Posted By:
ACEMAN
Guest
01-09-2007 09:06
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Brandon, I have just recently started hunting TN. I got in on a Turkey lease there and come to find out there is a 60 acre slough in the middle of it and it is in the obion bottoms. The hunting is better there than anywhere in Ky. I attribute that to the number of refuges around. The ducks we shoot are traveling from refuge to refuge and come in to that slough to loaf for the day. A little different than the ducks you shoot that are coming in to feed. The closest refuge is probably 30 miles from us so the ducks still do get out and about. We are probably 60 miles from the nearest rice field and have shot ducks on a south wind with craws full of rice. I understand your point but I think everyone is better off with the refuges holding ducks. The biggest problem is that these ducks have been here since the end of November and we have not got any new ones.
Posted By:
brandon Bean
Guest
01-08-2007 22:26
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Mr. Malone,
You may remember that you and I visited in the water tent at Big Sandy during the drawings back in August. I was standing there when you and your party were drawn.
Let me clear my point. I am not a “blood in the eye hunter”. At 34 years old I count my blessings each and every day that I had a grandfather and father that introduced me to hunting. I grew up in East Tennessee, duck hunted there when you could really see waterfowl there and actually bag birds with regularity. My hunting evolved into calling contests and pro staff positions with Knight& Hale and Avery Outdoors. Because of these associations I made at the age of 16 I moved to West Tennessee to attend UT-Martin where I could be closer to the people and connections that I had come to know. I never went back to East Tennessee as I was fortunate enough to find a job, a wife, and lifestyle in a part of the state that provided some of the best outdoor experiences to be had.
The overall management plan of the TWRA is, as I’m sure you know, to provide the best possible habitat in the areas most conducive for such. Staging waterfowl indeed need areas to rest and do exactly that, stage. Feeding is not part of staging. Feeding on multiple acres of corn and milo is imprinting upon an area not staging. There are those that say without the refuges full of food the birds will leave the area. With the number of private hunting clubs, and public areas like Big Sandy, leaving food I say that there are ample food supplies to hold a moderate amount of ducks in an area. You definitely would not see the numbers staying around like they are now but at least those of us that have spent countless dollars and resources might reap the rewards a little more. You would even see more birds moving through Middle and east Tennessee because they would not be held in the western part of the state. Ducks will always find areas to stage. They use to do it in large numbers on the open waters of Kentucky Lake. Flying out in the morning to feed 25 miles away in the various agricultural fields and then coming back at dark. Big rains come and they would all be gone, seeking other fresh water areas that had been flooded.
My primary hunting is done in the Obion River bottom around Bean Switch Refuge. We’ve done well this year, all things considered. I’m telling you right now that if the trend persists of TWRA and the USFW putting feathers in their cap by being able to boast about the numbers of birds “they” are holding on the refuges then you are going to see hunting opprtunities diminish. People will quit hunting. Farmers will lose leases that they have come to depend on for income. License sales will fall. Outfitters will go out of business. You are seeing the beginning of the end for waterfowling in Tennessee. The end started in East Tennessee and it is slowly working its way West.
Posted By:
JCraigPP14
WFC Sponsor
Reel Foot Lake 01-08-2007 21:49
Cloudy, Light Rain & Drizzle – 45-50 Degrees
Hunted Jan. 5 – 8 with Jackie Van Cleave, with good results. Had 4 hunters counting the guides. Took 14 birds on friday in a light rain, 10 birds on saturday in sun shine, 18 birds on sunday in the rain, and 7 in a few hours this morning before leaving. The same birds are being hunted hard but had pretty good weather to keep them moving. This was my first trip with Jackie but he gets my vote for the best hunting trip I’ve been on.
Posted By:
Ross-Malone
Guest
East TN 01-08-2007 21:18
Cloudy, Winds Calm – 45-50 Degrees
Hunted last Saturday and was lucky enough to bag a couple of woodies on a WMA near Chattanooga.
Mr. Bean in response about refuges and making the hunters mad. Not at all mad. Not sure we want to run the birds off the refuges for they do provide staging where the birds do trade from point a to b. However birds do not trade much at 60 degrees and if they move in the rain and fog they do not finish in your blind.
I’m very aware of you point about the TN National Big Sandy Unit having one of the best corn crops ever. I visited the refuge in October with 12′ corn. We got lucky this year and got blind 11 in Big Sandy. TWRA lost their great corn crops due to floods in August. Now Big Sandy and Gin Creek hunting is fair at best.
So I ask the question, if no food to stage the birds where do they go?
Each state has lots of refuges and lots of good quality of food sources to provide lots of Duck Use Days (DUD). If we open up any of these refuges up to hunting we have lost what it has taken 15 years to build. A staging place for the birds.
At this time last year the state of TN had the largest numbers ducks ever survey for the mid-winter 740,000+. Last year more ducks were bagged then every before in this state at 361,000. MS at 289,000 and KY at 197,000.
I’m not saying we do not need to do something, but stating some facts. Duck hunting is just one part of the equation and we all have to do our part year around not just hope to hunt and bag more each year.
We all respect the biologist that study the resource we all love and want to protect and do the right things to provide for our future generations.
Remember to take a boy or girl out to hunt for they deserve what we have experience in the field as boys and girls.
Love the resource and do what is right, but ask all the questions before we want to change that may not be broken, yet.
Kindest Regards and happy hunting for the cold weather is back on the forecast.
Ross Malone
Posted By:
brandon Bean
Guest
01-08-2007 18:02
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I know this post is going to make a bunch of people mad, including some very good friends of mine, but here is the deal. I live in NorthWest Tennessee, have for 15 years. We’ve seen an increasing number of birds but they are all using the refuges. We’ve got no fewer than 11 of them in Northwest Tennessee, state run and federal, and they all leave multiple acres of food crop. Where I hunt (and have for 15 years) we watch thousands of birds trade from refuge to refuge regadless of weather conditions. These are the same birds that would be using the huntable fields and timber were it not for the crop left by state and federal refuges. There are those that blame the lack of hunter success on the weather. I will agree to some degree but that is a factor that none of us can control. A weather front means nothing anymore except that the birds feed more on the readily available food sources from the refuges.
You guys in middle and east Tennessee should also take note of this situation. It use to be that ducks would start along the Mississippi, move up the Obion and Forked Deer river bottoms and eventually hit the Tennessee river, sending them on an easterly migration in search of fresh water and food. Doesn’t happen any more as there is an over abundance of food at refuges to hold them in west Tennessee. Guess what, we can’t kill them over here even if we are holding 200,000 because they sit on the refuges and eat like mad until the weather breaks.
I know we haven’t had good duck weather the past few years but there is more to this scenario than the public is being told. Ducks move on fronts, be it a cold arctic blast or a warm rain storm, unless they have food to hold them in a specific area. It’s all about the food and the feds and the state are kicking our butt. Come over here and watch 30,000 ducks pile into a state-run refuge and you’ll be a believer in what I’m saying. I live right next to the Tennessee National Refuge in Henry Co, Paris, Tennessee. I can see, with my own eyes, 30,000 mallards going into 40 acres of standing corn out my lving room window. Take note middle and east Tennessee, those are ducks that should have been headed your way off of this last big rain. You’ll never see them and we’re not getting to kill them. Call me 731-694-4963. We need to start a movement to stop the leaving of food on national and state refuges.
Posted By:
mstone
Guest
Woods 01-07-2007 19:52
Cloudy, Rain & Thunderstorms – 50-60 Degrees
Two hunters knocked down three birds,had chances to get five or six but porr shooting mixed with getting blind sided, made it tougher. Didn’t matter,just glad to get some shooting after starting the season out with little success till after Cristmas. Not any mallards to speak of early, saw some nice bunches flying out to feed around 2:00. High winds, then driving rain made it interesting.As is the usual case, saw some high shooting and had to endure some god-awful calling from the blind upwind of us. Oh well, you just gotta love it. Five more days of work and then its going to get better. mstone
Posted By:
Thomas-Quinlen
Field Editor
Tunica, MS 01-03-2007 20:58
Cloudy, Rain & Thunderstorms – 45-50 Degrees
Hunted Saturday in the rain. Not many birds moving, but those that were wanted down. Nice day to sit in the blind and wait for the singles.
