Family-Outdoors

Map of USA with Oklahoma highlighted (Photo credit: Wikipedia) CENTRAL Arcadia : November 13. Elevation normal, water 46 and murky. All fishing fair to good. Report submitted by Sheila Hutton, gate attendant. Draper : December 2. Elevation below normal, water clear. All fishing slow. Report submitted by Tony Woodruff, game warden stationed in Cleveland County. Hefner : December 3. Elevation dropping, water 44-47 and clear. Largemouth bass slow. Smallmouth bass slow. White bass and striped bass hybrids good on white grubs and jigs at 12-25 ft. along the dam. Channel and blue catfish fair on cut bait along the dam. Crappie good on minnows and jigs at 20-24 ft. along the dam. Walleye slow on grubs at 8-12 ft. along the dam. Report submitted by Lucky Lure Tackle. Overholser : December 3. Elevation normal, water 49 and clear. Crappie and white bass fair on bright colored artificial lures at the west pier. Catfish slow to fair on cut shad. Report submitted by Jarrod Dav...

Tim Blackwell caught a nice 4.6 pound rainbow trout at Lake Pawhuska. CENTRAL Hefner : November 25. Elevation dropping, water 45-48 and clear. Largemouth and smallmouth bass fair on crankbaits. White bass fair on 8-15 ft. at the dam. Striped bass hybrids fair on white grubs at 8-15 ft. along the dam. Channel and blue catfish good on cut bait along the dam. Crappie fair on minnows and white jigs at 20-24 ft. around docks and the dam. Walleye fair on grubs at 8-12 ft. along the dam. Report submitted by Lucky Lure Tackle. Overholser : November 25. Elevation normal, water 38 and clear to murky. All fishing slow. Report submitted by Jarrod Davis, game warden stationed in Oklahoma and Canadian counties. Wes Watkins : November 25. All fishing slow. Report submitted by Mike France, game warden stationed in Pottawatomie County. NORTHEAST Birch : November 25. All fishing slow. Report submitted by David Clay, game warden stationed in Osage County. Copan : November 26. Elevat...

Drought relief and the most mild summer temperatures recorded in years have improved upland habitat this year, and that's good news for pheasants. Brood count surveys showed an increase of about 20 percent from last year, which should improve hunting opportunities for sportsmen headed to the field for the  Dec. 1  pheasant season opener.      Brood count surveys take place in August. They help biologist with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation determine how many young pheasants survived the summer.       "These brood count surveys are the primary means we use to help us understand the annual population status of pheasant and to give us an idea of what the hunting season may be like," said Scott Cox, upland game bird biologist for the Wildlife Department. "And thankfully, the results are up this year."      Biologists attribute the improved brood count survey results to better available habitat thanks to ...

 Visitors to the Sooner State who want to enjoy a spur-of-the-moment fishing outing now have a more cost-effective alternative to obtain the necessary license. On Nov. 1, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation began offering a one-day nonresident fishing license for the first time.    "This new option allows people who are simply visiting for one day to enjoy fishing on Oklahoma's lakes and streams without having to buy the six-day license as they did before," said Michael Chrisman, license section supervisor for the Wildlife Department.    Previously, residents from other states who needed a fishing license in Oklahoma had the choice to buy either a six-day nonresident fishing license for $35 or an annual nonresident fishing license for $55. The nonresident one-day license costs $15.    Beginning Nov. 1, legislation sponsored by state Sen. Josh Brecheen (R-Coalgate) and state Rep. Charles McCall (R-Atoka) created the one-day nonreside...

For the first time since records have been kept, whooping cranes were confirmed in Oklahoma City last fall. A single bird stopped at Lake Overholser in mid-Oct.; and then, just The endangered whooping cranes will pass through  the western portion of Oklahoma through mid-Nov.  Photo by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. before Thanksgiving, a pair stopped overnight at Lake Hefner. The Wildlife Department asks citizens to report any whooping crane sightings again this year. "The Oklahoma City-area sightings were unusual," said Mark Howery, wildlife diversity biologist for the Wildlife Department. "This may have occurred because of the ongoing drought in western Oklahoma. With fewer sources of open water in western Oklahoma, some of the birds appeared to shift their migration path farther east than usual." Another uncommon occurrence last year was that of a landowner who photographed six adult whooping cranes on one of her ponds. One of the birds had red and...

Lesser Prairie Chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Wednesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service endorsed the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies’ *Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-Wide Conservation Plan*, a landmark, collaborative planning effort to conserve a species proposed for listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The range-wide plan (RWP) represents a dedicated effort by the five range states of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado to conserve the lesser prairie-chicken. After an extensive review, the Service found the plan is consistent with criteria proposed last May for conserving the species, which is proposed for listing under the ESA. The plan calls for providing financial incentives to landowners who voluntarily manage their lands to benefit the species. It also includes a framework for mitigating the potentially harmful effects to lesser prairie-chicken habitat from development activity throughout...

Lesser Prairie Chicken (Photo credit: USDAgov) Recent aerial surveys conducted to assess lesser prairie-chicken populations across portions of five states including Oklahoma have turned up some good news, according to biologists.               Despite concerns about the lesser prairie-chicken across its range and the severe drought that occurred last year across the surveyed region, biologists were able to make several observations in Beaver, Ellis, Harper and Texas counties during the survey. The survey was looking for additional "leks," or areas used by lesser prairie-chickens each year for courtship and mating.              "This is an important effort among several partners, and Oklahoma is directly involved," said Doug Schoeling, upland game bird biologist for the Wildlife Department. "We don't want to see the lesser prairie-chicken des...