Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
S.C. WATERFOWL ADVISORY GROUP MEETS MAY 13 AT YAWKEY CENTER 05-09-2008 12:02
– – –
The Waterfowl Advisory Committee to the S.C. Natural Resources
Board will meet 10 a.m. Tuesday, May 13 at the Tom Yawkey Wildlife
Center near Georgetown. William L. “Sam” Hiott Jr. of Charleston is the
chairman of the Waterfowl Advisory Committee.
The meeting is open to the public. Anyone with business for the
advisory committee, needing the agenda or directions to the meeting
place should contact Susan Johnson at the S.C. Department of Natural
Resources in Columbia at (803) 734-3889.
Items scheduled on the agenda for the meeting of the Waterfowl
Advisory Committee include:
* Region Four waterfowl update
* Legislative update
* Atlantic Flyway Council recommendations
* 2008-2009 State Waterfowl Stamp budget
* Yawkey Peer Review Report discussion
* Constituent comments
* Advisory committee member comments
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by
making wise and DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural
resources by making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the
state’s natural resources and its people. Find out more about DNR at
www.dnr.sc.gov.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
SCDNR Announcements 03-06-2008 14:37
– – –
The South Carolina Migratory Waterfowl Advisory Committee will
meet 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 12 at the Rembert C. Dennis Building
located at 1000 Assembly St. Columbia. The meeting will be held in Room
335.
The meeting is open to the public. Anyone with business for the
advisory committee, needing the agenda or directions to the meeting
place should contact the S.C. Department of Natural Resources in
Columbia at (803) 734-3838. Milton Brazell of West Columbia is chairman
of the Migratory Waterfowl Committee.
Items scheduled on the agenda for the meeting of the Waterfowl
Advisory Committee include:
* Comments
* Old business
* New business
* Items for board action
View the completed original Killen duck stamp paintings,
(if received):
2009 Ring Neck Duck with Yellow Lab in the Broad
River
2010 Wood Duck with Boykin Spaniel in the Ace
Basin-30th Anniversary
* Committee member update
* Update: Duck stamp original painting logistics/planning
* Summary of 2008 revenue and expenditures 2008
* Print sales recap (February 2008)
* Ducks Unlimited Canada projects review
* Legislative updates
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by
making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the state’s
natural resources and its people. Find out more about DNR at
www.dnr.sc.gov.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
YOUTH FEDERAL WATERFOWL DAYS ARE SET FOR FEB. 2-3 01-24-2008 14:30
– – –
YOUTH FEDERAL WATERFOWL DAYS ARE SET FOR FEB. 2-3
Young waterfowl hunters across the state will enjoy special days
in the field Saturday, Feb. 2 and Sunday, Feb. 3 by participating in
Youth Waterfowl Days on private lands, public waters normally open to
waterfowl hunting, and on some S.C. Department of Natural Resources
Waterfowl Management Areas.
Hunters 15 years of age or younger may hunt ducks, geese,
mergansers and coots on Saturday, Feb. 2 and Sunday, Feb. 3 when
accompanied by an adult at least 18 years of age. Daily and possession
bag limits are the same as the regular duck season. The adult cannot
carry a firearm or hunt and does not have to be licensed. South Carolina
youth waterfowl hunters are not required to have the Federal Waterfowl
stamp and the HIP (migratory bird) permit for the Feb. 2-3 hunt. For
more information on Youth Waterfowl Days, call (803) 734-3886 in
Columbia.
Find out more about Migratory Bird Regulations at:
www.dnr.sc.gov/regs/MigratoryBird/regulations.html.
“These hunts offer the perfect opportunity for youth to be
introduced to waterfowl hunting in a positive manner,” said Dean
Harrigal, S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) wildlife biologist.
Many DNR Waterfowl Management Areas will be open for public
hunting on Saturday, Feb. 2 for Youth Waterfowl Day (DNR Waterfowl
Management Areas are not open on Sundays). Waterfowl Management Areas
that are open Saturday mornings during the regular waterfowl season will
be open for Youth Waterfowl Day on Saturday, Feb. 2. These include:
* Beidler Impoundment WMA in Sumter County
* Dunaway WMA in Union County
* Duncan Creek WMA in Laurens County
* Hatchery WMA in Berkeley County
* Enoree River WMA in Newberry County
* Marsh WMA in Marion County
* Monticello Reservoir WMA in Fairfield County
* Moultrie WMA in Berkeley County
* Parr Reservoir WMA in Fairfield County
* Potato Creek WMA in Clarendon County
* Russell Creek WMA in McCormick County
* Turtle Island WMA in Jasper County
* Tyger River WMA in Union County
* Sampson Island Unit of Bear Island WMA in Colleton County
* Wee Tee WMA in Williamsburg County
Nontoxic shot (such as steel, bismuth-tin, tungsten-iron or
tungsten-polymer) is required for all waterfowl hunting. The possession
of lead shot is prohibited for all waterfowl hunting statewide.
