Au Coin Report.. Outdoor News.. See #27 Mr. Al Gore

1. Sea lions distracted to help save Columbia River sturgeons
Portland, Oregon – Teams of hungry sea lions preying on Columbia River sturgeon are being distracted from their feeding frenzy by Oregon Fish and Wildlife officers tossing explosive devices and shooting rubber pellets. (Oregonian, outdoorpressroom.com)

2. Fish & Wildlife seeks cougar info
The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service will conduct a new review – the first since the recovery plan of 1982 – of the status of the eastern cougar, also known as mountain lion, panther, puma, painter and catamount. The service is seeking information from 21 recovery plan states, from Maine to South Carolina and westward from Michigan to Tennessee. [U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service]

3. Coyotes are back; bounties, to
Rocky Mount, Virginia – Franklin County’s board of supervisors scheduled a public hearing to discuss a $25 per coyote bounty. (Roanoke Times)

6. Honeybees disappearing
Visalia, California – In at least 24 states honeybees are disappearing and scientists don’t know why. The syndrome, coined “Colony Collapse Disorder,” worries bee keepers but also farmers who need bees to pollinate their crops. [New York Times]

7. Iraq marines discover insect-repellent wristbands
Orlando, Florida – Insurgents aren’t the only enemies targeting U. S. Troops in Iraq. Mosquitoes and other blood-hungry insects do their best to distract our soldiers from their mission. Thus, the Marine Corps Times visiting the SHOT Show in Orlando heralded its discovery of wristbands impregnated with insect repellent as the “Find of the Day.” The wristbands are manufactured by BugBand Products of Carterville, Georgia and contain geraniol, a natural bug repellent that is safer to use than DEET.

10. Exclusivity comes with a price
Gilchrist County, Florida -- Private membership at the Gilchrist Club offers exclusivity and the feel of owning your own private hunting plantation on 23,000 acres of North Central Florida’s pristine pine flat woods, oak hammocks and cypress wetlands. Members enjoy luxurious lodges, fine dinning, impeccable service and world class hunting for quail, Osceola Turkey, hog and whitetail deer. Four natural lakes offer fishing for bass, crappie, bluegill and catfish. Guided saltwater trips are available. The Gilchrist Club offers individual and corporate memberships ranging from $45,000.00 to $300,000.00. Membership is limited to 110 members and at this time there are memberships available. [Media Contact: Leiza Fitzgerald 727-803-4030; [email protected]]

11. New outdoors magazine -- Garden & Gun
Lexington, Kentucky – Rebecca Darwin, former publisher of New Yorker and Mirabella magazines, announced a new magazine for upscale southerners, sort of a Town and Country without the “Town.” The content and title are very well thought-out, the publisher insists. The name of the new magazine, due out in April, is Garden & Gun. (Fort Wayne News Sentinel

13. Young hunter banned for life
Pensacola, Florida – An 18-year-old Pensacola, Florida man pled guilty to illegally killing three small spotted fawns on Christmas eve. He has been banned for life from having a hunting license and will not be able to legally hunt in 24 states belonging to the Wildlife Violator Compact. (Florida Fish and Wildlife)

14. Where do criminals get their guns?
Bellevue, Washington – Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) charged that authorities failed to make public a government study about how criminals ignore gun laws and where they get their guns. The organization claims the study shows that all but one gun involved in deadly attacks on police officers had been obtained illegally and that none were purchased at gun shows. [CCRKBA]

16. Meet Charlie Canoe and Friends
Pismo Beach, California – “Charlie Canoe gives a quiet ride. A stroke of the paddle and feel yourself glide. Sit down in the middle and keep yourself still. Jump and down and you’re sure to spill.” That’s just the first of 15 boats profiled in rhyme and illustrations in a children’s book by John and Diane Tuzee. Charlie Canoe and Other Boats Too, available at West Marine stores, also introduces boating stars like Billy Jo Bassboat, Cathy Catamaran, Oscar Offshore, Paula Pontoon, Tommy P. Watercraft, Harvey Houseboat, Sarah Sailboat, Ronnie Runabout, Freddie Flybridge, Sammy Skiboat, Connie Cruiser, Katie Kayak, Izzy Inflatable, and Frankie Fishboat. [Media contact: John Tuzee, [email protected]]

17. GrowBoating.org shows industry’s growth strategy
Chicago, Illinois – The latest Grow Boating Inc. presentation, entitled “Grow Boating 2007: Set for Success,” was videotaped in its entirety and is now available for viewing online at GrowBoating.org. The 90-minute program—which took place Wednesday, February 14, in conjunction with the Miami International Boat Show—featured a late night talk show format. Grow Boating Inc. president Thom Dammrich played the part of the show’s host, interviewing key industry leaders on the progress of critical Grow Boating programs and plans for the coming year. To watch the presentation, or for more information on the Grow Boating Initiative, visit GrowBoating.org.
[Media contact: Lindsey Savin Johnson ([email protected]; 312-946-6204)]

