First on the lighter side 
(This was shamelessly stolen from the North Bay Fishing Club’s Facebook page)
Seriously though, stay safe on the ice and consider the ice thickness where you are parking or driving or walking
Ever wondered where Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza ( HPAI ) is being found in Canada and on what species?
Here’s the link to a government website that shows where.
https://cfia-ncr.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/89c779e98cdf492c899df23e1c38fdbc
The MNRF are reviewing some catch and release regulations, see the below link for details :-
Consultation on potential revisions to the catch and release of fish during recreational fishing
https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/
Another EBR posting that could be of interest :-
This one is on the use of floating accommodations on waterways, see the link below
https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/
The club suggests that all those interested in the outdoors go and check these out and leave comments on them and any other EBR’s to make your voice heard
Following their deputation to our club at our April meeting, here are some details of the Conestogo Pheasant Club and their 2023 Pheasant hunt.
Due to the efforts of a small group of dedicated pheasant hunting enthusiasts, and with strong support from the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH),they are pleased to announce that discussions with the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) have resulted in a renewed pheasant hunt at the Conestogo Lake Conservation Area, starting in the Fall of 2023. The Conestogo Pheasant Club (CPC) will manage pheasant hunting on Area 3 of the GRCA property under a license agreement with GRCA. The CPC is an affiliate club of the OFAH run by volunteers. Their club executive are currently busy arranging the logistics of the hunt, including procurement of pheasants, building a social media presence and working on the various processes related to membership applications and payments.
Since they are an affiliate club of the OFAH, all CPC members must also be OFAH members. In its first year, the CPC is aiming for 80 memberships, and plans to expand to 100 members for the 2ndand 3rd years of the pilot project. For the first year, 1000 pheasants will be released , and the hunting season will extend from September 25, 2023 through to November 27, 2023. In its first year, hunting will only be allowed with the purchase of a season permit, but the CPC plans to examine the feasibility of daily passes in the remaining two years of the pilot program.
Applications for membership to their Club will be available June 1st on the “JOIN” page of their website (www.conestogopheasantclub.ca).
Memberships will be sold on a first-come-first-served basis.
To apply to join their club you will need your MNRF Outdoor Card No. and Expiry Date, Your OFAH Member No. and Expiry Date, and your Vehicle License #.
The CPC’s goal is to provide an accessible, high quality, and inclusive hunting experience to pheasant hunting enthusiasts in southern Ontario
Here’s a link to a test on toxic vs non-toxic shot, it’s interesting reading.
https://www.outdoorlife.com/guns/steel-shot-lethality-testing/
Here are the first and last dates for big game draws and tags for 2023
TB in deer
Although this is NOT in Ontario yet, it is just across the border in Michigan, so its one to keep an eye out for.
LANSING, Mich. (WSMH) –The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is warning hunters to be on the lookout for bovine tuberculosis in deer.
This is what an infected deer’s rib cage will look like:Tuberculosis (TB) is a serious disease caused by certain bacteria that attack the respiratory system of animals and humans.
There are several types of tuberculosis, but bovine tuberculosis (bTB) can infect the widest variety of animals and is what wildlife managers have been trying to eradicate from white-tailed deer in Michigan.
A big thanks to so many people who helped keep Norfolk County’s pheasant hunt up and running namely our 3 licence issuers shown here, and our pheasant committee (Bob Hawke, Randy Lambert and Jeff Helsdon).
A special thanks to Randy for his time and many kilometres of road travelled making sure pheasants are released every week during the season.I also want to thank all the members who have supported this program, and to Norfolk County and the Long Point Region Conservation Authority for their support and the use of their lands for hunting.
And a very great big thank you to all who bought Pheasant licences in 2022, all the money from these licences goes towards buying pheasants for release in 2023.
This link to fish stocking may be of interest to you
Fish stocking data online
The Ontario Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry (NDMNRF) stocks approximately 8 million fish into more than 1,200 Ontario waterbodies every year. Fish stocking data is used to inform management decisions and production planning, but it is also available to the public to see where lakes are stocked throughout the province. Visit Fish ON-Line for more.
Covid in deer.
A small number of cases of Covid has been found in deer in Ontario but the farming magazine “Farmtario” has an article that states that a study in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois and New York in 2021 had 40% of deer with Covid antibodies, another study found that in Ohio the number to be as high as 80%.
The full article can be found here :-
White-tailed deer found to be huge reservoir of coronavirus infection
New research from the U.S. has shown that white-tailed deer are being infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 in humans. Antibodies were found in 40 per cent of deer that were tested from January to March 2021 across Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois and New York state. A second unpublished study has detected the virus in 80 … Continue reading White-tailed deer found to be huge reservoir of coronavirus infection
Farmtario
Can you tell a Grass Carp from a look-alike Carp. Are you 100% sure?
sCheck out the above card for instructions to make sure that you can ID it properly
If you do catch a Grass Carp please report it to the Invasive Species Hotline on –
Phone – 1-800-563-7711 or
email – info@invadingspecies.com or
report it via – EDDMapS.org/Ontario.
MNRF 2015 fishing survey results
Highlights
- Anglers spent 1.75 billion dollars on trip expenses and investments to fish in 2015.
- 1.5 million anglers fished in Ontario in 2015; 1.2 million adult anglers over the age of 18 years and 324,000 children.
- 68% of anglers over the age of 18 years are Ontario residents, 27% originate from the United States and 5% from other provinces.
- Visitors took 607,000 trips to Ontario to fish, resulting in 1.9 million nights of accommodation.
- The average age of adult anglers fishing in Ontario is 51 years and 81% are male.
- Anglers spent 14.4 million days and 74.6 million hours fishing in Ontario.
- Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Lake Huron & Georgian Bay, Lake Simcoe, Lake of the Woods, Lake Nipissing, Ottawa River, St. Lawrence River, Grand River, Lake St. Clair and Rice Lake were the most frequently fished water bodies.
- Walleye is the most targeted species.
- Anglers caught approximately 72 million and harvested 13 million fish in Ontario.
- Walleye, bass, yellow perch, smallmouth bass and northern pike were the most caught and harvested species.
- 79% of anglers reported their fishing experience as excellent, very good or good in Ontario.
For the full survey results see –