BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Prairie Hills Audubon Society - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://phas-wsd.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Prairie Hills Audubon Society REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Denver BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0600 TZNAME:MDT DTSTART:20220313T090000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0600 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:MST DTSTART:20221106T080000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0600 TZNAME:MDT DTSTART:20230312T090000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0600 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:MST DTSTART:20231105T080000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0600 TZNAME:MDT DTSTART:20240310T090000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0600 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:MST DTSTART:20241103T080000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20230515T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20230615T235900 DTSTAMP:20260418T032047 CREATED:20230502T060106Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230510T215332Z UID:7107-1684108800-1686873540@phas-wsd.org SUMMARY:Climate Watch - Spring Season - May 15th-June 15th DESCRIPTION:Climate Watch – Spring Season – May 15th-June 15th \nClimate Watch – The summer and winter seasons repeat each year.\nClimate Watch is sponsored by the National Audubon Society (NAS) & takes place during two distinct seasons—winter (January 15-February 15) and summer (May 15-June 15). Below is the alert about summer 2023\, the latest season . \nMay 15th- June 15th\, 2023 \nLike the Christmas bird count this is a chance to help create “citizen science” for birds. Climate Watch focuses on these target species: Eastern Bluebird\, Mountain Bluebird\, Western Bluebird\, White-breasted Nuthatch\, Red-breasted Nuthatch\, Brown-headed Nuthatch\, Pygmy Nuthatch\, American Goldfinch\, Lesser Goldfinch\, Painted Bunting\, Eastern Towhee\, and Spotted Towhee. \nThese birds are easy to identify\, have an enthusiastic constituency\, and Audubon’s climate models for these species offer strong predictions for range shifts for us to test. In future years\, Climate Watch may include additional target species threatened by climate change. We believe that western bluebird and painted bunting are not normally in SD. All the other birds occur in all or parts of SD. \nVisit this page to see where these birds are in SD\, and which are near you: \nhttps://www.sdakotabirds.com/species_main.htm\nLocation Climate Watch focuses on areas of predicted change for these 12 species at each location across the continent. Audubon provides volunteers with online mapping tools with a grid of 10 km x 10 km squares showing species-specific predictions for each square based on the climate models. A Climate Watch Coordinator can help select your location and survey square. If you are participating on your own\, use the online maps to decide in which square to do your surveys. You will be able to see which squares are already “claimed”. \nHow to count Volunteers should first make sure to read through all of the materials including the full protocol manual. The Climate Watch protocol is different than any other birding program. Then using the planning done with the online maps\, volunteers survey appropriate habitat for the target species within a square and conduct 12 point counts of five minutes each within one morning\, then record the number and species of all birds seen or heard within 100 meters. Participants send the data to the National Audubon Society. \nHow data will be used  Audubon’s 2019 climate change report\, ‘Survival By Degrees\, – https://www.audubon.org/climate/survivalbydegrees – reveals that up to two-thirds of North American birds are vulnerable to extinction due to climate change. For example\, the beautiful Mountain Bluebird is vulnerable because in the vast majority of its summer range\, the climate conditions that this bird needs—temperature\, amount of rainfall\, and other environmental factors—will shift northward and eastward. This bird may be able to move into new areas over time\, or it may struggle to adapt. To test the report’s predictions\, Audubon has developed Climate Watch\, which aims to document species’ responses to climate change and test Audubon’s climate models by having volunteers