WATERBURY, VT — The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board has given its initial approval of a proposal by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department to establish the boundary between two Vermont waterfowl hunting zones in the northwest corner of the state. The proposed boundary is a change from previous years. Vermont has three Waterfowl Hunting Zones: the Lake Champlain Zone,…
Rapid City – "Duck!" No, that wasn't the warning cry about an incoming snowball. It was an excited shout by kids from Dakota Middle School in Rapid City while putting the finishing touches on a project for The Outdoor Campus-West. Students in Ray Glover's Applied Technology Class made a field trip to The Outdoor Campus-West on January 7 to help…
CHEYENNE – The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is asking more than 15,000 small game, upland game bird and waterfowl hunters to take a few minutes to participate in the on-line harvest survey now underway. The yellow postcards mailed last week simply instruct the license holder how to access the on-line survey. Anyone that has not responded online by March…
Waterfowl hunters who purchased their 2010-11Nevada waterfowl stamp "privilege" online or at one of the new electronic point of sale sites, and would like to have the physical stamp to go along with it, can have one. And it won't cost them a cent. Eligible hunters who would like a traditional stamp may request a free Nevada Duck Stamp when…
Madison- Should Wisconsin have three duck-hunting zones? That's a question the DNR will ask hunters at the annual spring fish and wildlife hearings on Monday, April 11. To many duck hunters, it won't make any difference. They hunt in the majority of the state where even with three zones, their hunting season would be unchanged. But to those hunters who…
A pair of ringed-neck ducks painted by Jim Denney of Alexander City, Ala., is the winner of the 2011 Alabama Waterfowl Stamp Art Contest. The winning artwork will adorn the 2012-2013 Alabama Waterfowl Stamp. The annual contest, sponsored by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division (WFF), is open to all resident Alabama…
Conservation Order Light Goose Season is open February 14 to March 30. For additional information and regulations visit wildlifedepartment.com. NORTHEAST Kaw: Habitat conditions are poor, with low quantities of millet sedges and natural waterfowl vegetation. Goose numbers are fair. Hunting activity is light, with fair success. Bird movement in the area has been moderate. SOUTHEAST Red Slough: Goose numbers are…
Minnesotans who would like to participate in a newly formed Department of Natural Resources (DNR) waterfowl hunting listening session should nominate themselves by March 14. The DNR soon will select a 12-person focus group that will meet once a month from March through June 2011. Each listening session will focus on a single topic. The agency will seek input on…
LINCOLN – The public is invited to attend an informational meeting to discuss the future of waterfowl hunting on Sutherland Reservoir, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on March 24 at Butch's Steakhouse in Hershey. Commission staff will present information regarding current waterfowl and waterfowl hunter use on the Lincoln County…
Some of Wisconsin's most avid duck and goose hunters will migrate to Stevens Point on March 4 and 5, for the 9th annual gathering and something that I think all waterfowl hunters will find beneficial. Although there are several organizations (such as Wisconsin Waterfowl Association, Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, Ducks Unlimited, Delta Waterfowl, and WI DNR) that help to co-sponsor the…
There's nothing like waiting until the last day of the season for your first hunt. While I was whittling out late-season field time for chasing deer and rabbits, I almost let the waterfowl season get away from me completely. It wasn't until January 31 that I finally climbed in a pit, and that buzzer-beater goose hunt with friends near Crab…
Official plans are in the works. Fellow Illinois Outdoor News writer Kristen Monroe and I will be heading to Missouri in March for our first attempt at hunting snow geese. In this case, I'm sure I can speak for both of us….we are amped for this opportunity!!! The good news about our upcoming snow goose hunt is that the Missouri spring…
Collinsville, Ill – Duck hunters across the state are still waiting word on a proposed additional duck hunting zone. It's been six months since Gov. Pat Quinn formally asked the U.S. Secretary of the Interior to consider granting Illinois "more flexibility in setting future duck hunting seasons for the 2011-15 seasons' to enhance hunting opportunities and help retain and recruit…
