Sports

  The Plumas County Fire Safe Council and the county’s fire chiefs want the $1.2 million that county residents paid in CalFire fees last year returned to the county for fire prevention work.

  While there are efforts under way to repeal the fee, including a lawsuit filed March 12 by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, many fear that the fee, in some form, will remain.

  Plumas golfers can let out a sigh of relief. Mt. Huff Golf Course in Crescent Mills opened earlier this month to anxious golfers waiting to hit some balls. Mt. Huff is the first course located in Plumas County to open for the season.

  “It’s always great when we can open the season this early,” said the Mt. Huff club house manager Loren Lindner. “We get players from all around the county to come play our course.”

Shooting halibut Question: I have a question about safely bringing large halibut on board. Because the Pacific halibut caught in Alaska are often over 100 pounds, deckhands use pistols or small shotguns to kill the fish before bringing them on board. This is to prevent the fish from causing damage or hurting anyone once on the deck. Would this method be legal to use in California ocean waters with large fish? Of course, the fish would already be “landed” by first being gaffed. Is it even legal to carry a pistol while fishing on a private boat near shore?  —Timothy B. Morro Bay

Answer: Sport fishermen may take halibut by hand, hook and line, spear fishing, spear, harpoon or bow and arrow (California Code of Regulations Title 14, sections 28.65, 28.90 and 28.95). Firearms are not a legal method of take for halibut, so a gun may not be used to assist in taking or landing the fish. In some areas it may be legal to carry a pistol on a private boat but there are closures that prohibit the possession of any firearm on a boat along portions of the Monterey and San Luis Obispo county coastlines within the California Sea Otter Game Refuge. If considering carrying a pistol on your boat, you need to research local laws and ordinances within the jurisdictions you will be transiting on your fishing trip.

Breeding tarantulas Question: I’m interested in catching some local tarantulas to try breeding them. I can’t find anything obviously referring to either tarantulas or prohibitions on such things. Are there any licenses required? Are there any definite prohibitions against it or any issues pertaining to the different public lands (e.g., city, county, state, federal)? —S. Godfrey

Answer: The Fish and Game Code and its implementing regulations currently do not prohibit the take of spiders, but federal laws may apply to the take or breeding of tarantulas. You may want to consult the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding federal prohibitions, and be aware that some public lands (e.g., state and national parks, scientific reserves, etc.) have laws that prohibit the taking of any live animals. You need to check with the jurisdiction of the land on which you want to hunt tarantulas.

Distance from hoop nets Question: How far can a fisherman be from his nets once the traps are in the water? One hundred yards? Five hundred yards? —Dixon C.

Answer: There is no legal limit to the distance you can travel from hoop nets you have set in a recreational pursuit of lobster or crab. However, they must be checked — lifted to the surface — at least every two hours.

White-Tailed mount Question: I am looking to add a mounted white-tailed doe head to the family cabin but want to be sure before buying it. It was legally taken and mounted in another state. From what I hear, it’s really old. I don’t believe they are native to California but I want to be sure its legal to do before purchasing and transporting it here. —Kristi D. Answer:

Answer:Yes, it is legal in California for you to purchase the taxidermied head of either sex of a white-tailed deer. California Fish and Game law (Fish and Game Code, section 3039) only prohibits buying or selling any species of bird or mammal that occurs in the wild in California. We have only mule deer and black-tailed deer here. One thing you must do before importing it into California is to complete and submit the Declaration for Entry form available online at http://bit.ly/XEYZzI. In addition, when shipping wildlife into California, there are certain requirements regarding how to properly mark containers containing wildlife. Any package in which birds, mammals, fish, reptiles or amphibians, or parts thereof, are offered for transportation to, or are transported or received for transportation by, a common carrier or his or her agent shall bear the name and address of the shipper and of the consignee and an accurate description of the numbers and kinds of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles or amphibians contained therein clearly and conspicuously marked on the outside thereof (FGC, section 2348).

Carrie Wilson is a marine environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. While she cannot personally answer everyone’s questions, she will select a few to answer each week in this column. Contact her at Cal.Outdoors@wildlife.ca.gov.

Bethany Clapper knocks the ball into the outfield.

  The Feather River softball team swept the College of the Siskiyous last Saturday in a doubleheader. The lady Eagles opened up their conference play at home. The wins put FRC up to 2-0 in conference play and 7-9 overall.

  In the first game the Eagles kept Siskiyous from scoring a run up until the bottom of the last inning. Feather River scored one run in the second and three more in the third.