My ideal duck season dates, what's your?

[B-Stealth]

Ok, correct me if I'm wrong because I'm trying to gather a consensus for the proposed dates.

For the date changes to be implemented by public opinion, the input needs to be consistent among the state. I believe a consistent message from the hunters could implement change.

Please provide more feedback because I would like to start a poll with a couple different season options and see what want. (Gotta start somewhere)

1. It looks like most all of us can agree on 3 splits.

2. Most people agree on a longer 2nd split. (Hunting days)

3. Most people want season open for Thanksgiving, and Christmas holidays.

In order to have a unified state season, we must accept some dates we don't agree with us.
This is just an example-N Louisiana probably won't like opening early Nov, but they will like closing Jan 30th.

Ok, thanks for everyone's input, hopefully we can create a poll and go from there. Possibly get the Delta Waterfowl and DU guys to jump on the bandwagon as well.

[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Originally Posted by B-Stealth

Ok, thanks for everyone's input, hopefully we can create a poll and go from there. Possibly get the Delta Waterfowl and DU guys to jump on the bandwagon as well.

Keep DU out of this. They are the reason we are having a bad season in the first place and why it will continue to get worse. If I want to deal with square toe boot, drake best, Costa wearing top waters I will just hang out at Lafayette shooters

[Quackhead62]

Originally Posted by DaPointIsDaBomb

Keep DU out of this. They are the reason we are having a bad season in the first place and why it will continue to get worse. If I want to deal with square toe boot, drake best, Costa wearing top waters I will just hang out at Lafayette shooters

Oo yea because DU did something so we didn't have a winter to push the ducks down and made it rain like crazy to flood everybody up.


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[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Originally Posted by Quackhead62

Oo yea because DU did something so we didn't have a winter to push the ducks down and made it rain like crazy to flood everybody up.


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Ducks like water. Rain shoulda helped

[Quackhead62]

I think another big factor nobody brought up yet is the number of people hunting now since the duck dynasty fad. Every little puddle of water is leased up and the ducks have very few places to rest like they did in the past.


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[Juciy]

Originally Posted by Quackhead62

I think another big factor nobody brought up yet is the number of people hunting now since the duck dynasty fad. Every little puddle of water is leased up and the ducks have very few places to rest like they did in the past.


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That's the most ludicrous statement on this thread. As hunter numbers increase, flooded duck habitat increases. Also an increase in hunters increases the probability that more duck food sources are being planted locally. I agree there a a bunch of knot heads hunting these days, but that is just a product of a good duck population. Weather is our #1 factor in being successful. If you don't like the cost of leases, then by all means go buy your own land. I am so sick of the middle age hunters crying about new hunters on the scene. You all sound like a bunch of Obama voters, like you are entitled to the holy duck waters. Get a life dude.


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[AubreyLaHaye458]

Originally Posted by Juciy

That's the most ludicrous statement on this thread. As hunter numbers increase, flooded duck habitat increases. Also an increase in hunters increases the probability that more duck food sources are being planted locally. I agree there a a bunch of knot heads hunting these days, but that is just a product of a good duck population. Weather is our #1 factor in being successful. If you don't like the cost of leases, then by all means go buy your own land. I am so sick of the middle age hunters crying about new hunters on the scene. You all sound like a bunch of Obama voters, like you are entitled to the holy duck waters. Get a life dude.


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X2


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[cgoods17]

Originally Posted by Juciy

That's the most ludicrous statement on this thread. As hunter numbers increase, flooded duck habitat increases. Also an increase in hunters increases the probability that more duck food sources are being planted locally. I agree there a a bunch of knot heads hunting these days, but that is just a product of a good duck population. Weather is our #1 factor in being successful. If you don't like the cost of leases, then by all means go buy your own land. I am so sick of the middle age hunters crying about new hunters on the scene. You all sound like a bunch of Obama voters, like you are entitled to the holy duck waters. Get a life dude.


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i will disagree... what about all of the crawfish ponds with all that water? how many ducks do you see on crawfish ponds? just because more hunters are now hunting does not mean more habitat..

think about all of the farmers that flood one cut and leave the other cut dry? what about the farmers that roll/buffalo a 50 yard radius, or shall i say, bulls-eye, around your blind.. that does nothing.

so your comment of more hunters creates more habitat is a joke.

