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DCCL SPRING EDITION NEWSLETTER – VOLUME I

LUANN KUZMA AWARDED DCCL CONSERVATIONIST OF THE YEAR

Senior Conservation Warden Luann Kuzma received the Dane County Conservationist of the Year Award for 2000 at the January annual membership meeting.

Luann was primarily responsible for the annual conservation hearings held in Dane County during 2000. Luann’s efforts there and her 20 years with the DNR have been exemplary, and we are honored to bestow the annual Conservationist Award onto her.

DCCL Member of the Year Awards went to longtime semi-farm managers Don Putz and Ron Brinkmann. Their efforts this past year led to a successful bird-rearing year.

DCCL Junior Member of the Year went to Mitch Rundle who collaborated on a number of League projects this past year.

he DCCL projects committee has made the necessary preparations to make Nest Building Day another success. We will begin at 8:30 on April 28 at the DCCL Farm, 2497 County J, just north of Hwy. 18, approximately 5 miles west of Verona.

We will be building the ever-popular bluebird houses, bat houses, butterfly resting stations and wood duck boxes. John Meier, Nesting Box Chair, always has something new to build, so you will have to show up to see what that might be.

Participants are entitled to one bluebird house for their effort, as well as the knowledge that they are really helping the prospects of Dane County’s animal kingdom. Members can also purchase additional houses, and leftovers will be offered to the general public. Not only has this been a great family event, but it is also an opportunity to earn work hours for those wanting their pheasants this year. Remember to bring a charged electric screwdriver. Hot coffee/chocolate and pop with rolls will be waiting for you.

Will take you to the League’s website, being managed by Jerry Sands. It has created a lot of interest and brings the League into the times. Changes will continue to be made to the site to keep it fresh so one can come back to it and see something new.

January’s annual membership meeting determined that Jerry Sands had this year’s longest pheasant tail. He just edged out the co-editor by half an inch. This continues to be a great longtime tradition of the League’s.

By: Cathy Matts – Co-Editor

The President of the DCCL willingly gave up this space to the co-editor of the Newsletter so that I could write up an article detailing the experience that myself, my sister and brother-in-law had last September when I first took advantage of receiving my 12 pheasants to release into the wild.

It was a bright sunny Saturday morning when we arrived at the farm. It was late in the morning and most of the people had already picked up their birds. Lowell Carter and Ron Brinkmann were willing and able to catch 6 hens and 6 roosters for me. After this was done we left and headed for our farm (Matts homestead) outside the city of Verona to leave 6 of our captives. We opened one side of the pen that had been lent to us by a DCCL member. The little guys were apprehensive in coming out, but with a little coaxing, one by one their heads appeared outside of the pen. First came a couple of hens and they immediately flew away and didn’t look back. Then a rooster appeared next. He strutted out, looked around and realized that this looked like a pretty good place to call home. He walked slowly into the wetlands, head raised, looking around quite cautiously.

The rest of the group followed his lead and also cautiously came out. The opportunity to watch this encounter take place was quite amazing for the three of us. After the 6 were located in their new home, we left and headed to my sister’s home outside of Brooklyn to release the rest of the group. Their home is located in a very wooded area so of course the pheasants couldn’t wait to get acquainted with their new surroundings. It has been 7 months now and my sister says that they occasionally can hear the "cackling" of one of our little guys (I’m sure they are pretty full grown by now). This year while my sister and I are mowing lawn at the farm in Verona, hopefully we will have the opportunity to see one of our pheasants. I am looking forward to being able to have this experience again this year.

We have been sold out for a number of weeks for the banquet on April 26. We continue to add to the banquet each year, and this year is no exception. Special thanks to Fred and B.J. Panke for their donation of the cedar dog bed and to Steve Borquist and John Hass for their donation of framed limited edition prints. Further thank-yous will appear in the next quarterly report. We do extend thanks to Bill Livingston and John Brooks for their assistance this year and being there in the past, too.

WANT TO BECOME AN INSTRUCTOR?

When you had hunter safety, most likely a volunteer instructed you. Now’s your chance to help the next generation. Those individuals interested in becoming a Hunter Safety Instructor for the League and who want to know more about becoming a certified instructor are encouraged to contact Dean Whitney at 249-2738. Should you decide to help, keep in mind that this helps toward your work hours since this is a League-sponsored event.

The League’s hunter safety program is looking for donations of semi-automatic rifles and bolt rifles/shotguns. In addition, double-barreled hinges or breaks are also needed. The guns will be used in the instruction of safe gun handling and learning about the five different types of actions. They only need to be in fair working condition. They will not be fired. Contact Dean Whitney at 249-2738. This is another great use for those items that have been sitting for years anyway.

FISHING EXPO

Thanks to the many members who assisted with ticket sales and hall monitoring and also to those who were able to help with the Friday setup. Special thanks to Jack Bond for chairing this event on behalf of the League. Members who assisted were:

The outside flap of this newsletter gives you a sample of what the report covers. Much more detail is furnished on each of the categories. It is a wealth of information that does a great job of describing what the DNR is doing with the money it receives. Copies of the report were made available at the March meeting. The publication is available in alternative format (large print, Braille, audio tape, etc) upon request. Please contact 267-7550 for more information.

