Field Reports
FISHING
Boat captain prosecuted
Richard Oba , the captain of a charter fishing boat that capsized near Winchester Bay, Ore., last September killing three people has pleaded not guilty to three counts of seaman’s manslaughter.
The indictment alleges the Sydney Mae II went down because of the captain’s decision to approach the Umpqua River bar too closely, and that he did so despite warnings of rough conditions.
The Coast Guard also had restricted recreational and uninspected passenger vessels from crossing the Umpqua River bar.
The National Transportation Safety Board, in a report released last month, said none of the three victims was wearing a life jacket.
Seaman’s manslaughter law allows the federal government to charge negligence in the operation of a ship that results in injury.
Oba faces up to 10 years in prison on each of the three counts.
Associated Press
SURVIVAL
Study hunters, gatherers
“Hunters-gatherers: Brutish or Brilliant?” is the title for a workshop starting Tuesday in Sandpoint.
The second in a series of three workshops will feature the art, skills, and lifestyles of ancient and contemporary hunter-gatherers. The program is presented by wilderness survival instructors Lanie Johnson and Ken Fischman.
The workshop begins with a free multimedia presentation dealing with ancient survival skills on Tuesday, 7 p.m., at the East Bonner County Library.
For a hands-on experience, participants have the option of joining a field session on Feb. 4 or Feb. 11 along the Pack River. The $24 field trip fee includes introduction to key skills of hunter-gatherer cultures, such as tracking and making cordage from plant fibers, as well as a demonstration of friction-fire making.
Refreshments will be served.
Info: Paul Fosselman, (208) 255-4236 or paul@pfos.net.
Rich Landers
OUTDOOR SPORTS
Banff films at NIC
Films from the 2005-2006 Banff Mountain Film Festival’s World tour are making another run through the Inland Northwest with a one-night stand today at North Idaho College.
The films include original and experimental shorts, eye-opening documentaries and high-adrenaline films set on big mountains, whitewater runs and mountain biking trails.
The flicks start at 6:30 p.m. in Boswell Hall Schuler Auditorium. Cost: $10.
Rich Landers
URBAN WILDLIFE
Aggressive deer killed
Game wardens recently killed two more deer in the Helena city limits after authorities said the bucks became aggressive. Wardens killed nine aggressive deer around the city last year.
In the recent cases, the animals were causing problems near a middle school. A motorist used his vehicle to head off the animal that was threatening a pedestrian in one instance.
Last month, the city passed a ban on feeding deer and changed rules to allow authorities or an appointed party to kill animals within city limits.
Staff and wire reports
PREDATORS
Idaho wolves shot
The first two wolves were killed on Jan. 19 under Idaho’s new authority to control the predators since their endangered species status protections were reduced.
USDA Wildlife Services reported killing two wolves of the Buffalo Ridge pack after wolves killed a calf along the East Fork of the Salmon River in Custer County. Wildlife Services officials said they tried unsuccessfully to trap the wolves for four days before Fish and Game officials authorized the lethal action.
The male and female were shot from a plane as they came from the carcass. It was the first lethal action taken under the authority granted to the state by an agreement signed Jan. 5 between Idaho and the U.S. Department of Interior.
The agreement gives Idaho most day-to-day wolf management authority, including the authority to authorize lethal control to resolve wolf-livestock conflicts.
In 2005, Wildlife Services killed 20 wolves in control actions based on 93 investigations related to wolf complaints.
Staff reports