LOCAL

LOCAL
Hunter education course
CANFIELD -- The Mahoning County Coon Hunters Protective Association will sponsor a hunter education course from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 17 and 18 at the club grounds, Route 224 west of Canfield.
Reservations can be made by calling Bill Meier at (330) 536-6730.
Annual fall fish sale
CORTLAND -- The Trumbull Soil and Water Conservation District is conducting its annual fall fish sale.
White amurs (grass carp), which are used for pond vegetation control, are available for $11 each.
Pickup will be Sept. 29 at the Mosquito Lake parking area off West Main Street. To request an order form, call (330) 637-2056, Ext. 3. Orders will be taken till Sept. 23.
OHIO
Holiday lures boaters
COLUMBUS -- Ohio's recreational boaters who take to Lake Erie, the Ohio River and other state waterways during the Labor Day weekend are reminded to keep safety their first priority, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
The most important safe boating practices include: avoiding alcohol consumption while boating and always wearing a life jacket. Obeying the rules of the road, keeping a proper lookout and being responsible for the well being of all boat passengers are also important.
"Most boating accidents are preventable because they are the result of carelessness," said Ken Alvey, chief of the ODNR Division of Watercraft. "We encourage everyone to keep safety first in their minds this holiday weekend."
Boating activity drops considerably after the Labor Day weekend, but September remains an excellent time to continue boating and fishing, particularly on state park lakes. Fall fishing opportunities increase as air and water temperatures begin to gradually decline.
Additional safe boating tips, information about boating education classes, and boating laws are available online at ohiodnr.com.
Bringing out the colors
COLUMBUS -- Autumn will soon begin showing her true colors of red, orange, gold and purple across much of Ohio, despite an exceptionally hot and dry summer.
Foresters with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources say summer's sizzling days will have little effect on the state's upcoming fall color season -- except in some urban areas where trees are more subject to stress.
"It's the longer, cool nights and shorter, sunny days of mid- and late September that really influence the vibrancy and duration of Ohio's annual 'forest fireworks,'" said Casey Munchel, fall color forester with the ODNR Division of Forestry. "Although in urban areas, where trees are more prone to stress, hot summer temperatures have accelerated the seasonal change among oaks and ashes."
Munchel noted buckeye trees, traditionally among the first to turn, are already donning their vivid yellow canopies.
Late September marks the start of color change in northern Ohio, with the transition moving south throughout October. By mid-October, most of the state should be in peak color.
Weekly updates on the best places to view fall color will be posted, beginning Sept. 29, at ohiodnr.com. Photos showing the progress of autumn across Ohio will also be posted on the Web site, as well as tips on the best fall color vistas and the best places to hike and bike.
Ohioans are lucky to live in a state with such a diverse tree species composition, Munchel added.
"Ohio is a state of ecological transition, northern species are on the southern edge of their range and southern species are on their northern edge here," she said. "That gives the state a rich variety of trees and a vivid fall palette of purples, oranges, reds and golds."
PENNSYLVANIA
Seeking input on elk
HARRISBURG -- Pennsylvania Game Commission officials are seeking public input regarding a draft of its "Management Plan for Elk in Pennsylvania," which has been posted on its Web site for review.
Public comment will be accepted beginning today through the end of October via e-mail form or by mail to: Pennsylvania Game Commission Northcentral Region Office, Attn: Draft Elk Plan, P.O. Box 5038, Jersey Shore, PA 17740.
The draft plan was developed by Jon DeBerti, Game Commission elk biologist, and the Northcentral Regional staff, and is an update to the elk management plan of 1996.
A copy of the draft plan can be reviewed by going to the Game Commission Web site (www.pgc.state.pa.us), click on "Wildlife," then choose "Elk" and select "Draft Elk Management Plan."