Outdoor Notes : A Limited Hunt for Tule Elk Is Expected in the Fall of 1988

California’s tule elk population is expected to reach 2,000 by next spring, which most likely will give hunters an opportunity for a limited hunt in the fall of 1988.

State law enacted in 1971 prohibits a tule elk hunt until the population exceeds 2,000, or until it is determined by the Legislature that a population of that size cannot be sustained by the habitat.

Don Koch, wildlife biologist for the Department of Fish and Game in Sacramento, said that the statewide population is estimated at 1,762 to 2,183.

“We expect, at the very least, 264 calfs will be dropped next spring,” Koch said. “If you add that to the lowest estimate, the total number will exceed 2,000 by 26 animals.”

The DFG will propose plans for a tule elk hunt to the State Fish and Game Commission in February, Koch added.

The DFG said it has completed follow-up chemical treatment of two small coves of Siskiyou County’s Castle Lake, treated seven years ago in an attempt to remove a population of non-game fish.

DFG biologist Mike Rode said that about 200 golden shiners were killed in the treatment Wednesday with a chemical known as rotenone, which is not harmful to other wildlife or humans.

Golden shiners are members of the minnow family that the DFG believes were introduced into Castle Lake by fishermen illegally using them for bait.

Use of live fish for bait is prohibited in most northern state waters under regulations the DFG said are aimed at preventing introduction of fish species that compete with preferred game fish like trout.

Briefly

The Fish and Game Commission announced that no tree squirrel hunting will be permited this year in Southern California. The statement was issued to to correct a misprint in the 1987-88 mammal hunting regulations booklet which left the issue unclear. . . . Hunting licenses, deer, antelope and elk tag applications, mammal hunting regulations and Zone A, B and D deer tags for 1987 are now available at Department of Fish and Game offices in Southern California. . . . The Angler’s Tackle Box in Seal Beach will be conducting three how-to seminars on fishing for albacore and marlin, as well as long-range trips, beginning June 25 with fishing authority Charlie Davis as the guest speaker. . . . The San Gabriel Valley Flyfishers will conduct a free beginning fly casting clinic at Legg Lake/Whittier Narrows Visitors center in El Monte Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. . . . The DFG has issued a reminder to anglers that when they clean fish with size restrictions on location, they must be able to show evidence, such as skeletal remains, of the fish’s original size. Failure to retain such evidence is a violation of the Fish and Game code. . . . Gordon Ashcraft, whose 38-year DFG career involved projects for quail, waterfowl, deer and water projects review, has announced his retirement.