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by
making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the state’s
natural resources and its people. Find out more about DNR at
www.dnr.sc.gov.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
Savannah River 01-23-2008 09:09
Sunny & Clear, Winds Calm – 10-20 Degrees – Open Water
Watched a lot of new birds (ringnecks and bluebills) running up and down the river. Georgia side was doing a lot of shooting from 7-9 am.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
FEDERAL YOUTH WATERFOWL DAYS WILL BE HELD FEB. 2-3 01-17-2008 13:28
Cloudy, Snow & Rain Mix – 35-40 Degrees
Young waterfowl hunters across the state will enjoy special days
in the field Saturday, Feb. 2 and Sunday, Feb. 3 by participating in
Youth Waterfowl Days on private lands and on some S.C. Department of
Natural Resources Waterfowl Management Areas.
Hunters 15 years of age or younger may hunt ducks, geese,
mergansers and coots on Saturday, Feb. 2 and Sunday, Feb. 3 when
accompanied by an adult at least 18 years of age. Daily and possession
bag limits are the same as the regular duck season. The adult cannot
carry a firearm or hunt and does not have to be licensed. South Carolina
youth waterfowl hunters are not required to have the federal waterfowl
stamp and the HIP (migratory bird) permit for the Feb. 2-3 hunt. For
more information on Youth Waterfowl Days, call (803) 734-3886 in
Columbia.
Find out more about Migratory Bird Regulations at:
www.dnr.sc.gov/regs/MigratoryBird/regulations.html
“These hunts offer the perfect opportunity for youth to be
introduced to waterfowl hunting in a positive manner,” said S.C.
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) biologist Dean Harrigal.
Many DNR Waterfowl Management Areas will be open for public
hunting on Saturday, Feb. 2 for Youth Waterfowl Day (DNR Waterfowl
Management Areas are not open on Sundays). Waterfowl Management Areas
that are open Saturday mornings during the regular waterfowl season will
be open for Youth Waterfowl Day on Saturday, Feb. 2. These include:
* Beidler Impoundment WMA in Sumter County
* Dunaway WMA in Union County
* Duncan Creek WMA in Laurens County
* Hatchery WMA in Berkeley County
* Enoree River WMA in Newberry County
* Marsh WMA in Marion County
* Monticello Reservoir WMA in Fairfield County
* Moultrie WMA in Berkeley County
* Parr Reservoir WMA in Fairfield County
* Potato Creek WMA in Clarendon County
* Russell Creek WMA in McCormick County
* Turtle Island WMA in Jasper County
* Tyger River WMA in Union County
* Sampson Island Unit of Bear Island WMA in Colleton County
* Wee Tee WMA in Williamsburg County
Nontoxic shot (such as steel, bismuth-tin, tungsten-iron or
tungsten-polymer) is required for all waterfowl hunting. The possession
of lead shot is prohibited for all waterfowl hunting statewide.
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by
making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the state’s
natural resources and its people. Find out more about DNR at
www.dnr.sc.gov.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
S.C. DUCK STAMPS PRODUCED BY ACCLAIMED WILDLIFE ARTIST 01-11-2008 15:38
– – –
Nationally acclaimed wildlife artist Jim Killen’s print,
“Blue-winged Teal at Santee Coastal Reserve,” chosen by the South
Carolina Department of Natural Resources as the 2008 South Carolina Duck
Stamp print, goes on sale July 1st, 2008. The S.C. Migratory Waterfowl
Committee and DNR commissioned Killen to do a series of four originals
through 2010.
Killen, who has reaped national and international awards, was
also honored three times as the “International Artist of the Year” for
Ducks Unlimited. The quality and distinctive style of his art has
generated millions of dollars for numerous conservation groups such as
Ducks Unlimited International, Pheasants Forever, Quail Unlimited and
the National Wild Turkey Federation. He was also named Southeastern
Wildlife Expo “Artist of the Year” in 1987. Born and raised in
Minnesota, the pheasant fields and prairie potholes inspired him to
strive to preserve these gifts of nature for future generations.