in the field look for birds where Audubon’s climate models predict they will be in the 2020s. This information helps Audubon target our conservation work to protect birds. See the Climate Watch results page here to see our early reports and results from the data received by Climate Watch volunteers so far! \nLink to the Climate-watch program on the National Audubon Society web page \nhttps://www.audubon.org/conservation/climate-watch \nClimate watch instructions for participants \nhttps://www.audubon.org/news/participant-resources-climate-watch\nClimate watch for beginners webinar\, – this has much of the same info as our November meeting \nhttps://audubon.zoom.us/rec/share/xe9NAZTe6WVOf7fz2kbRAYAQMI66eaa8hCFL_fNZn0k3a8uNjHkvp4-EZzq7vlq_?startTime=1588186808000\n\nYou can call  or e-mail Nancy Hilding\, President of Prairie Hills Audubon Society for help with creating maps of the squares where you want to bird.  605-787-6466 (LL) or phas.wsd@rapidnet.com\n  URL:https://phas-wsd.org/event/climate-watch-spring-season-may-15th-june-15th/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20230608T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20230609T230000 DTSTAMP:20260418T032047 CREATED:20230415T200245Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230606T200158Z UID:6737-1686225600-1686351600@phas-wsd.org SUMMARY:SD Game\, Fish and Parks Commission Meeting - June 2023 DESCRIPTION:SD Game\, Fish and Parks Commission Meeting at Good Earth State Park- June 8th-9th 2023 \nThe SDGFP Commission meeting will be a hybrid meeting held in Sioux Falls and on Zoom\, \nMore information about the meeting including the agenda & proposals/petitions has been   posted here:   https://gfp.sd.gov/commission/information/\nThe agenda: https://gfp.sd.gov/UserDocs/nav/June_2023_Agenda_(Public_Copy).pdf\nRules for river otter hunting/trapping\,  greater sage grouse hunting & rules for drawings for antelope & turkey licenses  will be proposed. (no hunting of sage grouse is proposed).\nSee links below to proposals.  PHAS has always objected to the otter season.\nhttps://gfp.sd.gov/UserDocs/nav/PRO_623_River_Otter.pdf\nhttps://gfp.sd.gov/UserDocs/nav/PRO_623_Sage_Grouse.pdf\nhttps://gfp.sd.gov/UserDocs/nav/PRO_623_Turkey_and_Antelope_Draw.pdf\n\nSDGFP meetings are normally on the afternoon of the 1st Thursday and Friday in the month\, unless holidays preempt that. They skip August meetings.  Details about Commission meetings\, hyperlinks and contacts can be found in previous posts on Commission meetings for previous months. \nWritten Comments are due by midnight CT the Sunday before the meeting. \nWritten comments can be submitted at https://gfp.sd.gov/forms/positions/. To be included in the public record of the next meeting\, comments must include your complete name and city of residence and meet the submission deadline of seventy–two hours before the meeting (not including the day of the meeting) (Usually Sunday night before midnight CT or MT depending on time zone of physical meeting)  If you miss that deadline it goes to record of the next meeting.  Unless you want to send directly to each Commissioner (no deadline)  –  https://gfp.sd.gov/commission/members/  \n“Stephanie.Rissler@state.sd.us” \, “Jon.Locken@state.sd.us” \,  “Travis.Bies@state.sd.us” \, “Robert.Whitmyre@state.sd.us” \, “Juliea.Bartling@state.sd.us” \, “charles.spring@state.sd.us”  \, and david.cull@state.sd.us\, and Jim White – whose e-mail might be jim.white@state.sd.us or james.white@state.sd.us\, \n  \nYou can testify in person or by Zoom at about 2 pm CT on Thursday\, it is suggested you let GFP know you want to testify in advance (but they allow folks who did  register to testify).. Open forum is for speaking on any topic\, the public hearing is just for rules up for finalization. \nTo conduct the public hearing and/or open forum as efficiently as possible GFP  asks those wishing to testify to register by 1:00 pm CT by email to Liz.Kierl@state.sd.us. Testifiers should provide their full names\, whom they are representing\, city of residence\, and which proposed topic they will be addressing. However the hearing examiner normally allows for people who didn’t register to speak at the end – he calls for folks who did not register. URL:https://phas-wsd.org/event/sd-game-fish-and-parks-commission-meeting-june-2023/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20230609T080000 DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20230609T170000 