18. Run shallow, run deep
Largo, Fla. – MirrOlure, long the leading lure brand among saltwater fishing enthusiasts, has introduced a new inshore lure that fishes shallow flats or beaches or deeper holes depending on where the line is attached. The MirrOlure S51MR Series III has two line attachments. Tie the line to the nose ring, and the MirrOlure fishes just a foot under the surface. Tie the line to the ring on top and the MirrOlure fishes down to four feet. The innovative new lure, which has a scaled baitfish pattern. was a hit at the annual ICAST industry trade show in Las Vegas. www.mirrOlure.com
[Media contact: Eric Bachnik, 727-584-7691, [email protected]]

19. Southwest Florida on top ten world’s best charter destinations list
London, England -- Britain’s Motor Boat & Yachting magazine is out with its top ten bareboat charter destinations in the world. The top ten on the list were Southwest Florida, French Riviera, New Zealand’s Marlborough Sounds, Bahamas, Australia’s Whitsunday Islands, Dalmatian Islands on the Croatian coast, Greece, Pacific Northwest, Virgin Islands and Spain. The destinations were scored on their availability of boats, suitability for inexperienced boaters, attractiveness, shore-side amenities and ease of access from the U.K. [Media contact: Bill AuCoin, [email protected]. 727-522-2371, www.swfyachts.com]

21. How to visit Alaska
Sitka, Alaska – The popularity of cruising Alaska’s wild southeastern shoreline from Sitka to Petersburg has given rise to a new expression – Think Small. The new expression grows out of a new kind of cruising vessel, less than 100 feet long, as opposed to the big cruise ships that are too big to explore many quiet harbors, coves and fjords with glaciers flowing down to the sea. One such vessel offering such an expedition is Ursa Major, just 65 feet long. It even has kayaks for exploring shorelines and watching wildlife. An onboard chef prepares and serves gourmet meals. Contact Barb Hansen, 800-262-7939. Email [email protected].


22. Boat show leak
Boston, Massachusetts – Drip, drip, drip. Boston’s new $800 million convention center hosted the New England Boat Show in February, welcoming visitors with a leaky roof. Officials say the building, like the big dig tunnel, has numerous flaws. (Boston Globe)



23. Exercise legislation push
Washington D.C, – Athletes will be lobbyists March 7 when the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association leans on congress for two bills to encourage health-through-fitness. Some of the sports celebrities bending the ears of senators and representatives are Chad Pennington of the New York Jets, Kellen Winslow of the San Diego Chargers, Former tennis champ Stan Smith, and Ted Sizemore, former star of the Dodgers-Cardinals-Phillies-Cubs-Red Sox and maybe other teams, too. (SGMA)

25. Beaver City actually has a real beaver

New York City, New York – For 200 years the only beaver in New York City was on the city’s official seal. Now there is a honest-to-goodness beaver lodge on the banks of the Bronx River and video proof of a real beaver, a male about three feet long. (Yahoo News, Outdoorpressroom.com)

26. Dog beat dog
Anchorage, Alaska – More than 80 dog sled teams compete this month in the 35th Iditarod from Anchorage to Nome-sweet-Nome, two mountain ranges and 1131 miles away. (Rocky Mountain News, Iditarod)

27. UFO - global warming connection?
Ottawa, Canada – Paul Hellyer, former Canadian defense minister, told the Ottawa Citizen governments need to use secret technology available from alien spacecraft to eliminate burning of fossil fuels and thus save the planet from global warming (Ottawa Citizen, Agence France-Presse)

28. Dog eats pet turtle. Turtle is okay. Dog scolded.
Brandon, Florida –Twelve-year-old Shelby Terihay brought her little pet turtles inside during a cold snap. Alas, Bella, her golden retriever, thought the turtles were food. No, Bella, no! Yep, Bella swallowed one. Shelby and her parents rushed Bella to the vet who made the dog cough up the turtle. Pepper the turtle spent about ten minutes in Bella’s stomach but it was still alive and is going to be okay in spite of a cracked shell. (Lakeland Ledger via outdoorpressroom.com)

Don't under the purpose of this post. I have been lurking here for the past couple of months and have found some really good information and some good people. Fishbum, as a Moderator, I don't know why you didn't post this under "Off" threads. There is some interesting stuff in your post, but please keep the politics out of the fishing forums. I hope to continue increasing my fishing knowledge by reading this forum.:)

Good point, Fishraker!! Fishbum doesn't think the rules he wrote (I assume he wrote them) apply to his stuff. He thinks if he mentions fish or fishing, then it belongs on the fishing board--no matter how personal or political his comments get.