Arkansas Outdoors
New System To Turn In Violators
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is offering a new way to
anonymously report outdoor-related violations to the agency’s
enforcement division agents. It’s called tip411 and is as simple as
sending a text message.
CitizenObserver, the tip411 provider, uses technology that removes all
identifying information before the AGFC receives the text so that the
AGFC cannot identify the sender. To send the anonymous tip via text
message to the AGFC, text AGFC with the tip to tip411 (847411). You
will then receive a thank you text acknowledging that the text has been
received.
According to AGFC Assistant Chief of Enforcement Todd Smith, the system
is a completely anonymous way for people to report violations via text
messaging. “Our dispatch center will be monitoring all incoming texts
24 hours, seven days a week,” Smith said. “We will respond to the
reporting person, gather required information, then pass it on to the
appropriate officer,” he explained.
With the increase in technology along with the way our society
communicates these days, this venture should open the door for those
who would not have called in a violation, Smith said. “There are many
other agencies across the country that have initiated this way of
communicating with law enforcement,” he added.
An iPhone app is also under development and will be available soon.
Citizens all may anonymously report tips by calling 800-482-9262.
Bird Feeding Staples
Feeding birds in yards enthralls many thousands of Arkansans every
winter. When they are ready to move up a notch from using bags of mixed
seed from discount stores and groceries, the Arkansas Game and Fish
Commission suggests, there are two effective steps to take: black oil
sunflower seed and magic mix.
Using these, the backyard bird feeder gets many more varieties of
visitors. The ratio of wanted versus unwanted species like house
sparrows and starlings increases sharply.
Black oil sunflower seed is available from farm supply outlets, garden
centers and bird specialty stores. Magic mix is something you concoct
at home.
It’s simple. Like making a stew or chili, there are all sorts of
variations to magic mix and no one insists you have to go by a recipe
or formula. Magic mix is a name that came from somewhere years ago and
capitalizing it just seems logical, although it’s not a brand name by
any means.
Magic mix is lard, peanut butter and cornmeal. You can add other
things. Exact proportions aren’t needed. Just mix it so it looks and
feels right.
In a large mixing bowl, blend in lard and peanut butter, using more
lard than peanut butter. A pastry blender works well or you may prefer
other kitchen tools you have on hand. Then gradually mix in cornmeal to
reach a consistency somewhere in the vicinity of Play-Doh or muffin
mix. It needs to be fairly stiff and solid but moldable and not
crumbly. You’ll use a goodly amount of cornmeal.
It will be greasy. You’re using lard. If the greasiness bothers you,
wear latex gloves, but you can wash hands later.
A very rough guide on proportions is two parts lard, one part peanut
butter, one part cornmeal. Some Arkansans toss in a handful of flour
also, saying this small addition helps the mix achieve the preferred
consistency.
To get the magic mix to the birds, just put it out anywhere above the
ground. Purchased or homemade suet feeders work well. So does pressing
a handful of magic mix into the bark of a tree.
Hanging log feeders are heavily used in some yards. These are just
sections of a fence post with several large holes drilled and a sturdy
screw eye placed in one end. Then it is wired or hung on a bent-out
coat hanger form a tree limb.
To make several of these log feeders, buy a cedar fence post from a
lumberyard, fence company or a farm supply store. A six-foot post can
be cut into six sections, each a foot long.
Secure an inch-and-a-half spade bit in an electric drill or drill press
and bore staggered holes about an inch deep around the post. Four holes
to a section are about right. Below and slightly to one side of each
large hole bore a quarter-inch hole. Insert a three-inch piece of
wooden dowel into each of these small holes for perches. Don’t glue the
dowels in place because they will rot and break before the cedar
deteriorates. Pull out the stub of dowel and replace it with a new one.
Use a good-sized screw eye and put it in the center of the top of your
feeder. Screw it all the way down. Then use a wire or coat hanger and
hang the feeder after it’s filled with magic mix. These cedar feeders
will last for years.
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, 2 Natural Resources Drive, Little
Rock, AR 72205, 800-364-4263, 501-223-6300, www.agfc.com.