georgia – Ogeechee Riverkeeper

Blog Post, Educational dnr, fishing, georgia, hunting, outdoors, responsible

Responsible Hunting and Fishing

by Ogeechee Riverkeeper July 13, 2023

Everyone can be environmental stewards and lead by example with responsible and ethical outdoor practices, especially when it comes to hunting and fishing. There are 3 main ways you can help:

Take the GA DNR required Hunters Safety Course. After completion, you buy a Hunting/Fishing license to help support conservation and for data analysis of wildlife management (more info below).
Properly dispose of animal remains and fishing tackle – NOT in a waterway. Many boat landings have receptacles specifically for plastic fishing line.
Join the Georgia Hunters for the Hungry program and donate wild game to families in need.

One of the best ways all of us can create a better public understanding of hunting and fishing is to create a better public awareness of the important role that hunters and anglers have played in conservation and improving our natural resources. Together with hunting and fishing license fees, federal aid programs have funded game animals and sport fish conservation, habitat acquisition and outdoor recreation opportunities both in Georgia and throughout the country.

– georgiawildlife.com

Licenses & Seasons

In the State of Georgia, a license is required to hunt and/or fish. You can buy an individual hunting or fishing license, or the combined Sportsman license. In general, licenses last one year from the date of purchase. View the options to choose the right one for you.

It is now required to order a saltwater license (free addition) if you buy the Sportsman or fishing license, as well as a harvest record for hunting certain species.

Data collection helps with population control, wildlife management, reducing poaching and illegal activity, amongst many other reasons. If you see suspicious activity, report immediately to your local game warden.

Follow all hunting season guidelines. They are part of the responsible management of the species numbers and health, as well as for the safety of fellow hunters and fishers.

Deer hunting season dates for the entire Ogeechee River Basin:

Archery begins on September 9 and ends on Oct. 13; Firearms begins October 24. Both end on January 15. See a full list of season dates

Proper removal of hunted animals

Did you know that dumping animal remains in a waterway does more harm than good? By throwing remains in the waterway, it can create harmful bacteria buildup that hurts humans, animals, and plants. The parts left behind are not sought after by most fish or aquatic animals, or will take too long for them to break down, causing harmful bacteria during decay. It is best to either bury the entrails and bones, or leave them on the land (away from roads) for vultures and other carrion to eat. Let’s thank nature’s garbage disposals for doing their jobs!

More: Wild Game Processors in Georgia

“Hunters, you can help protect the Georgia deer herd from Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a fatal disease affecting deer. This disease has not been detected in our state and you can be instrumental in keeping it out,” says Killmaster. “Do not bring live deer, whole carcasses or heads into Georgia, know what parts you can bring back from an out-of-state hunt, and report deer with any disease symptoms. You can find more info at GeorgiaWildlife.com/cwd.”

Treats

Your dog loves venison more than you, I guarantee. Here’s a super simple and quick recipe for venison jerky for your furry friend. This will save you money on dog treats too!

Other Important Dates:

Not sure if it’s for you but want to give hunting or fishing a try? September 23 is National Hunting and Fishing Day (no license required)!

Deer hunting season for the entire Ogeechee River Basin:
Archery: Begins September 9.
Firearms: Begins October 24.
Both end on January 15.

Submit your photos and stories of responsible sportsmanship to info@ogeecheeriverkeeper.org or tag us on social media.

Blog Post, Educational ecology, georgia, walk, winter, woods

Winter in the Georgia Woods

by Ogeechee Riverkeeper January 9, 2023

Watch the video clip of Mel taking a tour through the woods:

Supplies:

Guidebook (any plant or animal kind based on where you live) and/or smart phone with one of the apps listed
Weather appropriate clothing
Boots/hiking shoes
Small net if you are near a creek
Bottle of water

Using a guidebook or a citizen science app (Seek, iNaturalist, eBird, etc.), walk through a patch of woods, in your backyard or a nearby park, and survey the area. Feel free to also bring a notebook and jot down things you notice or sketch a cool plant or bug! Really take in all the smells, sights and sounds of the woods in the winter season. Because many plants are dormant in the winter, it can be easier to see through the woods and make observations. If you’re near a creek or small waterway, you can use a sampling net to scoop leaf litter and look for macroinvertebrates or fallen seeds from nearby trees.

Safety: Never trespass and always be aware of your surroundings. If you are at a wildlife management area or public lands where hunting is allowed, make sure to wear orange until hunting season is over. Follow a path and do not go deep enough into the woods. You can use a compass, trail map and drop a pin on your smartphone if you are in an unfamiliar area. *This activity can be done in a small wooded area where getting lost is not a concern*. After your walk, check for ticks as they look for warmth in the winter months.

Submit your photos to info@ogeecheeriverkeeper.org or tag us on social media.

Activity is open to all ages and can be combined with other activities to meet Georgia Standards of Excellence in Science and Language Arts. Standards of Excellence will depend on the grade level of participants.

Blog Post air plant, epiphyte, flora, georgia, ogeechee river, southeast, spanish moss

Flora: Tillandsia usneoides

by Ogeechee Riverkeeper May 20, 2020

Spanish moss
Tillandsia usneoides

Spanish moss isn’t really a moss at all; it’s an epiphyte or air plant. Botanically, it is closely related to the pineapple and absorbs nutrients and water through the air and rainfall. It does occasionally flower but it is rarely seen. The silver-gray plant grows in long, hair-like clumps, hanging from trees in subtropical climates.

