Changes are needed for duck season Mississippi
July 24th, 2005 by Administrator
Changes are needed for duck season - Over the past week, the Mississippi Flyway Council has been meeting in Mississippi. The agenda at the annual meeting is to review data in order to get a better understanding of the continental duck population.
It’s from these meetings that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determines season lengths and bag limits for each waterfowl season. Framework for the upcoming year should be announced Friday.
I’m very interested to find out what decisions are made — especially since recent seasons have continued to remain so liberal (basically 60-day seasons and six-bird limits) despite biological evidence that showns North America’s duck population to be dwindling.
The picture for a bountiful flight doesn’t look real good for this season, either. But will concern among duck hunters and a definite decline in waterfowl numbers be enough for changes to be made to this season’s framework?
My gut feeling tells me that this season will be set up differently. Although I have no way to determine what those changes will be, the numbers have become so dismal that they can no longer be ignored.
We all know what’s been taking place in Minnesota over the past few years. Duck hunters here harvested 200,000 fewer birds last season than in 2003, and it’s been worse in other states.
In Louisiana, where duck hunting is huge, last year’s harvest decreased by more than a half-million birds. In 2003, duck hunters in Louisiana shot 1.3 million ducks; that number dipped below 800,000 last year.
That significant drop bumped the No. 1 state in the Mississippi Flyway in terms of harvest to No. 2. Minnesota is third; Arkansas is the No. 1 duck harvest state in the Flyway.
While I still feel that habitat remains the biggest issue for declining duck numbers, I also believe that season frameworks must be changed. I don’t see how it could possibly hurt anything.
Lowering bag limits might actually rejuvenate duck hunters. I think that higher bag limits give the perception that there’s enough ducks to harvest that many birds.
When harvesting or even seeing six birds doesn’t happen — and it really hasn’t in recent years — there’s a very good chance many hunters have become disappointed with every outing and the overall season.
Let’s face facts. People are fed up with the status quo. Even the state says that a six-bird limit isn’t attainable, so why not change it?
If nothing else, people might actually look forward to the duck season again. If you think morale was bad after last season, I have a pretty strong sense that’s it going to be even worse this year if some changes aren’t made.
This column is the opinion of Times outdoors columnist Glen Schmitt. Contact him at 253-5789 or by e-mail at outdrnews3@aol.com