outdoors

A proposal to establish a four-walleye limit statewide was included in a Senate omnibus environmental policy bill that cleared its first committee hurdle Friday.

The measure was just one of many proposals in the Legislature that could affect the state's 1.6 million anglers.

Also included in the bill was establishment of a voluntary walleye stamp and a legislative-citizens council to oversee about $91 million annually in fish and wildlife habitat money that would accompany passage of a dedicated funding constitutional amendment in November.

"The voluntary walleye stamp idea came from members of the walleye advisory group,'' said bill author Sen. Satveer Chaudhary, DFL-Fridley. The money raised would be spent on boosting walleye stocking. A citizen oversight committee would recommend where the additional walleye stocking should occur.

Chaudhary said that even if only a fraction of the 1.6 million anglers buy a stamp, it would raise a significant amount of money.

Chairman of the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee, Chaudhary also is author of a proposal moving the fishing opener a week earlier in May -- a plan that was not approved by his committee.

Chaudhary has said he supports an earlier opener that wouldn't conflict as often with Mother's Day. But DNR officials said Friday that under the bill, the opener would conflict with Mother's Day 15 times over 20 years -- one more than under the current setup. Resort and campground representatives testified against the bill on Friday. DNR officials are concerned about the impact on spawning walleyes.

A provision establishing a 14-inch statewide walleye minimum and allowing no more than one walleye over 20 inches also didn't clear the committee.

The numbers are in, and Minnesota's first statewide venison donation program fell short of expectations.

Hunters donated 1,977 deer -- or about 78,000 pounds of venison -- to food shelves last fall. But funding was available to process about 4,000 deer.

Minnesota hunters killed 260,000 deer last season.

By comparison, Wisconsin hunters killed 518,000 deer and donated 9,200, or about 414,000 pounds of venison, to food shelves last year under a similar program. And Iowa hunters donated about 7,000 deer.

Still, officials are optimistic the program will catch on.

"I think it's pretty good,'' said Lou Cornicelli, DNR big game program coordinator. "As the program gets more recognition, I think it will increase.''

Under the Minnesota program, processors were paid $70 to butcher each donated deer. In the past, hunters could donate deer to food shelves but had to pay for processing. Under the program, costs were offset through a $160,000 appropriation approved by the 2007 Legislature, an increase in nonresident hunting license fees and voluntary donations from hunters.

Conservation officer Aaron Kahre was checking anglers on Lake Minnetonka when he approached a portable fish house with a hand auger lying outside. When the two men inside opened the door, they were sitting on buckets with their gear nearby. But there were no holes in the ice. They told Kahre they got tired using the auger after about 5 inches of drilling and decided to just "pretend'' fish for a while before heading home.

The spread of bovine tuberculosis in northwestern Minnesota has forced the Department of Natural Resources to consider killing some wild elk.

The agency has been working to thin the deer herd in that area but announced last week it also will issue elk-shooting permits on a case-by-case basis.

Elk permits will be considered in areas where there is direct interaction with elk and either cattle or stored feed and there are no other feasible options. One elk already has been shot, said Paul Telander, DNR northwest regional wildlife manager.

"We're not planning on shooting large numbers,'' he said.

No elk have been found with bovine TB, he said.

Two small elk herds roam northwestern Minnesota, about 55 in the Grygla, Minn., area -- near the TB outbreak -- and 80 in Kittson County. They have been carefully managed since they were reintroduced decades ago. Very limited hunting seasons have been held over the years to keep their populations in check.

Telander said he expects another limited elk hunting season this fall.

Meanwhile, the DNR is making it easier for landowners and tenants to shoot deer in the bovine TB outbreak area to reduce deer densities.

For the second year, a coalition of conservation groups and agencies have joined forces to make bird migration safer by turning off the lights in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

The Lights Out Twin Cities project is encouraging city, state and private building owners to turn off unnecessary lighting in spring and fall during peak migration hours. This is the second year of the Lights Out campaign. It began Saturday and runs through the end of May from midnight until daylight. Twenty-four building owners joined in the first effort. An added benefit is energy savings. One building saved more than $2,000 last year by turning their lights out at night during migration.

"Since most songbirds fly at night, they must find ways to navigate around hazards like tall buildings along their migratory routes," said Carrol Henderson, DNR Nongame Wildlife program supervisor. "Many birds die preventable deaths as they collide with lighted buildings or are dazed by the lights and circle around until exhausted. Fewer birds are attracted to and suffer harm from darkened buildings."

People interested in volunteering can contacting birdsafe@msn.com or the state Audubon office at 651-739-9332.