ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING ORG HOLDS GOLF OUTING TO SUPPORT LIBERATION EFFORTS
Hinckley Dermatology and Operation Underground Railroad host a charity golf outing to support its mission to rescue and rehabilitate victims of child sex trafficking
Salt Lake City, UT – Hinckley Dermatology has partnered with Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.) to host a charity golf outing to raise awareness and funds for O.U.R.’s mission of rescuing children from sex slavery and helping to rehabilitate survivors. All proceeds from the event will go directly to O.U.R. thanks to Hinckley Dermatology’s generous offer to cover all event costs. O.U.R. has increased its global reach since its founding, operating in India, Thailand, Malaysia, Haiti, and Peru, among others. It has also ramped up its U.S. presence, training local law enforcement to identify, track, and take down trafficking rings.
One day prior to the outing (August 24, 2017), there will be a public silent auction hosted by Hinckley Dermatology to further benefit Operation Underground Railroad. All are welcome to bid, as participation in the outing is not required for the auction. A list of available auction items can be found here.
"This tournament will be one of our premier annual events. We are so grateful for Hinckley Dermatology, as well as the numerous sponsors and donors who are making this day possible. The funds raised from this event alone will allow our team to rescue dozens of children,” said Tim Ballard, O.U.R. Founder and CEO.
"We believe there are few organizations with such an important mission and we are honored to take part in this great cause. We look forward to many more years of this golf tournament,” said Dr. Michael Hinckley, Founder of the Hinckley Dermatology Charity Golf Scramble.
WHO: Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.)
WHAT: Hinckley Dermatology Charity Golf Scramble
WHEN: Friday, August 25, 2017
WHERE: Stonebridge Golf Club - 4415 Links Dr, West Valley City, UT 84120
TIME: 1:00 PM MT
MEDIA: Tim Ballard will be available for interviews after 1:30 PM MT at Stonebridge Golf Club.
Operation Underground Railroad is registered 501(c)3 organization. Bringing together former CIA, Navy SEALs, and Special Ops operatives, O.U.R. partners with local law enforcement agencies around the world to save children from this modern day slavery. Founded by CEO Tim Ballard in 2013, O.U.R. has rescued more than 650 victims and helped arrest over 275 traffickers worldwide.
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Plenty of Rabbits and Hares
Cottontail rabbit population still at the top of its 10-year peak
The number of cottontail rabbits in Utah has dropped a bit from last year. But rabbit numbers are still at the top of a 10-year population peak. And snowshoe hares in Utah are doing really well too.
Hunts for both upland game animals start Sept. 1. You can see where rabbits and hares live in Utah, and learn more about them, on pages 38, 48 and 49 of the 2017 – 2018 Utah Upland Game and Turkey Guidebook. You can get the free guidebook at www.wildlife.utah.gov/guidebooks.
Cottontail rabbits
Biologists aren’t sure why it occurs, but cottontail rabbits across the country experience a 10-year population cycle. After bottoming out, the number of cottontails will climb slowly for about five years. Once the population peaks in number, it will usually stay close to the peak for about three years. Then, numbers will abruptly fall for a couple of years until the population bottoms out and numbers start to climb again.
From late July through mid-August, DWR biologists count rabbits along 15 survey routes in the state. Division of Wildlife Resources Upland Game Coordinator Jason Robinson is compiling data received from the biologists. He says preliminary results show Utah’s rabbit population is likely in the last year of its population peak.
“It looks like rabbit numbers have dropped a bit,” Robinson says, “but not much. I think hunter success—in parts of Utah—will be well above average this year.”
Duchesne and Uinta counties in northeastern Utah continue to hold the highest numbers of rabbits. Counties in southeastern, south-central and southwestern Utah hold the next highest numbers. “Counties in northern and central Utah have the lowest number of rabbits,” he says.
Robinson says the cottontail rabbit hunt is a great hunt for hunters of all ages and abilities, including those who are just getting started. “The terrain rabbits live in is usually relatively flat and easy to walk through,” he says. “The equipment needed is basic, light and easy to carry. And, if you get into a bunch of rabbits, you’ll get lots of shots.”
Finding rabbits
To find rabbits in lower elevations, look in the bottom of valleys that have tall sagebrush and deep, loose soil that have burrows the rabbits can hide in. If you’re in mid-elevation areas, look for hillsides that have large boulders, thick sagebrush or other thick vegetation in which the rabbits can hide.
Also, consider hunting early in the morning and late in the afternoon. “That’s when rabbits are away from their resting areas and are the most active,” Robinson says. “Early morning and late in the afternoon are prime times for rabbits to feed.”
Hunting tips
Shotguns and small-caliber rifles, such as the .22, are perfect firearms to hunt rabbits with.
If you’re hunting with a small-caliber rifle, finding a spot that’s higher in elevation than the area around it—and then sitting down, scanning the surrounding area and waiting for rabbits to appear—is a good choice. It’s critical to hunt early in the morning or late in the afternoon, when rabbits are the most active and moving around.
If you’d like to walk and flush rabbits out of cover, a shotgun is the best firearm to use. If you’re hunting with one or more people, form a line—spacing each hunter about 20 yards apart—and then walk through areas that look promising. Be ready to click your safety off: a flushing rabbit doesn’t give you much time to shoot!
Snowshoe hare
While cottontail rabbit numbers will likely be down a bit, the number of snowshoe hares should be up. Abundant snow and rain last winter and spring is the reason why.
“Hares eat needles and twigs from evergreen trees,” Robinson says, “so it doesn’t matter how deep the snow gets. Hares can always get on top of the snow and find something to eat.”
The abundant moisture left plenty of green vegetation for does as they entered the breeding season. Because the does were healthy, they likely gave birth to additional baby hares, called leverets. And the abundant green vegetation provided lots of buds and shoots for the leverets to eat.
“We don’t conduct formal surveys for snowshoe hares,” Robinson says, “but based on habitat conditions and the number of hares biologists have seen while working in the field, it looks like the number of snowshoe hares will be above average this year.”
Finding hares
Snowshoe hares live in high-elevation stands of conifer and aspen trees. Stands of young pine trees—at least 8,000 to 9,000 feet in elevation—are especially attractive to hares.
In Utah, hares live along the Wasatch Plateau (the range of mountains that run north to south, through the center of the state) and east into the Uinta Mountains.
If you live along the Wasatch Front, a good area to look is the Uinta Mountains east of U.S. Highway 150 (also known as the Mirror Lake Highway). Logan Canyon is also an area worth checking out.
“Waiting for the first snowstorm of the year,” Robinson says, “and then looking for the hares’ unique footprint, is one of the best ways to find them. The print looks like a miniature snowshoe.”
Robinson says snowshoe hares don’t have a large home range. “If you find an area that has lots of tracks in it,” he says, “there’s a good chance a hare is hunkered down in some vegetation nearby.”
Snowshoes or snowmobiles are often required to hunt snowshoe hares after the snow falls.
Hunting tips
Small-caliber rifles and shotguns are great firearms to use. Move slowly through the hares’ habitat, watching for the outline of a hare and its dark black eyes. Kicking brush piles can also cause hares that are hiding to flush into the open.
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PHOTOS - eight photos to accompany this story are available at http://udwrnewsphotos.zenfolio.com/p707617142 .
Contact: Mark Hadley, DWR Relations with the Public Specialist, 801-538-4737
DWR Postpones Rotenone Treatment at Yuba Reservoir
Stocking sterile northern pike might be the answer
Nephi -- Despite intense management over the past five years, Yuba Reservoir is still not living up to its potential as a fishery. The reservoir in north-central Utah faces two challenges: northern pike that have invaded the reservoir from upstream water sources and low water levels that have prevented perch and walleye from successfully spawning in the spring. When perch and walleye are produced, the ravenous pike eat many of them.
At one time, Yuba offered some of Utah’s best yellow perch and walleye fishing. Is there a way to bring the fishery back?
With the help of a 28-person working group, biologists with the Division of Wildlife Resources drafted a management plan in 2013. Using rotenone to remove all of the fish in the reservoir, and then restocking it with fish, was one way the group suggested to bring the reservoir’s fishery back. The biologists went to work, drafting a rotenone treatment plan and finalizing an Environmental Assessment that’s required before chemical treatment can occur.
“During the process,” says Chris Crockett, regional aquatic manager for the DWR, “we discovered some challenges that will likely reduce the chance a treatment effort is successful.”
The biologists discovered three challenges:
Challenge 1 – Northern pike in adjacent and connected waters
The number of northern pike is spreading in numerous tributaries and irrigation canals that are connected to or feed into Yuba.
“During surveys,” he says, “we discovered that northern pike are more widespread in the Sevier River system, which flows into Yuba, than was previously known. They’re established throughout the Sevier River system and are commonly caught at DMAD Reservoir near Delta.”
