Today marks the start of the Daylight-Saving Time and we all get to enjoy an extra hour of daylight each day.

This is an OK occasion for me as I never adjusted right to the change in the fall hours anyway! This week, the wild turkey gobblers are starting to show their tail fans, get white heads and beginning to gobble in the early morning hours. March is a transition month for the local wildlife and the Spring Gobbler season is still two months away!

Other signs of spring are showing up as well, WCO Jon Kay is starting the spring stocking efforts in the upcoming week. He has the Harbar Acres Lake on Game Lands 95 and the Little Connoquenessing Creek, Slippery Rock Creek and the North Branch Slippery Rock Creek on the stocking list. Glade Run Lake will also get its first stocking of the 2020 season as well.

WCO Kay invites all interested persons to meet him at the stockings and help participate in this initial ritual of spring fishing seasons.

Hunter education

Another educational exercise is being offered by the PA Game Commission and that is the Hunter-Trapper-Education courses. The full agenda of classes has been posted on the PGC website under Upcoming events. The registration and locations near you are there for you to peruse and pick out one that works for your schedule.

Game Warden Jacob Olexsak has tried to get all the dates and locations available all around the county area, so get on it and get your youngsters registered.

Healthy deer herd

From the reports of many sportsmen and with my own observations, it looks as if the local deer herds fared well through the winter months.

I have seen plenty of young and mature deer moving about and with the new arrivals in April and May we will have plenty of deer for the fall season.

PGC meeting

The PGC Commissioners will hold their final meeting for changes in the 2020 season at their April Quarterly meeting next month, so stay tuned and see how the changes will affect you this fall.

Unusual road kill

Two local sportsmen reported finding some unusual road killed mammals recently. Both were uncommon to most hunters, but they were identified as a River Otter and a Fisher. Both animals are being more frequently spotted in Butler County but they are still special when spotted in our outdoor areas.

Both animals are carnivores and accomplished hunters in the wild; the River otter tends to hunt in our waterways while the fisher chooses to hunt in pines and thick growth areas. I have seen both species and appreciated the chance to see them in their native habitats.

The River otter has a closed season in our area, but is open in some parts of the commonwealth. The fisher requires a special license and can be trapped in certain sections of WMU 2-D.

Along with the bobcat, these three furbearers are the top interest for PA trappers next to the coyote, red fox and gray fox.

If you happen upon one of these protected furbearers, you may be able to procure the animal with a special permit issued by the PGC and a purchase fee set by the commission. Several individuals reported that the fee was $100, which went back into the game fund. You are buying a raw pelt or animal and will still need to cure and tan the pelt at additional cost and time.

Hard to Identify

People who are not accustomed to identifying wildlife can come up with some unusual remarks and tales about their experiences with wildlife.

Years ago, I came across a young woman who was parked in the middle of a country road with her flashers on. Not sure of what I might expect to find, I pulled in behind her and asked if she needed assistance.

With a rush of words, she blurted out that she ran over a baby boar and it came out of some saplings into the path of her van. I was more than curious to see this wild boar and could barely contain myself as I came upon a large beaver who did not fare well with charging across a roadway.

I removed the beaver from her path and assured her that she was OK to move along and did not create an environmental disaster by harming an endangered species.

Over the years, we have heard many stories about misidentified creatures, but eventually they have been figured out with the use of questions, logic and wildlife knowledge! So, until we meet again, continue to educate yourself and share with others your knowledge about all of the great and small creatures that the wilds of Pennsylvania have to offer.

Jay Hewitt is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle