Timber Rattlesnakes in Connecticut

Posted on September 8, 2020 by Ed Mitchell

Timber Rattlesnakes in Connecticut,

Timber Rattlesnakes in Connecticut

Been awhile since I did a post on these critters. In fact it was ten years ago. No I didn’t come across another one, but I did see a sign that reminded me of their presence. As you might imagine their numbers are declining. They are rare in Connecticut. And the decline is  largely due to interaction with people.

At one point in time these snakes were found in 20 Connecticut towns; that’s been cut in half. In part because we are encroaching on their habitat. Timber rattlesnakes like lush, wooded hillsides, the kind of place expensive homes are often built to catch a view. And I bet you know what happens next. Harm, in one fashion or another, comes to the snakes.

Remember that timber rattlesnakes are going to do all they can to avoid you. Yes they prefer to retreat. This snake has quite bit of color variation, especially between juveniles and adults.  Some timber rattlers are a mustard shade. Others brown. Some almost black. If you think you see or hear one, or even a snake you can’t identify, slowly back off. Give it a chance to escape. Don’t try to catch, kill, or handle it.  Let it live.

Posted in Environment, Looking Downward, Wild Things | Leave a comment

Seal Problems on the Pacific coast

Posted on August 23, 2020 by Ed Mitchell

Seal Problems on the Pacific coast

A few posts back I briefly brought up the subject of wildlife management. Wildlife management is a contract between society and wildlife to find an reasonable balance. And in many cases it works well, but all wildlife management has to be adaptive. Which is to say adjustments must be made to reflect changes in wildlife populations. For example this happens regularly in fisheries management. If a species is experiencing decline, fishing regulations are tighten to help that species recover.

www.komonews.com/news/local/us-allows-killing-sea-lions-eating-at-risk-northwest-salmon-08-14-2020-221034499

All of this came up concerning the seal population explosion along Northeast Atlantic  beaches. And how this explosion has indirectly caused human fatalities by attracting great white sharks nearshore. Ironically the Pacific coast has experience a somewhat similar situation for years. No, not human fatalities. In this cases the large number of seals has nearly destroyed salmon runs in some location. Exactly what to do about this issue has been kicked around for year. Hell they even made decoy Orcas made to scare the seals off. No dice. Recently, however, the Pacific Fisheries Management folks are finally taking action, but allowing a culling of the seal population. This type of wildlife management adjustment is much need on our coast as well. Let’s hope it takes place.

www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/01/killing-sea-lions-save-salmon/581740/

Posted in Environment, Fly Fishing in Salt Water | Leave a comment

A YOY Sand eel Fly

Posted on August 20, 2020 by Ed Mitchell

Recently we took a look at tying sand eel flies. While digging through my fly tying material mess for that post, and believe me it’s a tangled mess,  I came across a young-of-year (YOY) sand eel pattern I used nearly three decades ago. Fun to see the old soldier.  It was made from a QTip. Yes frcm a common cotton swab. Cheap, and easy to tie, it fooled many striped bass so I thought I might share it with you. (More on sand eel flies)

YOY sand eels

As you see in the photo above, YOY sand eels are very small and thin. The photo is helpful as far as size goes, but since these guys are deceased they have lost their color and sheen. In the living flesh their backs have a touch of green and their flanks are more iridescent pearl.

The QT Sand Eel

The fly above has seen its share of battles and was retired long ago. But it gives you the idea. To tie this fly I simply cutting the cotton ball ends off the swab. That left me with a clear plastic shaft of roughly 1/8″ diameter. Perfect. Next I cut one end of the shaft at a 45 degree angle. This end got lashed on top of the hook shank directly behind the eye. But not before sliding small hollow mylar tubing over the shaft. The tubing was left a little long so it dangled loosely over the tail end of the fly for added action. Put a bead of super glue along the top of the shaft and along bottom, where it contacted the hook shank, and presto, done!

This fly is essentially a “stick” bait design. In that fashion it resembles Gartside’s well known Corsair sand eel, although the QT eel predates it by many years. I often added an eye or additional color with laundry markers. And if you sealed the tail end of the shaft, the fly became buoyant. Hell bass would pick this fly up just lying near the surface. But anyway you made it the fly remained simple. And talk about cheap! In any pharmacy, you could buy a huge box of cotton swabs for a song. Amazing, that box might last you a lifetime. Unfortunately, at least from my point of view, clear plastic shafts got phased out and so I eventually switched to a different fly design. Time moves on.

Posted in Flies and Fly Tying, Fly Fishing in Salt Water | Leave a comment

Got a New Hard Drive

Posted on August 20, 2020 by Ed Mitchell

Got a New Hard Drive

As I reported some time back my computer has been limping along. What’s the problem? There is at least one bad sector on the hard drive. When the computer hits it, the screen goes blue. And things lockup.  Then the computer struggles to reboot.  Not good. Pain in the arse.

My son popped open my wounded laptop and did the necessary surgical transplant. The offending critter is in the upper left side of the board. It is an older style mechanical hard drive. If you have ever opened one up you known it contains a series of discs and a stylus reader. Very complicated. Very delicate. It got replaced with a solid state flash drive. Faster and more reliable. Time to move ahead.

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Rare Shark Attack in Maine is the tip of an Iceberg

Posted on August 9, 2020 by Ed Mitchell

Recently  a New York woman was killed by a shark on the Maine coast. This is an extremely rare event,  and may well be the only recorded fatal shark attack in the state of Maine. The links below will add additional information. Such deaths are, however, likely to become more common. More in a minute.

NYC woman killed in Maine shark attack was former handbag company president

Ultimately this points to a possible growing problem- more attacks. Why would be having more attacks? The seal population along the Northeast coast has expanded exponentially in the last decades. Its enormous in places like Cape Cod where tens of thousand of seals now call home, many of the the large gray seal which tips the scales up to 800 pounds. Well that’s a big hamburger for a great white. And since these juicy burger are very often near the beach, swimmers are literally in the shark’s dining room. In fact in 2018 that lead to the death of Arthur Medici 26, of Massachusetts, who was boogie-boarding on Cape Cod. He was killed by a great white off Newcomb Hollow. Yes it was the first shark fatality on the Cape since 1936, but like the event in Maine this is apt to be the tip of a growing iceberg.

Unfortunately reducing the seal population is a complex issue given that seal are protected under the 1972 federal Marine Mammal Protection Act. At this moment there is no clear path forward. Bathers beware. And beyond the possible danger to beach goers, the seals are causing additional burdens. A gray seal eats upwards of 5o pounds of marine life a day. Wow. That would mainly be local fish populations. Multiple that by thousands of seals and you immediately see the issue. And the presence of great whites along the beach will undoubtedly hurt tourism. All of these concerns center around the concept of wildlife management. Wildlife management is essentially a contract between society and animals to find an acceptable balance for both. Its never a perfect union and always needs adjustment over time. Our management of the seal population is a case in point. Read this update

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