Rutherford Weekly

Thursday, August 20-August 26, 2020 www.rutherfordweekly.com 828-248-1408 Rutherford Weekly - Page 9 Email: Email: events@rutherfordweekly.com events@rutherfordweekly.com Mail or Drop-Off: Mail or Drop-Off: 157 W Main St, • Forest City, NC 28043 157 W Main St, • Forest City, NC 28043 *Publisher has fi nal decision of which photos appear in print, per available space. We Want Your Kids Sports Photos! •Basketball •Baseball •Softball •Soccer •Archery •Equestrian •Etc! We Want Your Outdoor Photos! We Want Your Outdoor Photos! Hunting, Fishing, Playing Ball, Etc. Hunting, Fishing, Playing Ball, Etc. Sportsman's Corner Sportsman's Corner Email: events@rutherfordweekly.com Mail: 157 W Main St., Forest City, NC 28043 Phone: 828-248-1408 *Publisher has the fi nal decision of which photos appear in print, per available space. OUTDOOR UTDOOR TRUTHS RUTHS I don't know how many times I have crossed a ridge thinking I was some place that I wasn't. I don't know how many times I have crested a hill think- ing I'll be able to see something I didn't. I don't know how many times I have rounded a bend to discover an addi- tional path to the place I was going. I recognize this truth weekly. One of my hobbies is cycling. I've been riding for several years, and sometimes the places I ride are diffi cult. As a result, I'm always looking around the corner thinking I have reached a certain marker that will give me hope that I've almost reached my destination. You may say I'm too unfamiliar with the road, but I'm not. I'm just not always pay- ing attention. Just this morning, I rounded a curve, thinking I had an additional distance to travel. But I was pleasantly surprised that I was closer than I had thought. Most of the time, this is not the case. Most of the time, I fi nd there's another hill, another ridge, or another path. And I sigh. Many of you can already identify with my plight. You, however, may be experiencing these events in a more meaningful place. You are hoping the present hill you are climbing is the last one. You are praying the end of the painful journey you have been on is just over the next ridge. You are anticipating this bend to be the last one. You are hoping the light at the end of the tunnel is actually a light- and an end. You are tired of the fi ght. I feel for you. And I'm sorry you are going through this dark time. But let me ask you to keep climbing. Keep putting one foot in front of the other, even though you are not sure where the path is lead- ing. Keep moving and keep trusting – even though you are confused. Remember, your understanding of the problem or its solution is not a prerequisite for a good ending. Your trust is all that's needed. And even that is only needed in a small supply. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." ~Solomon I'd love to speak at your next men's conference. By By Gary Miller Gary Miller Aiming Outdoorsmen Toward Christ GARY MILLER gary@outdoortruths.org ~ www.outdoortruths.org The brook fl oater, a state- endangered freshwater mussel, was recently reintroduced into waters it hasn't inhabited in more than 100 years, thanks to a partnership between the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and Duke Energy. In July, agency biologists stocked approximately 350 brook fl oaters (Alasmidonta varicosa) downstream of Lake James in the Catawba River bypass reach near Bridgewater Road in Burke County. The last time a brook fl oater was documented in this stretch of the river was in 1919, shortly before the impoundment of Lake James, which diminished the fl ow of water to a trickle and made the habitat unsuitable for most mussel species. A requirement put in place by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2015 to increase the minimum water fl ows in the reach downstream of Lake James dramatically improved the amount and quality of habitat available to freshwater mussels, particularly brook fl oaters, which need consistently fl owing water in order to survive. In 2018, agency biologists developed a conservation strategy to re-establish a brook fl oater population in the reach, and augment other existing but small populations in the Catawba and Yadkin River Basins. To start the augmentation process, biologists had to fi rst identify an area where they could collect adult brook fl oaters to use as broodstock. In 2018, they collected 15 brook fl oaters from Wilson Creek in Caldwell County and took them to the agency's Conservation Aquaculture Center in Marion, where the intricate and arduous process of raising mussels from a larval stage to juveniles began. Due to their unique life cycle and mode of feeding, freshwater mussels are diffi cult to propagate. Larval mussels, also called glochidia, must attach themselves to the gills or fi ns of suitable host fi sh before they can develop further into juvenile mussels. Eventually, the juvenile mussels drop off the fi sh and onto the river bottom, where they spend their lives, if