Sarley: Bird population runs wild

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I was at the beautiful Rend Lake Resort in southern Illinois a couple of years back for a quick crappie fishing excursion. We were out on the water when a flock of birds appeared on the horizon, toward our end of the lake. When they neared, the sky was black with birds like a Hitchcock film come to life.

“What the heck is this?” I asked my friend, Todd Gessner, from the Southern Illinois Recreation Service.

Gessner said the birds were cormorants.

“They’re oily, they smell to high heaven and they eat more fish than you can believe,” he said. “These huge flocks can decimate a lake’s crappie population in no time at all. They can dive really deep and they usually come up with something in their beaks.”

Cormorants! It’s just another example of man sticking his nose into Mother Nature’s business. This is like the alligators in Florida. They nearly were extinct, so the government protected them. Protected them a little too long, I’d venture to say. Florida became rife with gators and now hires marksmen and places bounties on these scary lizards.

Cormorants were in the same situation – extinct ... protected ... nuisance. There were only 30 cormorants in Wisconsin in the mid-1960s and they were scratched from the protected list in 1986. Now they are akin to the pigeons of downtown Chicago. The situation has gotten so severe that many Midwestern sportsmen are demanding action.

Let’s have a cormorant season they say. Is that far-fetched? No, not at all.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ wildlife, endangered resources and fisheries programs have figured out a plan to reduce breeding populations of cormorants on islands in Green Bay and Lake Michigan. More than 12,000 pairs of cormorants make these islands their home, and these birds make up 90 percent of the state’s breeding population. Techniques for eliminating the birds range from egg oiling and nest destruction, to the shooting of shooting cormorants.

The Wisconsin DNR has set up a number of public hearings to get public input on the cormorant situation and its efforts to reduce the population.

I can hear it now: “You can’t shoot the poor little birdies!” Of course, you won’t hear anyone sticking up for the millions of victims of fish-icide, ravaged by the hungry birds.

If you are interested in attending a meeting, drop me a line and I’ll give you the info. If not, I’ll be talking about the results in the not-too-distant future.

Slice of life for 50 years: Rock Cut State Park recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. Located in nearby Winnebago County, Rock Cut provides unlimited recreational opportunities for enthusiasts of any kind of outdoor opportunity that one can imagine.

“It’s an area of rolling plains, interesting history and recreational variety,” Illinois Department of Natural Resources acting director Sam Flood said. “Rock Cut State Park is one of many examples of what the State of Illinois has to offer people looking to enjoy the great outdoors and all it has to offer.”

Rock Cut’s name derives from blasting operations conducted by a railroad construction crew to build a level roadbed, tearing a path through the glacial stone.

Most of the available birds that find Illinois as home are represented in Rock Cut, including many species of waterfowl. Deer, fox, muskrat, woodchuck, beaver, opossum, raccoon and gray and fox squirrel inhabit the park’s acreage.

Rock Cut has 40 miles of hiking trails, 23 miles of mountain biking and 14 miles for horseback riding. There are 268 campsites available for the hearty.

There also is some quality fishing available at Pierce Lake. The lake is filled with panfish, catfish, pike, walleye and largemouth bass. The lake’s muskie population is a well-kept secret by the park’s users. There is another lake on the property, 50-acre Olson Lake and it is reserved for swimmers.

It’s the perfect time of year for a quick trip to Rock Cut State Park in Loves Park, so don’t miss it.

For more information, phone 815-885-3311.

Challenge on the Chain: The Challenge on the Chain muskie tournament on Oct. 27 produced a total of six fish for the 65 two-man teams that diligently beat the water all day long.

Hugh Flack of Johnsburg, with his teammate David Leffelman, took top honors with a 43 1/2-inch beauty. They took the fish by trolling a Jake on Lake Catherine.

John Fallon and Mike Witcowski placed second with a 42 1/2-inch fish, casting a cowgirl on Channel Lake. Nicholas and Marge Schwall finished in third with a 40 1/2-inch fish caught by casting a Depth Raider on Channel Lake.

Jimmy Ziebka of Norridge finished in fourth with Ken Sponseller. They registered a 36-inch muskie, caught by trolling a Shallow Raider on Lake Marie. Bob Nielsen of Roselle finished fifth with teammate Dave Mitchell. They caught a 33 1/2-inch fish by casting a Mako on Channel Lake.

Hoffman Estates’ Bob Podgorski nailed down sixth place with his teammate, Bob Pyszka. Their muskie measured 31 inches and was caught trolling a Believer on Bluff Lake.

• NorthWest News Group's outdoors columnist Steve Sarley’s radio show, “The Outdoors Experience,” airs live from 8 to 9 a.m. Saturdays on AM-560. Sarley also runs a Web site for outdoors enthusiasts, OExperience.com. He can be reached by e-mail at steve@oexperience.com.