WHAT ARE WORK HOURS?

During the year, especially from now until the first of October, members have an opportunity to do a number of conservation projects that we sponsor. To those members who work 15 or more hours on these various projects we offer a specified number of pheasants to be used as the members see fit.

Members also can set up sanctioned projects as long as the project enhances our natural resources here in Dane County. Marcia Hartwig (222-3746) of Ken LePine’s staff has a number of projects that can be done in Dane County, and some of those projects can simply be supervising various youth programs the county makes available to develop various habitats. A good example is the initial work done on Deer Creek and the Sugar River Watershed. Bob Zimmerman worked with the Youth Conservation Corp to kick those projects off in the League’s name.

Just a sample of opportunities that exist for the upcoming year:

April Assist with building nesting boxes

May Prepare the farm for the birds arriving in late May.

May/June Opportunities every Sat. until the birds go out into the big pens.

Take a State in the Lakes

July/August The first, third and fifth Sat. are available workdays at the farm.

Help with our Open House by cleaning or cooking.

Sept/Oct Assist with Golf Outing

Preparing the birds for release and closing the farm.

This is a great time to prepare the area for winter wheat.

Other opportunities will be announced during the year.

During this time, we hope to see arrangements made for various conservation projects. If you have one, consider setting it up. What is great about this group is that we are "hands-on," and members are willing to respond to a cause.

As long as you are at an event such as a membership meeting or the banquet, why not help—you’re there already. At membership meetings one can take care of raffle sales near the door.

A number of families are registered members. One project for one or two families is the semiannual highway cleanup in May and September. Provided your children are 12 years of age or more, here is an opportunity to clean up a mile of highway that is registered in the League’s name.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact an officer or director. We put our names in this newsletter to allow you an opportunity to ask and hopefully receive answers to your questions.

or those members interested in wood duck boxes, we recommend buying them from a retired gentleman in Waukesha. He builds a great wood duck box, with galvanized deck screws and cedar. He puts a 10-degree angle on back to place the house over a pole. They are great, and he charges only $35, which was about our cost when we built them last year. He also has purple martin homes available for $70 for 16 2" diameter homes and $60 for the 12-hole homes. If interested, contact:

1013 North Bel Ayr Dr.

The League was a recent recipient of $500 from the CUNA Mutual Group through their Foundation’s Dollars for Doers program in recognition of Dwaine Rundle for his volunteer commitment to the League. Dwaine has been a doer for the League, and we thank him for his efforts and this recognition

Chair Lowell Carter thanks all who assisted with this project this year. Thanks were also shared with us from Dane County Parks.

Much red cedar cutting and burning took place. Thanks to these members for their help.

Take a Stake in the Lakes is the annual lakes cleanup, sponsored by the Dane County Lakes and Watershed Commission, that promotes awareness of the public’s role in the health of the Yahara lakes. It is a great way for families, neighborhood associations, professional associations, recreational and environmental groups and others to take your stake in the lakes that make Madison and Dane County such a special place.

June 16: Lakes Mendota, Kegonsa and Wingra, 9:00-1:00. You’ll find us at the Dudgeon-Monroe Neighborhood Association’s Lake Wingra Cleanup at Wingra Park on Monroe Street.

"When did our group become the Dane County Conservation League?" By: Jack Bell, Historian

The first meeting was held on March 15, l933, by a group of sportsmen from Dane County at the East Side Businessmen’s Clubhouse. It was suggested the name of the group be called the Dane County Sportmen’s League. The motion was carried and the vote unanimous. The League was also referred to as the Dane County Sportmen’s Club.

A motion was made on December 17, 1940, at a meeting held in the Dane County Courthouse to change the name of the Dane County Sportmen’s League to the Dane County Conservation League, motion seconded and carried; and officers were instructed to prepare the necessary certificates to notify the Secretary of State Office of the change in the name. This was officially changed in 1943. The reason for the change was to better express the purpose of the group. At the outset the League’s purpose was stated to "promote better hunting and fishing by raising and releasing fish and game until such time that nature and habitat can take over and fix up our game, birds and fish." The years have seen this purpose expanded to meet new problems; and now the whole environment is our concern as well as the fish and game. (Orig. minutes 1933-1940)

The DCCL Newsletter is published quarterly; winter, spring, summer, and fall. The Dane County Conservation League is a nonprofit volunteer organization. Our purpose is to enhance the education and habitat conservation of its membership and to enhance the natural resources in Dane County and the State of Wisconsin. The DCCL was established in 1933.

Manuscripts and photographs are welcome and may be forwarded to the address below.

Dane County Conservation League

P0 Box 44039

Madison WI 53744

Email DCCL@DCCL.ORG

Please notify us of ANY address or name change, or "god forbid" typos, additions or deletions by sending to the address listed below. Submit articles for the DCCL Newsletter by the first week of the month.

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