GEORGIA VOL. 5, NO. 5 I MAY, 1971 ~GEORGIA ~GAME&FISH May 1970 Volume V Number 5 CONTENTS King Of The Swamp J. Hall 1 By A Cat (Fish) Whisker Beverly Clement 5 Aquarium Affair Ted Borg 8 Clair de Loon Jean & Erv Davis 12 Outdoor World 15 Sportsmen Speak 16 Sportsman's Calendar 17 Tide Table 17 Lester G. Maddox Governor George T. Bagby Otrector. State Game & Ftsh Commtsston COMMISSIONERS Clyde Dixon Chairman Cleveland-9th District William Z. Camp, Sec. Newnan-6th District James Darby Vidalia-1st District Dr. Robert A. Collins, Jr. Americus-3rd District Charles L. Davidson, Jr. Avondale Estates-4th District Richard Tift Vice Chairman Albany-2nd District Rankin M. Smith Atlanta-5th District J. B. Langford Calhoun-7th District Judge Harley Langdale Valdosta-8th District Leonard Bassford Augusta-lOth District Jimmie Williamson Darien-Coastal District TECHNICAL SERVICES DIVISION Jack A. Crockford, Assistant Director Leon Kirkland, Fisheries Chief Hubert Handy, Game Management Chief LAW ENFORCEMENT DIVISION Bill Cline, Major Deputy State Chief, Atlanta J. D. Atchison, Major Deputy State Chief, Metter David Gould, Major Supervisor of Coastal Fisheries Brunswick GEORGIA GAME & FISH STAFF Dean Wohlgemuth Editor Staff Writers Marvin Tye John Culler J. Hall Aaron Pass Ted Borg, Photo Editor Georgia Game and fish is the olficiol monthly magazine of ~he Ge<;>r~io Game and Fish Commission, published of the Commission's off1ces, TnnlfyWoshingfon Building, 270 Washington St., Atlanta, Georgia 30334. No advertising accepted. Subscriptions ore Sl for one year or $2_.~0 f_or three years. Printed by Stein Printing Company, At/onto, Go. NotdJcotJon _of address change must include both old and new address and. ZIP code, with 30 ~ays notice. No subscription requests will be accepted without ZIP code. Art1.cles and photographs may be reprinted. Proper credit should be given: c~~trlbU tions ore welcome, but the editors assume no responsibility or /,obd,ty for lou or damage ol articles, photographs, or illustrations. Second-class postage paid at .Atlanta, Ga. It's The Punished Who Pay Last year 29 reported oil spills occurred in this country and its territories. In most cases these accidents result in a loss of wildlife, such as the loons in the story Clair de Loon. Other problems of a spill include. hampered recreation, and property damage in the affected area. In all cases an oil spill is a headache for someone. whether it is on a relatively remote beach, or in a busy harbor like Santa Barbara. The spill generally has to be cleaned up, since it is pretty hard to convince people that an oil drenched beach is better than a clean one. Large areas are usually involved. and the methods used are far from efficient. so the clean-up can turn into an expensive proposition. Who pays the bill? Well, that's another perplexing thing about oil spills. You might assume that the company owning the vessel or facility responsible for the spill would be liable for the damage it causes. Unfortunately this has not often been the case since oil spills and their inherent problems are a relatively new issue in most circles. Existing laws are generally outdated and are inadequate to provide protection and recovery for damages in these cases. and new legal controls and precedents are just being established. As a result the bulk of the expense falls on the injured party. the people whose beaches or harbors are fouled, and who want them clean again. The clean-up of a spill is usually less than perfect. Since this is a new problem. experimental methods are being tried with limited success. At the present time, howevcr; there is no completely successful way to remove the scars of an oil spill. Federal legislation is now law that promises to more equitably handle the oil spill problem. In an omnibus water pollution control bill. H.R. 4148, there is a section dealing specifically with liability and clean-up on the oil problem. This bill probably won't stop this type of pollution, but it takes a step in the right direction by placing liability on those responsible for the damage. The liability limit for a spill is $100 per gross ton of a vessel or $14 million. whichever is less. If negligence can be proven as a cause of the spill the liability for clean-up costs is unlimited. That should go a long way toward accident prevention. and increased supervision. This measure covers spills within three miles of the U. S. shoreline. but it gives the government authority to take immediate action on spills anywhere on U. S. waters. It also calls for research to develop more effective clean-up methods. This bill is definitely an advance in pollution control. and it offers some relief to those unfortunate folks who wake up to see an oil slick rolling in with the tide. But can you help but wonder how a scenic view lost forever is computed in dollars and cents, or how to replace a colony of seabirds drowned by oil in their feathers. -Aaron Pass ON THE COVER: This scene of beauty greets the angler this month, as he makes forays afield for fish. Waters such as these are also good habitat for alligators ... but his kind is rapidly disappearing. See a story on gators, "King of The Swamp," by J. Hall, Page 1. Photo by Dean Wohlgemuth. ON THE BACK COVER: Water lilies in all their splendor are a picturesque bonus to a fisherman pursuing his favorite sport. It looks peaceful, but if you drop a lure beside that pad, look out! There may be an explosion of a bass below it. Photo by Dean Wohlgemuth. Photo by Ted Borg By J. Hall There was an almost imperceptible movement among the leave , and the big raccoon emerged cautiously from the dense undergrowth, blinking to adjust his eyes to the sudden glare of the midmorning sun. After a few moments, he moved again, so softly that he caused no alarm to the blackbird chuckling quietly to him elf on a low branch nearby . Ears pricked forward , his nose quivering, the 'coon stepped carefully around the projecting knobs of the cypre s knees. His keen eyes were focused intently on the low mound of leaves and grass piled near the water's edge . . . so intently he took no notice of the large log floating soddenly a few feet away. Reassured by the quiet, the coon moved quickly to the mound and began to scratch rapidly at the compacted vegetation groping down into the warmth inside. His slender fingers had just touched a hard round object when , with a bellow of rage, the log erupted into life and the big sow 'gator charged with blinding speed. The startled coon squealed shrilly, his feet scrambling on the loose leaves, and then the powerful jaws napped shut. It was over in seconds. The gator tossed her head, turning the coon in her mouth as the rna ive jaws crushed life and bones. Then, holding the head and forequarters of the coon clamped between her teeth. she hook her head fiercely from side to side. The violence of the shaking tore the coon in half, his hind quarters flying nearly 20 feet away on the bank. With her prey reduced to eating size, the gator swallowed the fore part of the coon with several jerks of her head, then moved leisurely over to recover the other half. Her meal completed, the gator turned to her nest that the coon had almost violated. Rising hi gh on her toes, she nosed among the overturned leaves and then stopped, listening intentl y. Her keen ears had caught a faint sound down inside the mound . In a moment it came again. Urrrk! Urrrk! There was no mi staking it. With several swipe of her bony snout, the gator flung the rotting vegetation off the top of the mound , exposing the clutch of egg underneath . Several of them were already broken. Three miniature gators, their yellow stripes gleaming wetly in the sudden unlight. blinked dazedly at their mama whi le brothers and sisters struggled to escape their shell s. The big gator waited and watched as , one by one the shells were broken and their occupants emerged , grunting, to join the others. It took some time, but finall y there were 26 little gators squirming and wriggling among the leaves and sticks of the ne t. When all were free and their tin y legs strengthened, the mother grunted softly, URRK! URRRK! and turned toward the water. Immediately the little alligators followed , stumbling through the grass. taking their first steps into a long and troubled life. The American alligator is one of the most amazing creatures on this continent. A member of the order of Crocodilians, it is a direct de cendant of the thecodonts, and a first cousin to the dinosaurs. Like those huge ancient lizards, the alligator has larger hind legs. But it never rose to walk on them , as did its cousin , whose forelegs grew tiny in relation to its back legs and were used much as hands. But the alligator is virtually unchanged since it first flourished upon the earth during the Mesozoic Period , some 65 million years ago, when it and the dinosaurs ruled the world together. Perhap his survival is due, in part, to the fact that throughout these millions of years it has continued to live in a Mesozoic-like environment of warm, tropic swampland. 1 "That's close enough!" This mother gator froze the photographer in his tracks with a threatening hiss. One blow of her slowly cocking tail would easily snap a man's legs like matchsticks. The reason for her antagonistic attitude? Note the youngster just below her chin. (Photo by J. Hall) In the family of Crocodilia, which includes crocodiles, caimans and gavials, there are onl y two species of alligators, the American (Alligator mississipiensis), and the Chinese (A 1/igator sinensis), which lives in the tropic of Asia. Few crocodiles exist in North America. There are a small number in the Everglades at the Southern tip of Florida, but they require too warm a climate to ever venture much further northward. The caiman is native to Central and South America and Mexico, and closely re embles hi s cousin , the alligator, although he does not grow as large. The gavial is also smaller, has a very long, pointed snout, almost like an alligator gar fish , but much longer and is native to India. The American alligator himself is found naturally only in the southern United States, from central Texas to the Atlantic. At one time, however, when the climate of this continent must have been greatl y different than it is now, he lived over many parts of the United States and even in Southern Canada! Hatched from a hard-shelled egg about the size of a goose egg, the alligator i about eight or nine inches long at birth. Its body is soft and black, and has yellow stripes which disappear as it grows older. The softness of its body soon leaves also, and along its back are formed bon y protective ridges and plates, similar to those of a turtle. On the alligator however, these do not fuse into a shell but remain movable and flexible . The belly skin is soft, and it is this part of the hide that is used in making alligator leather goods. The young gator does not eat for two or three weeks after it is hatched , but li ves upon its own yolk with in its body. After it begins eating. however, its appetite is voracious , and it will eat almost anything that moves within reach. It commonly feeds on in ects. small fish , rodents, birds, crayfish and in fact, anything it can handle. It grows rapidly at first , about one foot a year for the first six or even years of its life, and then the growth rate slows considerably. When mature, a male gator often reaches eight to ten feet in len gth, and wi ll weigh around 500 pounds. The female seldom goes over eight feet and 150 to 300 pounds. Even as late as a century ago. much larger alli gators were found. An 18 foot gator wa not uncommon. and speci men were measured up to 20 feet in length . Occasionally now a 12 to 14 foot gator may be seen. but they are very unu ual. and it is rare that one survives lon g enough to reach that size. Gators do not live to the fantastic ages often attributed to them . Parks and zoos are fond of claiming that their gators are hundreds of years old , and some insist theirs must surely have swaggered down the gangway of Noah's Ark. Actually, the expert di sagree on the subject, but most et the average age of senility at around 60. although at least one swears he is personally acquainted with a centenarian. Since the gator spends most of its life in the water, it is speciall y equipped for its aquatic environment. Its ears (wh ich are at least as good as those of a human if not keener) are covered by flaps of ski n which it can close to keep out water. The nostrils, which are at the tip of the long bony snout, are raised , much like twin snorkles, and can also be sealed when the gator submerges. From the nostrils, two bony tubes run back through the snout to the rear of the gator's throat to carry air to his lungs. In front of these passages, he has a thick flap of skin which he can move to seal off his throat. In this manner, he can breathe almost totally submerged and can swim with his mouth open to catch his prey without water pouring down his throat. The gator's eyes are also a disti nctive feature, bulging up on top of his head like twin headlamps. They appear to be set in bony prominences on his skull , but this appearance is deceptive. Actually, this prominence is only ski n. The eye sockets themselves are set well back in the skull, and for protection. the gator can squint his eyes far back in out of danger. Hi eyes are also equipped for underwater viewing, for in addition to having regular eyelids he has a third eyelid , or nictitating membrane which moves vertically across the eye. With his eyelids open, he can draw this transparent membrane across to protect his eyes and keep water out of them, and yet still see perfectly well while submerged . (Birds also have this membrane, perhaps to protect their eyes from air currents while flying.) The alligator has 30 to 40 teeth in each jaw. They have no roots to attach them to the jaw bones, and are therefore frequently lost, but the gator promptly replaces them with others. Since the gator swallows most of his food whole, his teeth are used mainly for gripping and holding. Usually, the gator will drag his prey down under water and drown it. Then, if it is too large to swallow whole, he will break it apart by shaking it, as described earlier, or by whirling. This is a characteristic of all crocodilians. A large animal may be seized in the powerful jaws and then, using his tail as a propeller, the alligator spins rapidly in the water like a log. The smashing force of this whirling quickly tears almost any size victim to pieces, and large gators have been known to kill and eat deer and even bears. Instances of alligators attacking humans are rare, and generally, when it has occurred, the gator has been surprised into attacking. It was reported to me that one such incident is reputed to have happened in the Okefenokee Swamp. A ranger of the U. S. Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife (which controls the swamp) was working one day in an area which contained many fallen logs and submerged stumps. It was necessary for him to wade out into this area, which he did with caution. Although the water was only about knee deep, the bottom was littered with logs and other hazards which he could feel 2 A non-gregarious creature, the alligator usually prefers solitude of his own company. Close association with other gators frequently results in quarrels. This toothy chap is grumbling with his neighbors because they're crowding him. Since he swallows most of his food whole, the gator's teeth are primarily used for holding and crushing his prey. (Photo by J. Hall) with his feet. Suddenly the water ex- ploded beneath him. He barely bad time to realize that powerful jaws bad seized him, the teeth clamping viciously into the fleshy part of his hip, when the world crashed about him and be was whirled rapidly, several times, with ter- rific force. Fortunately for the ranger, there were a number of small trees around him , and as the gator spun him, he slammed into one of these and bad the presence of mind to throw his arms around it and bold on. The gator's teeth wrenched loose from his hip, tearing off most of his pants and a good sized chunk of bide, but he managed to es- The alligator matures sexually at job has just begun. The young are ex- cape with only scars to remind him of around six or seven years, when he is tremely vulnerable, and are legitimate the painful and terrifying experience. six or seven feet in length. The noisiest prey for fish , animals, water birds and Although cases such as this are very of all crocodilians, the male gator ex- papa gator, who is cannibalistic. The unusual , gators have often been known presses his amorous ambitions in bel- female quickly takes her little ones a to attack small farm animals, such as lows that can be heard for miles. This, safe distance away from the breeding pigs or goats, and, like the smoker who he believes, helps to attract a female grounds and watches over them care- prefers one brand of cigarettes above all and also warns other bulls away from fully. Until the young gators are on others, they'll walk a mile for a dog. It his territory. His warnings aren't always their own , the mother is never far away. was Johnny Hickox, a guide at the Oke- effective, however, and the mating sea- I still laugh at the youngster from fenokee Swamp Park at Waycross, Ga. son, (usually around April or May) , South Carolina who got his first indoc- who told me about the couple from the sparks terrible battles among the males, trination to alligators. A large sow was north who visited the park one day. who frequently lose eyes, tails, toes and standing guard over her brood of little They were accompanied by their even entire legs in the fray. In addition ones, and the boy, about 10 years old, primped and perfumed poodle which , to his noisy "crooning," the male also was fascinated by them and, I think, Johnny said , was actually dyed pink and has scent glands in his chin and cloaca hoping to catch one. Suddenly I saw the had a blue ribbon in its hair. It was hot which further assist his advertising cam- gator move. The child whirled , his little that day, so the people ignored the paign. legs churning like pistons, put his head warning signs in the parking lot and tied After mating, the male goes on about down and charged . . . straight into me. the pooch's leash to the door handle of his affairs and leaves the business of I caught him , set him back on his feet their car while they went back to look birth and child rearing to his wife. The and , barely able to suppress a grin, over the park. When they returned , the female alligator is, in her way, a para- asked , "What's the matter? What hap- tracks were still wet on the ground and gon of virtue among reptiles. She is a pened?" He stammered for a moment, all that remained of their pink poodle very good mother. Since she is a reptile, then managed to get out, "She swole up was its pretty little rhinestone collar and and therefore cold blooded, she bas no an' hiss at me!" the leash . . . still tied to the door han- body beat with which to incubate her I could recall the incident with pain- dle. eggs, which require a constant tempera- ful clarity while taking the photos that The gator's tail is perhaps his most ture and humidity in order to batch. accompany this article. I kept moving in powerful weapon. The saurian uses the The female builds a large nest, usually closer and closer to a big female, booing tail to stun or kill his prey, sweeping it around three feet high and six feet to get a clearer picture of her young, around to the waiting jaws. There is across, of leaves, sticks, grass and other when she suddenly reared her head. Her enough force in the tail to break a large vegetation. She packs this down by jaws opened , the big sides swelled. animal's legs or back. In using the tail crawling over it, and then in a depres- HisssSSSSS! She said "Get!" I got! And as a weapon, the gator bends his sion in the top , she lays 20 to 40 eggs , if you don't think that'll bring up the body like a bow, then snaps it suddenly which she covers with more vegetation. hairs on the back of your head, you in the reverse direction with terrific Now, while the beat from the sun and take the camera and make the pictures force. The blow might be compared to the fermentation and decomposition of next time! I'll watch. that of a 100-pound sledge hammer. His the vegetable material incubate her eggs, After an alligator reaches about four jaws are powerful only when closing. A the female guards the nest from rats, feet in length , his worries should be man could easily hold a gator's jaws skunks, coons, snakes and other egg lov- over. He has no more natural enemies. shut with only one band. A gator's jaws ing marauders, and awaits the arrival of and by rights. has earned the title of open however, are a different matter al- her family. If the weather is dry, she as- King of the Swamp. But now his most together, for when they come together, sures the continued dampness and hu- fearful and predatory of all enemies be- (only the lower jaw moves) , it's an en- midity of the nest by occasionally uri- comes a real threat, for he has attained tirely different story. Something's gonna nating on it. a size to be desired and hunted . . . by give! When they hatch , the mother gator's man. When the white man first came to 3 this continent and sent back descriptions of it. the alligators numbered in the millions. It was said of the St. John's River in Florida, for example. that it might have been possible to walk across the river on the backs of the alligators, and reach the other side with dry feet. (I presume no one was ever foolish enough to try it.) But, like the feathers of the egret, it was discovered there might be a commercial value in their hides, and man hesitated not a minute to exploit it. Between 1800 and the turn of the century, more than 20112 million gators were slaughtered in Florida for their hides. Since then, an untold number have been killed , not only for hides, but stuffed, made into souvenir key chains or sold as pets. Now, laws in mo t states protect gators, at least in that respect, and the stuffed gator and souvenirs which you buy are almost all caimans, imported from South America. (Let's hope they put a stop to it soon!) But gator bides are still valuable, and with good skins selling for five to seven dollars a foot, poachers are still responsible for the killing of 40 to 50 thousand American alligators each year. Like a sort of sea serpent, the alligator cruises his murky domain. Only the tips of his snorkle-like nostrils, his eyes and his armored back are exposed above the surface of the water. Despite his bulk, the gator can move almost soundlessly and will submerge, tail first , to suddenly reappear several yards away, alert for any sign of danger. (Photo by Ted Borg) And although the law does protect them, the laws have so far proved ineffectual to any great extent. Although the Federal government has classed them as an "endangered species," this has certainly not softened the hearts of the men who make bootleg dollars off their hides, and the gator surely faces extinction, and soon, if the present rate of slaughter continues. But aside from the bides, you might ask, of what value is the alligator? Well, in the first place, simply that he is here! What right have we, either through greed, carelessness, brutality or for whatever reason, to doom a species to extinction? We did not put them here, we certainly cannot bring them back or re-create them once they are gone, and we have no justifiable reason for presuming to control their destiny to that extent. And thus there is the philosophic value. Of more practical value is the ecological importance of the alligator. Wherever the alligator has disappeared, the entire ecological and biological balance of the region has been altered. A major portion of the gator's diet is composed of trash fish, such as gar and bowfin. When the gator leaves, these fish take over and , being hardier than others, soon crowd more desirable fish , such as the largemouth bass and other game species, out of existence. And so the sportsmen suffer. In his activities in his swampland habitat, the gator is constantly altering the environment itself. By constant usage of his "trails," he keeps the vegetation pushed back, preventing the swamp from being fiiJed in by expanding plant growth and succession. By opening new trails and digging dens and "gator holes" in the swamp he creates new swampland which, in many cases during periods of drought. is the only source of water, and possibly the major protection to the water table in that re- gion . Conversely, during periods of heavy rainfall, it is the trails kept open by the gator which channel the excess water away and help to control flood- ing. And thus his economic value. But poachers are not his worst ene- mies . Of far greater danger to the alliga- tor is man's destruction of his habitat. Marsh and swamplands have been filled or drained, his waters have been pol- luted and poisoned, the fish and wildlife upon which he feeds and depends have been eliminated. Dams have been built which have hastened the process of suc- ce sion, and de pite the frantic efforts of the gator to fight back, his trails, his water holes . . . and his home, are being choked and filled with the stran- gling spread of vegetation , and the wamps are disappearing. True, man mu t use the land to his best advantage. But utilization does not necessarily mean exploitation. Usually, much more can be achieved by simple cooperation . . . with the needs of the land. the wildlife, and with Nature her- self. The alligator has been around for a long time. In 65 million years, he has surely learned many things about living in peaceful coexistence with Nature, while in our short span of time we seem only to be able to feud with her. Per- haps it would be very well for us to learn more about the gator. We might profit from his experiences that have made him King of the Swamp. ~ 4 Catfish Farming? BYA CAT(FISH) WHISKER By Beverly Clement Suddenly everyone's talking about the channel catfish. Why all the interest in this bewhiskered creature? Because he is now bringing in cash and fast becoming big business in the South. Some people are even predicting the catfish industry will , in 10 years, be where the poultry industry is today. A word of warning should be mentioned , however. Anyone considering raising channel catfish should be sure he has all the facts in hand . There have been many unsuccessful attempts due mainly to a failure to obtain necessary knowledge of the basic principles of fish culture. The major limiting factor appears to be water quality. The oxygen cycle within a pond depends on the plankton, fish in turn depend on the oxygen produced by the plankton. Phytoplankton are small green plants su pended in the water which produce oxygen during daylight hours. There is always a demand for oxygen, not only from the fish , but also from the decomposition of organic matter such as rotting plants, wood , feed and wa te products from the fi h. The fish and decomposing material use oxygen all the time, but the plankton produce it only during periods of sunlight. Due to this a cloudy day can result in an oxygen shortage in the pond . The pond owner should have some equipment for testin g the oxygen in the pond periodically. Kits, which are adequate but inexpenstve, are available. When a low oxygen level is found , some type of artificial aeration should be used. The most practical method would be pumping surface water into the air and back into the pond. If fish are observed in distress and an analysis of oxygen shows the oxygen level is acceptable, your local Game and Fish biologist should be contacted immediately. Diseases or toxicants which cannot be determined without professional training may be causing the problem. Proper stocking is also important. F ingerlings should be obtained from a reputable hatchery, in good ccdition, and be disease free. Whenever possible stock fingerlings at least four inches long. When fingerlings of mixed sizes are stocked a difference in growth rate tends to make the larger ones grow faster and the smaller ones stay small. Proper feeds and feeding method ~ are necessary to insure the most efficient feed usage. In ponds stocked with a low number of fi sh per acre, a supplemental fef'd in addition to natural foods already present may be sufficient. An intensive culture means a large number of fish per acre, and there may not be enough natural food. In this case a complete ra- tion mu t be used . Check the feed being used to see if it is correct for the situation. The basic recommendation for feeding is three percent of the body weight per day. Higher percentages are now being used successfully in experiments. However, under most circumstances a feeding rate that exceeds thirty pounds of feed per acre per day should not be used. Actual samples of the fish for calculating the feeding rate is preferable to following a set schedule. A sample of the fish is removed, weighed, and an average weight is obtained. The sample should be around ten per cent of the total number of fish in the pond for acceptable accuracy. This is multiplied by the total number of fish, and the feeding rate is determined from the resulting total weight. The fish are fed every day or six days a week. Fingerlings are available from the many hatcheries which produce them for sale to pond owners. These hatcheries keep pairs of brood catfish in pens or ponds with containers provided for spawning. When spawning is complete, the eggs are hatched by two different methods. In one, the female is removed and the male hatches the eggs. He fans the eggs with his fins, providing the constant current required to hatch the eggs. When the young catfish are first 5 A catfish like this provides great sport on light tackle, and is great in the frying pan, too. These factors account for the popularity of catfish among Georgia fishermen. hatched they are called fry, and are transferred to rearing ponds where they grow to stocking size. The other method is to collect the eggs and put them in a trough with paddlewheels. The eggs are held in wire baskets while the paddlewheels provide required current. When the fry have hatched, they are transferred to the rearing pond. There are several aspects to raising of channel catfish. Channel catfish may be stocked in combination with largemouth bass and bream, usually at the rate of 100 per acre. These are not fed artificial feed , but utilize natural food. When the initial stocking is fished out, catfish are not restocked because the bass would eat the fingerlings. Another type of catfish culture is the "fish-out" or "fee-fishing" pond. The fish are stocked at the rate of 15002000 per ace. They are fed and raised to harvestable size. There should be no other species of fish in the pond, as adequate growth of the catfish cannot be expected if other fish are also eating the food. If a water supply is used which contains other fish , filtering of the water is essential. When the f.ish have reached harvestable size the pond is opened to the public for fishing. The fee is usually $1 per day plus 50-60 cents per pound charged for the fish. These ponds are periodically drained and restocked . Commercial production requires more extensive planning. The ponds must be properly constructed. They should be cleared of all stumps and debris, and catch basins should be built. Equipment for oxygen testing and artificial aeration is needed . Fingerlings are stocked at a rate of 2000-2400 per acre, and are fed a complete ration. At the end of a growing season, when the fish are of harvestable size, the pond is drained and the fish are sold. It is essential that a satisfactory market for the catfish be found before production is started. There are many potential markets for channel catf,ish. They may be sold to a local market. Individuals may come to the pond to purchase fish or the fish may be taken to various places for sale. Arrangements may be made for selling fish to a local restaurant or to a restaurant chain. Catfish may also be sold for use in a "put-and-take" pond. Commercial processing plants are developing which buy harvestable fish. In some cases, the catfish may be raised on a contract basis. The price per pound 6 varies according to distance from the plant, feed conversion, and other factors. It would probably range from 30 to 40 cents per pound. It is most important in commercial operation that the pond owner know his market and his expected price before starting production. An additional method has recently been developed for raising channel catfish. They are reared in a cage one cubic meter in size (36"x47.5"x36" deep) and suspended in a pond by means of styrofoam or plastic jugs. A desirable stocking rate appears to be 500 fish per cage, harvested at approximately one pound in size. Hardware cloth .is generally used on a wooden or metal frame and treated with preservative. The mesh size must be at least 1h inch to allow sufficient water exchange. This exchange is necessary to remove wastes, and bring in an adequate amount of oxygen. The stocking rate for a pond remains the same, 2000-2400 fish per acre. There are many advantages to this type of culture, especially the ease of harvest. Although it would be impossible to include all the information on catfish in one article, it is hoped that this will give a general .idea of what is involved. The channel catfish industry is definitely expanding in Georgia. Anyone who has tasted the final product knows why. >'=- The author checks the oxygen level in a catfish pond by chemical analysis. Such testing is a necessity in commercial production. Fisheries biologists check the growth of catfish in an experimental cage. The Commission is testing these cages to determine their feasibility for commercial production. This test cage is the home of about 500 catfish. If current experiments prove it successful it could add a new dimension to fish farming in Georgia. 7 Pretty Miss Patricia Bramblett, a student at Jenkins County Elementary School, Millen, Ga., has a bright smile for these largemouth bass ... and seems to be getting a smile back. The fish are just a few of those on display for the public to see at an aquarium at Millen National Fish Hatchery, about five miles north of the town of Millen, on U. S. 25 near Magnolia Springs State Park. Jenkins County Elementary School 5th graders taught by Mrs. Ruby Lane recently paid a visit to the Millen Hatchery aquarium, and learned more about the kinds of fish that can be found in their state. Game & Fish Magazine Photo Editor Ted Borg was there, too, and his lens captured the fascination on the faces of these youngsters as they paid a call on the citizens of the underwater world. Man, can't you just see us getting into a mess of redbreast like this down at the creek? This seems to be what's in the minds of William Lariscy, left, Bill Meyer, center and L. C. Williams. They're probably wishing they had their cane poles with them! Where to start? The youngsters darted around from one glass to another, hardly daring to waste a precious second for fear they might miss something. Hank Joyner, biological technician, tells Mrs. Lane and Principal Lewis Johnson about the aquarium. Organized groups are admitted free at the aquarium, while individuals may see it all for only a dime. The facility is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Which one is really in the tank? Actually, Herb Reichelt, Aquarium Curator, isn't really in the tank ... he's on the other side, using this unique pair of tongs to pick out trash from the crappie tank. Even fish have to have their house cleaned once in awhile! The crappie doesn't seem to mind having his janitorial services performed for him. There's lots to see in the Aquarium. To be exact, more than 700 species are on display. There are largemouth bass ... . .. there are chain pickerel, also known as jack/ish (Georgia holds the world record for both largemouth and chain pickerel) ... 10 .. . and readear sunfish, usually known as shellcrackers, a really popular character among bream fishermen ... ... and of course, you can't look at fish without taking a peek at the bluegill, probably the most popular of all fish, not only in Georgia but all over the nation. These and other species may been seen from an overpass walkway on a stream near the aquarium, where many people feed bread to them. This brute is a 25-pound albino catfish raised at the hatchery. At 11 ~ years old, he's the "grandaddy" of the aquarium, having been on display since the aquarium opened in 1963. It's time to go home, but Martha Jo Bragg and De-Anne Branne have to bid a fond farewell to the chain pickerel. Refugee From Oil-Troubled Waters CLAIR de LOON By Jean and Erv Davis We found her on a cold February day, when a Northeaster was shoveling clouds of gray sand down our coastal island beach. She huddled near our granite seawall, eyes tightly closed; beak tucked under one wing. She looked miserable. Though we approached on tiptoe, she raised her strong cobra-like neck in alarm and glared balefully at us out of ruby-red eyes. Avoiding her deadly-looking three inch beak, and trying to ignore her neck-hair-raising wails of distress and anger, we managed to carry the great bird home wrapped insecurely in an old beach towel. She was beautiful, about the size of a large goose, with silky gray back feathers checkered at random with black and white. When we placed the bird in a sheltered dog run at the side of our beach house, she made several leap-frog attempts to escape, pumping her sturdy, pointed wings in a futile effort to be- come airborne. Her large webbed feet, set far back under her body, were definitely not designed for walking or perching. We guessed she'd be a powerful swimmer. The bird we found was a loon, one of a flock of more than thirty common loons which struggled ashore on our Golden Isles beaches. Some of the birds were already dead, and all were weak and helpless. Closer examination of our loon, which a friend immediately dubbed Clair de Loon, revealed the reason why. Clair's usually snow-white underbelly and neck feathers were saturated with a stiff, sticky mass of diesel oil. Coated with the tar-like goo, the loon could neither fly nor dive for fish-and as the oil hardened, Clair's feathers lost their waterproofing and insulating ability. Her flock had been spending the winter Clair de Loon, one of 100,000 waterfowl who fall victim to coastal oil pollution each year. She was one of a large flock of common loons who managed to struggle ashore on Georgia's coastal beaches after being heavily oiled. Most of the birds died of pneumonia or liver degeneration, almost inevitable results of contact with oil slicks. II I I' I. J ... 12 Clair quickly learns the difference between finger-length minnows and friendly fingers. St. Simons sportsman Sandy Hightower supplied the bird with 30 or 40 of the small fish each day. Clair's neck and breast plumage, usually snow-white is darkened by diesel oilpossibly discharged illegally by a ship pumping bilge within the 50-miles-from shore limit. riding the whitecapped , olive waves off our Georgia coast when they swam afoul of the oil-slick, most probably residue from a ship iJlegally pumping bilge too close to shore. Helpless, the loons drifted ashore to die-of starvation, exposure, and liver poisoning. We were determined to save Clair if we could, but knew nothing about the care and feeding of loons, especially oil-coated loons. These birds inhabit lakes of the northern United States and Canada, and though they fly south when their homeland lakes freeze over, they are seldom seen near our southern shores. With the help of a local veterinarian, several bird books, and an amateur naturalist from Jekyll, our neighbor-island, we mapped out what we hoped was an appropriate course of action. We concluded, from our own experience with another oil-coated bird, and from the accounts of experts who had tried to clean oiled feathers, that this was no job for amateurs. We decided to wait and give nature a chance, hoping Clair's oily feathers would eventually be moulted and replaced with clean, new ones. Since this might take several months, we'd need to find a daily source of fresh fish for our loon. A neighbor, "Salty" Hightower, who is .in the bait business, offered to supply Clair with as many minnows as she could eat. He probably regretted his hasty promise when, some two months later, Clair was still gulping down his fine, fresh minnows at the rate of thirty each day. At first Clair ignored her food , but after we stuffed several minnows down her gullet, she got the idea. We filled a small plastic pool with water and in it, placed live minnows at feeding time. Clair chased them enthusiastically, securing the wriggling black fish with her sharp beak, then maneuvering them-always head-first--down the hatch. Soon she lost her fear of us, and would take fish from our hands without biting, clucking whenever we came into sight of her dog run. She never bit without reason , but she hated to be touched, and our hands were always pecked when we examined her to note the progress of the new feathers. In a short time, we learned to interpret Clair's various cries. Her short cluck was for recognition and food ; a higher, shorter wail signaled annoyance, and her long, loud distant-train-whistle cry meant she was really distressed. Late one night, a neighborhood cat invaded Clair's domain, probably attracted by the smell of fish. We were wakened by loud, indignant howls from Clair and screeches of pure terror from the cat, who must have found it a novel experience to be attacked by a giant bird with a three-inch stiletto beak and murderous red eyes! 13 After two months of living in a sand-floored dog run, the large bird welcomes the chance to stretch her wings again. New legislation and strict surveillance of coastal waters are possible solutions to the growing problem of coastal oil pollution. Around the middle of March, we noticed Clair was eating less and seemed restless. We checked the Almanac, and found th at this was the time of the migration of ducks and geese back to their breeding grounds in the north. Clair was hearing the call of the wild, but was still grounded. We hated to keep her in captivity, but knew if we released her too soon , she'd starve. She was her old impudent self in another week when the migration season passed. After we'd boarded Clair for almost two months, we began to doubt she'd ever fly again. Most of the oil was gone, but her new feathers weren't growing in properly. Thinking that loons, whose wings are relatively small in proportion to their large, heavy bodies, might need a large expanse of water as a run-way, I carried Clair to a nearby tide pool. She swam a few yards underwater, surfaced, and swam back to me. I waded out into the pool, flapping my arms and feeling foolish , hoping she'd take the hint. Clair calmly paddled after me. I splashed back to the beach. Again she followed . Her behavior was puzzling, especially as Clair was an adult bird when we found her, and was still far from tame. Loon usually avoid the company of humans entirely, preferring to live alone with their lifetime mates on some isolated lake until the flock bands together to migrate south. Yet here was Clair, a twelve-pound , full-grown loon, following me like a puppy. I carried her home, she clucked for fish , then settled down comfortably to preen her feathers. Our short Georgia spring was almost over, and we were concerned about the effect of our hot summer on our northern visitor. As the days grew warmer, Clair's energy ebbed. We wrote to a nearby marine institute, asking if they could find a place for Clair which would more closely simulate her natural habitat. They answered that a federal permit was needed to keep migratory birds, and advised us to write to a Florida bird sanctuary. Before we mailed the letter, Clair became ill , and in the few short hours while we frantically tried to locate a veterinarian on Sunday, Clair de Loon was dead. We buried her, not in the large, sand-floored dog run, but among the wild sea oats on the dunes. A flowering beach plant marks her grave. Unfortunately, the story of Clair de Loon is a common one today. Each year, thousands of our sea birds die under similar circumstances; many on our beaches and many more, unrecorded, at sea. The oceans are our last unspoiled frontiers , symbols of freedom and space in a world where man crowds nature more closely each day. Because the seas are seemingly limitless, the fal- lacy exists that the seas are unspoilable. Even our vast oceans are natural resources which need protection, and oil pollution is not only a threat to 1oons and other sea birds, but to all marine life, as well. It is difficult, of course, to predict or prevent accidents at sea which cause deadly oil slicks, but new legislation can provide more stringent measures-especially for ships which flout existing oil pollution laws. After Clair's death , we asked a representative of the U. S. Coast Guard why these ships were not caught and punished. His reasonable reply was that the Coast Guard couldn't possibly follow every ship out of the fifty-mile limit, where it is legal for ships to pump bilge. Under present laws, a ship-foreign or domestic-must be caught "in the act" before an arrest can be made. "A good deal of this coastal pollution could be prevented," says Wildlife Major David Gould, Supervisor of Coastal Fisheries for the Georgia State Game and Fish Commission in Brunswick, "if the Oil Pollution Act of 1961 were effectively revised . As the law now stands, the hands of the law enforcement agencies are tied. The Oil Pollution Act needs revision-right now." All of Clair's feathered friends would undoubtedl y appreciate that. ,_ 14 the "Admiration" Captures Amateur outdoor world William E. (Billy) Smith, second from right, former State Game and Fish Commissioner from Americus (Third District) is awarded a plaque by Commissioner Richard Tift of Albany, honoring his 101/2 years of service on the Commission. At left are Commission Chairman Clyde Dixon and Commission Director George T: Bagby. Smith's post was recently taken over by Dr. Robert A. Collins, also of Americus. By John Culler A bird dog trainer from Iliinois who has run dogs all over the U. S. says he thinks the Southwest Georgia area is the greatest bird country in the world. H . N . Holmes of Springfield, 11Iinois made the statement after his sevenyear-old pointer female captured the National Amateur Quail Championship held on Wildfair, Blue Springs and Pineland Plantations near Albany in March. Sixty-odd dogs wee entered in the trial, which ran a full week in temperatures that climbed over the 70-degree mark several afternoons. Holmes' liver and white pointer, "Gunsmoke's Admiration," found nine coveys during her one and a half hour race, and ran what the judges called "a nice forward race." Championships are nothing new to Holmes or his dog. Admiration merely added the quail championship to the pheasant and prairie chicken championships she won last year. She was also runner-up in this same quail trial last year. Second place went to Wildfair's Horsepower, owned by John Grant, Jr. of Albany. He found eleven coveys and finished strong. A New Threat to Georgia's Marshes? "Chemical pesticides are reaching reported on studies which show that the estuaries," says Jack Lowe, biologist very low levels of pollution from herbi- with the U. S. Bureau of Commercial cides (chemical weed killers) caused Fisheries in Gulf Breeze, Fla. labora- oysters to shrink two-thirds and to stop tory. ''The estuarine ecosystem is liable growing for two to three months. to be exposed to long-term, low levels of pesticides residues," he told the group of scientists and other concerned specialists from all over the U. S. who at- Fishing Rodeo Feeds tended the Federal Water Pollution Poor Kids Control Agency's Pesticide Ecology Seminar at the Univ. of Ga. Feb. 24-26. If you go fishing May 16 at the East Marine crustaceans and shellfish are Point Reservoir in Douglas County near fantastically sensitive to pesticide resi- Lithia Springs, you can help underprivi- dues in the environment, and can be se- leged school children have a better verely damaged even by amounts too breakfast each day. small to kill outright, according to The Lithia Springs Jaycees will hold a Lowe. As an example be cited studies Fishing Rodeo that day, from sunrise to which show that shrimp exposed to a sundown , with the proceeds to be used very low concentration of pesticide, 1lo primarily to finance their project to pro- part per billion, died in four weeks. vide breakfast for underprivileged (A part per million, ppm, .is one and school children. one-half inches in the total circumfer- The rodeo is open to adults and ence of the earth. One part per billion, youngsters alike, with prizes being given ppb, is one thousand times smaller than for four species of fi sh in each age that!) Blue crabs and oysters are also group. Prizes will be given for the larg- sensitive, Lowe reminded the audience. est bass, bream, catfish and crappie, and Dr. Phillip Butler, Research Consult- for the largest fish of the day, a grand ant with the Gulf Breeze Jab, said that prize of an electric fishing motor will be "small, nibbling mortality is going on presented. every day in our streams and estuaries," Entry fee is $5 per adult, and $2.50 due to pesticide pollution, primarily per child under 12, which includes use from DDT and some Mirex. Dr. Butler fee on the lake. H. N. Holmes of Springfield, Ill. with his pointer female, "Gunsmoke's Admiration," which captured the National Amateur Quail Championship held near Albany in March. She now has won every national all-age amateur championship. 15 We just thought this was a unique layout which would interest our readers. Obviously, it's virtually impossible to give "equal time and space" to every fish camp in the state. No intent is made to publicize any particular facility in that way, only to provide our readers with helpful information. I think your letter covers the subject well. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. BOATING CLASSES I was reading in a local paper here in Lowndes County about a boating class. We would like to know if there will be classes of this type in this area. If so, we would like to know and attend. I would appreciate this information. John D. Moore Valdosta, Ga. PIER FEES On a recent fishing trip to Jekyll Island I saw the new marina which is supposed to be the new "hot spot" for that area's fishing. The place looked good to me. I often fish the surrounding waters and, therefore, was very angry that the Jekyll Island Authority is charging $1 per adult to fish in the new marina which isn't even completed. Since the marina is a hole dredged on the river and is affected by tides as is the river since it is channelled to the river, why should the authority charge to fish there when the waters are public property? Do you have any knowledge of this matter? If so, what are the plans for the marina? I think that the $1 per person charge will discourage many people including myself from fishing there. There is a new pier at the other end of the island that doesn't draw a large crowd for the same reason. I understand that the reason for the charge at the marina is because the Jekyll Authority was unsuccessful in collecting the $1 at the pier. Am I correct? Richard H. Griffis Marietta, Ga . We don't actually have the answers to your questions. I might point out, however, that it's general practice for piers in saltwater to charge a fee of about $1 or more for fishing privileges. Those piers cost money to build! A concessionaire has to make a living. And let's face it, piers do help us to enjoy our sport more. You pay to rent a boat to fish those public waters, too . or buy gasoline for your own boat. MORE INDOOR FISHING We receive your Georgia Game and Fish magazine every month. The whole family enjoys your magazine very much . . There is an article in the February tssue that I feel needs more research. I refer to "Fishing in the Great Indoors" by Mr. Marvin Tye. I am in complete agreement with the majority of statements made by Mr. Tye. However, when he states "The indoor fish- ing phenomenon in Georgia seems to be confined entirely to Lake Allatoona," he is in error. I have had an enclosed, heated in winter and cooled in summer, lighted at night, house on Clark Hill Lake since last August. The catches have been just about the same as those from Allatoona, crappie, white bass, hybrids, catfish, bream, and bass. Enclosed is a picture of the largest black bass caught in my house. There have been any number of 4 & 5 pounds caught. The 92 pounder was caught by Mrs. Ralph Blackman of Lincolnton, Ga. The house is 24'x46', floating over 30 to 40 feet of water on styrofoam blocks. This is anchored in place with pipe. The house is approached from the shore by way of floating a walkway. In fairness to Clark Hill Reservoir, I ask that a similar article be written about Clark Hill. Ralph G. Pritchard Lincolton, Ga. Sorry we weren't aware of your facility, FAVORS HIGHER FEES Being an avid sportsman hunter I would go along with almost any reasonable increase in license fees. It is a generally accepted fact that numerous violations still occur within the State notwithstanding the outstanding job being accomplished by our law enforcement personnel. It is my opinion that increases in fees should be partially earmarked for additional enforcement personnel if necessary to further reduce poaching and other violations. Robert H. Hickman Forest Park, Ga. FULL OF ROE? In June 1969, while waiting in the doctor's reception room, I read, for the first time, a copy of the Georgia Game and Fish magazine, and I immediately subscribed to it and have enjoyed it ever since. Is it true a fisherman can definitely tell if a fish has roe, when a bream or bass is landed? If so, how? Should f ish with roe be returned to the water if landed unhurt? The enclosed clipping, "Fisherman's Prayer" is from the DAV magazine, author unknown. Thought you might like to reprint it for your magazine. FISHERMAN'S PRAYER I pray that I live to fish Until my dying day. And when it comes to my last cast I then most humbly pray, When in the Lord's Great Landing Net And peacefully asleep That in His mercy I be judged Big enough to keep. Joe R. Walters Columbus, Ga. A fish whose stomach seems extraordinarily large during spring months may be presumed to be full of roe, though there's no positive way to tell. However, there is no advantage in returning them to the water. Generally speaking, a small percentage of the fish are able to produce a sufficient amount of offspring to maintain the numbers of fish. This is especially true with bass, but may not be so in the case of redbreasts. TIMBER TROUBLES I am concerned with the timberlands of Georgia. Where my father and I used to squirrel hunt is now cut down. Everywhere we look for a new place, timber is usually cut, or if it isn't cut, most of it is pine. If they keep cutting, I wonder if we will have any woods to hunt in , especially hardwoods. Another thing I am greatly concerned with is the wild turkey flock in Georgia. I read the November issue and I'm greatly pleased with the stocking plan. I hope seriously that this plan for wild turkeys works and we can get the birds back in Georgia where they will be a good huntable population . Keep up the good work and keep those magazines coming. I think the Commission is doing an excellent job. Wayne Money Columbus, Ga. Two separate organizations give such classes, the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, and the United States Power Squadrons. Information on these groups is generally available at marinas, and usually at shops dealing primarily with boats and boating. Specific information on the classes can be had by contacting the Coast Guard Auxiliary or the Power Squadron nearest you. The classes you mention; however, may be given by a local group. In this case, checking with the newspaper which ran the story might be helpful. NO BEAVER SEASON? Enjoyed reading Sharon Davis' article on the beaver pond in the January issue of the magazine. We could use more stories of this sort in future issues. There are quite a few beaver ponds here in Jasper County on Georgia Kraft property. I have a question that I think is important. Since the beaver is considered to be important in the production of the wood duck, why is there no closed season on the trapping or hunting of beaver??? I've noticed several beaver ponds near Jackson Lake where the beaver have been trapped out, killed, or otherwise destroyed, and their dams torn down thus draining the ponds. This is not conservation. In addition, I'm in full agreement with Mr. Lewis A. Ray of Marietta, Ga. on his statement in the February issue of Georgia Game and Fish magazine concerning poaching in Georgia's Piedmont Section. 1 can only speak however for Jasper County, and agree that we lack enforcement of the fishing/hunting laws in this section. However, I will agree with Mr. Bagby that it takes money to hire more rangers, and right now, that seems to be the catch. A friend of mine and myself, while looking over some swamps where beaver have built ponds, came across a large pile of bags in which cattle pellets had been contained. These were near a certain deer hunting club near Jackson Lake. There are no cattle near this hunting club. Could they be baiting for deer? It makes a fellow wonder. L. Winburn Monticello, Ga. Beaver may be trapped only during the regular trapping season, however there is no closed season on shooting beavers if you're good enough to do it. This is because of a very plentiful number of beavers in the state, and low hunting pressure, making it unnecessary to close the season. To many landowners, the abundance of the beaver is a real problem. However, this same abundance is credited with providing a comeback in wood duck populations. The beavers are indeed helpful creatures, but can sometimes be a nuisance, too! 16 MANAGEMENT STREAM SCHEDULE Sportsman's Calendar SEASONS NOW OPEN TROUT Open Stream Season-April I, 1970 through October 3, 1970. Creel Limit-Eight (8) trout of all species per day. Possession limit-8. (Management Area Streams-Open on scheduled days, May 2-Sept. 7, 1970.) Arrowhead Public Fishing Area April 10ct. 31. MIAIItment Art a BLUE RIDGE Stroom Jones Creek (Artificial lures) Montgomery r-- ----, IIQ Sit., SUn. Wid., Thurs. June Sa t. , Sun. Wed., Thurs. Sat., Sun. Wed., Thurs. Sa t. , Sun . Wed., Thurs. !S..t.. sept. 5: Sun Sept. 6; Mon., Sept. 7) Ni mb lewlll S.JL. Suit. Noo ntoo tley Wtcl ThWI. (Artifi cia l Lures) Sal., Sun. (Catch and Release) Roc k Creek IWid Thurs. IS.JL, s.... CHAnAHDDCHEE Cha ttahooc hee CHESTATEE Du kes Boggs Dic ks SaL, Sin. - n.... - .. Thun. lit., SUn. Sat., Sun. Wed ., Thurs. Sat. , Sun. Wed ., Thurs. Sat., Su n. We d. Sat. , Su n. Wed., Th urs. Wed. , Thurs. Sat. , Sun . SoL, Sun. Wed., ThurL S.JL, Sllft. Wid., Thurs. SaL, Sun. Sat., Sun. Wid., Tllura. Wid., Tllurs. Sot.. Sun. Sat., Sun. Wed ., Thurs. Sat. , Sun. Wed., Thurs . Sat., Su n. Sat. Sun. Wed .. Thurs. Wed., Thurs. sat ., Sun . (Sat., sept. 5: Sun., Sept. 6; .Mon.. Sept. 7) ~-:. ~:Pt~~. S.JL, sept. 5: n ...... sept. &r Mon., sept. , _.. Sept. 2; l:t"'~3; San., Slpt. ~ Mon., Sept. II (SIL, Sept. 5; =:.:.=.~ Wa t ers Lt, SUn. Sat., Sun . SoL, Sill. Sa t. , Su n. LAKE BURTDN Dic ks Moccasi n - 1liWI. SIL, SUn. Wed., Thurs. Sat. , Sun. Wid., llltlrl. Sat.. ::11111. Wed., Thurs. Sat., Sun. Wil dcat S.JL, Sun. Sa t. , Sun. Sot Sun. Sa t. , Sun. LAKE RUSSELL Midd le Broad Wed. SoL, SIM. We d. Sat. , Sun . Wid. S.JL, s.n. Wed . Sa t.. Su n. WARWDMAN Finney Wed Thurs. sat., Sun . Wid Tllm. Sat. , Sun. sarahs Wid. ''""' sa t. , Sun. Wed., Thurs. Wed., Tburs. S.JL, s-. Sat. , Sun. Wed ., Thurs. Tuckalu&e Closed Clo sed TIDE TABLE MAY, 1970 MAY-JUNE 1970 JUNE, 1970 HIGH WATER LOW WATER Day A.M. HT. P.M. HT. A.M. P.M. GEORGIA COASTAL WATERS HOW TO USE THESE TABLES HIGH WATER LOW WATER Day A.M . HT. P.M. HT. A.M. P.M. 1. Fri. 4:24 6.9 4:48 7.4 10:36 11:06 2. Sat. 5:24 7.1 5:42 7.9 11 :24 .. . . 3. Sun. 6:12 7.2 6:30 8.3 12:00 12:18 4. Mon. 7:00 7.2 7:18 8.5 12:54 1:00 5. Tues. 7:42 7.1 8:00 8.4 1:42 1:48 6. Wed. 8:24 6.8 8:42 8.2 2:30 2:30 7. Thurs. 9:06 6.5 9:24 7.8 3:12 3:18 8. Fri. 9:48 6.1 10:06 7.4 3:54 4:00 9. Sat. 10:30 5:8 10:48 7.0 4:36 4 :42 10. Sun. 11:18 5.6 11:36 6.6 5:24 5:30 11. Mon . ... . .. 12:12 5.4 6:06 6:18 12. Tues. 12:24 6.3 1:06 5.4 7:00 7:18 13. Wed. 1:12 6.1 2:00 5.5 7:54 8:18 14. Thurs. 2:06 6.0 2:54 5.7 8:48 9:18 15. Fri. 3:00 5.9 3:48 6.1 9:36 10:12 16. Sat. 3:54 6.0 4:42 6.5 10:24 11:00 17. Sun . 4:48 6.1 5:24 7.0 11 :06 11 :48 18. Mon. 5:36 6.3 6:12 7.4 11 :48 .. . . 19. Tues. 6:18 6.4 6:48 7.7 12:30 12:30 20. Wed. 7:00 6.5 7:30 8.0 1:18 1:12 21. Thurs. 7:42 6.5 8:12 8.1 2:06 2:00 22. Fri. 8:24 6.5 9:00 8.0 2:48 2:42 23. Sat. 9:12 6.4 9:48 7.8 3:36 3:30 24. Sun. 10:06 6.4 10:42 7.5 4.24 4:24 25. Mon. 11:06 6.3 11 :42 7.2 5:18 5:24 26. Tues. ... . .. 12:12 6.4 6:12 6:24 27. Wed. 12:42 7.0 1:18 6.5 7:12 7:36 28. Thurs. 1:48 6.8 2:18 6.8 8:18 8:48 29. Fri. 2:54 6.6 3:24 7.1 9:12 9:48 30. Sat. 3:54 6.5 4:30 7.5 10:12 10:48 31. Sun. 4:54 6.5 5:24 7.8 11:00 11:42 The calculations are for the outer bar. Find the reading for the desired tide . In the table below find the number of minutes to add to correct for the place you are going to fish or swim. The outer bar calculation, plus th is cor rection, gives the correct reading for the point desired . Adjust For Daylight Sa ving Time By Adding One Hour CORRECTION TABLE The times given are for Savannah River entrance (Tybee) . Hrs . Min . Savannah High Savannah (low) 0 44 * 57 Hilton Head, S. C. 0 10 Thunderbolt 0 20 Isle of Hope . . . . . 0 40 Warsaw Sound . . 0 00 Ossabaw Sound . . 0 05 Vernon View . . . . . 0 35 Coffee Bluff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 55 Ogeechee River Bridge 3 50 St. Catherine Sound 0 25 Sapelo Sound 0 00 Brunswick Bar 0 00 St. Simon Pier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 25 Frederica Bridge 0 50 McKay Bridge . . . . 0 50 Brunswick East River 0 50 Turtle River Bridge . . . 0 55 Turtle River, Crispen Is. 1 10 Humpback Bridge . . . . 1 00 Jekyll Po int 0 30 Jointer Island . . 55 Hampton River Village Creek Ent. 0 20 Village Fishing Camp 0 45 Taylor Fishin ~ Camp . . 1 00 Altamaha Fishing Park , Everett, Ga . 4 00 TwoWay Fish ing Camp, S. Alta maha 2 00 Full Last New First Moon Quarter Moon Quarter 1. Mon. 5:48 6.5 6:12 8.0 11:48 .... 2. Tues. 6:36 6.5 7:00 8.1 12:30 12:36 3. Wed. 7:24 6.4 7:42 8.0 1:18 1:24 4. Thurs . 8:06 6.3 8:24 7.8 2:06 2:06 5. Fri. 8:42 6.1 9:00 7.6 2:54 2:54 6. Sat. 9:24 5.9 9:36 7.3 3:36 3:36 7. Sun. 10:06 5.7 10:18 6.9 4:12 4:18 8. Mon . 10:48 5.6 11:00 6.6 4:54 5:00 9. Tues. 11:36 5.6 11:42 6.4 5:36 5:48 10. Wed. .... .. 12:24 5.6 6:18 6:36 11. Thurs. 12:30 6.2 1:12 5.7 7:06 7:36 12. Fri. 1:18 6.0 2:00 5.9 7:54 8:30 13. Sat. 2:06 5.9 2:54 6.2 8:42 9:30 14. Sun . 3:00 5.8 3:48 6.6 9:36 10:18 15. Mon. 3:54 5.8 4:42 7.0 10:24 11:12 16. Tues. 4:48 5.9 5:36 7.4 11:12 .... 17. Wed. 5:42 6.1 6:24 7.8 12:00 12:00 18. Thurs. 6:36 6.3 7:12 8.1 12:54 12:48 19. Fri. 7:24 6.5 8:00 8.2 1:42 1:42 20. Sat. 8:12 6.6 8:42 8.2 2:36 2:30 21. Sun. 9:06 6.7 9:36 8.0 3:24 3:24 22. Mon. 10:00 6.8 10:30 7.8 4:12 4:18 23. Tues. 11:00 6.9 11:30 7.5 5:00 5:12 24. Wed. .... .. 12:00 6.9 5:54 6:12 25. Thurs. 12:24 7.1 1:00 7.0 6:48 7:18 26. Fri. 1:24 6.7 2:00 7.1 7:48 8:24 27. Sat. 2:24 6.4 3:00 7.2 8:48 9:30 28. Sun. 3:24 6.1 4:00 7.3 9:42 10:24 29. Mon. 4:30 6.0 5:00 7.4 10:36 11 :24 30. Tues. 5:24 5.9 5:54 7.5 11:24 . ... MAY 21 27 5 13 JUNE 19 26 4 12 To report violations or if you need assistance in the Coastal Area - Call - State Game & Fish Commission . Brunswick, Georgia , P. 0 . Box 1097, Phone 265-1552, Savannah 233-2383 , Richmond Hill 756-3679.