NEBRASKA: Bowmar’s plead guilty
Josh and Sarah Bowmar, collectively known as Bowmar Hunting, LLC, were charged in 2020 with several hunting-related offenses. The original charges filed by a U.S. attorney sought the forfeiture of three whitetail bucks killed in 2016 and 2017 by the couple,
a compound bow, and monetary reparations equal to the value of the property involved.
Other violations included hunt- ing turkeys without a valid permit, illegally transporting game across state lines, and illegal baiting of wildlife, among others. The charges stemmed from the largest poaching sting operation in Nebraska state history.
The Bowmar’s withdrew their not-guilty pleas and pleaded guilty to one count of the charges as part of an agreement dropping other charges.
The Bowmar poaching case gained attention due to the couple’s following in the hunting and fitness communities.
—Staff report
NEW JERSEY: Record hybrid striped bass
John Vayda caught the new state record hybrid striped bass in Mon- skville Reservoir on Oct. 9. The fish weighed 16 pounds, 10 ounces, and measured 31 inches in length with a girth of 23 inches. It re- places Bill Schmidt’s 1999 record hybrid that weighed 16 pounds, 4 ounces.
The fish was most likely from a small New Jersey Fish and Wildlife stocking back in May of 2017.
—NJDNR
WASHINGTON D.C.: Effort to stop illegal fishing abroad
The Congressionally established U.S. Interagency Working Group
on IUU (illegal, unreported and unregulated) Fishing released its wide-reaching national five-year strategy for combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.
The strategy details U.S. priorities to combat IUU fishing
and promote maritime security. Over the next 5 years, the Working Group will engage with five priority flag states and administrations: Ecuador, Panama, Senegal, Taiwan and Vietnam. These flag states and administrations were selected in large part due to their demonstrated willingness and interest to take effective action against IUU fishing activities associated with their vessels. They are also located within priority regions identified as being at a high risk for illegal fishing activity, having no mechanism to prevent the entry of illegally caught seafood into the regional markets, and lacking the capacity to fully address such illegal activity.
The strategy calls for agencies to leverage existing tools and innovate new technologies to improve global governance, conservation and management measures.
—NOAA
ARKANSAS: Turkey reproduction rises
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Turkey Program coordinator Jeremy Wood gave some preliminary results of the 2022 Wild Turkey Population Survey, which indicates some of the best reproduction in parts of Arkansas since 2012.
Participants in the survey recorded an average of 1.79 poults per hen throughout spring and summer.
“Historically what biologists want to see is in the ballpark of 1.8 to 2 poults per hen,” Wood said.
The numbers were consistently positive across the state. The ratio ranged from a high of 2.21 poults per hen in the Delta to a low of 1.46 poults per hen in the Ouachita Mountains.
Gobbler-to-hen ratios saw a decrease, but Wood explained this is common during years of high reproduction.
—AGFC
