 p.m. – Mesa regional office, 7200 E. University Drive

Wednesday, April 14, 3-5 p.m. – Tucson regional office, 555 N. Greasewood Road
Each year, the department makes recommendations to the commission regarding the management of game species for the annual hunting and trapping regulations, which establish the seasons, dates, bag limits, open areas, and hunt permit-tag allocations based on the framework of the hunt guidelines set by the commission every two years.

The final proposed recommendations will be presented to the commission for consideration during its April 16-17 meeting in Phoenix at the department headquarters at 5000 W. Carefree Highway, Phoenix (1.5 miles west of I-17). The agenda will be posted at www.azgfd.gov/commission under commission agenda.

The Arizona Game and Fish Commission is the five-member civilian policy setting board expressly developed to avoid undue politics into wildlife management; ensure citizen participation; provide recreational opportunities through stewardship; and ensure ethical and prudent operation of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

The Game and Fish Department operates on revenue-driven “user pay, user benefit” business model and relies on non-tax dollars – it receives no tax money from the state’s general fund. To learn more, visit www.azgfd.gov/heritagefund.

I think this is a good choice. What do my readers think? ~DesertRat

Sahuarita poice chief appointed to Game and Fish Commission

PHOENIX – John Harris, the police chief of Sahuarita, Ariz., and a veteran reserve Arizona game ranger, has been appointed to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission by Gov. Jan Brewer.

On Feb. 16, the Arizona State Senate confirmed the nomination. Harris, a 35-year law enforcement veteran, will be filling the commission seat of outgoing commissioner Bob Hernbrode, who lives in Tucson.

In an interview following his confirmation, Harris said he has had phenomenal opportunities during his lifetime to experience the outdoors and participate in wildlife-related recreation. “My goal is to ensure that my 22-year-old daughter and her future children are also able to have such experiences.”

Harris added that he wants to take th e great things that have been done regarding wildlife and work to make them even better.

“There are always ways you can make improvements. But I have also learned that it’s always easy to come up with ideas while sitting on the sidelines, but you can see things differently once you are actually involved and learn more. I want to learn more before putting forth a lot of ideas.”

Harris will have plenty of opportunity to learn and have input. The Arizona Game and Fish Commission establishes policy for the management, preservation, and harvest of wildlife. The commission also makes the rules and regulations for managing, conserving, and protecting wildlife and fisheries resources, and safe and regulated watercraft and off-highway vehicle operations for the benefit of the citizens of Arizona.

Harris has been a police chief for 15 years, serving two years in Pleasant Hill, Mo., eight years in Springfield, Ill., three years in Evanston, Wyo., and currently three years in Sahuarita.

Harris started his law enforcement career with the Tucson Police Department, and he retired in 1993 after achieving the rank of assistant police chief. For 10 of those years he volunteered as a game ranger for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. On returning to Arizona in 2006, Harris was reinstated as a reserve game ranger and serves in that capacity in southern Arizona.

Wildlife and wildlife issues have been a lifelong passion for Harris. Along with professional experience and education, he has been very active in the conservation field. He is a life member of the National Rifle Association, the Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Society, the Wild Sheep Foundation, the Grand Slam Club, and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. He is a member of the Arizona Antelope Society, the Safari Club International Arizona chapter, and the Mule Deer Foundation.

Harris is past president of both the Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Society and the Wild Sheep Foundation. While serving as president of the Wild Sheep Foundation, Harris partnered with Warren Parker from Safari Club International and helped to start the United States Congressional Sportsman Caucus.

Harris holds a Master of Arts degree in criminal justice from Western Illinois University and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Arizona in public administration with the major field of study being law enforcement. He attended the 151st session of the FBI MLEEDS Executive Development program, the Illinois Law Enforcement Executive Institute, and the FBI’s Southwest Command College.

Harris will serve a five-year term on the Game and Fish Commission. The commission is comprised of five members (serving staggered five-year terms) appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. No more than one commissioner may be from any one county. No more than three may be from the same political party. The commission is the civilian policy setting board overseeing the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Since its inception in 1929, this organizational structure has served as a buffer for the best interests of wildlife conservation during eight decades of back-and-forth political change.

The Game and Fish Department operates on revenue-driven “user pay, user benefit” business model and relies on non-tax dollars – it receives no tax money from the state’s general fund.

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Wildlife violations hit record levels in 2009

PHOENIX – Wildlife poaching in Arizona increased during 2009 and wildlife violations reached a record level, said Arizona Game and Fish Department officers.

“Arizona experienced a record year for wildlife violations that include outright poaching. With that, we are also experiencing a record number of reported and solved wildlife crimes. Call it a target rich environment, if you will,” said Officer Ken Dinquel, who operates the Operation Game Thief Program.

In calendar year 2009 the Operation Game Thief Program received 768 reported wildlife related violations through the Operation Game Thief Program, which is a significant increase from 2008 when there were 451 OGT reports and in 2006 when there were 360 reports.

Those 2009 violations included 416 big game violations, including those involving poaching. Fifteen of those cases involved mule deer, three cases involved whitetail deer, 16 cases involved elk, two cases involved black bear, two cases involved antelope, and one case involved a bighorn sheep ram.

Investigators solved 39 of those cases but many others remain open or under investigation. The public is one of the keys to combating poaching and other wildlife violations. In 2009, the Operation Game Thief Program paid 39 rewards totaling $14,125 to conscientious citizens.

Dinquel observed that most of the cases resulted from a blatant disregard for the law and Arizona wildlife resources. In some situations it was a target of opportunity while in others, it was monetarily motivated. Regardless of the reason, these crimes were committed because the violators didn’t think they would be caught – they were wrong.”

Dinquel explained that the unlawful shooting or taking of wildlife is not an act of responsible hunters – this is done by unethical poachers. “Wildlife belongs to all of the citizens of Arizona and poaching is essentially stealing from us all.”

Other cases remain unsolved due to lack of evidence. “Many incidents get reported where a concerned citizen finds evidence of an illegally killed animal, but the scene is in a deteriorated state and no investigative leads are discovered,” Dinquel said.

“As with many poaching cases, we need help from the public. Often times these crimes are committed in remote locations without many people around,” he said. “Still, someone may have been in the area and may have seen or heard something associated with these cases.”

In some cases, he said, someone may have information but is apprehensive about coming forward. “We want to encourage those with information or suspicions to call our Operation Game Thief hotline at 1-800-352-0700 to help stop poaching. Callers can remain confidential.”

Reward money comes from fines and civil assessments levied against wildlife law violators and donations from private citizens and sportsmen conservation organizations.

Anyone with information about wildlife violations can call the department’s Operation Game Thief Hotline toll free at (800) 352-0700, or report them online at www.azgfd.gov/thief. Callers may be eligible for a reward of up to $8,000, or more, for information that leads to the arrest or conviction of wildlife violators.

Mike (Sparky) Sparkes and I have been having some e-mail correspondence and I thought my readers might enjoy learning more. Sparky owns M2D camo. They have a great looking product. You’ll also want to check out their TV Show – “Livin The Dream”~DesertRat

1) Thanks for taking the time for an interview Sparky – how long has M2D Camo been on the market?
I designed M2D CAMO in the fall of 2005 and unveiled it at the ATA and Shot Show in Jan of 2006. So we have been on the market about 3 seasons.

2) How have sales been in this economy?
Sales have been okay. As a small company we have grown in our 3 years of sales so that is good. We continue to get new customers, because we have a very good word of mouth product. People that wear M2D CAMO love to tell others about how great it truly does work. It’s hard to argue with that. I think the economy has made things more difficult for a small company as Dealers don’t buy new products as much, and big dealers stick with what they know has proven itself already.

3) Why did you decide to develop your line of camo?
I was sick and tired of all the camo out there because no matter what you wear, it all BLACK BLOBS at a very short distance. I wanted a pattern that stayed light in color, and actually created a pattern that has the ability to appear to change colors, no matter your environment. It truly is amazing to watch it change colors when you move from one location to the next. We believe anybody that truly gives it a shot in the woods, will love it. That’s why we offer a 100% money back guarantee. We have a lot of naysayers, that tell us our photos are photo shopped, or that it really doesn’t do what we say. Well, if it didn’t, we sure wouldn’t offer a 100% money back guarantee, now would we?

4) From concept to marketplace, how long did the process take? What were some of the more surprising challenges along the way?
It took about a year and a half to develop and actually make a small run of fabric. Then about another 7 months to actually get to market. There are lots of challenges, when you know nothing about what you are getting into. I didn’t know anything about fabric, dealing with China, clothing, etc. The other major surprise is how loyal some people are to the camos that all look the same, but they want to wear them because of what they say, not because of how they work in the field. Most camo today is designed to look good on the hunter in church, at school, yet does very little to actually conceal you in the real world of hunting.

5) What is your favorite game to hunt?
I love to hunt Elk in the rut with my bow. I love a good mule deer hunt, as I think a BIG mule deer is one of the hardest trophies out there to get. I love it all, but those are my two favorites.

6) What’s your dream hunt?
I have been very fortunate to go on many hunts over the last few years, harvest some nice animals, meet some GREAT people along the way, and just have good times with good people. I love all hunting from predators and birds to big game. My dream hunts are hunts I can afford, and that pretty much keeps me in the US and Canada. BUT, if costs were no object, and I could hunt one thing and not worry about it, I would want a nice male lion from Africa. I am a Leo, and have always loved lions. So regal. Second would be a Grizzly bear hunt. Maybe someday I will be lucky enough to go hunt one and film for my TV show….you never know….that’s why they call it a DREAM HUNT

7) Where would you like to see M2D Camo five years from now?
I would like to see M2D CAMO still growing and gaining a bigger following. The longer we stick around, the more customers we continue to become true believes in M2D CAMO. I hope we still have our TV show, and my biggest hope is that we are finally in the big box stores so everyone out there can have access to M2D CAMO in their own local markets.

8 ) Anything exciting coming in the near future for M2D?
We have a great fleece line that we introduced this year, that people LOVE. We also made our pattern available for the water transfer process, or dipping as it is called. I have developed a pretty cool snow pattern that we just got the samples for, so we may come out with that for the fall of 2010. We hope to have more specialty products this fall like pop up blinds, lay out blinds, decoy bags, back packs, fanny packs, and maybe a few more items.

Thanks so much for taking some time for my readers!

Your very welcome, and Thank you for taking the time to learn more about myself and M2D CAMO.

Folks, I strongly encourage you to check out M2D Camo’s website. It’s a site that has a lot of neat stuff, and it is put together well. You can order M2D online at their store. DesertRat