U.S. Fish and Wildlife offers liberal seasons for all four flyways. At a press briefing today with top officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Migratory Game Bird Division announced the offering of liberal waterfowl season framework packages for all four flyways in the U.S.
Hello folks, and as always, welcome to Waterfowler.com.
Before we get to the meat of the announcement, Waterfowler.com would like to give all our members a heads-up. Be on the lookout for a special money savings coupon from Mack’s Prairie Wings. Early next week Waterfowler.com members will receive a members only exclusive discount from Mack’s, just in time to gear up for the season ahead.
Now, on to the Season Frameworks Report.
Seasons and bag limits will remain principally unchanged in most areas, with the exception of five states in the Central Flyway that will be participating in a three-year study to evaluate the “Hunter’s Choice” bag limit.
North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Kansas and Texas will take part in the new system where hunters are allow a total bag limit of 5 birds, with only one bird being a mallard hen, a pintail, a canvasback or a mottled duck.
Habitat conditions across most of the breeding grounds remained good through the summer, with the Dakotas being the one major exception. Drought conditions began spreading across portions of both North and South Dakota shortly after the waterfowl surveys were completed, and will reduce overall production for those states. Overall production is, however, forecast to be better than average for areas outside of the Dakotas.
With the federal framework now established, individual states will now submit their season proposals for approval. While no state can offer a more liberal season package than the federal framework, they can opt for more restrictive season lengths and bag limits. Be sure to check with your local Game and Fish Department for the final details of the ‘06-‘07 waterfowl season in your state.
Officials from the USFWS also reported ongoing efforts to monitor for the presence of the H5N1 bird flu strain. Over 6,500 waterfowl and shorebirds have been tested in field stations along the Pacific coast, particularly Alaska, and not a single incident of H5N1 bird flu has been detected.
In the season ahead, hunters can expect to see wildlife officials across the US in the field at check stations and other areas testing waterfowl with the assistance of hunters.
One last item of note: Waterfowlers in the Mississippi Flyway will be glad to hear that the bag limit for hooded mergansers has been raised to two. Let the celebration of the long bill begin!
