DNR TO ANSWER FALL HUNTING QUESTIONS LIVE ON FACEBOOK

            DES MOINES — Iowans with fall hunting on their minds will want to mark their calendar for Oct. 24, when DNR wildlife research supervisor Willie Suchy will answer fall hunting questions live on the DNR’s Facebook page.

Suchy will be available via Facebook from noon to 2:30 p.m. To ask a question, post it as a comment on the “Live Q&A” post that the DNR will post at noon that day. You can also post questions ahead of time on the DNR’s Facebook Timeline at www.facebook.com/iowadnr. Questions received after 2:30 may be answered at a later time.

To make sure you see the Live Q&A when it is posted, make sure you “like” the page on Facebook. Go to www.facebook.com/iowadnr and click on “like” and make sure “get notifications” and “show in news feed” are selected.

Commenters should also view the DNR’s Facebook posting policy ahead of time at https://www.facebook.com/iowadnr/info.

 

Iowa’s youth pheasant season is Oct. 19-20.

 Resident hunters ages 15 and younger may hunt rooster pheasants during the youth pheasant season without having a hunting license, paying the habitat fee or passing a hunter education course.

The youth hunter must be accompanied by an adult 18 years old or older who has a valid hunting license and has paid the habitat fee, if normally required. Only the youth may shoot pheasants.

The season is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day. The daily bag limit is one rooster pheasant with a possession limit of two, after the first day.

 

State Record Redear Sunfish Caught from Wapello County Farm Pond

 

 

           Jeff Kokemiller had been catching 12-inch and longer redear sunfish in his farm pond since 2009 but the one he caught in the late afternoon on Sept. 27 looked bigger than the others, so he decided to investigate what the state record was for redear sunfish.

1 pound 1 ounce, 11 inches long.

Consider the record smashed.

Kokemiller’s redear sunfish weighed 2.04 pounds and was 13-1/8 inches. It was weighed on a certified scale and verified by Iowa Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologist Mark Flammang.

Kokemiller, from Ottumwa, caught the fish using a worm and hook from his 2-1/2-acre farm pond and plans to have it mounted.

“I was using jigs, but not getting the size of fish I wanted so I switched to a worm and a hook and it worked,” he said.

He caught the fish in 14 to 15 feet of water fishing from a kayak.

 

Mark your calendars because October 9, 2013 is a BIG, HEALTHY day!!

October 9 marks three great events aimed at getting kids outside and moving to promote a healthy lifestyle. It is International Walk to School Day, Live Healthy Iowa Kids: Fall Fitness Day, and Iowa’s Healthiest State Walk. See below for more information about these great events!

Live Healthy Iowa Kids: Fall Fitness Day

http://www.livehealthyiowakids.org/aspx/Public/Page.aspx?pid=13677

Fall Fitness Day is a one-day event encouraging Iowa schools to engage their students in 30 minutes of continuous activity. It shows kids that physical activity is fun and healthy! Visit the above link to register your school and for more information.

Activity ideas:

• Walk  
• Obstacle course
• Fitness stations
• Relay races
• Aerobics
• Dancing
• Nature hike
• Community cleanup

Healthiest State Walk

http://www.iowahealthieststate.com/healthiest-state-walk
Iowans across the state have shown their support for the Healthiest State Initiative by the thousands. By the hundreds of thousands, actually – in both 2011 and 2012, nearly 300,000 Iowans participated in 1-kilometer walks to show that we’re ready for a healthier Iowa.

They are striving to keep that momentum going to make this year’s walk on October 9 the biggest one yet. Be part of the movement by walking 1-kilometer (0.62 miles) on October 9.

International Walk to School Day

http://www.walkbiketoschool.org/
International Walk to School Day is October 9, 2013! International Walk to School Day is a global event that involves communities from more than 40 countries walking and biking to school on the same day. It began in 1997 as a one-day event. Over time, this event has become part of a movement for year-round safe routes to school and a celebration – with record breaking participation – each October. Today, thousands of schools across America – from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico – participate every October.

Three Ways to Participate

• Walk or bike from home
• Designated starting points (for students/families that live too far from school to walk or ride a bike)
• Walk or bike AT school

Fall Trout Stocking Begins October 11

           
            The Iowa Department of Natural Resources will begin its fall and winter trout stocking on Oct. 11, with a release planned for Sand Lake, in Marshalltown.

The DNR has 17 cool weather stockings planned and will release between 1,000 to 2,000 rainbow trout at each location as part of its cool weather trout program that brings trout to areas that cannot support them during the summer months. 

Anglers will need to have a valid fishing license and pay the trout fee to fish for or possess trout.  The daily limit is five trout per licensed angler with a possession limit of 10. 

Children age 15 or younger can fish for trout with a properly licensed adult, but they must limit their catch to one daily limit.  The child can purchase a trout fee which will allow them to catch their own limit.

2013-14 Fall Winter Trout Stocking Schedule

Oct. 11, Sand Lake, Marshalltown, 11 a.m.

Oct. 17, Big Lake, Council Bluffs, 2 p.m.

Oct. 18, Banner Lake (South), Summerset State Park, Indianola, Noon

Oct. 18, Petoka, Bondurant, Noon

Oct. 19, Lake of the Hills, Davenport, 10:30 a.m.

Oct. 31, Ottumwa Park Pond, 11 a.m.

Nov. 1, Sand Lake, Iowa City, 10 a.m.

Nov. 2, Heritage Pond, Dubuque, 10 a.m.

Nov. 9, Scharnberg Pond, Spencer, 1 p.m.

Nov. 9, Wilson Lake, Fort Madison, Noon

Nov. 9, Discovery Park, Muscatine, 10 a.m.

Nov. 16, Moorland Pond, Fort Dodge, 1 p.m.

Nov. 20, Bacon Creek, Sioux City, 1:30 p.m.

Nov. 21, Ada Hayden, Ames, Noon

Nov. 22, Prairie Creek Park (Cedar Bend), Cedar Rapids, 10 a.m.

Nov. 27, Blue Pit, Mason City, 11 a.m.

Date TBA, North Prairie, Cedar Falls

 

Media Contact: Mike Mason, Fish Culture Supervisor, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 515-281-6072.