First Posted: 4/3/2015
A wild game dinner featuring several different dishes of meat ranging from large game animals to small game will be held Saturday, April 11 at the UAW Hall in Lima. Doors open at 5 p.m.
Proceeds from this dinner, as well as gun and other raffles, will go the the Hunting With Heroes program, which allows disabled veterans to participate in various hunts. Proceeds this year will be used to upgrade some equipment, especially blinds for the hunts at the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center.
Moose, elk, antelope, whitetail deer, squirrel and pheasant, along with fish, will be featured. Tickets are priced at $15 and can be purchased by contacting Paul Matson at 419-439-2293 or Joe Sawmiller at 419-204-2805 or [email protected].
Hunting With Heroes is up to more than 40 disabled veterans for its November bow hunt.
Last year 38 disabled vets participated in the November deer bow hunt. Already two new groups have offered land and volunteers for this year’s hunt. That means nearly 50 spots will be available. That is a long way from 2009, when the first hunt was held and there were eight participants.
“With more hunters, we need more blinds, crossbows and corn for bait to get them to the blinds, etc.,” Sawmiller said.
All vets participating in the event are from the Vietnam War era forward. The last Korean War vet to participate was Sawmiller’s dad, Forest. More than half of the hunters are around the 30-year-old mark. With this growing so large, people at the Elmview Pub have taken over the bulk of the fundraising.
In addition to deer hunts, the group holds a squirrel hunt for six disabled vets, a turkey hunt weekend and a coyote challenge. The challenge requires at least one disabled veteran and they must take the first shot on each coyote.
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Spring brings all kinds of opportunities to check out wildlife and birds in their habitat. A variety of events along these lines and within easy driving distance of Limaland are slated over the next month.
Beginning birders have an opportunity to participate in beginner guided bird walks at Magee Marsh Wildlife area on May 9 and 10. The Ohio Ornithological Society is accepting sign-ups for the tours during the weekend of International Migratory Bird Day.
The OOS, in cooperation with the Ohio Division of Wildlife, will be conducted the walks on the wildlife area, located between Port Clinton and Oak Harbor off state Route 2. Walks will be held at: 8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. May 9, while walks will be held at 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. May 10. The walks will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis and are limited to 15 participants each. To sign up, applicants should send an email to [email protected]. All emails should contain the applicant’s name, phone number, date and requested time-slot. A return email will confirm the meeting place, date and time.
The Magee Marsh Wildlife Area is listed as one of the top 10 bird watching spots in the country and came in first in a USA Today reader poll. More than 80,000 visitors from across the country visit the wildlife area during the spring migration, especially to see the variety of warblers.
In Michigan, seven birding tours are being held at managed waterfowl areas this month and in May.
According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, highlights of the birding tours may include diving and dabbling ducks in full breeding plumage, trumpeter and tundra swans, osprey, bald eagles, sandhill cranes and much more. MDNR wildlife biologists and technicians will lead the tours, which will include a sneak-peek driving tour into refuge areas that are normally closed.
A tour in southeast Michigan along Lake Erie will be held Saturday, April 11 at the Pointe Mouillee State Game Area, 37025 Mouillee Road, Rockwood, Mich., beginning at 9 a.m. Persons may call 734-379-9692 for more information.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Division will hold a wildlife hike on Belle Isle, the island state park in Detroit along the Detroit, on Saturday, April 11 beginning at 10 a.m. This program had originally been scheduled for March.
Participants will hike through the woods looking for signs of wildlife. The tour begins at 10 a.m. at the Belle Isle Nature Zoo parking lot. This program is appropriate for all ages and will last about an hour.
“Many different types of wildlife call Belle Isle home,” said MDNR wildlife outreach technician Holly Vaughn. “Some make their living by hunting other animals, while some prefer to munch on plants. We’ll talk about the creatures that live on the island and how they interact with the animals around them.”
Anyone with questions about either program may contact Vaughn at 313-396-6863.
A Recreation Passport is required for vehicle entry to Belle Isle Park. A non-Michigan annual passport is $31, while a non-Michigan daily passport is $9. Belle Isle Park visitors can purchase a passport on Belle Isle at the visitor contact station located on Belle Isle immediately after crossing the MacArthur Bridge, currently open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.
For any of these events, participants should dress for the weather. Binoculars are recommended, and spotting scopes are also helpful for long-range viewing. The ground may be quite muddy and wet, so plan to wear boots.
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The boat ramp at Metzger Marsh Wildlife Area is temporarily closed while the Ohio Division of Wildlife is dredging at the mouth of Wards Canal where it empties into Lake Erie to improve boating access. The project is expected to last for two weeks.
This ramp improvement project is made possible by monies generated from the Boater-Angler Fund, a state tax on fuel that motorboat users pay to provide better access to Ohio’s waterways.
