What Fish See–And What they Don’t

This issue will continue exploring the sight of fish, and provide some practical suggestions for anglers. Underwater, where visibility is usually limited to dozens of feet under even the clearest conditions, there is little need for long-range vision.

Fish have been described as being nearsighted, and can probably focus on objects much closer to their eyes than humans can. Cast a popping bug near a school of bluegill and one of them will often approach within an inch of the lure to inspect it—something that would leave an angler cross-eyed! Even when a fish first detects an object off to the side, it will usually turn and face it in order to examine it. Why? The likeliest explanation is that this brings the object within the narrow range of a fish’s binocular vision.

Unlike humans, many fish have their eyes set far apart on the sides of the head rather than to the front. This allows a very wide arc of monocular side vision for spotting predators or prey, but provides only a narrow range of overlapping binocular vision to the front. There is a blind spot to the rear, and the range of binocular vision to the front encompasses only about 30-45 degrees. For this reason, some experienced anglers believe a fish is more likely to spot a lure if it is cast to the fish’s side instead of directly in front of it. Once a fish spots something, turning to face it undoubtedly gives the fish a better estimate of the object’s distance. Even though fish will turn to examine objects, their eyes do have limited independent movement within the sockets. Like humans, a fish’s eyes move in unison when looking around.
Fish vision

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A fish has a narrow range of binocular vision to the front, a wide range of monocular vision to both sides, and a narrow blind spot to the back. Read more

Fishing

CCRKBA Asks Sessions to Withhold Funds From Those That Violate 2A Rights

BELLEVUE, WA – The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms has written to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, requesting that the Department of Justice withhold funds from any local or state government that adopts policies that infringe on the right of citizens to keep and bear arms.

“The liberal municipal governments of such cities as New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Seattle, and states including New Jersey, Connecticut, California and Massachusetts should not be receiving taxpayer funds while violating the constitutional rights of those taxpayers,” said CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. “It is ironic that all of those places are willing to spend millions of dollars to attack the rights of gun owners, when they should be protecting civil and constitutional rights, including the Second Amendment.”

In a letter to Sessions, Gottlieb stated that local or state laws that infringe upon or impair the Second Amendment rights of citizens have done nothing to reduce violent crime, but they have reduced the ability of honest citizens to defend themselves.

In addition, the Citizens Committee is launching a national petition drive to mobilize grass roots support for withholding Justice Department funds from the offending local and state governments that are thumbing their noses at two U.S. Supreme Court decisions affirming the individual right to keep and bear arms.

“Why should American taxpayers see their hard-earned money used to erode their fundamental rights,” Gottlieb asked. “Those of us on the front lines of this civil rights battle see this as the ultimate abandonment of common sense. When government becomes the enemy of its constituents, it should be penalized, not rewarded.”

Gottlieb noted that anti-gun local governments penalize their citizens in many ways. For example, when Chicago lost a federal lawsuit to the Second Amendment Foundation, the city paid SAF’s legal bills by taking money from police department funds.

“These stubborn anti-gun local governments will spitefully hurt their citizens any way they can,” Gottlieb observed. “The time has come to slap them down, and the best way to get their attention is to turn off the funding spigot.”

Gun Control

2A Armament Light Weight Rifles

The AR-15 was originally designed as a lightweight rifle for the U.S. military. A version was adopted in 1963, weighing only 7.9 pounds with a loaded 30-round magazine. Today, an unloaded AR-15 style rifle typically weighs around 6.5 pounds. However, that is still 1.5-pounds heavier than 2A Armament’s flagship rifle – the BLR-16.

2A Armament combine the use CNC machines, high quality grade aluminum, titanium and a state-of-the-art in-house design team to manufacture the lightest AR-15 rifles and components available to shooters. From hand-assembled rifles in .22 LR, 5.56, 6.5 Creedmoor and 7.62, to their top of the line uppers, lowers, handguards, etc.; 2A Armament pushes the envelope in innovation and quality, unlike any other rifle manufacturer in the industry.

2A Armament also produces conversion bolt carriers for swapping to .22 LR, and titanium parts for reducing weight on current rifles, as well as barrels, rails, gas blocks and other accessories, so shooters can customize their rifles as they see fit.

In addition to the extremely light weight, all 2A Armament rifles and parts benefit from thoughtful design so that the end user can fully maximize 2A Armament components for custom builds. Read more

Firearms

Wolf Pack Kills in California

TAYLORSVILLE—A pack of wolves from the Lassen pack attacked a herd of cattle on a ranch near Taylorsville in Plumas County on April 1, fatally injuring a year old calf that was later put down after an investigation by authorities.

According to a report from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, on the evening of April 2, a cattle owner’s neighbors heard a commotion amongst the owners cattle. The neighbors and additional neighbors responded to the commotion, which included the sounds of a calf bawling loudly. Using spotlights, the responders observed three wolves in the pasture and found the cattle tightly grouped together. The responders honked a vehicle horn and shined a light on the wolves until they fled the pasture. Read more

Wildlife

ScentLok: Destroy Vehicle Odors


OZ20 Vehicle Deodorizer destroys odors along life’s long and smelly road
Muskegon, MI  – As hunters, each piece of gear we take into the field picks up ambient odors that can be alarming to deer, which is why a Complete Odor Management strategy should start at home… and extend to our vehicles. Read more

General

ScoutLook Hunting App Updates with Nationwide Property Lines and Landowner Info

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – ScoutLook continues its momentum in the hunting community as the leading mobile app provider. The ScoutLook Hunting app delivers global pinpoint weather forecasts, advanced game logging, distance and area measurement tools, and a growing suite of features to give hunters a digital edge in the field.
Now, with the launch of Property Lines, ScoutLook is the last hunting app you’ll ever need. 

The new Property Lines feature is simpler, faster and smarter than other options on the market. With two taps on the interactive map, users can see property lines, property sizes, landowner information, and other helpful property details for 97% of the U.S. with coverage in all 50 states. Locations can be cached for offline viewing with no cellular service. ScoutLook Property Lines are available for a free 7-day trial. Unlimited access costs just $5.99/month for full nationwide coverage. See a video and learn more here: http://bit.ly/ScoutLook-Property-Lines-App-Update Read more

Hunting

Smith & Wesson Issues Consumer Advisory for M&P 380 Shield Manual Thumb Safety Purchasers

CONSUMER ADVISORY

To: M&P® 380 SHIELD™ EZ™ Manual Thumb Safety Owners

SPRINGFIELD, MA –  Like any firearm, the function of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol can be influenced by the type and quality of ammunition used with the pistol.  In the case of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety, we have found that in very rare circumstances, ammunition that produces a high level of felt recoil can cause the manual safety to move from the fire to the “safety on” position during firing.  Should this occur, you will not be able to fire the next round unless and until the manual safety is reset to the fire position. Read more

Firearms

SP Shipping New XT DF Programmable Tactical Flashlight

Appleton, WI, April 9, 2018— Armament Systems and Procedures (ASP), a leading manufacturer of law enforcement products, is expanding its offering of high-performance, programmable tactical lighting solutions with the addition of the XT DF flashlight. The XT DF offers an intense, 600 lumens of primary illumination, with a secondary light level that’s user-programmable at 15, 60, or 150 lumens, or strobe. It’s powered by an included 18650 rechargeable battery, and ASP’s Dual Fuel technology allows the battery to be swapped out for two CR123A primary (single use) cells—available separately—when recharging isn’t possible or convenient.
Read more

Optics

AFT Tells Wells Fargo: No Business With NRA, Gun Companies

Teachers union will withdraw Wells Fargo mortgages from benefits program if bank continues to do business with NRA, gun manufacturers

WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten is in negotiations to meet with Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan to discuss the bank’s ongoing support for the gun lobby and gun manufacturers.

If Sloan continues the bank’s arms business, the AFT will dump its popular Wells Fargo mortgage program offered to members.

Other leading companies—including Dick’s Sporting Goods, REI and L.L. Bean— have acted to protect kids and educators in the wake of the Parkland massacre, but Wells Fargo continues to bankroll the NRA and help gun manufacturers such as American Outdoor Brands Corp. (the parent company of Smith & Wesson) and Vista Outdoor borrow hundreds of millions of dollars.

On Friday, the AFT released correspondence between Weingarten and Sloan outlining the union’s concerns about Wells Fargo’s connections with the NRA as well as its intention to stop offering Wells Fargo mortgages if Wells Fargo continues being the NRA banker. The Wells Fargo mortgage program is part of the Union Privilege program and approximately 1,600 AFT members have opted for these mortgages annually. Read more

Gun Control

Getting Gassed

By Glen Wunderlich

If you have any need for power equipment – be it lawn mowers, trimmers, chainsaws, tractors, snowblowers, generators, or older vehicles, as examples – you may have experienced issues related to ethanol-blended fuels.  With the changing of the seasons, Michiganders are prone to fuel-related issues when machines are stored for long periods of time.  But, what has changed with the advent of ethanol fuel mixtures common today is the definition of “long term” storage:  30 days or more!  If you’ve battled gremlins originating in your fuel tank, here are a few considerations to minimize the possibility of costly maintenance bills.

The term “ethanol-blended fuel,” or E10, refers to fuel that contains 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent gasoline.  Although our air is cleaner as a result of reduced hydrocarbon emissions, water that is either introduced with the fuel or forms as a result of condensation can be damaging to fuel systems.  On older machines with carburetors, changing over to ethanol fuels can cause gunk to become loosened, thus plugging tiny jets and creating operational failures.  The process can also cause “phase separation” wherein water is displaced to the bottom of fuel tanks – and, that’s where things get expensive!

·         From the Stihl website:  Ethanol attracts and mixes with moisture in the air, causing corrosion to metal components in the fuel system. If enough water is absorbed, the ethanol and water will settle out of the gasoline blend and settle to the bottom of the equipment’s tank. The layer of gasoline left floating on top has a lower octane level than the original ethanol gasoline blend, which can result in unstable engine operation, power loss and major engine failures.

·         Since the fuel is often drawn from the bottom of the fuel tank, the engine is drawing in a mixture of ethanol and water with no gasoline and no lubricating oil. This ethanol/water mix is thicker than gasoline and cannot easily pass through the fuel system. This can result in hard starting, unsafe high idle speeds, stalling, and can ultimately lead to engine damage or fuel system failure.

If you are not sure if the fuel is contaminated, pump some into a clear glass container to see if it’s clear.  If not, or if it smells sour, it must be completely drained.  Change the fuel filter.  Next, completely fill the tank with fresh fuel adding a quality cleaner to work on deposits.

It is important to note that no chemical agent or fuel additive can be added to E10 gasoline, in a reasonable quantity, that will fully prevent phase separation or recombine a phase-separated layer.

To minimize storage issues, machines can be run dry and ethanol-free fuel (available locally at select Sunoco filling stations) can be used in conjunction with a quality fuel stabilizer.  An excellent product named Motorkote Fuel Optimizer can be found locally at Meijer stores, Menards, or online at www.Motorkote.com  – and, it has resolved fuel-related issues for me recently.

STIHL currently recommends that you do not store or use ethanol fuel older than 60 days, and preferably no longer than 30 days, even with a stabilizer.

Stihl MotoMix premixed fuel, which is pre-mixed with STIHL HP Ultra synthetic oil, contains no ethanol and has a storage life of up to two years and is available locally at S&K Farm and Yard on South M-52, Owosso, MI (989) 723-2369, or any authorized Stihl dealer of choice.

As usual, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

General
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