Registration open for June and July fishing outings in Smyrna, Georgetown

DOVER – Do you know a child or young teen who might enjoy learning about fishing and how to catch a fish? DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife’s “Take a Kid Fishing!” program has openings on two upcoming dates for budding anglers age 6 through 15 and a parent/guardian to come out and learn to fish.

“Take a Kid Fishing!” teaches young people fundamental fishing skills and conservation concepts. Along with the angling experience, these free-admission fishing days also feature activity stations and prizes. Fishing equipment is provided, but participants may want to pack a picnic lunch. The program is sponsored by the Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife through its Aquatic Resources Education program. Host sites for some of this year’s programs are provided by DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife and Division of Parks & Recreation, and the Delaware Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service.

“Take a Kid Fishing!” events will be held on the following dates:

• 9 a.m. – noon, Wednesday, June 22 – Aquatic Resources Education Center, Smyrna
• 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., Saturday, July 2 – Redden State Forest, Georgetown

To ensure enough supplies are on hand for these free programs, pre-registration is required. To pre-register for “Take a Kid Fishing!”, or for more information about the program or about volunteering as an instructor, please email Mary Rivera at mary.rivera@delaware.gov.

Grandparents, parents or others age 16 and older who wish to fish with participants on “Take a Kid Fishing!” days must have a current Delaware fishing license. A resident annual Delaware recreational fishing license, which covers fresh and tidal waters as well as crabbing and clamming, costs $8.50 for ages 16 through 64. Persons under the age of 16 and residents age 65 and older are not required to purchase fishing licenses in Delaware, although exempt persons may purchase fishing licenses if they so choose to help support fisheries management efforts.

Both resident and non-resident anglers age 16 and older also are required to obtain a Delaware Fisherman Information Network (FIN) number. The free number is included as part of a Delaware fishing license purchase. License-exempt anglers, including Delaware residents 65 and older, may visit www.delaware-fin.com or call 800-432-9228 toll-free to obtain their free FIN number.

Delaware fishing licenses are sold online, at the licensing desk in DNREC’s Richardson & Robbins Building, 89 Kings Highway, Dover, and by license agents statewide. To find a participating agent, or to purchase a license online, visit Delaware Licenses. For additional information on Delaware fishing licenses, call 302-739-9918.

For more information on fishing in Delaware, click on the 2016 Delaware Fishing Guide. The guide also is available in printed form at DNREC’s Dover licensing desk, and from license agents throughout the state.

The “Take a Kid Fishing!” program is part of Delaware’s Children in Nature Initiative, a statewide effort to improve environmental literacy in Delaware, create opportunities for children to participate in enriching outdoor experiences, combat childhood obesity and promote healthy lifestyles. Delaware’s multi-agency initiative, which partners state and federal agencies with community organizations, is in conjunction with the national No Child Left Inside program.

Media Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 46, No. 179

DOVER –This month DNREC observes American Wetlands Month with ongoing efforts to restore wetlands, raise awareness of their values and benefits, and encourage actions to protect them.

“American Wetlands Month is a great time to discover the importance of wetlands and the significant benefits they provide,” said DNREC Secretary David Small. ”Wetlands contribute to our quality of life in Delaware by protecting people and property from flooding and coastal storms, filtering pollutants from water, providing vital fish and wildlife habitat and helping reduce the impacts of sea level rise. Efforts to protect and restore wetlands are critical to ensuring their valuable services.”

Scientists from DNREC’s Wetland Monitoring and Assessment Program are performing new research into the best methods for planting wetland-sustaining Spartina alterniflora grass at the Piney Point marsh on Pepper Creek in Dagsboro. Along with filling in bare spots with 3,500 plants in the marsh, this project will further wetland restoration research by helping to determine if Spartina alterniflora survival rates are improved depending upon the planting process.

Spartina grass planting is part of a beneficial-reuse marsh restoration project to restore critical wetlands, preserve wildlife habitat and improve overall water quality in the area. The project, a collaborative effort with the Center for the Inland Bays, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and other Divisions at DNREC, applied dredge material from Pepper Creek back onto tidal wetlands to help maintain surface elevations above rising sea levels and increase plant cover and surface stability.

Other wetland projects also are underway or on the horizon. Scientists with DNREC’s Delaware Coastal Programs are conducting on-going wetland monitoring efforts at St. Jones and Blackbird Creek Reserves. By measuring the long-term changes to marsh heights, scientists are obtaining valuable data on whether the wetlands are keeping pace with sea level rise.

This summer, DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife will be working on two wetland restorations in the Delaware Bayshore. At Little Creek Wildlife Area east of Dover, scientists will restore 450 acres of wetlands by installing new water control structures to better manage water levels and improve habitat for migratory shorebirds and wildlife. At Ted Harvey Wildlife Area near Kitts Hummock, work will begin on rebuilding a dike and installing a water control structure that will restore more than 400 acres of critical wetlands.

DNREC’s Wetland Monitoring and Assessment Program will participate in the National Wetland Condition Assessment starting in June, a survey organized by the EPA that will provide valuable data that can be used to track wetland changes over time, design restoration plans and better understand how certain land use decisions affect the health of wetlands.

In support of American Wetlands Month, DNREC’s Wetland Monitoring and Assessment Program has organized programs that raise awareness about wetland health and benefits and encourage actions to protect them.

• “Capture the Moment: I am a Wetland” Digital Photo Contest
  Enter photos of wetlands in Delaware that capitalize on the many wetland types that vary from forested seasonal ponds, to highly productive salt marshes, to unique Bald Cypress swamps. Submissions are due by June 9. More information available on www.de.gov/delawarewetlands
  
• The Delaware Wetland Warrior Award and the Delaware Wetland Apprentice Award. Nominations for both awards are being accepted through June 24. Governor Jack Markell and DNREC Secretary David Small will present the awards at the Delaware State Fair in July.
  • The Delaware Wetland Warrior Award, now in its ninth year, is presented annually to a citizen, organization or business that has demonstrated exemplar effort to benefit Delaware wetlands in the areas of outreach and education, monitoring and assessment, or restoration and protection.
  • The Delaware Wetland Apprentice Award, new for 2016, recognizes a K-12th grade student, classroom or school that has volunteered or completed a project that evaluates, improves or educates about the condition of Delaware’s wetlands.
• Find wetland fun facts, photos from the field and educational resources on the Wetland Monitoring and Assessment Program’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.
• “Wetlands 101” video series – “Restoring Wetlands: Restoration Stories” – available on DNREC’s YouTube Channel – Check out the sixth installment of DNREC’s “Wetlands 101” that focuses on some of the common problems wetlands are up against and explores Delaware sites that have gone through the restoration process.
• Explore a wetland by visiting one of the state’s many environmental areas, including a Delaware State Park, DNREC’s DuPont Nature Center, DNREC’s Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve or a State Wildlife Area. Whether it’s visiting one of the nature centers or taking a hike through a park, wetlands are easily accessible across the state. On a visit, take a picture and tag #AmericanWetlandsMonth to spread the word.

For more information about Delaware’s wetlands, please like the Delaware Wetlands Facebook page, follow Delaware Wetlands on Twitter or Instagram, or visit de.gov/delawarewetlands.

Media Contact: Melanie H. Rapp, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 46, No. 170

SLAUGHTER BEACH – The DuPont Nature Center at Mispillion Harbor Reserve, a DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife facility, will host its seventh annual Peace, Love & Horseshoe Crab Festival, celebrating the spring spectacle of migrating shorebirds and spawning horseshoe crabs, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 21 at the center, located at 2992 Lighthouse Road, Milford, DE 19963. Admission is free.

Festivities will feature children’s games and a variety of fun and educational activities for everyone. A series of Estuary Eco-Challenge stations will be set up on the center’s grounds for visitors of all ages. Visitors will learn about how to identify shorebirds, get close to live horseshoe crabs and other aquatic species, learn how to cast a fishing rod, learn about boating safety, try their hand at Gyotaku fish printing, and much more!

Visitors also will have great viewing opportunities from the center’s large deck to check out interaction between horseshoe crabs and migrating shorebirds, including federally-threatened red knots, which depend on horseshoe crab eggs to help fuel their 9,000-mile journey from South America to their Arctic breeding grounds. DNREC’s Delaware Shorebird Project Team members will be on hand to identify the shorebirds along the shoreline surrounding the center.

Parking will be available at the Lacy E. Nichols Jr. Cedar Creek Boating Access Area’s public boat ramp, with a shuttle running to the center throughout the day. The festival will be held rain or shine.

Perched on the edge of Mispillion Harbor at the intersection of the mouths of the Mispillion River and Cedar Creek, the Division of Fish & Wildlife’s DuPont Nature Center regularly offers a variety of interactive exhibits, school tours and educational programs. Spring and summer hours from May 1 through Aug. 31 are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. September hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays. The center will close for the season at the end of the day Friday, Sept. 30, reopening in April 2017. Admission is free and open to the public.

For more information about the Peace, Love & Horseshoe Crab Festival, or about the DuPont Nature Center and its programs, please call 302-422-1329. Also visit DuPont Nature Center, or find us on Facebook: facebook.com/DelawareFishWildlife.

The DuPont Nature Center is a focal point of the Delaware Bayshore, and is part of DNREC’s Delaware Bayshore Initiative, a landscape approach to restore and protect fish and wildlife habitat, increase volunteer participation in habitat stewardship projects, enhance low-impact outdoor recreation and ecotourism opportunities, and promote associated environmentally compatible economic development. For more information, click Delaware Bayshore.

Media Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 46, No. 164

LEWES – Visitors to Cape Henlopen State Park are advised that certain areas of the park, including parts of the park’s bike loop, will be closed for 10 days from May 16 – 25, due to construction activities within the Fort Miles area of the park. Closed will be the main road into the Fort Miles Historic area, the fort’s main parking lot and about a half-mile of the paved bike loop passing through Fort Miles. Other sections of the bike loop will remain open.

Media Contact: Beth Shockley, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 46, No. 161

DOVER – With DNREC sponsorship through the Division of Watershed Stewardship, the Nanticoke Watershed Alliance (NWA) will launch a new citizen science and water quality improvement program, Nanticoke Musselwatchers, with an organizational meeting from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Saturday, May 7 at the Seaford District Library, 600 N. Market Street Ext., Seaford, DE 19973.

The goal of the Musselwatchers program is assessing the status of freshwater mussels in the Nanticoke River watershed. Freshwater mussels serve as filter feeders and are capable of filtering a liter of water in about 45 minutes, thus providing a crucial ecosystem service. However, mussels are highly sensitive to pollution, especially excessive sediment.

Volunteers will learn about freshwater mussels and species found most often in the Nanticoke watershed, and how to conduct mussel surveys in the watershed. They also will receive survey kits and adopt segments of Delaware’s portion of the watershed. Volunteers must commit to conducting at least four surveys during the May-September pilot season and to providing feedback about the program.

The Nanticoke Musselwatchers Program is a part of the 2016 Reclaim Our River (ROR) series, a partnership including the Nanticoke Watershed Alliance, DNREC’s Division of Watershed Stewardship and the Delaware Nature Society. The ROR partnership is devoted to bringing monthly events, workshops, and recreational activities to the Nanticoke River Watershed. The series offers participants fun opportunities to connect with Delaware’s waterways and provides important information on water quality that can help in protecting aquatic resources. More information at delawarewatersheds.org

Participation in this program is limited to 25 Musselwatchers and, for safety reasons, volunteers must work in teams of no fewer than two people. Prospective volunteers must pre-register at nanticokemusselwatchers.eventbrite.com or may contact Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator Beth Wasden at bethwasden@nanticokeriver.org or at 443-944-1175 for more information about the program.

The Nanticoke Watershed Alliance is a consensus-building organization that supports partnerships to conserve the natural, cultural and recreational resources of the Nanticoke River watershed. Partnership representation includes local citizens, academia, industry, agriculture, development professionals, conservation groups and government.

Media Contact: Phil Miller, DNREC Watershed Assessment and Management Section: 302-739-9939 or philip.miller@delaware.gov

Vol. 46, No. 158