DTSTAMP:20260418T032047 CREATED:20230508T183529Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230616T233919Z UID:7181-1686297600-1686330000@phas-wsd.org SUMMARY:Nebraska Game and Parks Commission meeting - cougar & otter hunting season DESCRIPTION:Alert on mountain lions and otters \n\nMOUNTAIN LIONS  \n\nUPDATE:  NGP Commission passed the proposed cougar hunting rule changes. https://kearneyhub.com/news/expanded-mountain-lion-season-approved-in-nebraska/article_f2a3e344-06ff-11ee-80aa-4737c86f0c64.html) \n============= \nNebraska Game and Parks Commission meeting at Alma\, Nebraska on June 9th\, will consider the annual changes to the Nebraska Mountain Lion Season (Title: 163   Chapter(s): 004   Section(s): 037).   The hearing will start at 8:15 am and be in Alma\, NE at the Alma Municipal Golf Coarse\, 102 Dick Brown Memorial Drive. \n “ a public hearing will be held at 8:15AM to consider amendments to Title 163\, Nebraska Administrative Code\, Chapter 4 Wildlife Regulations Section 037 Mountain Lions; to add areas open to harvest\, harvest limits\, adjust the number of permits that may be issued during the lottery\, and clarify checking requirements.” \nFor  more information contact Sheri Henderson at 402-471-5539 or sheri.henderson@nebraska.gov\, \nWritten comment deadline is received at 1 pm CT June 7th and you can send comments to Sheri Henderson’s e-mail\, \nChanges for the 2024 Season  \n\n• The number of permits issued per lion in the harvest limit has been increased from 50 to 80. This change is recommended by staff to increase local landowner/hunter satisfaction by increasing the probability of local hunters and landowners drawing a permit. \n• A Niobrara Unit has been created and a harvest of two mountain lions with a sub-limit of one female is recommended by staff. \n\nNebraska has breeding populations at Pine Ridge\, Niobrara and Wildcat Hills.   It used to only allow hunting at Pine Ridge. The staff has decided that Niobrara can now support lion hunting.  Pine Ridge is to have a harvest limit of 4 lions of either sex or 2 females and Niobrara is to have a harvest limit of 2 lions of either sex or 1 female. \nWhat Nebraska does with its’ lions is significant to lion populations on Oglala Sioux Tribe (OST)\, Rosebud Sioux Tribe (RST) & Yankton Sioux Tribe (YST) in SD.  OST has breeding lions & a hunting season for both tribal members & non-tribal folk & allows hunting with dogs w/ tribal guide.  RST likely has breeding lions & tribal members can hunt with furbearer license.  YST has resident lions and might have had breeding lions intermittently and there is no hunting. \nProposed NE regulation: – https://www.nebraska.gov/nesos/rules-and-regs/regtrack/proposals/2672.pdf \nPublic Notice: \nhttps://outdoornebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/6-09-2023-Public-Hearing-notice-1.pdf \nGame & Parks Commission\, P.O. Box 30370\, 2200 North 33rd Rd. Lincoln\, NE 68503-0370 \n— \nNebraska Game & Parks has a report called:    “Mountain Lion Recommendations” June 2023 . Ask Sam Wilson for a copy\, sam.wilson@nebraska.gov\, the report says: \n“NEGP’s population estimates from 2021 indicate approximately 33 total animals (adults and kittens) were present in the Pine Ridge at the time of the survey. In addition to the population in the Pine Ridge\, there are also resident populations in the Niobrara Valley and Wildcat Hills. On[e] instance of reproduction has been documented in northeast Nebraska but it will not be considered an established population unless additional resident females and instances of reproduction are confirmed. A few additional dispersing animals typically wander elsewhere in the state at any given point in time.”…. \nFor the Pine Ridge area population it says \n“The most recent population estimate (2021) for the Pine Ridge population is 33 total mountain lions\, including adults\, subadults and kittens. This estimate shows the population had been stable between the 2019 estimate of 34 animals and the 2021 estimate of 33. On target with staff goals for halting growth or moderately reducing abundance. “……. \n“A limit of four (4) lions is appropriate to meet the management objective and corresponds to a maximum harvest rate of 12% of the most recent population estimate. “ \nHow do they calculate that percent? It looks like 12% would be of all age groups\, as 4 lions is 12% of  34 lions. Scientists  recommend  killing by humans (by any means) of only of 12% -14% of adult and sub-adults if you want to sustain the population (doesn’t include kittens).  