Crockett says successfully treating all of the connected waters isn’t feasible. “Unless northern pike are completely removed from all of the connected waters,” he says, “the odds fertile northern pike make their way back into Yuba are extremely high.”
Challenge 2 – Lack of a sterile replacement for northern pike
One way to combat a future invasion of fertile northern pike is to chemically treat Yuba and then place sterile northern pike (pike that can’t reproduce) in the reservoir after the treatment. Even if fertile northern pike made their way to the reservoir, competing with the sterile northern pike for food and other resources might make it difficult for the fertile pike to gain a foothold.
Crockett says DWR biologists and fish culture personnel are developing techniques to produce sterile northern pike. But producing and stocking the fish is still a few years away.
“I’m excited about the possibilities sterile northern pike provide,” Crockett says. “Because they can’t reproduce, we can closely control their numbers and maintain a better balance between the pike and the fish the pike prey on. Also, because they can’t reproduce, sterile northern pike spend all of their time feeding, which allows them to grow to a larger size faster. They have the potential to provide anglers at Yuba with a fast-growing trophy opportunity.”
Crockett says biologists might also re-evaluate other species that might do well in low water conditions. Species that can quickly take advantage of brief windows of higher water might also be considered.
Challenge 3 – Reservoir drawdowns
As it is everywhere, water is a precious commodity in north-central Utah. And there isn’t always enough of it to meet everyone’s needs.
In recent years, the water level at Yuba Reservoir has dropped more than 35 feet each year, leaving the reservoir between 5 and 10 percent full before winter and spring precipitation replenishes the supply. Then, the cycle starts over again.
“Seasonal fluctuations make it difficult to maintain a stable fishery,” Crockett says. “Low water levels reduce habitat and water quality for all of the fish species. In the case of perch and walleye, declining water levels during the spring and summer severely limit their ability to reproduce.”
Again, sterile northern pike might be the answer. “Introducing sterile northern pike,” he says, “would help protect perch and walleye by allowing us to better control the number of pike in the reservoir. Even if perch and walleye have a poor spawn, keeping the number of predators down should help the number of perch and walleye increase.”
Yuba Reservoir Working Group
The 28-person Yuba Reservoir Working Group includes representatives from fishing groups, natural resources agencies, the local fishing industry and local water owners. The group was instrumental in helping the DWR draft the 2013 management plan.
“We’re going to reconvene the working group later this year,” Crockett says, “and get their help in revising the plan. With their help, I’m confident we can draft a plan that gives us the best chance possible to make Yuba Reservoir a great fishing water again.”
In the meantime, a rotenone treatment at Yuba—which would have cost anglers more than $500,000—has been put on hold.
“We can’t invest that kind of money and effort without considering all of the challenges the reservoir faces,” Crockett says. “We need to make sure we explore all of our options. Whatever we do needs to work.”
If you have questions about fishing at Yuba Reservoir, call the DWR’s Central Region office at 801-491-5678.
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PHOTOS - five photos to accompany this story are available at http://udwrnewsphotos.zenfolio.com/p744214192 .
Contact: Mark Hadley, DWR Relations with the Public Specialist, 801-538-4737
Fishing reports - available at http://wildlife
Rabbits, snowshoe hares - hunt starts Sept. 1
http://udwrnewsphotos.zenfolio.com/p707617142
Northern pike, low water - challenges at Yuba Reservoir
http://udwrnewsphotos.zenfolio.com/p744214192
photos for ALL of the news releases
http://udwrnewsphotos.zenfolio.com/
Agriculture Secretary Perdue to Hold Georgia Events Friday
(Tifton, Georgia, August 24, 2017) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will participate in two public events in Tifton, Georgia on Friday, August 25, 2017. Perdue will convene a listening session as part of the work of the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity, which was created by President Trump through an Executive Order on Perdue’s first day as secretary. Additionally, Perdue will address members of the Georgia Farm Bureau to discuss issues important to agriculture producers.
TOMORROW, Friday, August 25, 2017
Secretary Perdue hosts Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity listening session
10:30 a.m.
University of Georgia – Tifton
Tifton Conference Center
Conference Room B
15 RDC Road
Tifton, GA 31794
Secretary Perdue addresses members of the Georgia Farm Bureau
12:00 p.m.
University of Georgia – Tifton
Tifton Conference Center
Ballrooms 17A & 17D
15 RDC Road
Tifton, GA 31794