the habitat is suitable. The Conservation Aquaculture Center, which opened in 2008, provides all the necessary elements to replicate this intricate natural process in a controlled, artifi cial setting. From the water that constantly fl ows through the tanks to the substrate at the bottom of the tanks to the temperature of the air in the building, everything is set up to mimic, as closely as possible, the reproduction process mussels undergo in the wild. All aspects of mussel culture — from the infestation of fi sh hosts to "grow-out" of juveniles — is conducted at the hatchery. Once center staff had grown out enough juveniles to suitable stocking size — about 24 months — they tagged the mussels before they were released, so that biologists can track their survival. Biologists plan to conduct monitoring surveys every spring and will consider the stocking successful if they detect stocked mussels in consecutive surveys and these mussels reproduce naturally. Over the next fi ve years, biologists hope to augment populations in other areas of the Catawba river upstream of Lake James, the North Fork Catawba River in the Catawba Basin, as well as the Fisher River, Buffalo Creek, and Elk Creek of the Yadkin River Basin. Exact numbers of mussels stocked in each area will depend on propagation success and resources. Augmenting existing populations or establishing new populations in suitable areas can be a powerful tool for conservation and is a key component of the N.C. Wildlife Action Plan, a comprehensive planning tool developed by the Commission to help conserve and enhance the state's fi sh and wildlife species and their habitats. Freshwater mussels are an indicator species of water quality and play an important role in improving water quality by fi ltering out bacteria, algae and pollutants. Their presence in a streambed may go unnoticed by most people; however, freshwater mussels play an important role in keeping waters clean and aquatic ecosystems healthy. Today however, many, if not most, mussel species are in trouble, with high extinction or extirpation rates documented, particularly in the last few decades. In North Carolina alone, of the 48 species native to the state, 30 are listed as endangered, threatened or special concern. Even more concerning, several species have either gone extinct or been extirpated from the state. Threats, such as the creation of dams, which can create unsuitable mussel habitat for hundreds of miles downstream, along with sedimentation, channel modifi cation, pollution, low oxygen conditions, and loss of riparian buffers have resulted in habitat loss and impaired water quality for many freshwater mussels. This notable decline in habitat has diminished overall populations of brook fl oaters in North Carolina, so much so that they are now listed as state endangered. "Mussels are important because they help keep our waters clean," said T.R. Russ, the lead Commission biologist on this project. "Mussels also provide other aquatic animals substrate and habitat to attach to and are an important food source for numerous other critters. "Returning all of the previously known species to this part of the Catawba River will improve the ecological health of the watershed and hopefully provide a stable place for more mussels to persist." The stocking effort was funded by Duke Energy's Catawba Wateree-Habitat Enhancement Program (CWHEP) and State Wildlife Grants. The CWHEP is a cooperative initiative by Duke Energy, the Commission and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, to provide funding for habitat creation, enhancement and protection for fi sh and wildlife adjacent to and in the Catawba-Wateree watershed and associated reservoirs. Biologists Hope to Restore Rare Freshwater Mussel in Catawba River Article provided by: ncwildlife.org Tagged juvenile brook fl oaters before stocking (left) and a brook fl oater. Michael Perkins/NCWRC photos. NORRIS MERCHANDISE 2011 S. Lafayette St. (Hwy. 18 S) Shelby, NC • 704-482-8464 www.norrismerchandise.com Hours: Mon - Fri 8am - 5:30pm • Sat 8am - 3pm ©CommunityFirstMedia GEt READy FOR HUNTINg SEASON! Lucky Buck Lucky Buck Mineral Mineral Now in Stock! Now in Stock! Certifi ed Social Distancing 4S Draw MINERALS and Food Plot Mix (Food Plot recommended to be planted the fi rst week of Sept.) ALL THE BEST BOWS AND CROSSBOWS IN STOCK AND READY TO GO! The Carolina Bass Club fi shed lake Norman last Saturday with 7 teams showing up to fi sh. The team of Keith McClure and Jr. Self won 1st place weighing in a catch of 9.79, and winning the 2nd big fi sh of the day award with a 2.37. 2nd place was the team of Phil Murray and Dean Ford with 8.47. George Crosswhite and Jason Price was 3rd with 7.01 and won the big fi sh of the day award with a 2.62 large mouth. Carolina Bass Club fi shes Lake Wiley in September. Article Provided By: Rutherford County Carolina Bass Club Fishing Report

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