According to botanical guides, it has “threadlike stems up to 6 to 7.5 metres (about 20 to 25 feet) long. The leaves, also threadlike, are about 2.5 to 7.5 centimetres (1 to 3 inches) long.”

Spanish Moss growing on live oak tree, South Carolina

It is commonly found living on the southern live oak (Quercus virginiana) and bald-cypress (Taxodium distichum) in the lowlands, swamps, and marshes of the southeastern United States and can be found as far west as Texas and southern Arkansas. It does not harm or kill the trees it lives on.

William Bartram described it, and its uses, in his 1770s travels to the area:

When fresh, cattle and deer will eat it in the winter season. It seems particularly adapted to the purpose of stuffing mattrasses, chairs, saddles, collars, &c. and for these purposes, nothing yet known equals it. The Spaniards in South America, and the West-Indies, work it into cables that are said to be very strong and durable; but, in order to render it useful, it ought to be thrown into shallow ponds of water, and exposed to the sun, where it soon rots, and the outside furry substance is dissolved. It is then taken out of the water, and spread to dry; when, after a little beating and shaking, it is sufficiently clean, nothing remaining but the interior, hard, black, elastic filament, entangled together, and greatly resembling horse-hair.

In the modern era, Spanish moss has been used for building insulation, mulch, packing material, mattress stuffing, and fiber. It was even used in the padding of car seats by Henry Ford who had a home in Richmond Hill and a dealership in Savannah.

The etymology for “Spanish moss” is not known although it is often supposed it is related to a term used by French settlers in the southeastern U.S. in the 1700s. They called it barbe Espagnol, or Spanish beard, referring to the long beards popular among Spanish explorers of the era. It has become an iconic image of the South, including in Southern gothic literature and in folklore.

Image from NYPL Digital Collections. Live Oak Avenue, Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah, Ga. Stereograph. 1880. The description on the reverse reads, in part: “The majority if these trees are of the Live Oak species, with but few others. The latter have long since passed away, but the sturdy oaks, with their hoary beard of moss, still defy the gales of the Atlantic and wintry blasts; and their rustling leaves whisper a ceaseless lullaby to the quiet and peaceful sleepers at their feet.”

Blog Post, Creature Feature catfish, creature feature, fauna, fish, georgia, invasive species, lepomis auritis, ogeechee river, redbreast sunfish

Fauna: Lepomis auritis

by Ogeechee Riverkeeper April 24, 2020

Redbreast sunfish
Lepomis auritis

The redbreast sunfish is native to eastern North America and makes its home in freshwater rivers. A relatively small fish, it is considered full grown by the time it is two inches long. The largest one on record measured just 12 inches. They primarily eat immature insects.

Usually olive colored with dark fins, the male’s breast and belly will turn bright orange when spawning. The male makes a nest in sandy material, then guards the eggs and fry after the female lays. Auritis means “big-eared” in Latin and refers to the long tabs that extend behind their eyes.

Redbreast sunfish, caught in Georgia. Shared via Wikimedia Commons.

The redbreast sunfish thrive in waters with flowing current and a stable pH. They like to live in natural structures near riverbanks, like overhanging branches which offer shade and protected habitats. Clearing bank debris, lack of current, or a change in pH levels quickly and dramatically affect the population.

Flathead catfish, an invasive species, is a predator and decimated the redbreast sunfish in other nearby watersheds. Thus far, the Ogeechee and Canoochee Rivers have not been infested with flathead catfish.

Citizens are asked to report sightings of these detrimental catfish to Ogeechee Riverkeeper or the Georgia Environmental Protection Division immediately. Snap a photo and email to info@ogeecheeriverkeeper.org with the approximate location of the sighting.

Flathead Catfish, (Pylodictis olivaris): Mississippi River @ Goose Island across from Northeast Power ramp, Marion County, Missouri.

Blog Post, Creature Feature bird, canoochee, creature feature, fauna, georgia, ogeechee, ornithology, painted bunting

Fauna: Passerina ciris

by Ogeechee Riverkeeper April 1, 2020

PAINTED BUNTING
Passerina ciris

The brightly colored bird is a member of the cardinal family and lives in the southeast and south-central United States, including coastal Georgia. Females and immature males are a parrot green color. At about two years old, the male’s feathers turn multiple tones of red, indigo, yellow, and more.

Color engraving by R. Havell, after drawing by John J. Audubon – Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington

They breed in maritime hammocks, scrubland, briar patches, woodland edges and swampy thickets. The females typically lay 3-4 eggs, twice a year. The fledglings take just a couple of weeks to leave the nest after hatching. The population is estimated at about 4.5 million, but that number is decreasing.

The painted bunting was originally described by Carl Linnaeus in his eighteenth-century work Systema Naturae. The Swedish naturalist did a taxonomy of plants in 1753 and followed up with animals in 1758 and 1759.

Painted buntings are territorial and can be seen throughout the Ogeechee River watershed and nearby areas like Harris Neck Wildlife Refuge.

Register for the day-long S.H.A.R.P. Program (Safe Harvest and Responsible Practices) with GA DNR

Licenses & Seasons

Proper removal of hunted animals

Treats

Other Important Dates: