The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife is asking hunters in Hardin, Marion and Wyandot counties to submit their deer for chronic wasting disease (CWD) testing for the remainder of the 2022 deer hunting season.
Additional deer samples are needed in response to recent CWD positive cases, and to better understand CWD in Ohio. Samples of deer harvested from all townships in these counties are requested, which is a slight expansion from the current disease surveillance area. More information about CWD, including a map of recent positive cases, is available at www.ohiodnr.gov/cwd.
Marathon Center for the Performing Arts is holding auditions for Youtheatre’s upcoming production of Madagascar Jr. Auditions are open to students in grades 3-5 including an on-stage cast of no more than 40 students in addition to positions on the production’s technical crew.
Auditions for the on-stage cast will begin promptly at 6 p.m. Monday, January 17 and Tuesday, January 18 at Marathon Center for the Performing Arts, 200 W. Main Cross Street in Findlay. Check-in will begin at 5:45 p.m.
The Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers will host a Master Gardener Volunteer training course for new Master Gardener Volunteers this winter. The Ohio State University Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Program provides intensive training in horticulture to interested Ohio residents who then volunteer their time assisting with educational programs and activities for Ohio residents through their local Ohio State University Extension county office. Volunteers are not required to have gardening skills or knowledge; but a passion for learning about gardening and sharing this knowledge with others is a must!
Social media made the Icon aware of river otters being sighted by local photographers. A call from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources confirmed that in recent years the otter population has spread into northwest Ohio.
ODNR Wildlife research technician Sara Zaleski noted that otters seek clean, high quality water and that their presence is a good reflection on area water conditions.
In the early 20th century, otters were trapped out of existence (extirpated) in Ohio. In 1986, they were reintroduced by a program that brought otters to the eastern parts of the state. Since then, those populations and Michigan and Indiana populations have spread into our area.