Here's a grab bag of items from this week's Outdoor News as we head into the middle of what the weather terrorists describe as the "coldest week of the year." • Gov. Mark Dayton will be fishing this weekend at the annual Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Tournament on Gull Lake. He'll be the first governor ever to appear at the…
Between deer hunting, family issues and the holidays, I haven't had the chance to get after ducks or geese yet this season. I've got the itch, though, and with my schedule opening up a bit I decided to call a few pros and get the skinny on what the birds are doing throughout the southern part of the state. Here's…
CHANDLERVILLE, Ill. (AP) – A popular waterfowl hunting area in central Illinois has gotten a multi-million dollar facelift. Nearly $3 million was spent to repair flood damaged levees at the Sanganois Fish and Wildlife Area. That money came through the Illinois Capitol Development Board. Spokesman Dave Blanchette tells WIUM Radio that the restored wetland provides a better environment for wildlife…
Two new tactics to add more ducks to Minnesota's skies were the focus of a signing ceremony Tuesday, Dec. 14, attended by leaders of Ducks Unlimited, the Minnesota Waterfowl Association and other conservation organizations. The gathering, convened by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), celebrated the formal signing of the state's first-ever shallow lakes plan and the publication of…
Springfield- A federal grand jury returned a 23-count felony indictment Thursday (Dec. 9) charging a popular Illinois waterfowl hunting guide with conspiracy, wildlife trafficking, and making false writings in connection with the illegal sale of guided waterfowl hunts, the Department of Justice announced. The indictment charges Jeffrey B. Foiles , 53, of Pleasant Hill, Ill., with conspiracy to violate the Lacey…
Bemidji, Minn. – Once all the numbers have been tabulated, it may not look like the duck season that ended earlier this week was anything spectacular. The number of hunters who targeted waterfowl probably will be down some from 2009, and the harvest likely will be on par with last year. Yet, "generally, it probably turned out better than most…
Springfield – Turkey and duck hunters in the state may be glancing at each other across their respective blinds and mumbling, "at least we don't have it as bad as those guys." Both sets of bird chasers have spent a lot of time this fall cursing Mother Nature. Dry and warm conditions finally gave way in the middle of November,…
Bemidji, Minn. — Waterfowlers hoping for the “big surge” of migrating ducks into the state got a taste of better action, but not enough to draw rave reviews last week. Since a front brought with it stiff winds, rain, and even snow to some parts of Minnesota, weather conditions have since moderated; duck hunting remains good in many places, but…
Big Six LAKE MILLE LACS The night crankbait bite has been good at St. Alban's Bay, Garrison Reef, most rock-covered points, and shallow rock reefs. You'll also catch fish at night with slip bobbers and leeches on the mud flats in 25 to 32 feet. A few muskies have been caught and the pike bite has been consistent on crankbaits in…
Big Six LAKE MILLE LACS A few walleyes are being caught on the flats during the day, but the night bite has been more consistent on the mud with slip bobbers and leeches in 23 to 28 feet of water. Crankbaits also have produced walleyes at night on the shallow rocks, weedlines, and shoreline breaks. Perch are scattered on the six-…
Lansing – It's been several years since waterfowl hunters have been faced with gloomy forecasts for the coming seasons. Yes, weather conditions have been dry some years, and the late 1990s were better years for duck and goose numbers. But for more than a dozen years, wetland conditions and waterfowl production in North America have been such that Michigan duck…
By Dean Bortz Editor Madison – Duck numbers are one thing; the location of those ducks is quite another. And it's locating those ducks that could stymie hunters this fall, despite the fact that state duck numbers are 21 percent above the long-term average, according to two avid duck hunters – Kent Van Horn, of Madison, and Don Kirby, of…
By Tim Spielman Associate Editor St. Paul – Ducks of several species returning north last spring likely surveyed conditions in the eastern Dakotas, decided to conserve some energy, and set their wings. Surveys indicate, most notably, mallards and pintails congregated in much higher numbers in the Dakotas than in prairie Canada during this spring's breeding season. Opinions vary, but most…