Killen’s three-story studio overlooks the 160 acres he has developed
into a wildlife management area, focusing on waterfowl, pheasant, wild
turkey and deer. A favorite project for Killen is perpetuating the
forest. Over the years, he has planted more than 30,000 trees on his
property. Check www.killencollection.com/killen.asp for more information
on the artist.
The new 2008 state migratory waterfowl stamps, often called duck
stamps, go on sale each July 1 for the upcoming season and cost $5.50
each. Stamps are available from most retail businesses that sell hunting
and fishing licenses or directly from the S.C. Department of Natural
Resources. Collectors should purchase stamps from the DNR. South
Carolina duck hunters are required to have the state waterfowl stamp in
their possession while hunting. In 2007, 34,318 stamps were purchased.
For more information on the Duck Stamp Program contact Antonio Bates in
DNR licensing at (803) 734-4269 in Columbia or visit
www.dnr.sc.gov/wildlife/stamps/index.html. The stamps go on sale July 1,
2008.
Funds from stamp sales are by law used strictly within South
Carolina, which includes the cost of stamp production, and migratory
waterfowl projects specified by the S.C. Natural Resources Board for the
development, protection and propagation of waterfowl in the state.
Funds derived from the sale of art prints and related artwork is
used as specified in state law. The committee administers and promotes
the sale of prints, stamps and related articles. The amount needed to
make up 50 percent of the total from stamp and print sales is
transferred to the DNR for use in its specified projects. The remainder
of funds derived by the sale of prints and related articles is disbursed
to a nonprofit organization for the development of waterfowl propagation
projects within Canada. The projects must specifically provide waterfowl
for the Atlantic Flyway and must be able to demonstrate evidence that
the projects are acceptable to the appropriate governmental agencies
having jurisdiction over the project areas.
Since 1962 a portion of the revenues from nonresident hunting
licenses has helped to fund waterfowl conservation projects within South
Carolina and in Canada. One dollar from each annual nonresident hunting
license and 50 cents from each temporary nonresident hunting license is
used by DNR for propagation, management and control of ducks and geese
in the state. A like portion of such license fees is contributed by DNR
to proper agencies in Canada for propagation and management of ducks and
geese.
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by
making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the state’s
natural resources and its people. Find out more about DNR at
www.dnr.sc.gov.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
BIOLOGISTS MONITOR EMERGING WATERFOWL, RAPTOR DISEASE 01-11-2008 15:37
– – –
Wildlife biologists and park rangers are continuing to monitor
area reservoirs and lakes for signs of avian vacuolar myelinopathy, a
disease that primarily affects waterfowl and raptors.
Biologists are concerned with the emergence of avian vacuolar
myelinopathy (AVM) in South Carolina but note an 8.5 percent increase in
eagle nesting per year since surveys were first initiated 30 years ago.
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Georgia
Department of Natural Resources, Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife
Disease Study and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have been collaborating
to monitor reservoirs that may support potentially toxic blue green
algae, the suspect agent of AVM, which has been implicated as a cause in
American coot and eagle mortalities. AVM is an often-fatal disorder that
affects the central nervous system of waterfowl and raptors that consume
the suspect toxic algae growing on submerged aquatic vegetation in some
Southeastern reservoirs.
Research supports the working hypothesis that waterfowl such as
American coots feeding on freshwater aquatic plants are susceptible to
toxins found in algae growing on the leaves and stems. Once ingested,
toxins cause cell and tissue damage primarily to the central nervous
system and affected birds become uncoordinated and lose the ability to
fly. This makes them vulnerable to raptors, such as eagles, that easily
target affected birds. Eagles may then contract the disease from
consuming affected prey.
AVM has been implicated in the death of more than 100 eagles and
suspected in the death of thousands of American coots in Southeastern
reservoirs since the disease was first documented in Arkansas in 1994.
In South Carolina, the disease was first observed in 1998 on Lake
Thurmond, a 70,000-acre reservoir on Savannah, Broad and Little rivers
bordered by South Carolina and Georgia and managed by the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers. According to Shirley Willard, a ranger with the
Corps of Engineers who conducts fieldwork out of the Corps’ J. Strom
Thurmond U.S. Project Office, 46 eagles have been found dead at Lake
Thurmond, and AVM has been implicated in their deaths. The losses also
translate to the disappearance of six eagle nesting territories.
“Eagle nesting below Highway 378 in our state has basically been
extinguished,” said DNR biologist Tom Murphy, “and we suspect this is a
direct effect of this emerging wildlife disease.” Only after fresh bird
carcasses are submitted for necropsy and microscopic examination to the
Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study at the University of
Georgia, or to other qualified wildlife health laboratories, is AVM
implicated in a bird’s death.
Murphy, along with DNR’s Charlotte Hope, coordinates South
Carolina’s Midwinter Eagle Survey, which tracks the population numbers
of eagles along standardized routes during the beginning of January.
Despite concern for the emergence of AVM in South Carolina, they have
documented an 8.5 percent increase in eagle nesting per year since the
survey was first initiated 30 years ago. As further testimony to the
eagle’s recovery, earlier in 2007 they were removed from the list of
Threatened and Endangered Species, however they still remain protected
under other state and federal statutes.
Biologists and rangers have closely monitored AVM disease events
after the first occurrence was recorded on Defray Lake in Arkansas in
1994. Susan Wilde, a former algal ecologist with DNR, was instrumental
in associating the relationship between the presence of the toxic blue
green algae growing on aquatic vegetation found in freshwater reservoirs
and brain lesions that formed in American coots after ingesting the
vegetation. Wilde has monitored the disease along freshwater reservoirs
as well as smaller farm and residential ponds in the Southeast. Further
research also helped to determine that seasonality plays an important
role in the occurrence of the disease. American coots and other
waterfowl migrate to Southeastern reservoirs typically around October
from northern areas, where aquatic vegetation is an integral component
of their diet. Overwintering eagles stopover along some of the same
Southeastern reservoirs where affected waterfowl may be present. In
addition to this population of eagles, local nesting eagles are also
susceptible to the disease once they prey upon affected waterfowl.
The collaborative efforts between South Carolina DNR, Georgia
DNR and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers involved in observation and
research of AVM continue to work closely together to monitor this
disease and develop steps for mitigation. As the bald eagle population
continues to increase throughout the state, it is important to track the
impacts of AVM and record disease events throughout freshwater
reservoirs and other water bodies.
Because eagles nest in obscure areas, biologists and rangers
alone cannot ensure that all affected birds will be found. Willard says,
“The more eyes we have out there helping us to monitor and track this
disease, the better.” The public can help with the research and
documentation of the disease if they encounter waterfowl or raptors
exhibiting strange behaviors affecting movements or happen upon
carcasses while in these areas where characteristics exist that may
result in AVM-affected birds: submerged aquatic vegetation, presence of
American coots and signs of eagle nests or eagle sightings.
The public is asked to call one of the following to report these
types of observations among waterfowl or raptors:
* J. Strom Thurmond U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Project Office:
1-800-533-3478
* Savannah District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Project Office:
1-800-944-7207
* South Carolina DNR: (843) 953-9300
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by
making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the state’s
natural resources and its people. Find out more about DNR at
www.dnr.sc.gov.
Posted By:
PJ-Perea
Guest
Savannah River 01-02-2008 07:45
– – 45-50 Degrees
Shot a couple of divers (ringnecks) at 7:30. No birds flying after that. Pretty slow.
Posted By:
J-GREIDER
Guest
WMA 12-17-2007 10:46
Sunny & Clear, Winds Calm – 25-30 Degrees – Open Water
Went out this morning to a wood duck hole, several flying and shot a nice drake with his feet down. No other ducks seen. Piss-R decoy just about froze up. Did see a ring neck on one of my ponds first migrator maybe? Hopefully this cool/cold weather will hold up. Will be back up to the lake middle of this week hopefully get another shot at some geese/big ducks. Everyone get as much rain as we did? 2.5 inches on sat. Edisto came up almost two feet overnight, starting to get water in the swamp. Hopefully the rain on Thursday will come like they are calling for, we still need it here.
Posted By:
J-GREIDER
Guest
Clarks Hill/Desert 12-15-2007 10:19
Mostly Sunny, No Precipitation – 50-60 Degrees
Went up to the lake for the opener hoping to get a shot at some geese. They had different plans. Feeding at night, they all flew back to the lake at 5:30 when I was setting up the spread. Did see more ducks then anytime last year. End up with a nice drake mallard and GWT. Will be off most of this week until X-mas…Got a few more ticks for them.
Boy at Santee State Park told me their ramp is on the ONLY one open on the entire lake. He said it is rough though, no concrete, just gravel…..!