Posted By:
DKA
Web Member
Reelfoot 01-02-2007 08:12
Sunny & Clear, High Winds – 45-50 Degrees
Hunted Sat and Sun. No new birds. The pit SAt saw 5 down. Sun. Same number on the lake. The rain scattered the birds Sun. Action was very slow. Need A northern blast to push some new birds in.
Posted By:
sixmilestill
Guest
reelfoot 12-29-2006 13:31
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I’m from Georgia and hunted the North end of Reelfoot last week (20-23). Unfortunately, I brought the Georgia weather with me I think. It was warm, 45-50, and we just didn’t see a lot of ducks. Hunted 3 days and killed 6, 6, and 1 ducks on those three days.
We went up to the refuge and saw about 100k one afternoon. That was pretty frustrating, but they just weren’t moving around too much.
Does anyone have any advice for hunting the Tennesee river near Chatanooga? I just moved to Ga, but I’m not very far from that area. Having just moved here, I don’t know really anything about it either. Any advice you all can offer is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Posted By:
Ross-Malone
Guest
West TN Reports 12-25-2006 15:48
Cloudy, Occassional Rain Showers – 45-50 Degrees
I have copied a report from Steve McCadams for west TN. East TN duck hunting success has been limited due to the warm weather. Mostly woodies being taken and that is about it for now.
Enjoy and Merry Christmas.
Ross
CHRISTMAS COLD FRONT FINALLY ARRIVES…WEATHER CHANGE LONG OVERDUE
By Steve McCadams
Colder weather is finally arriving today with snow flurries expected tonight or Tuesday morning. After more than two weeks of unseasonably warm temperatures and light winds, hunters across the region are hoping the change will stimulate duck movement.
A rash of warm weather has lingered far too long with near record highs reached during the two week period of unusual conditions for December. Season is nearing its half-way point (runs through January 28th) and hopefully normal winter weather will greet waterfowlers during the second half of season.
There are still a lot of ducks in the area but stagnant winds and mild weather have not been kind to dreary duck hunters lately as the birds have not been moving much. Today’s heavy rains are expected to turn to snow flurries pushed by northwest winds tonight with with highs the next few days to be in the low 40’s.
Approaching cold fronts could see quick improvement in duck activity as the birds have been laying up and resting comfortably for an extended period of time, awaiting a weather change themselves.
Aerial waterfowl surveys taken last Monday (Dec 18th) by the Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge show numbers of ducks have declined since the previous survey taken almost two weeks ago.
Ducks were down 5 percent from the previous survey at a time when most waterfowlers were hoping for a steady increase. U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service reported 131,731 ducks on the refuge. That’s down from the 139,000-plus reported earlier in December.
Dominating the breakdown as to species were mallards at 77,303 followed by gadwall at 17,073. There were 10,170 ringnecks and 7,728 greenwing teal followed by 5,759 pintails.
Here in the Paris area the Big Sandy unit of the refuge was holding 52,975 of the total while the Duck River unit near New Johnsonville accounted for 77,675 ducks out of the total survey.
Numbers of Canada geese were reported to be 3,805. And, there were 39 bald eagles using the refuge.
Nearby Cross Creeks National Wildlife Refuge over on Lake Barkley at Dover, TN showed an increase this week in duck numbers from previous surveys. There were 32,750 ducks reported, which is +204 percent since the earlier survey of two weeks ago. And, that figure is +26 percent above the 5-year average there. Aerial surveys there were conducted last Tuesday (Dec 19th).
After Christmas should see some improvement if winter weather returns to its normal cycle of cold fronts and windy days.
Hunters have a lot of days left as Tennessee’s season runs through January 28, 2007.
Below are survey dates by USFWS on TN Nat’l Wildlife Refuge and total duck count with comparisons to last year at the same time in parenthesis).
SURVEY DATE TOTAL DUCK COUNT
October 26th 23,194 (+177% Last Yr)
November 3rd 32,632 (+11% Last Yr)
November 20th 49,492 (-15% Last Yr)
December 8th 138,174 (+80% Last Yr)
December 18th 131,731 (-14 Last Yr)