NGP has not provided us with a kitten count in 2023 – we have to go back to 2022 data to find a kitten count. \nThe Pine Ridge population estimate for 2022  year was  33\, with 10 adult females\, 5 adult males\, 4 each for sub-adult males & females and 10 kittens. So\, 23 were available for hunting.  12% of 23 is 2.76 lions\, 14% is 3.2 lions \nAbout the Niobrara population they write: \n“Resident reproduction has now been documented over nearly 100 miles of river valley and adjacent stream canyons. The Commission documented nine litters of kittens from six adult females over the previous 1.3yrs (Nov 2021 – Mar 2023). Twenty-one mountain lions have been marked (collared or ear-tagged) in the Niobrara Valley since 2019. The Commission presently has seven mountain lions with working collars in the Niobrara Valley (3 adult females and 4 adult males) and many additional unmarked animals have also been documented throughout the valley. Nine kittens were documented with the three collared females during the past year. Demographics of known individuals are consistent with a population of more than 20 mountain lions in the Niobrara Valley. “ \nIT also says: \n“A limit of two (2) lions with a sublimit of one (1) female is appropriate to meet the management objective and corresponds to a likely maximum harvest rate of <10%. ”   \nScientists  recommend  killing by humans (by any means) of only of 12% -14% of adult and sub-adults  if you want to sustain the population (this doesn’t include kittens). Thus we must subtract the 9 kittens and come up with 11 adult/subadults (11 adults/subadults is assumed as they don’t tell us the age of 4 lions.)   1.3 is 12% of 11 and 1.54 is 14%. \nWe worry about the small nature of this population and its’ sustainability. \nThe Mountain Lion Foundation has an 2023 discussion on this NE Lion management on their web page: https://mountainlion.org/us/nebraska/ \nHere is link to the OLD PHAS 2022 Alert – that has links to other alerts for NE cougars that can be used to write comments – as the issues stay the same\, except they have added Niobrara. Also Oglala Sioux Tribes harvest of lions has increased. \nhttps://phas-wsd.org/event/nebraska-game-and-parks-commission-hearing-on-mountain-lions-and-otter-hunting-seasons/ \nHere is a link to our generic page on mountain lions: https://phas-wsd.org/cougar-alert/ \n========================== \n2. NEBRASKA OTTERS \nChanges are also proposed to the Otter season order\, to make it easier for trappers to process otter trapping records/season status.  The details  will be found at below link under proposed orders. \n\n\n\n“Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. Sections §§ 37-314\, 37-315\, 37-502\, 37-701\, a public hearing will be at 8:45 AM to consider amendments to Title 163\, Nebraska Administrative Code Chapter 4\, Wildlife Regulations Section 005 Wildlife-Game birds (not including turkey\, coots and migratory waterfowl)\, Furbearers\, Cottontail Rabbit to change the reporting and daily status checking requirements for a river otter harvest.” \n\n\n\nThey do mountain lion seasons as regulations and otters as Commission orders. \nThey have had 2 years of otter seasons and not many hunters\, relative to what NGP expected\,  are trapping otters.  Proposed otter order: https://outdoornebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/CO5-35-day-6-17-22-2.pdf \n\n\n\nThey are getting rid of the failsafe\, that the season would close if 125 otters are trapped and they are just limiting the season by the season dates – not the number of otter taken. They are also limiting it by allowing only one otter per hunter . \n\n\n\n“C05.02E Only one (1) river otter may be harvested per season\, per valid permit holder.” \n\n\n\n“C05.02G2 River otter – Open Season: November 1 through the last day in February” \n\n\nThis clause would be deleted:  (except the season shall close three days after the harvest closing trigger of 125 river otters is met\, whichever comes first) \n\nhttps://outdoornebraska.gov/about/notices/public-notices/rules-orders-regulations/ URL:https://phas-wsd.org/event/nebraska-game-and-parks-commission-meeting-cougar-hunting-season/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://phas-wsd.org/wp-content/uploads/Screen-Shot-2023-06-04-at-1.58.09-PM.png END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR