Outdoors in Georgia [May 1975]

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May 1975

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^JTS ip Georgia

May 1 975

Volume IV

Number 5

FEATURES

.... Sho Nuff Fishing

Bill Morehead 3

Something Special Rebecca N. Marshall 8

.... A Question of Waste

Joe Cullens 12

The Professional (Photo Essay) T. Craig Martin and Jim Couch 16

Skeeter!

Gibson Johnston, Jr. 18

Fish

Contest

of

'74 .

.

.

. Aaron Pass

22

Changing of the Guard . . . Joe Cullens 29

DEPARTMENTS

Big Fish Contest Information

26

Book Reviews

31

Fish Management Questions

33

ON THE FRONT COVER; T. Craig Martin caught this fisherman cast-- ing his net by the light of the early morning sun where the Altamaho
reaches for the ocean.
ON THE BACK COVER: Cathy CarcJarelli sneaked this view of the
interior of a commercial fisherman's office (the Altamaha River), jusf as he was coming to work that morning.

MAGAZINE STAFF

Phone 656-3530

David Cranshaw

Publisher

T. Craig Martin (on leave) .

.

Editor
.

Liz Carmlchael Jones . . . Art Director

Aaron Pass

Wildlife Editor Jose Vinos

Artist

Joe Cullens

Staff Writer Bob Busby

Photo Editor

Dick Davis

Staff Writer Edward Brock . . . StafF Photographer

Rebecca N. Marshall . . . Staff Writer

Bill Morehead

StafF Writer

Cathy Cardarelll

Staff Photographer
.

.... Jim Couch

Staff Photographer

Priscilla C. Powell . . Circulation Manager

Leonard E. Foote Chairman
-- Marietta State at Large
Donald J. Carter Gainesville-- 9th District
Mary Bailey Izard Atlanta-- 5th District

Department of Natural Resources

Joe D. Tanner
Commissioner

George Busbee
Governor

George T. Bagby
Deputy Commissioner

Wade H. Coleman
Vice Chairman Valdosta-- State at Large
George P. Dillard
-- Decatur 4th District
Lloyd L. Summer Rome--7th District

Leo T. Barber, Jr. Secretary
-- Moultrie 2nd District
Dr. Robert A. Collins, Jr. Amerlcus-- 3rd District
J. Wimbric Walker
McRae-- 8th District

James Darby Vidalia-- 1st District
Leonard Bassford Augusta-- 10th District
Coastal District

James A. Mankin
Griffin- 6th District
James D. Cone
-- Decatur State at Large
A. Calhoun Todd, Jr.
Macon--State at Large

Division Directors

EARTH AND WATER DIVISION Sam M. Pickering, Jr., Director
PARKS AND HISTORIC SITES DIVISION
Henry D. Struble, Director

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DIVISION
J. Leonard Ledbetter, Director
OFFICE OF PLANNING AND RESEARCH
Chuck Parrish, Director

PUBLIC RELATIONS AND INFORMATION
David Cranshaw, Director; Dick Davis, Assistant Director

GAME AND FISH DIVISION
Jack Crockford, Director
OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES James H. Pittman, Director

Outdoors in Georgia is the official monthly magazine of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, published at the Department's offices. Room 713, 270 Washington Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30334. No advertising accepted. Subscriptions are $3 for one year or $6 for three years. Printed by Williams Printing Company, Atlanta, Georgia. Notification of address change must include label from a recent magazine, new address and ZIP code, with 60 days notice. No subscription requests will be accepted without ZIP code. Articles and photographs may be reprinted when proper credit given. Contributions are welcome, but the editors assume no responsibility or liability for loss or damage of articles, photographs, or illustrations. Second-class postage paid
at Atlanta, Georgia. 35,000 copies printed at an approximate cost of $14,500. The Department of Natural Resources is an Equal Opportunity employer, and employs without regard to race, creed, color, sex, age, or national origin.

EDITORIAL
A Clear Chdce

I've watched for the last few months as
the hardwood-surrounded clearing near my
home has been compromised. The trees have
not yet been molested; they stand as they have for perhaps dozens of years, but I sus-
pect that if they could talk, they would make
an infernal fuss.
The area is a dump now. Instead of
mosses, seedlings, dead leaves, and rabbits keeping company with the trees, there are rusted refrigerators, broken recliner chairs, well-distributed garbage piles, and rats.
Man's thoughtless treatment of the earth could hardly be more vividly or simplistically illustrated. The attack seems almost universal and relentless . . . the assailants coming from a wide range of socio-economic classes and advancing with their junk at
night or in the rain as well as in the daylight.
These unwitting assaults, of course, must
cease. Our world is not going to become any
larger, nor is our volume of rubbish likely to become smaller. Additionally, people probably emotionally just cannot tolerate

a world that becomes more ugly and restrictive day by day.
We talk of our concern, but perhaps we
are not entirely genuine. The frightening thing is that we are the only hope we have, and if we cannot or will not do the prudent thing with an issue like solid waste, how are we to be trusted when confronted with
such stark issues as poisoned air and water or exterminated wildlife?
It is a matter of will, and the choices are
fairly clear. If we cannot individually rec-
-- ognize the right and civilized attitudes to
embrace and I'm talking not just about garbage dumps, but each of the "frame-ofmind" choices concerning conservation of
-- the world we may likely see some totally
unexpected and very uphappy things in our
lifetime.
La tZyOU/U^IUKj

:^.:^r

'^^^^::>

Tiskittcf

by BUI Morehead Photos by Bob Busby

^^^"ears ago, before W.W. II and in the
w^ tail end of the depression, I was lucky
^ enough to spend my first fishing
summers with a black man named Johnny, who worked for my dad. Johnny was huge,
a gigantic man, and, like such men, had the tender heart and demeanor of a mountainous
teddy bear.
One Saturday morning I was down at the
cotton mill warehouse watching Johnny and some others unload a truck of cotton. Each of the guys on the truck had a hook, and each in turn would hook a cotton bale, balance it on one of its corners, and somersault it off the truck onto the warehouse platform. At precisely the right time, another worker would grab it with a pair of hand trucks, balance it on the trucks, and haul it into the warehouse.
I didn't know it then, but I was watching
one of the unique skills of the South in action. In the warehouse, other workers would be waiting at the scales to weigh and grade the bale: a long knife, smaller than a machete but larger than a butcher knife, slashed the side of the bale; the grader would grab a handful of cotton, pull it apart to check the staple (length of fiber) and grade the cotton "Inch and three quarters, bright!", "Inch and one half, middlin'," "Inch and a quarter,
fair!"
May 1975

Cotton had been (and was then) so important to the South that people expressed
how they felt in terms of cotton grades: "How you feelin' this mornin', Johnny?" was
answered with, "Fair to middlin'."
^V was to learn other skills of the South
^M that day. After the truck was unloaded,
^ I saw Johnny and dad talking, and
soon Johnny came over to me. "Boy, me and my
boy Leon is going to ribber to kotch a robin red breas'. Mistah Grady says you kin
go effen you wants too. You wants too?"
Did I ever want to! I raced back to the house, dug in the closet and came out with
my dad's steel telescopic rod, a stainless
Pflueger casting reel (with the white braided
linen line), and a handful of wooden
casting lures.
Before long. Johnny and Leon came by,
tipped their hats at Momma, and we started to leave. Johnny took one look at my gear and
said, "Boy, does you know how to use them things?" When I confessed I didn't, he said,
"Well, me neither. Why don't you leave them
things here. I brung a spare cane anyways."
On the way to the river, other questions
arose. "Boy, is you done much fishin'?"
I told him that sometimes my dad and I went

over to the mill pond and he let me use his casting rod. "I don't mean that, boy, I mean, is you evah don much sho miff fishin'?"
Confused, I told him I guessed not, and he laid it on the line.
"Boy, a man what's goin ter play, and doan
matter effen he doan kotch no fish, them fandangles is fine. I swow, I seen Mistah Grady thow that thing mos' clear 'cross the
pond. He good. But it doan matter effen he
doan kotch nothin'.
"But boy, a man whut doan go ter play, but goes hissef sho niiff fishin', why dat man,
he rightly belong to use a canepole."

^MM nd he was right that day. We caught

^^VSft

"
plenty of "robin red breas' (red breasted sunfish is the bookish

synonym). And we continued for several

years to catch plenty of them. Johnny and
Leon taught me how to fish with a cork (bobber, if you please) and how to fish

"on the bottom" without a float, watching

the line intently for the first pull and run.

Looking back at the matter through three

and a half platoons of years, I can see that

Johnny's wisdom still is true. Gadgets are fine,

but for sho nuff fishin', the canepole still
is the way to go. It may come as a surprise to some, but to

a whole lot of folks fishing is more than
a recreation, especially in the South. To many, fishing is a way to augment the family's diet

with superb protein; to others, fishing is a
way of eating, just as gardening is.

People fishing for protein first and sport
second don't have whole hunks of money to

invest in beautiful boats, fancy rods, or fancier
clothes. Some don't even have enough money

to invest in beautiful shingles for the roof.

These people function under the "bottom
-- line rule" if it costs more to catch fish than

the fish are worth, why, don't do it, stupid!

?f these people could catch more fish
with all that fancy gear, they would scrimp and save to get that fancy gear (just as they scrimped and saved to get the family tractor, or the family automobile).

Outdoors ii> Georgia

No, the simple reason people sho miff fishing use canepoles is . . . canepoles work!
Don't think that just because canepole fishing is highly efficient that it can't be
sporting. Indeed, some sho nuff fishing is just about the sportingest! Here are just a few ways of using canepoles to great sporting
advantage:
Brim Fishing
Brim (haughty textbook synonym = bream,
as in going to get your hair treamed) fishing 'in the springtime is prototypically canepole fishing. Putting aside your flyrod or spincast outfit, you find that a canepole is
the only way to bank-fish for bedding brim. Ease along the river or lake edge until you
either spot or smell a brim bed, stop (or anchor if you're in a boat), put on a cricket or red wiggler, drop it gently into the bed . . . and, brother, you're in for some fine fishing.
Big brim like to swim deep in early spring, and generally prefer deeper water all year than do the hand-sized variety. Canepole
fishing in 10 or 12 feet of water (without a bobber), letting the bait bounce along the
bottom, is a sure-fire way of tangling with bluegills or panfish so large they become
almost circular in shape.
For those who think canepoling is for
young kids, old ladies, and brim, there is a
rude awakening. There still are many bass fishermen who wouldn't give you ten cents
for the fancy rods and reels. Just give them a stout 10- or 12-foot cane, monofilament line of 3 feet or so, and a lead-headed jig, and they'll catch plenty. Easing along lake banks in early morning, late evening, or at night, they gently bounce these jigs on the water's surface, around and under willow trees, etc.
Sporting? You don't know the meaning of
the word until you hang on to a six or seven pound largemouth on a jigging rig!
Trout Fishing
Another surprise awaits those folks who think canepole fishing is for the Mark Twain
Set (i.e., catfish, brim, carp, etc.). This story is for the Aristocratic Trout Set.
Several years ago, I taught at a university
way up in the Smoky Mountains. The water
May 1975

in those mountains runs pure, clear, and
full of trout.
The janitor of the Education Building was an old mountaineer type, steeped in the yore of both "rolling his own" and "manufacturing his own". Aside of these talents, which made him highly popular with the fraternities, he also was the best trout fisherman in the hills, the "Dean", you might say. . . .
I met him one day on a local stream. I had been fishing a March Brown wet fly and had
caught my usual 8-inch monster. I was
fishing properly, which meant I was fishing upstream and casting at an angle, letting the fly drift past all those good looking spots (just like I had read in all those books). I met the Dean fishing downstream, with a
canepole.
Since we both were fishing on a stream
-- marked "artificials only", I thought I had
discovered his secret bait fishing! Not so. The Dean was fishing a six-foot line, with
a seven-foot canepole. He had tied his own fly,
a black nymph, and had put three small

pieces of lead, snipped from a toothpaste
tube, about six inches ahead of his fly. And the Dean was violating all the rules I had
-- read about wet fly fishing for trout he was
wading downstream, fishing on the bottom,
pulling the fly upstream.
The only thing that mattered, however, was the 16-inch rainbow trout he had caught. "Yessir, fishin' is purt-near empty this mornin'.
I near missed this here trout, and I ain't caught but eight-ten litde 'uns either."
I did what any other honorable man would
do: I lied about the fish I had caught. I also proceeded to note his method, copy it as exactly as I could, and use it more than once
to impress others with my savvy of the ole trout stream. You see, the Dean was sho nuff
trout fishin'.
Rednecks and Redhorse Back in the days when I was a teen-ager,
there would be a great gathering of people up around the other Chattooga River, especially in late spring on any Sunday afternoon. There would be two reasons: 1) a general
Outdoors ip Georgia

baptising of all those souls saved during the preceding week's revival, and (2) a general snagging of the annual redhorse sucker run (this isn't legal now).
When God made the redhorse sucker he gave it an overdose of bones. He also gave its flesh an overdose of flavor. Most people who
have savored the meat of the redhorse will gladly pick through the maze of bones to have a go at it again.
The redhorse, like any other sucker, is a
bottom feeder and is highly susceptible to dough balls, worms, etc., fished on the bottom in some northwest Georgia creek. This
fishing, like the now-illegal snagging, is best
done with stout line and stout canepoles. Night Fishin'
The fishing equivalent to sitting around
the burning remains of an old tire carcass listening to the hounds is "night fishin'." Night fishing, like "afternoon fishin'," is likely to be a social occasion.
Night fishing is, of course, done with huge canepoles, on which blood baits, dough balls, or great gobs of worms are skewered for fish
killers.
Words fail to describe the eerie mists that settle on a river after dark. The tall sycamores that were friendly during the daytime become menacing hulks in the afterglow of dusk. The lonesome splashes that went unnoticed in the light startle you by their closeness in the night. The riverbank fire is started not so much to keep you warm as to keep you company. The occasional landing of a stubborn
Photo by Jim Couch

yellow catfish or log-sized carp is much more important and exciting in the nighttime.
River night fishing is when a young boy learns those tales of life he needs to know but isn't permitted to listen to at home. River
night fishing, with canepoles stuck into the
bank as if giant Indians had hurled so many
spears across the river, is an American
heritage not likely to be lost as long as there are rivers, nights, canepoles, and boys.
Nor is sho nuff fishin' in general. As Johnny said, years ago, we rightly "belong" to use a
canepole. Other types of fishing are fine, but sho nuff fishin' seems more natural.
If God didn't intend for us to canepole fish, I wonder why He planted so many canebreaks
# along the rivers?

May 1975

Somethin
Special
by Rebecca N. Marshall Photos by Staff Photographers
Before baseball, football, and basketball became such big moneymakers, sports were played for fun. Now, with million-dollar contracts becoming ordinary, some of that enjoyment has vanished. Even Olympic athletes, allegedly competing only for the glory
of winning, use the Games as a jumping-off
point for lucrative business careers. Despite this increasing commercialism,
there still survives at least one organized
sports program where money hasn't replaced
pride as the ultimate prize for performing well: Special Olympics, a physical education and recreation program for the mentally retarded.
Mental retardation isn't automatically accompanied by physical handicaps. But for a long time, a lot of people either thought it was, or just didn't think, because until 1968 there were few organized recreation programs
for the retarded in this country.
Then came Special Olympics. Originated by the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation,
Outdoors ii7 Georgia

these programs have provided opportunities for the retarded to take part in organized sports including basketball, floor hockey, swimming, track and field, bowling, and volleyball. And, although some rules must be altered to allow for certain disabilities, the participants in Special Olympics games experience the same self-satisfaction "normal" athletes feel after a good game.
Georgia's Special Olympics program,
founded in 1970, now is among the largest in the country. Only 400 Georgians took part
-- in the competition the first year, but this year
more than 20,000 participants ranging
-- in age from 3 to 74 are expected to compete.
Competition isn't the key to Special Olympics, though. Running best in the relay,
or swimming fastest, or being on a winning volleyball team isn't what counts: more
important is the sheer fact of participation.
May i()Ty

Everyone who tries is a winner, just by making the attempt. The retarded have always
been told that they can't compete, they can't
make it; Special Olympics gives them a chance to prove that they can make it.
Programs begin at the local community level, where most "success stories" are. More people are reached, and more people participate, on the local level than at
either the state or national meets.
Annie Joe Denney, state chairman of the Georgia Special Olympics Executive
Committee, told about one young man who now plays goalie for his local floor hockey
team: ''When I first met him, about seven or eight years ago, he was still in a crib and still drinking from a bottle, because he couldn't
swallow solid food. He was 18 at the time."
During the past few years he has taken part in various training programs, and

now not only is he out of the crib and eating
regular food, but he plays floor hockey and his
greatest love is sports.
Another boy on the same team wasn't
playing much. He never got the puck, and didn't really try to get it. The coach was
encouraging him, but he wasn't sure what to do and mostly just tried to stay out of
A the way. star player on the other team once
stopped the game for a second when he had the puck; he helped the first boy get his stick on it and pointed him towards the right goal. Then play resumed.
The biggest advantage of local teams is that anyone can participate. The activities
aren't limited to the best players, and any sport adaptable to the ability of the players can be
used. Some communities even have softball
or touch football teams. These year-round sports programs
culminate in local meets each March. Winners
move from local to district to state meets, and
every four years they participate in international games.
The meets are modeled after the regular Olympic Games in format as well as philosophy. From a runner circling the athletic field

10

Outdoors ip Georgia

with the eternal flame to athletes mounting a platform to receive gold, silver, and bronze medals, events at Special Olympics games follow the Olympic pattern.
But the special quality of these games, and of the activities that lead to them, is
the ideals that underlie all the ceremony. The
regular Olympics brings together the world's
-- best athletes. Special Olympics also brings
together athletes not necessarily the top
performers, but those who do their best. And
they're just as proud to be participating in
these contests as athletes who are invited
to the Olympics. There's disappointment in not winning, of
course. It wouldn't be normal to feel any other way. But these folks don't play to win; they play for enjoyment, and if they happen to win, they just enjoy a little more.
A lot of people nowadays have the
"super-bowl or bust" syndrome: if you can't come in first you might as well not waste your time playing. But Special Olympics people don't feel that way. Their feelings are reflected in the oath all participants repeat
before each contest: "Let me win, but if
# I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."

May 1975

The Special Olympics state meet will be
held on May 23 and 24 at DeKalb
Community College near Atlanta.
11

Where does it all go? 125 million tons of mixed household refuse per year, 110 million
tons of industrial waste, 2,300 million tons of agricultural waste, one billion gallons of waste oil, 750,000 abandoned automobiles . . .
What do we do with it? Where are we going to put it? The disposal of "solid waste" products not only is a dilemma we must learn to live and
cope with now, but also a question involving the future of our already shrinking world. For far too long, our mass production orientation has failed to include consideration of the ultimate impact of a "bigger, better" philosophy.
Witness the per capita production of household refuse in a few major cities: Los Angeles
12

-- 830 pounds per person per year; New York -- 768 pounds per person per year; Atlanta 833
pounds per person per year. Nationally, per capita production of household waste amounts to an average of 3.3 to 5.3 pounds per day, for every man, woman, and child on the census
record.
In Georgia alone, each individual throws
away an astounding three pounds per day. And if we consider the production of commercial and
industrial waste in an area like Dalton, which is highly industrialized, that figure rises to more than 30 pounds per person per day!
Frightening, isn't it, when you consider the
possibihty of being buried under a 58,876
Outdoors ip Georgia

square mile blanket of garbage? But there are alternatives to the waste disposal problem. In Georgia, these alternatives include incineration, composting, recycling, and sanitary landfilling.
Obviously, recycling is the most environmentally sound procedure. But at the present level of technology, and in competition with virgin materials, recycling is an expensive process limited to a mere fraction of the total output of
solid waste.
The sanitary landfill is a precisely engineered method of disposing of solid waste in a way that
protects the environment. It involves spreading the waste in thin layers, compacting it to the smallest practical volume, and covering it with soil at the end of each working day.

The sanitary landfill is the only approved method presently in use in Georgia other than
a few small incinerators which primarily are used in the destruction of special items like hospital and some commercial wastes.
The importance of maintaining clean air by minimizing burning, combined with the avail-
ability of land, virtually assures the continued use of sanitary landfills as the predominant
A method here for the next 10 to 20 years. sani-
tary landfill also is more economical, costing some $2 to $5 per ton as opposed to $10 to $12
per ton for the others.
"Dump is a dirty four-letter word", say those in charge of solid waste disposal. An open dump
presents quite an esthetic shock; and it is a
Photo by Bob Busby

May 1975

J3

Photo by Jim Couch
health hazard, a major contributor to the spread of disease through the rats, flies, and other disease-carrying pests it harbors. Typhus, dysentery, plague, cholera, and other diseases thrive
among "dump dwellers". In contrast to the open dump, the sanitary
landfill is an environmentally sound method of
14

disposing of solid waste without polluting the air or ground and surface water.
If properly engineered, a sanitary landfill can turn otherwise useless or marginal land into property suitable for light construction or recreational use. This, in turn, increases the value
A of surrounding land. landfill also reduces the
Outdoors ip Georgia

amount of land required for proper disposal by compacting the waste into a smaller volume.
A sanitary landfill is just that: a satisfactory
method of disposing of solid waste which effec-
tively eliminates the common problems of odors,
blight, and disease-carrying pests. The practice of recycling rather than burying
May igyij

non-renewable resources has been suggested as an alternative to sanitary landfills. Indeed, burial is unsatisfactory from the aspect of rapidly diminishing natural resources and energy
"drains".
But, despite the obvious drain on non-renewable resources and the waste of energy through the lack of a workable recycling program, the sanitary landfill will remain with us, for there always will be end-product wastes which simply cannot be recycled. Current examples include demolition and construction rubble, industrial sludges, and certain types of plastics.
There are problems with the control of sani-
tary landfills. The Solid Waste Management Act of 1972 and its amendments require that all
sanitary landfills be operated under a permit from the Environmental Protection Division.
And it specifies the standards that operators
must meet to obtain and keep these permits. These standards require the addition of six
inches of compacted soil at the end of each day, prohibit open burning, and specify design and operational requirements. They are detailed in the Solid Waste Management Rules and Regulations of the Department of Natural Resources.
There are a number of enforcement problems
encountered in the control of solid waste disposal; indeed, just to keep track of the 650
known municipal and private solid waste dis-
posal sites in the state is a considerable burden. In very few cases, however, has the Depart-
ment been forced to issue legal orders to gain compliance with the regulations.
For the forseeable future the sanitary landfill seems here to stay. But it is not the final answer;
increasingly we must reduce the quantities of solid waste we generate, and recycle those prod-
ucts that can be efficiently returned to the con-
sumer market. #
15

Sfheff>.roressionaI
lotos by ^tm (^ouch

16

Outdoors ip Georgia

^. III. Sykes, commerctal fisher-

man, aiour after hour, day after

day, he can he seen drifting slowly

down the Kygeechee iHiver, maneu-

vering his long net to snare shad

on their way upstream. cJhe drift

ended, he gently retrieves the
-- -- net, extracts his fish if any and

moves on. [Patient, tireless, relent-

a less,

professional.

May 1975

17

Skectcr!

by Gibson Johnston, Jr.
We all forget oik unpleasant experiences,
eventually remembering only the good; but it's
not the beautiful surf, sunsets over the marshes, wide sandy beaches, or the good companionship of a trip to the coast that one^shouts about it's the mosquitoes.
Neither lakes, mountains, santt ridges, black-
water swamps, nor beaches are immune. With the exception of the North and Sduth poles, the high sea, and some of the very Aighest mountain peaks, no area in the worjl is free of
mosquitoes.
Are the mosquitoe^uJUad? It all bot^^niown
to relativity, frienJi.TiS'^ntewe^s, three or four^ in the house are ferrible, while in othefs, Ihrej or four hundred is ntH^^iiejmftr(|^^>^
Georgia is generouslf^'<"C'^^^^;^i^h mosc toes: 54 species of them. In si'l^f'tJiey^range from the tiny Uraiwtaeiua, Vs inch in length,
to the giant Psorophora (commonly known as Gallinippers), 1 inch long. / i
Of these, only 7 are consmeredr'economic-
ally" important, that is, the/ carrf disease or cause such discomfort that flormalioutdoor ac-
tivities are affected. Ten speciesl are locally
abundant and annp^g, seven are lommon but
not troublesojnCand the othet/?0 are rare or of limited^stribution.
Nov/that mosquit(Tj^i^son nears, a bit of
knowledge about t]>e^ pesky insects may help you through th^/<^rst, or at least let you know why you'rejb^ng attacked.
All rm^uitoes pass through stages of metamorph(^is -egg to larva to pupa to adult.

Favorite egg laying pl^/fes can be tin cans,

hoof prints, old tires, boat bilges, potted plants,

tree holes, or anything else that will hold water.

Mosquito eggs usuaPy are deposited on the sur-

face of quiet pool^ on debris, or in depressions

at water's edge..

After a peridti of time, anywhere from a few
day^' to more man a year, the eggs hatch into larvae, comm,nly known as wiggletails. The

larvae hang liead down, suspended from the

surface by an airtube through which they

M^e breathe.

specialized species attach to the

stems**i^Paquatic plantsfrom which they get

Sgoae larval mosquiic^ feed by browsing on

f^piaST'ailll^ay^iiHHQkfoQ^^

The food is

rriecTToThev mouth in a current produced by

S^fiMT^b mouth and ingested by suction.

Typically^ larvae of this group dive to the bot-

tom and wi<i2le along, eating whatever is avail-

able. Otheritype\ remain on the surface and feed

on bacteriabnd qebris.

The larvll stagt lasts from 7 to 14 days, depending on |vater temperature and species. Dur-

ing this tinie, 4 moults take place. With the

mou^ fourth

the pupal stsige or "tumbler" ap-

pears. The pu^^s not as elong^^d as the larva,

but round with a-.>|)air of horn-li^ breathing

trumpets near the heaii^his stage is very^tive and extremely sensitive re^^isturbances on the

water surface, letting go and qnickly tumbling to
the bottom of the pool. After aH^w moments,

they rise slowly to the surface and fe-establish
contact with the air. This stage lasts 2 or^ days.

Outdoors ip Georgia

\

/

\

/

Aedcs Mosquito

The most vicious day-

time feeding mosquito.

\

Culex Mosquito
A timid but persistant nighttime
feeding species.
May 1975

Anopheles Mosquito The dreaded malaria carrier!
19

The pupae do not feed. The first adults to emerge invariably are males who remain in the area until the females emerge. Mating takes
place almost immediately.

Female mosquitoes are blood feeders; males exist on nectar and plant juices. Most species feed on animals other than man, even on amphibians and reptiles. The ones that do feed on
man are the ones that concern us most, but few
discriminate to the point that they refuse an available blood meal.

What can we do to protect ourselves from a
mosquito attack? Aside from the mosquito abatement programs with their fogging, spraying, and habitat alteration (which are temporary at best), protection from mosquitoes is of two types: physical and chemical.

The physical barriers consist of loose fitting, woven-cloth clothes (knits tend to fit much too closely). The net camouflage jacket seen on the dove field is excellent. For head covering, a
wide-brim hat with a mosquito bar or a bee veil is excellent. Cotton gloves will protect the hands, but because of the discomfort of clothing like this, repellents have become extremely popular with outdoors people.

Like perfumes and shaving lotions, repellents
-- react difl'erently on different people that is,

some work better than others. The best ones for

mosquitoes usually have as the primary ingredi-

ent N,N-Diethyl-metatoluamide in various per-

centages. Generally, the more N,N-Diethyl-

metatoluamide, the better the repellent; but

there are limits and drawbacks to this idea.

Higher concentrations of this chemical are more

irritating to sensitive skin, will damage

fishing tackle and gunstocks, and almost weld

A fingers to a steering wheel.

little on the lips

or in the eyes can be painful: a damp rag to

wipe your palms after applying repellent is

always wise.

Mosquito repellent should be applied to the face, neck, and other exposed skin, plus places where clothing is drawn tight over the skin, like knees, elbows, and shoulder blades. If the mosquitoes are bad, it soon will be evident where more repellent is needed.
There are older repellents, such as oil of
citronella, sulphur, fat pine, wood smoke, and smoke from burning cow chips (supposedly an
old Indian trick), but the drawbacks of these
are quite apparent.
Remember, too, that as some chemicals repel,
others attract. Among these are heavily scented
soaps, lotions, and perfumes; unwashed bodies; and fish bait. Even dark-colored clothing will draw mosquitoes.
For comfort after the fact, nothing feels quite as good or lasts so briefly as old-fashioned scratching. As everyone knows, nothing itches like a mosquito bite. This sensation comes from fluid injected into your skin by the mosquito while she feeds ( and don't believe that if you let
-- the mosquito finish feeding it won't itch it will,
worse).
Many lotions are soothing; one of the best
is a topical anesthetic meant for treatment of
hemorrhoids. An excellent veterinary product
containing a topical anesthetic and antibiotics
may work for you even though it is not approved for human use.
The Panama Canal could not be completed
'til the yellow fever-carrying mosquitoes were
defeated. Rumor has it that the Hawaiian Islands
had no mosquitoes until sailors, irate that missionaries had altered the habits of the island women, threw water casks laden with larval mosquitoes on the shore. But mosquitoes are no joking matter: they carry disease, kill livestock, ruin vacations, and have influenced his-
tory. But proper preparation and care can make them nothing more than a minor inconvenience
for modern Georgians enjoying the outdoors. #

20

Outdoors ip Georgia

Mosquito Pupa
The pupal form appears 2-5 days before the adult mosquito emerges. This is the final aquatic stage and docs not feed.

A nopheles Larva
The "posture" of the larva reflects the type
of mosquito. This genus, Anopheles, locates at the surface of the water, feeding on bacteria and debris.

Aedes Larva
Larvae of Aedes attach to the surface by an air tube (through which they breathe). To feed, these larvae drop to the bottom.

Cidex Larva
This genus has the longest air tube and
hangs almost vertically. More sluggish than
other larvae, they arc also bottom feeders.

May 1975

21

^^ttresmi 0;
Contest of 74
by Aaron Pass Art by Liz Carmichael Jones

Redbreast
22

A new state record, a possible world's record,
and the biggest largemouth bass entered since 1968 are the net results of the 1974 Big Fish Contest. Although there were few entries and some categories drew complete blanks, those fish entered were outstanding specimens.
Top bass honors go to Robert C. Stone of Garden City for his whopping 17 -pound largemouth taken at Lake Gale, near Midway. Stone took his fish on a Wooly Bully (spinner bait) on March 1 8, 1974. In honor of his achievement
Stone receives a Master Angler Certificate and an Ambassadeur 5000 with matching Garcia
rod. His name will be placed on the Garcia Largemouth Bass Trophy kept on exhibit at
Game and Fish Division headquarters in
Atlanta.
A big warmouth may be making some rip-
ples: on May 4, 1974, Carlton Robbins of Syl-
vania landed a 2-pound warmouth in a private pond. Due to a mix-up in addresses, his fish only recently was verified as a new state record and
& was too late for entry into the Field Stream
Fishing Contest (generally considered the of-
Outdoors ii> Georgia

"'*'* *''"*"***'* '*.^^'*'^*^
_iiiiilDi'

XW
White Bass

ficial record for freshwater catches). This is being resolved, and Robbins has an excellent
chance of holding a new world record for his
warmouth. While the other contest entrants did not set
any records, they showed some fine fish. One in particular caught our attention. Jimmy Long of Hawkinsville was fishing for bream in the Ocmulgee River when a carp took his cricket. Long hooked and successfully boated a 29-
pound, 1 2-ounce buglemouth on fly tackle. That takes some fish-fighting skill.
Garcia and Pflueger casting outfits go to four
lucky entrants. We have already mentioned
Robert Stone's award; another bass winner scores with Pflueger. In the white bass category, James Loyless of Lilburn takes the honors with a 4-pound, 2-ounce fish caught in Lake Lanier
March 13, 1974. Loyless gets his certificate, a Pflueger Supreme rod and reel, and his name
May 1975

entered on the Pflueger White Bass Trophy
(also on exhibit at Game and Fish headquar-
ters).
The bream (all species) category was dominated by W. A. Durrance of Lakeland whose 3-pound bluegill will bring him an Ambassadeur 5000 and matching rod. This fish was only 5
ounces short of the current state record.
Roger D. Luke of Norcross was "rollin' on the river" on June 18, 1974, while hooked to a 10-pound brown trout in the Chattahoochee. Luke prevailed and wins a Pflueger Supreme outfit for his trouble. Another fine brown of 9 pounds and 10 ounces was taken by W. R. Bean of Atlanta in the Jacks River on April 14, 1974. Bean wins no prize but he caught a fine fish and deserves mention.
So concludes the 1974 Big Fish Contest, cosponsored by Outdoors in Georgia and the Georgia Wildlife Federation. The contest prizes were
23

Largemouth Bass

presented at the Federation's annual meeting. Looking forward to 1975, the Big Fish Con-
test is due for some substantial changes that we think will benefit the contest. Most significant will be the elimination of two of the six prize categories, crappie and catfish. In the future, prizes will be awarded only in the categories of largemouth bass, white bass, bream, and trout. Other rod and reel prizes will be

awarded to anglers who take state record fish
during the contest year. This change will better recognize the achievements of record holders.
The other major change is in the entry requirements. Each contest entrant must keep his fish intact for examination by contest officials for 30 days after entering. If the entrant has not been contacted within 30 days, he may assume that no examination is necessary. This change

Channel Catfish

24

Outdoors it) Georgia

is the result of difficulty in identifying several species of fish. In these cases, positive identification is possible only with a fresh (or frozen)
fish. To freeze the fish without weight loss, the
entrant should place it in a container of water and freeze the whole works.
All potential state record fish must be visually inspected by a contest official and verified
by a Game and Fish Division Fisheries Biologist.

A list of these offices is provided with the entry
blank.
Other changes are less substantial, but may be important to certain anglers. The minimum
qualifying weight has been dropped to IV^ pounds on redbreast bream and to 1 Vi pounds on yellow perch. There is no state record on
either of these fish and we hope this will stimu-
# late some entries.

Shellcracker

May 1975

Georgia
Big Fish
Contest Rules
1. Have the fish weighed, measured, and
entered at any Game and Fish Division fisheries management office. If this is impossible,
have the fish weighed on a certified scale in the presence of two witnesses. Both witnesses and the owner of the scale (if not a witness) must provide an address and phone number. (If the fish is weighed and measured at a
Game and Fish Office, the verifying official
should sign the blank.)
2. Witnesses must be of legal age, and may not be members of the entrant's immediate
family. 3. The truth of the entry blank must be attested before a qualified officer such as a notary public, justice of the peace, sheriff,
municipal clerk, postmaster, member of a

state or local low enforcement agency, or wildlife ranger. 4. If the fish is not weighed and measured
at a Game and Fish office, the fish must be
frozen whole and maintained for 30 days from the date of postmark on the entiy blank. This is for identification purposes. At the expiration of this 30-day term the entrant may assume that there is no question, and may dispose of the fish in whatever manner he
desires.
5. No fish will be accepted as a state rec-
ord unless verified by a Fisheries Biologist. 6. Mounted fish ore not suitable for identifi-
cation. No potential state record or contest
winner will be verified after it has been mounted. 7. Judges reserve the right to inspect any fish entered in this contest, and the right to take any fish to another authority for identification. Judges reserve the right to disqualify any entry which does not fulfill the rules set
forth.
8. The judges of this contest ore the Executive Director of the Georgia Wildlife Federation, the Wildlife Editor of Outdoors in Georgia magazine, and Fisheries Biologists of the

PRINT OR TYPE ALL INFORMATION

Kind of Flsh_

Weight ^_

_lbs

-ozs. length

Girth

^In. Bait Used_

Type Tackle-

Where Caught (name of lake or stream).

Location of Lake or Stream (county or nearest town)

Dote Caught

Angler

Home Address.

City and State.

Telephone Numbers: Business.

Home.

Fishing License Number:

"I hereby swear that the above statements ore true; that in taking this fish I complied with the contest rules and Georgia State Fishing Regulations, and that the witnesses hereto saw this fish weighed and measured. I consent to the use of my name in connection with the Georgia Big Fish Contest."

(Signature of Angler)

We, the undersigned, witnessed the weighing and measuring of the fish described above and verify the weight and measurements given.

1. Signature

Address

Phone

2. Signature.

Address

Phone-

3. Owner, of scale.

Phone.

Sworn to and ascribed before me this

day of.

_, 19.

-- (Signature of a qualified officer see rule 3)

. Title:

Send all entries to: Outdoors in Georgia, Room 713, 270 Washington Street, Atlanta, GA 30334.

Game and Fish Division of the Department of
Natural Resources. Decisions of the judges will be final. 9. Neither the Department of Natural Resources, the Georgia Wildlife Federation, nor any of their designees will be responsible for
loss or damage to fish entered in this contest. 10. Contest prizes from Garcia and Pflueger will be awarded annually to: the largest
largemouth boss, white bass, bream, trout, and the holder of any state record taken in the contest year. 11. In case of multiple records in a single season, the last record holder for that year will receive the prize. All record-breoking entries will be identified and the angler awarded a certificate. 12. The name of the annual winners In the largemouth and white boss contest, the weight of their fish, and date of catch will be Inscribed on trophies kept at the Atlanta office of the Department of Natural Resources. 13. Fish caught after December 31 will be entered In the following year's contest. Entries
should be made as soon as possible after the fish is caught. The deadline is January 15.
14. There is no entry fee.
15. Any angler, resident or non-resident, who holds a valid Georgia fishing license, may
enter the contest by completing the official entry form. 16. Fish must be caught on sporting tackle, ond be hooked and landed by the entrant. 17. Fish must be caught in the State of Georgia during the legal angling season for the species taken, and in observance of all pertinent fishing lows and regulations.
18. Any angler may submit as many entries as he wishes. Certificates will be awarded for all fish surpassing the minimum standards in
the chart regordless of the year caught, but
contest prizes will be awarded only in the season immediately past. In the event of a tie, duplicate awards will be given. 19. A clear, sidevlew, black and-white or color photograph of the fish, preferably with the angler, must be submitted with each entry. This photo becomes the property of Outdoors
in Georgia. 20. Affidavits should be mailed to Big Fish
Contest, Outdoors in Georgia, Room 713, 270
Washington Street, Atlanta, GA 30334.
HOW TO MEASURE A FISH: Girth
should he measured around the hirgest pari of the body as shown in diagram. Length: Measure along a flat surface from the extremity of the mouth to the extremity of
the tail.

26

Outdoors ip Georgia

Region I &
Rich Fatora, Supervisor
Robert Klant Russ England
Kim Primmer
Region III & IV Wayne Thomaston,
Supervisor
Tommy Mike
Frank Ellis
Royce Harrington
Region V
Mike Gennings, Supervisor
Ron Pasch
Tom Johnson

Fisheries Management Offices

Region V (continued)

Route 13, Box 322A
Gainesville, Georgia 30501 (404) 532-5301
Burton Fish Hatchery Route 1 Clarkesville, Georgia 30523 (404)947-3112
Calhoun Office P.O. Box 586 Calhoun, Georgia 30701 (404)629-1259
Route 3, Box 7A
Fort Valley, Georgia 31 030 (912)825-8248
Manchester Office P.O. Box 152 Manchester, Georgia 31816 (404) 846-2541
McDuffie Public Fishing Area Route 1 Dearing, Georgia 30808 (404)595-1619

Paul Loska
Tom Scott Russ Ober

Steve Cocke Fish Hatchery Dawson, Georgia 31742 (912) 995-4486

Region VI Larry McSwain,
Supervisor Jack Sandovt^
Clay Swanson Jerry Germann
Jim Nix

P.O. Drawer 1528 Waycross, Georgia 31501 (912)283-6661
Bowen Mill Hatchery
Route 1 Fitzgerald, Georgia 31750 (912)423-2988
Metter Office P.O. Box 358 Metter, Georgia 31439 (912)685-6424

Region VII
Carl Hall, Supervisor

Demeries Creek Office P.O. Box 86 Richmond Hill, Georgia 31324 (912)727-2112

2024 Newton Road Albany, Georgia 31701 (912)439-4256

Bob Rees

Richmond Hill Hatchery Richmond Hill, Georgia 31324 (912)756-3691

Minimum

Weight for

World'i

Certificate

Record

10 lbs.

BASS. lARGEMOUTH

22 lbs., 4 ois.

22 lbs., 4 ozs. -- George Perry,

Brunswick, Montgomery lake,

June 2, )932
Second-- 17 lbs., 14 ois -- Nickie Rich,

Marietta, Chastain's Lake,

April 27, 1965

5 lbs.

BASS, SPOTTED (KENTUCKY)
8 lbs., lO'/jois. 7 lbs , 12 ozs. -Robert Kincaid, Blue Ridge, lake Noltely, March 8, 1972

5 lbs.

BASS, SMALIMOUTH

11 lbs, 15 ozs.

7 lbs., 2 ozs. -Jack Hall,

Cleveland, TN, lake Chatuge,

March 28, 1973

5 lbs.

BASS, FlINT RIVER 6 lbs., 15 ozs.-- James lewis, Cordele, Flint River, February 20, 1967

No Record

2 lbs.

BASS, REDEYE (COOSA) 6 lbs., Vj oz. 2 lbs., 10 ozs --John R. Cockburn, Jr.,
Dalton, Jacks River, July 4, 1967

3 lbs.

BASS, WHITE

5 lbs., 5 ozs.

5 lbs., 1 oz.-J. M. Hobbins,

Atlanta, lake Lanier,

June 16, 1971

20 lbs.

BASS, STRIPED 63 Ibs.-Kelley A Word, Dublin, Oconee River,
May 30, 1967

72 lbs.

I'/l lbs. BLUEGIll

4 lbs., 12 oil.

3 lbs., 5 ozs.-- P. F. Gumm,

Atlanta, Shamrock lake,

July 19, 1972

Georgia State Records

Minimum Weight for

World's

Certificate

Record

SUNFISH, REDEAR (SHEllCRACKER)

4 lbs., 8 ozs. 3 lbs., 1 oz.-John S. Reid, Montezuma, McKenzie's lake, August 8, 1971

1'/4 lbs. SUNFISH, REDBREAST No Official State Record

No Record

1 lb

WARMOUTH

Not Yet Verified

2 lbs. -Carlton Robbins,

Sylvania, Private Pond,
May 4, 1974

CRAPPIE, BLACK 4 lbs., 4 ozs. -- Shirley lavender,
Athens, Acree's lake,
June 1, 1971

5 lbs.

3 lbs.

CRAPPIE, WHITE

5 lbs., 3 ois.

4 lbs., 11 ozs. -lewis I. Little,

Macon, Brickyard lake.

May 31, 1972

15" or 2 lbs.

TROUT, BROOK

14 lbs. 8 ozs

5 lbs., 5 ozs.-- James Harper,

Austell, Waters Creek,

September 3, 1973

18" or
5 lbs.
24" or 6 lbs

TROUT, BROWN

39 lbs., 8 ozs

18 lbs., 3 ozs -William M. lowery.

Marietta, Rock Creek,

May 6, 1967

TROUT, RAINBOW

42 lbs., 2 ozs.

12 lbs., 4 ozs -John Whitoker,

Elliioy, Coosawattee River,

May 31, 1966

IV2 lbs PERCH, YEILOW

4 lbs., 3'/2 ozs.

No Official State Record

Minimum Weight for
CertiTcate

5 lbs.

WALLEYE 11 lbs. -- Steven Kenny,
Atlanta, Lake Burton,
April 13, 1963

World's Record 25 lbs.

15 lbs

CATFISH. CHANNEL

58 lbs.

44 lbs , 12 OIS -Bobby M. Smilhwick,

Vidalio, Altamoha River,

May 18, 1972

15 lbs.

CATFISH, FLATHEAD 51 lbs , 15 OIS -H"yt McDaniel,
Suches, Lake Nottely, June 2, 1969

76 lbs.

Any Weight

MUSKELLUNGE 33 lbs - Rube Golden,

69 lbs , 15 ozs.

Atlanta. Blue Ridge Lake,

June, 1957

5 lbs.

PICKEREL, CHAIN (JACKFISH)
9 lbs , 6 ozs.
9 lbs., 6 ozs. -- Baxley McOuaig, Jr.,
Homerville, February, 1961

8 lbs.

BOWFIN

19 lbs., 12 ozs.

15 lbs , 12 ozs. -Tie:

R. H. Melton, Worner Robins,

Tchukolako Lake,

September 29, 1973;

John F Maddox, Phoenix City, Al.,

W. F. George,

June 4, 1971

20 lbs.

CARP

55 lbs , 5 ozs.

35 lbs , 12 ozs -Rev. Donold Clork,

Locust Grove, Lake Jackson,

1972

GAR, LONG NOSE No OfTicial Stale Record

50 lbs., 5 OIS.

May 1975

27

1974 Certificate Winners

Largemouth Bass-- Garcia Trophy Robert C. Stone-1 7-0 Lake Gale, March 18, 1974 Mrs. J. P. Morton-1 4-4 Mossy Creek, Jan. 30, 1 974
Tommy Johnson-- 1 3-0 private pond, June 11, 1974
Edward Smith-12-5 Lake Hartwell, July 4, 1974 F. Kenneth Hathaway-- 1 2-3 Jackson Lake, March 1974 Roger Howell-10-8 Satilla River, March 16, 1974

Crappie, Black no entries
Crappie, White no entries
Channel Catfish no entries

Spotted Bass George Clark-7-11 '^Lake Allatoona, Nov. 18, 1974
John Logan-- 6-1 4, Coosawattee River, Sept., 1974
Smallmouth Bass H. C.York, Jr.-5-l 2 Lake Chatuge, Dec. 28, 1974
Coosa Bass-- Redeye no entries
Flint River Bass
James Walter Croft-5-1 2 Flint River, Dec. 11,1 974
White Bass-- Pflueger Trophy James Loyless-- 4-2 'Lake Lanier, March 1 3, 1 974 Michael Godzick-3-1 2/Lake Lanier, March 27, 1 974 Michael Godzick-3-8/Lake Lanier, March 26, 1974

Flathead Catfish no entries
Bowfin
Guy Booth-- 1 2-1 4, Okefenokee Swamp, July 8, 1 974
Carp Jimmy Long-29-1 2/Ocmulgee River, Sept. 7, 1974
Chain Pickerel no entries
Yellow Perch no entries
Walleye Mark Hornsby-6-8 Lake Chatuge, April 11,1 974

Striped Bass no entries

Brook Trout
Robert Andrew Jones-1 -9(1 6")/Aug. 20, 1 974

Bluegill
W. A. Durrance-- 3-0 private pond, Jan. 9, 1974 Minnie L. Raley-- 2-0 private pond, April 13, 1974
Redear Sunfish (Shellcracker)
William Keith Hodges-- 2-10 private pond. May 16,
1974 LaRue H. Lifsey-2-8 Hendrick's Lake, March 3, 1974 Jason D. Dover-- 2-3 private pond, June 1, 1974
Redbreast no entries
Warmouth
Carlton Robbins-- 2-0/Sylvania, private pond.
May 4, 1 974 (new state record)

Rainbow trout
no entries
Brown Trout Roger D. Luke-- 1 0-0/Chattahoochee River, June 1 8,
1974 W. R.Bean-9-10(27y2")/Jack's River, April 14, 1974 William E. Washington-8-8 (25y2")/Waters Creek,
July 4, 1974 Robert L. Still-4-8 (22'/2")/Blood Mountain Creek,
April 28, 1974 James L. Jacobs-3-0 (1 8'/2")/Chattahoochee River,
June 26, 1974 Jerry R. Glover-2-1 4 (1 8") ^Chattahoochee River,
Jan. 21, 1974

;'!'?!!''''''''?''<!' !'C"';'g'"''''''S'''g ! ''^*?g '47
28

Outdoors it) Georgia

Changing
of the
Guard

by Joe Cullens Art by Jose Vinas

Ten years of often controversial but always

clearcut leadership in environmental protection

have passed with the resignation of R. S. "Rock"

Howard as director of the Department's En-

A vironmental Protection Division.

distin-

guished legacy of concern for our environment

remains.

Howard will serve as Environmental Affairs

Coordinator through 1975, helping to ease the

transition to office of J. Leonard Ledbetter, his

former deputy director.

Ledbetter brings to his new position almost

20 years of experience in environmental engi-

neering and a Master of Science in sanitary

engineering from Georgia Tech.

Rock Howard began his tenure with the

former Georgia Water Quality Control Board

in 1964. He served as executive secretary of that

body until 1972, when the Executive Reorgani-

May 1975

Rock Howard
zation Act of 1972 abolished the Board and created the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources.
His nationally known work in devising an effective water quality control program was recognized in his appointment as head of the new
division. There he coordinated the state's environmental protection programs.
Howard, a Savannah native, received his B.S. from Clemson and an M.S. from Harvard. He
is a licensed engineer.
In addition to numerous awards and honors, he was elected president of the Georgia Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers in 1970 and was made an Admiral of the Georgia
Navy by Governor Carter in 1971. He won the Arthur Sidney Bedell Award for extraordinary
personal service in water pollution control in 1973.
29

Leonard Ledbetter

Ledbetter became the deputy director of the
EPD in 1972. Before that, he served as
deputy chief of the Permits Branch, Region IV, of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
in Atlanta.
Ledbetter was chief of industrial wastes for the Georgia Water Quality Control Board from 1965 to 1971, and for a year worked as a staff engineer in the water pollution control section of the U.S. Public Health Service.
He served as a member of the technical staff of the Alabama Water Improvement Commis-
sion from 1960 to 1963, and before that as director of the local environmental health program in DeKalb County, Alabama.
He is a registered engineer in both Georgia
and Alabama.
He has been chairman of the Alabama En-
vironmental Health Association; chairman of the Sanitary Engineering Committee, Georgia Section, American Society of Civil Engineers; chairman of the Georgia Water Pollution Control Section; program chairman, Georgia Water and Pollution Control Association; and served on a task force to develop state program elements for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.
The improvement of environmental quality is probably one of the most challenging current tasks, and Ledbetter assumes the helm of the
Environmental Protection Division with the
skill and training to carry on Rock Howard's
# legacy.

30

Outdoors ip Georgia

BooH Reviews
A CATALOGUE OF THE SOUTH
Oxmoor House (Southern Liv-
ing), 343 pp., $4.95 (paperbound).
Ever tiiink how nice it would
be if you could go fishing, and
when you got home the fish already would be scaled? Or ever
wish you had a tree stand that would climb up a tree so you could change locations if luck isn't good in a certain place? Or have you ever wondered what to do about blisters if all you have on hand is a few
collard leaves? Solutions to
these dilemmas are only a few
among the hundreds of items described in A Catalogue of the
South.
The Catalogue, fashioned after the Last Whole Earth Cat-
alog, is divided into five sections: "heritage", "earth",
"handwork", "pleasures and places", and "lagniappe" (defined in Webster's as "a small present given to a customer with a purchase").
Probably of most interest to
OIG readers are the second and
fourth parts. Items discussed
range from growing your own
herbs to selecting and buying a yacht, with such topics in between as quail preserves, backpacking equipment, and folding
boats.
In most entries, the editors briefly describe an item and
how it operates, and list a com-

pany or person from whom you

can obtain more information.
A few things are discussed in

greater detail. For example, two

full pages are devoted to Appa-

lachian Trail guides; here, too,

there is an address for getting

further information.
Among entries in the other

sections are antique stores, craft

shops, books, and tourist at-
tractions. And interspersed

among these are tidbits of Southern culture: like how to destroy bedbugs, and why dog

days are called what they are.

One of the longest selections

even tells the history of tabasco.

If you're interested in the

South, as a hunter, fisherman,

antique lover, gardener, or bird-

watcher, there's something for
you in A Catalogue of the

South.

RNM

THE HOUSE OF LIFE: RACHEL CARSON
AT WORK
by Paul Brooks. Fawcett Pub-
lications, Inc., 283 pp., $L75
(paperbound).
If you're unfamiliar with the works of Rachel Carson,
The House of Life is a good
place to launch into her books.
And if you're at all interested
in nature, "launch" probably is the right word, because after reading this selection of Car-
son's works, you may well want
to go on to read her five books
in their entirety.
The House of Life is more than an anthology. The selec-
tions are joined together by biographical material from Carson's letters and other writings, and by the reminiscences of
those who knew her. It is not

a personal biography, how-
ever: it is not designed to satis-
fy those who want to know
what she ate for breakfast or what kind of clothes she wore.
What the book does, and does well, is show her professional development, how she was so effectively able to combine
science and literature. According to the introduc-
tion. Brooks tries to present "... a selection of her best writing, both published and unpublished, and . . . show whenever possible in her words
--how she achieved what she
did." Letters to friends reporting progress in her writing or describing the flight of a fire-
fly over the ocean reveal something of her approach to her work and of her keen obser-
vation.
The selections in the book include parts of her five books (Under the Sea-Wind, The Sea Around Us, The Edge of the Sea, Silent Spring, and The Sense of Wonder), and some
of the professional publica-
tions produced while she was
working for the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The biographical material shows how Carson
felt about her writing, and the methods she used; what she read and what works influenced her writing; and her deep concern for people as well as plants and animals. There is a brief glimpse into her family, but only as the family affected her work.
The first 200 pages are devoted to Carson's books about the sea ( The Sense of Wonder
is dealt with quite briefly).
The last fourth of the book
deals with Silent Spring, which Brooks calls "one of those rare

May 197^

31

books that change the course

of history ... by altering the

direction of man's thinking."

Carson's correspondence and
the reminiscenses of those who

helped in researching the book

reveal her growing interest in

the indiscriminate use of pesti-

cides and their threat to na-

ture; and they show the agony

she went through in producing

the book and defending it after

publication.
For those who already know

Rachel Carson's works. The

House of Life offers the chance to become reacquainted with

her writing and to learn more about how and why she wrote. As Brooks says in his introduc-

tion, "Anyone interested in how good books are written

particularly in that difficult and ever more crucial area of scien-

-- tific interpretation for the gen-

eral reader

should find it

an enlightening experience to

watch Rachel Carson at work."
RNM

SURVIVAL IN THE OUTDOORS
by Byron Dalrymple, Outdoor Life/Dutton, 296 pp., $6.95 (hardbound).
I used to think that "survival" books were for romantics, or for those outdoorsmen
who were long on macho and
short on sense. But then I had a chance to fish for lake trout
at a camp in the far north of Canada's Quebec Province. As
a little single engine plane carried us over the 70 miles of literally trackless (at least to
my uneducated eye) wilder-
ness to the camp, I kept won-

-<i-
dering how well I'd do if left
out there alone.
What I decided was that I
was foolishly ill-equipped to deal with that particular emergency: I carried no compass, no map, no shelter, not even a match. All of these were in the gear . . . but suppose I couldn't reach them after a crash, or the plane burned. Then what?
That "then what" is the subject of this book. It also covers less exotic problems: a boat stalled on a huge reservoir, the hunter lured deep into unfamiliar woods by an elusive grouse or deer, the canoeist stranded on the bank of a desolate river. Its simple message is "be prepared".
In the old days, that neat
prescription was hard to fill, for there were few good cheap compasses, most areas weren't adequately mapped, shelter materials were heavy and bulky, and preserved food (except for absurdly heavy canned goods or unpalatable jerky) was hard to find. But the modern technology that takes more and more of us into dangerous
places every year also provides the tools to extract us from trouble.
Most of us don't take ad-
vantage of these survival tools.

I suspect not one Georgia

hunter in ten carries a com-

pass, and that fewer really
know how to use it to plot a course. Even fewer boaters

carry charts on the lakes they
frequent, much less on new
ones. How many bird watchers

or rock hunters plan ahead to

deal with a wrenched knee or

sprained ankle?

Compass, map, signalling

devices, food, shelter, fire start-

ing tools. All are available, all

can be stuffed in a tiny pack

or stuff sack, and all together
may weigh less than four or

five pounds. Dalrymple offers

suggestions for these and other

survival tools and comments

wisely on their use.
He also covers the tradi-

tional fire starting, snaring,

and wild food picking that are

such a staple of these texts. It's
good to know these things, but

it's better to be prepared with
A modern efficient implements.

survival situation is not the

time for a short course in
nature lore. As Dalrymple sug-

gests, practice will help any-

one learn flint and steel fire
starting, or how to choose be-

tween safe and dangerous
plants ( the March issue of Out-

doors in Georgia includes in-

formation on the more com-
mon dangerous plants in our

state); but it would be foolish

to be caught in a situation

where these skills meant the

difference between life and

death.

This book is aimed at prac-

tical survival techniques, not
romantic adventure. As such,

it's valuable reading for any-
one who spends much time in

the outdoors.

TCM

32

Outdoors ii> Georgia

r'lsi)
Mapa^crpcpt
Ouestiops
by Don Johnson,
Fisheries Biologist

Question: The state furnished bass and bream
for stocking my lake last year. Do I

Answer:

need to fertilize or not?
You answered this question when you applied for fish. You were asked then if you planned to fertilize. A
"yes" answer requires 10-12 applications of fertilizer each and every

year at a cost of about $50.00 per

acre.
Question: I heard about a new kind of fish that would eat the weeds and moss I have in my lake. What kind of fish is this
and where can I buy some? Answer: The fish you refer to is the white amur

(Ctenopharyngodon idella) or "grass
carp". The only thing new about this

fish is its recent importation into this

country.

It is one of the most highly controversial fish imported in recent years. At present, the general public is not allowed to import, buy, sell, or possess the fish in Georgia. Question: I have a 5-acre lake stocked with bass and bream furnished by the state.
When do I begin fishing and what
fishing rules do you suggest? Answer: Our general recommendations are:
1. Begin fishing in June one year
after stocking the bass. 2. Return all bass under 12 inches
in length.
3. Keep all bream (bluegill and red-
ear) caught.
4. Do not allow minnows or other
live fish for bait.
5. Do not stock additional fish. 6. Harvest rates in a fertilized pond
the first year should not exceed
80 pounds (320 fish) of bream and 20 pounds (15-^0 fish) of
bass per acre. In future years the harvest should not exceed 160
pounds (700 fish) of bream and 30 pounds (20-25 fish) of bass per acre. For unfertilized ponds reduce this harvest rate by half.

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