Bill Cochran is a Roanoke Times outdoors columnist.

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Bill Cochran's Outdoors

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• Hunters and anglers still in the conservation business
• Drum fishing on Virginia’s Coast comes in two colors
• Elk advocate finally gets his day
• Turkeys are plentiful, so why are hunting regulations so tight fisted?
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Bill's Mailbag

• Remembering A. Willis Robertson
• Putting down a bear cub brings complaint
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Bill's Field Reports

• Eagles are up; black rail are down
• A. Willis Robertson great name for new DGIF headquarters
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Resources

• Trout stocking schedule

Odd things continue to happen at some of Virginia’s beloved bass streams. In the Potomac River and its tributaries, fish that have developed both male and female characteristics aren’t just worrisome to anglers, but to the millions of people who use the stream as a water source.

At one testing site, seven of the 13 male largemouths examined had some kind of unusual feminine characteristics. Scientists have not identified the source or sources of the problem.

As for the Shenandoah River, scientists at James Madison University have gathered information that shows water temperatures are on the rise, forcing fish to spawn sooner. A 1-degree change for fish is like a 10-degree change for people, a JMU chemist said.

Global warming has been ruled out. It could be that more water is entering the river from pavement and other hard surfaces, which means it arrives at a higher temperature. Another theory is that more people are using the river water and it returns to the stream warmer via treatment plants.

Fish kills have occurred in the Shenandoah, a treasured smallmouth bass stream, in 2004 and 2005. The 2005 kill, according to JMU scientists, resulted in about 2,100 fewer fishing licenses being sold in the region

JAMES CATFISH IS A RECORD

The blue catfish state record is back in the court of the James River. It had been there for a long while. Then on June 29, 2004, North Carolina catfish expert William Zost reeled a state record 92-pond, 4-ounce blue cat from Kerr Lake.

That record has been topped by a 95-pound, 11-ounce lower James River catch taken July 15 by Archie Gold of Jetersville. The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries has certified the fish as a state record. It was 34.5 inches long and had a 38.5-inch girth.

After being checked by a biologist, Gold released his fish back to the river.

Gold was participating in a catfish tournament when the fish hit about 10 p.m. He was using bait on 40-pound line (See July 27 Cochran column, “Catfish closing in on 100-pound mark.”)

Fish officials and anglers believe it is just a matter of time before the 100-pound mark is broken by a blue catfish catch. The world record is a 124-pound fish landed from the Illinois section of the Mississippi River.

OUTDOOR BRIEFS

>The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries’ search committee is scheduled to conduct its initial round of interviews Sept. 10 for the hiring of a director of the agency.

>Steve Blosser’s 12-point buck was the highest scoring deer in the Eastern Region of the Virginia Big Game Show, Sept. 10 in Franklin. The Halifax County buck scored 215 8/16 under Virginia’s measuring system. The Western Region and State finals are set for Sept. 23 and 24 at the Rockingham County Fairground near Harrisonburg. Information on vpsa.org.

>A civil jury in Pennsylvania found a landowner partly responsible for a hunting accident in which a non-hunter was struck by a stray bullet fired by a visitor of the landowner. The hunter also was charged. Observers say the case may have application for landowners elsewhere who allow people to hunt on their property.

>U.S. District Judge Ricardo Urbina has ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service violated federal law when it allowed or expanded hunting in 37 wildlife refuges from 1997 to 2003. Protectionists groups have been critical of the government for permitting hunting. Game officials in Virginia aren’t certain what the impact will be on refuge hunting in Virginia, but Bob Duncan, wildlife division chief of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries said, “It does not sound good.”

>Two of the nation’s major animal-rights organizations, the anti-hunting Humane Society of the United States and the Doris Day Animal League, have announced plans to merge. Talk about a 1,000-pound gorilla! The HSUS reported that its 2006 budget is $103 million, twice what it was 10 years ago. HSUS played a roll in the ruling on wildlife refuges listed in the item above.

>You have heard of Master Gardeners. Now there is a new program to train Master Naturalists. Master Naturalist chapters have been established in Lynchburg, Wytheville, Fredericksburg and the New River Valley. Information on the program can be found at their Web site.

>BASS is looking for volunteers to work at the CITGO Bassmaster Classic in Birmingham, Ala. Feb. 23-25. Call BASS at 877-BASS-USA.

SMITH RIVER TROUT REPORT

I was in Bassett to attend the Smith River Trout Unlimited meeting and decided to take advantage of the occasion to do a little fun fishing one morning prior to the afternoon generation on the Smith.

There had been a heavy rain a couple days before, which put a lot of color in the water downstream from Town Creek. I have always been of the opinion that stained water was easier to fish than clear water. I have also thought that there is a limit to how much stain can be in the water before it goes from good to un-fishable. I’m now beginning to think coffee-colored water has more potential than previously thought.

I arrived at the mirror factory and found one other fisherman ahead of me. I am not sure where he had started, so I walked the railroad tracks thinking I would probably go farther downstream than most care to walk. As it turned out, the other fellow also was a “walker.” When I spied him, I immediately turned around and walked back up the tracks to the trestle pool. This put good distance between us.

I was soon into fish and made my goal a double digit catch while hardly moving my feet. By taking my time and fishing all the likely spots, I soon more than doubled that. I saw a few surface splashes and even had a couple of takes on my yarn strike indicator. I stuck to what I know best, which is dead drifting a nymph. I used a No.12 Allieworm, which is a little larger than I normally use, but it works well when the water is stained.

SALTWATER FISHING TOURNAMENT.

A 39-pound king mackerel is a new leader in the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament. Here are the standings for catch-and-keep entries:

BLACK DRUM: 83 pounds, 13 ounces, Charles Porter, Birdsnest, caught at Oyster Bay.

COBIA: 109 pound pending state record, Joseph Berberich II, Hayes, lower-western Chesapeake Bay.

CROAKER: 4 pounds, David West, Deltaville, upper-eastern Chesapeake Bay.

DOLPHIN: 56 pounds, 6 ounces, Richard Koch, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.

FLOUNDER: 13 pounds, 13 ounces, Lewis Graves, Sr., Fredericksburg, lower-eastern Chesapeake Bay.

GRAY TRIGGERFISH: 4 pounds, 15 ounces, Phillip Gaskins, Chesapeake, lower-eastern Chesapeake Bay.

GRAY TROUT: 12 pounds, 4 ounces, Marvin Williams III, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.

KING MACKEREL: 37 pounds, 8 ounces, Benjamin Reynolds, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.

KINGFISH: 2 pounds, 2 ounces, Any Backowski, Chesapeake, off Virginia Beach.

SEA BASS: 7 pounds, 2 ounces, Steve Harding, Norfolk, off Virginia Beach.

SHEEPSHEAD: 17 pounds, 13 ounces, Arun Nhek, Newport News, lower western Chesapeake Bay.

SPADEFISH: 14 pound state record, Austin Edwards, Powhatan, Cell in the Chesapeake Bay.

SPANISH MACKEREL: 6 pounds, 13 ounces, Charles Quann, King George, upper western Chesapeake Bay.

SPECKLED TROUT: 12 pounds, 1 ounce, Barclay Shepard, Poquoson, Elizabeth River.

SPOT: 1 pound, 4 ounces, Michael Mihalcoe, Gloucester, lower York River. .

STRIPED BASS: 68 pounds, 1 ounce state record, Clay Armstrong, Mechanicsville, off Virginia Beach.

TAUTOG: 18 pounds, 1 ounce, Paul Hurtubise, McGaheysville, off Virginia Beach.

TUNA, BLUEFIN: 168 pounds, Cory Cinque, Annapolis Md., off Eastern Shore.

TUNA: 260 pounds, John Travers, Damascus, Md., off Eastern Shore.

WAHOO: 83 pounds, William Cooke II, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.

MEETINGS/EVENTS/SEASONS

The early Canada goose season continues through Sept. 25, with a five-daily limit.

The first portion of the dove season continues through Sept. 23. Follow-up dates are Oct. 7-Nov. 4 and Dec. 28-Jan. 15. The limit is 12 daily.

Rail hunting season continues through Nov. 16.

Roanoke Valley Chapter Trout Unlimited meeting, Sept. 20, fifth floor of Roanoke Center in the Square, 7 p.m., program on club activities and fly tying a “secret weapon” called the Roanoke Grub designed by member Dover England. See roanoketu.org.

National Hunting and Fishing Day, Sept. 23.

New River cleanup, 9:30 a.m., Sept. 23, Foster Falls access in New River Trial State Park, register with Charlie Whittle.

Western Region and State Championship Virginia Big Game Show, Sept. 23 and 24, Rockingham County Fairgrounds, information from vpsa.org.

Philpott Lake Chapter of the Ruffed Grouse Society inaugural sportsmen banquet, Oct. 6, Bassett Country Club, 6 p.m., information/tickets from Robert Woods.

Roanoke Valley banquet of Hunters for the Hungry, Oct. 14, Dave Sarmadi Mitsubishi in Salem, $20 single; $35 couple, children under 12 free, tickets from Jeff Fletcher 540-985-6523 or Fred & Phyllis Wells, 540-992-3874.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, Oct. 17, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond.

Roanoke Valley Friends of NRA banquet, 5:30 p.m., Oct. 21, Salem Civic Center, tickets $40; $70 for couples, information from Mike Kessler, 540-884-2917, or Harvey Bulaski, 540-343-9040.

17th annual H.C. Edwards Chapter Ruffed Grouse Society banquet, Oct. 28, 6 p.m., Augusta Expoland, Fisherville, Va., tickets or information from Matt Smith, 540-459-3559.

Bassmaster Northern Open, Smith Mountain Lake, Oct. 26-28, information on bassmaster.com.

Woodcock season Nov. 4-18; Dec. 23-Jan. 6.

Two-day wilderness first aid course, Nov. 4 and 5 in Blacksburg, $160, information and registration, wfa.net.

Two-day wilderness first aid course, Nov. 11 and 12 in Richmond, $160, information and registration, wfa.net.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, Dec. 12, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond.

Western Virginia Sports Show, Augusta Expoland, Fisherville, Feb. 16-18.

CITGO Bassmaster Classic, Feb. 23-25, Birmingham, Ala.

BASS Elite Series, June 7-10, 2007, Smith Mountain Lake, information from bassmaster.com.

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