Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1985-10-16, Page 16• Watch yourself >< talked to a €atxner role wpm a •. •, - _- the weekend, and it really left me wondering whether hunters don't ropily deserve all the bad press they get. It all started, while hunting on my cousin's 'farm. We went out m the rain, set up a few decoys in a partially, cut corn field and over the course of the next few hours, had two or three exciting moments when two small flocks came in to our spread. In between timeswe talked and Bob mentioned that a neighbour of his was quite upset after an experience with hunters on opening day. I decided that I'd go and talk to the man myself to get the whole story. Apparently, in his estimation, over a thousand ducks and a considerable number of geese had been working his fields for a while before opening day. While this farmer enjoys wildlife, he is not an anti -hunter by any means and seeing his summer's work being gobbled up by waterfowl, he easily granted permission to a hunter who approached him the evening before opening day to ask if he could shoot on his property. The hunter had not mentioned that he would be bringing friends, so the farmer was a bit taken aback when four people set up in the field the ducks had been using. He did not want to interfere, however, so he just kept an eye on the activities during the course of the morning. As I understand it, the hunters were well concealed and as flock after flock of both ducks and geese came in they enjoyed some fabulous shooting. The disquieting point was that 'no one was picking up the birds as they fell. Late in the morning, the hunters packed up the decoys and gathered up the fallen birds. Apparently they even brought in a dog to help find the birds, and as they were leaving, met the farmer and reported a bag of 22 ducks and eight geese. That is good hunting by anybody's standard. Two days later, the farmer started to harvest a small patch of beans next to where the hunters had been. Just into the first row, he stopped the tractor to pick up a dead Canada goose. The maggots had already started on it so it was totally useless. Before j I finished' that patch of beans, he'd picked up another decomposing goose and two ducks in the same state. His disgust was plain to see as he described it to me. He went on to explain that there were probably more as well. The shooting had taken place next to a cornfield, and he pointed out that the turkey vulture population was paying particular attention to that area since the shoot. He hadn't gone down to look in the cornfield. He was already fed up and disgusted enough. As the farmer said, "I've had hunters before, and I'll have them again' But those four guys - they'll never get back on this property again." Had that particular farmer been even slightly against hunting, you can bet no one would ever shoot a gun there again. Fortunately, he has had good hunters as well. He likes the people who are polite, introduce themselves, keep him informed about how they ¶lid and show their appreciation with a token gift. • In this case, the bad feelings probably could have been avoided had the hunters only picked up their game as they shot it. It's a lot easier to remember where a bird fell just after it's gone down than, it is two hours later, and if you're trying to keep tabs on 30 some odd birds, it ge down right difficult. Sure, you may spoo the odd flock while you're out picking u your bag, or chasing down a cripple, but isn't that better than leaving gamebirds in the field to rot? The question also comes to mind whether these guys even knew how many ducks they had down or what species. If they picked up 22 ducks and left two in the bean field that's a full limit. If there were anymore in the cornfield, then they would have been over and liable for prosecution. How many black ducks were in the bag? More than four and again they were breaking the law. The answers to both questions would have been answered if they'd taken the time to pick up their ducks after each shooting spree. I've seen evidence of similar behaviour. More than once, I've gone into a duck blind (in an area like Hullett) and found the rotting carcasses of ducks. They're always teal, or shovellers, or one of the lesser species of ducks. The story isobvious. The hunting has been good, with lots of ducks flying, and the hunters (I hate to call them that) have shot at everything that came close. Since there were so many ducks around, they kept shooting till they had full limits of mallards. The lesser ducks were just thrown away. They didn't try to identify them till they were dead and in their hand. If there is .to be a future for hunting, then actions like that can't be tolerated. Hunters themselves are to blame, so unless we voluntarily clean up our act, we can kiss it all goodbye. •New home found for Trim,AffSize The Fish and Game Club has two rooms spoken with some of the participants, and available, one larger room for the exercise they stated they walk to the classes. By class and a second smaller room for the holding it at the Fish and Game Club, they babysitting service. would have to walk across town. There was some concern about the arrangement not being legal because of the babysitting service, in a licensed establishment. Some committee members believe there may be doors to divide the two Recreation committee will accept the rooms. If this is the case,,the arrangement Fish and Games Club's offer provided it is will be legal. legal to have the babysitting service held Recreation Director Steve Campbell has there. 