Daily Archives: July 15, 2014

Prairie Rattlesnake

Prairie Rattlesnake.     Photo by Shaina Niehans

The PRAIRIE RATTLESNAKE (Crotalus viridis) is 3-4 feet long. It is especially common in western Kansas in open rocky areas, prairies and even agricultural land. The prairie rattler eats mostly small rodents such as white-footed mice, shrews, voles, house mice plus prairie dogs, small birds & young rabbits. Its fangs deliver an hemotoxic venom that circulates through the bloodstream causing tissue damage and internal bleeding plus very intense pain. It is active in the daytime. It has an infrared (heat) sensing pit located between the eye and nostrils. This feature is shared by cottonmouths and copperheads collectively referred to as pit vipers, although cottonmouths and copperheads lack a rattle. After being bitten, it is important to get immediate attention at a hospital where anti-venom can be administered. An excellent source of information is The Kansas School Naturalist http://www.emporia.edu/ksn/v05n3-feb1959/index.html. Also a booklet entitled “The Snakes, Lizards, Turtles, and Amphibians of Fort Riley and Vicinity” by Busby, Collins & Suleiman is available from the Kansas Biological Survey in cooperation with the U. S. Department of the Army. It includes photos by Suzanne L. Collins of the Center for North American Herpetology.

Prairie Rattlesnake

Prairie Rattlesnake.            Photo by Casey Kanode, Flickr

The PRAIRIE RATTLESNAKE (Crotalus viridis) is 3-4 feet long. It is especially common in western Kansas in open rocky areas, prairies and even agricultural land. The prairie rattler eats mostly small rodents such as white-footed mice, shrews, voles, house mice plus prairie dogs, small birds & young rabbits. Its fangs deliver an hemotoxic venom that circulates through the bloodstream causing tissue damage and internal bleeding plus very intense pain. It is active in the daytime. It has an infrared (heat) sensing pit located between the eye and nostrils. This feature is shared by cottonmouths and copperheads collectively referred to as pit vipers, although cottonmouths and copperheads lack a rattle. After being bitten, it is important to get immediate attention at a hospital where anti-venom can be administered.

Fishing Impoundments and Stream Habitats (F.I.S.H.) program. Private Waters Leased for Public Fishing

Have you ever wondered what these unique ladders are used for? Photo from Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation.

The F.I.S.H. Program, which stands for Fishing Impoundments and Stream Habitats was patterned after the very successful Walk-In Hunting Access Program with a goal of increasing public fishing opportunities in Kansas.

The F.I.S.H. Program was first introduced to Kansas anglers and landowners in 1998. The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) leases private waters from landowners for public fishing. Landowners participating in F.I.S.H. receive payments, as detailed below. F.I.S.H. provides anglers with a place to fish while leaving the land in private ownership. By providing a place to fish, the tradition of fishing can be preserved.

To learn more from the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism site click here.

Rock Creek High School Wins Kansas State High School Fishing Championship on Wilson Lake

Reprinted from:  FLW Outdoors OutdoorHub

The RockCreekHigh School team of Travis Blenn and Bryce White brought a five-bass limit to the scale July 13 weighing 8.34 pounds to win the 2014 Kansas State High School Fishing Championship on WilsonLake. The win earned the team the title of state champions and qualified the team to compete in a High School Fishing conference championship on the Red River in October.

The top five teams on WilsonLake were:

1st:       RockCreekHigh School – Travis Blenn and Bryce White, five bass, 8.34 pounds
2nd:      StocktonHigh School – Christian Hamel and Holden Jones, five bass, 8.26 pounds
3rd:       Kansas Student Angler Federation – Cameron Pappan and Dayne McNutt, five bass, 8.16 pounds
4th:       Northwest High School/Goddard High School – Brock Miller and Dakota Driskill, four bass, 8.04 pounds
5th:       Nickerson High School/Hutchinson High School – Conner Barret and Keil Orrison, one bass, 1.72 pounds

Complete results can be found at HighSchoolFishing.org.

The 2014 Kansas State High School Fishing Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 9-12. The top 10 percent from each TBF/FLW state championship field will advance to a High School Fishing conference championship along with the top 3 teams from each of the six 2014 High School Fishing Opens that coincide with the 2014 Walmart FLW Tour. The top 10 percent of each conference championship field will then advance to the High School Fishing National Championship, coinciding with the TBF National Championship and an FLW Tour stop in the spring of 2015. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all SAF members nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2014 High School Fishing World Finals, held on LakeDardanelle in Russelville, Ark., on July 15-19.

At the 2013 World Finals more than $40,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded. Visit HighSchoolFishing.org for details.