1, Chnton o ens seas n wi , a win CLINTON - The Fish and Game Club has offered to donate their facility to the Afternoon Trim -A -Size program, holding the recreation committee here responsible for any damages that may occur. This should alleviate town council concerns about the noise levels from the exercise classes which have been held in the town hall auditorium during business hours. This fall council agreed to allow the program to continue in the auditorium only until a suitable alternative location could be found. "We're offering the program in that location. They either take it or they don't. We could go back and forth on this forever," said committee member Judy Stuart. On October 14, the Clinton Atoms ol5ened up their season with an exciting exhibition win over the Exeter Atom Hawks, winning by a score of 4-2. In the first period, Shawn Chipchase gave Clinton a 1-0 lead at the 53 second mark as his wrist shot cleanly beat the pxeter goalie after the Clinton player took a pass• from Scott Jewitt. At 4:32 Exeter's Joel Smith tied the score at 1-1 with an unassisted goals with Shawn inipchase scoring his se - marker. cond goal of the garne for Clinton and Jason' Clinton's Jason Carter gave the home Heywood scoring for Exeter. team a 2-1 lead at 6:25 as his wrist shot The third period was scoreless as Derek found the. open corner. Four minutes later�'Hoggarth, the Clinton goalie, came up with Mark Livermore took a clearing pass from several key saves. Scott Jewitt to give Clinton a 3-1 lead after The Atoms next game is this October 19 at one period. home against the Listowel Cyclone Atoms. In . the second period the teams traded This exhibition game will start at 5:20 p.m. Cheerleader Clinic to be held in Weston Final plans have been made for the 5th Annual Ontario One Day Cheerleader Clinic to be held at Martingrove Collegiate In- stitute, 50 Winterton Street, Etobicoke, Toronto) Ontario on Saturday, Nov. 16, Organizer of thJe clinic, Susan Henderson, Cheerleader Advisor at Westway High School in Weston, said she is pleased to have the World Cheerleader Council return for the annual clinic because it provides an op- portunity for area students to receive in- struction from this Internationally known staff of professional cheerleaders. Henderson explained that the WCC offers a program of cheers--. hants, songs. pom pom routines, technique, crowd control, sportsmanship, appearances, conduct and when and what to yell: . The World Cheerleader Council iscon- sidered one of >the foremost Cheerleader Organizations in the World. Their staff of college and professional cheerleaders have traveled throughout the United States and Canada conducting, clinics' and camps :for over 14 years. Theprogram will begin at 9 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. Lunch is included in the clinic fee for all pre -registered students. Students registering late will be required to purchase lunch additionally. Fall migration underway By Mike Singleton - Federation of Ontario Naturalists Silently, they glide o'er. Broad, dark •silhouettes against the crisp blue of a still, Indian -summer morning. South -by - southwest, they stream, in a procession that will continue all day long. The fall hawk migration, which peaks over the next week or so, is a fascinating. event. It's wedged between the now - complete exodus of insect -eating warblers i who could be starved en masse by an early frost) and the departure of waterfowl (whose food, bathed in water's heat -pools, will be the last ensnared by winter's grip. ) Shortening days cue the migration, which is necessary less to avoid cold than to sus- tain the supply of small birds and mammals upon which mot depend. Perhaps 11000,000 adults and young, of 12 different species, will come through. While all share the basic •hawk form, each is distinguishable by silhouette and markings. Broadwings and stout, crow -sized hawks, aptly named for their broad, white- undersided wings and short, broad tail, boldly barred black -and -white. Though seldom seen in agricultural Ontario during breeding season, they're•our most abundant hawk during migration. This is because they are woodland hawks, breeding throughout the vast forests of central and northern On- tario, and wintering in central and South America. Sharp -shins - nicknamed 'sharpies' by birders - are the next -most -common. Smaller than broadwings, they have a long, narrow tail whose end is so squared it looks like someone snipped it with scissors. Forest birds also, they're highly agile, able to manoeuvre among trees in pursuit of small birds. Red -tails - named for their unmistakable, rusty -red tail feathers - are the typical hawk of agricultural and cleared areas, where they consume vast numbers of mice and moles. 'Anticipating' snow's deep mantle, which will shelter rodents from their reach, red -tails, head south. .Interestingly, the 'banana belt' kept largely snow -free by Lakes Erie and Ontario, and around the fr- inge of large urban areas, affords an abun- dant supply of small mammals, and many red -tails will end their migration there. 1' Hawk migration proceeds erratically, and is integrally tied to the weather. During storms, fronts and windy days, there is almost no movement - to do so consumes un- due energy. Instead, hawks await still, clear weather. Their ideal seems to be those still; sunny, crisp mornings of early autumn, especially following a cold night, or several days' of inclement weather. Then all at once, they seen to soar, usually 150-400 feet above the ground. Moving singly, they head southward, tak- ing advantage of shoreline bluffs, escarp- ments and other features whose natural.up- drafts provide ideal soaring conditions. Hawks rarely race; rather, most move steadily, taking several short strokes and gliding, taking perhaps 2-5 minutesto pass from horizon to horizon. Southward they continue, until they 'hit' the great lakes, where they abruptly turn to follow the shorelines westward. Funnelling and accumulating as they go, they round the west ends of Lakes Erie and Ontario. During peak periods, this provides huge numbers - up to 90,000 have been observed in one day - at Holiday Beach, south of Windsor, and Hawk Cliff, south of Hamilton. Like all birds of prey, hawks play an im- portant role in nature, eating 'outbreaks' of pests and adding stability to the ecosystem. It's for this reason that The Federation of Ontario Naturalists worked to secure legislation which provides legal protection for these magnificent birds. Any of the excellent ,field guides now available will readily distinguish hawks whether perched or high overhead. But you don't 'need to identify them to appreciate them. Simply look skyward on the next sun- ny day. Euchre winners The program is open to all students - ages 12 to 18 - whether elected cheerleaders or in- dividuals interested in learning more about cheerleading for future tryouts. Students interested in obtaining more in- formation about the clinic, or to register, should contact Susan Henderson, Westway High School, 10 Denfield Street, Weston, On- tario, M9R .3H1 or call 416-248-0223. They may also contact the WCC, 7001 Wildgrove, Dallas, Texas 75214 - phone 214-321-4331. Deadline for registration is Nov. 11. CLINTON - Gladys Hoggart had the lucky chair during an afternoon of euchre in inton this week. Grace White and 13ert errits won the high hands with Myrtle Glazier and Mary Dale taking the low hands. Lone hand winner was Clarke Stanley. CI ON - lifelong resident Steve Carap. bell o eially became the town's new recreation .director on October 1. He is replacing Kevin Duguay who left Clinton for a job in Fergus. Mr. Campbell is no stranger to those who use the arena, pool or other recreation facilities. He was a summer employee at the arena while in high school and became a full=time employee two years ago. He also took a recreation leadership program at Mohawk College where he majored in pool operation management. This experience has made Mr. Campbell aware of the maintenance which is involved in Clinton's recreation facilities. However, he does have some experience planning pro- grams. "I worked as a programmer about three years ago while I was still working at the arena," he explained. "I was suppose to work one shift at the arena and then work on establishing programs, but it fell through." Mr. Campbell also said that at the time he was to organize programs, there was a lot of pool maintenance to be done, therefore fin- ding too much to handle. The position lasted two months. But now Mr. Campbell has the opportuni- ty to devote all of his time to organizing pro- grams. He has no major plans for recreation in Clinton but did say, "I'd like to keep the variety of programs which we already have, if they are self-supporting, and possibly enhance them. I'd rather have five or six quality programs than 10 that aren't very good. Steve Campbell Recreation Director "My interpretation (of recreation) is that I'm not sure if the town can afford large scale recreation. It's no one's fault, that's just the town," he said. At the October recreation committee meeting, members set the recreation direc- tor's salary at'$20,000 a year. STIOW REMOVAL SALE See Our Complete Line of Snow Removal Equipment at HANK'S SMALL ENGINES authorized dealer for ADIA/'i!A -SNOWBLOWERS MODEL CN5-23 5 HP 23" CLEARING WIDTH List $945.00 Now 775 . MODEL CN8-25 8 HP 25" CLEARING WIDTH List $1180.00 NOW 970 . MODEL CN8-27 MODEL CN8-27 8 HP 27" CLEARING WIDTH 8 HP 27" CLEARING WIDTH HEADLIGHT 4 5 List $1,275.00 NOW ®0 8 5 . List $1,395,00 Now► MODEL CN10-27 MODEL CN10-33 DELUXE 10 HP 27" CLEARING WIDTH 10 HP 33" CLEARING WIDTH List $1,380.00 NOW'1 1130 eHEADLIGHT. REMOTE CHUTE MODEL CN11-33 DELUXE DEFLECTOR CONTROLList $1,545. NOW 1 ,2 (j 5 11 HP 33" CLEARING WIDTH HEADLIGHT. REMOTE CHUTE CONTROL List $1,645.00 Now 1,350 Electric starts can be installed on all these units (8 HP and 10 HP starts) $ 130.00 (11 HP starts) S145.00 Installed CHAINS INCLUDED ON ALL UNITS - HANK'S SMALL ENGINES SALES & SERVICE Londesboro, Ont. 523.9202 "=P•1010••••••121••••••CLINTON FARM MARKET 11: WEEKEND SPECIALS! WE HAVE A WIDE VARIETY OF FRESH ONTARIO PRODUCE NOW ARRIVING DAILY! Clinton Farm Market's Own - fresh pressed APPLE CIDER $499 4 litre jug Fresh from the tropics BANANAS 39' Specials in effect till closing time Saturday, Oct. 19. Fresh Ontario MacINTOSH APPLES $ 99 a BUSHEL We now have these varieties of ONTARIO APPLES • MacINTOSH • WOLF RIVER • COURTLAND • SNOW • RED DELICIOUS • APARTAN • WEALTHY •WAIN • YELLOW DELICIOUS • McCOWAN Local Apples from Peter Cundy Orchards Produce USA Vine Ripened TOMATOES 59! Plus our regular lino of FRESH FRUITS & VEGETABLES and TAVISTOCK CHEESES. 212 Victarld St. (Hwy. 4Soufhl Clinton of EN: Y DAYS A WEEK: 9 AM -T PA P yy. 'Einday `tail 6 ppat�rxca 'tYllrursda d. Friday till �M p rti, Saturday d,r