[B-Stealth]

Originally Posted by cgoods17

i will disagree... what about all of the crawfish ponds with all that water? how many ducks do you see on crawfish ponds? just because more hunters are now hunting does not mean more habitat..

think about all of the farmers that flood one cut and leave the other cut dry? what about the farmers that roll/buffalo a 50 yard radius, or shall i say, bulls-eye, around your blind.. that does nothing.

so your comment of more hunters creates more habitat is a joke.

I disagree about 50yard radius does accomplish something; it almost guarantees you will not have geese fly over your blind, man I hate seeing ponds like that.

Let's try to get back on track here; does anyone else care to propose dates for the 3 split duck season?

[meaux fishing]

the reason NE La doesnt open till late november is they are still cutting rice there early in the month. It doesnt seem like its that far away, but the growing season is alot different.

[AubreyLaHaye458]

Originally Posted by cgoods17

i will disagree... what about all of the crawfish ponds with all that water? how many ducks do you see on crawfish ponds? just because more hunters are now hunting does not mean more habitat..



think about all of the farmers that flood one cut and leave the other cut dry? what about the farmers that roll/buffalo a 50 yard radius, or shall i say, bulls-eye, around your blind.. that does nothing.



so your comment of more hunters creates more habitat is a joke.

You obviously don't have much experience hunting rice fields if you think that "bullseye" means anything to a duck.


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[Lreynolds]

In a state with very different large-scale habitat types, like NE vs SW Louisiana, zones are always a better choice than splits. There is no need for hunters in NE LA to have early hunting days to satisfy the guys in SW LA, AND there is no need for SW LA to have later days, when they have such good success earlier in the season, to satisfy the hunters in NE LA.

On a small scale, splits may seem better, and with 60-day seasons it doesn't make a lot of difference. But zones are a better choice, especially when season length is reduced, as Tucan pointed out.

Lastly, frameworks are not likely to be set later anytime soon. The wintering grounds serve a need for the migratory waterfowl resource beyond providing opportunity to shoot them. The shooting has to stop sometime so birds can survive, regain body weight, start pre-basic molt, and prepare for the migration north. Paired birds do that more effectively, and there is a cost of losing a mate late in winter. We also know from radio-telemetry studies that after mid-January, nothing kills a duck except hunters. Not predators, not starvation, not collisions with wires like earlier in the season. So hunting mortality after mid-January is shooting into the breeding stock; it is not compensatory mortality.

Southern hunters have been complaining that the season closes too early for decades, maybe longer. My first exposure was in the classic 1964 book, "Waterfowl Tomorrow" where starting on page 683 "A Letter to a Hunter" details the regular complaint. And in those days, the season closed closer to the first Sunday in January rather than the last.

Know that the proposed season dates for 2016-17 were presented at the January Commission meeting (I saw someone posted a link), and you have the opportunity to comment until the April Commission meeting when they will be finalized. Changes can be made at the February and March meetings before the final approval in April.

[cgoods17]

Originally Posted by AubreyLaHaye458

You obviously don't have much experience hunting rice fields if you think that "bullseye" means anything to a duck.


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HA.. if you only had a clue.


you have no argument here.. good day sir

[cmcnabb]

Originally Posted by cgoods17

i will disagree... what about all of the crawfish ponds with all that water? how many ducks do you see on crawfish ponds? just because more hunters are now hunting does not mean more habitat..

think about all of the farmers that flood one cut and leave the other cut dry? what about the farmers that roll/buffalo a 50 yard radius, or shall i say, bulls-eye, around your blind.. that does nothing.

so your comment of more hunters creates more habitat is a joke.

Agreed. Crawfish ponds are not favorable duck or goose habitat. I have seen ducks and geese use crawfish ponds, but not often. I had a camp by a crawfish pond last year, and the geese would come in a big wave usually mid day. If you hunted it you had 1 shot and that was it. As far as the bullseye thing, that is absolutely the truth. Birds avoid that like the plague. More hunters is NOT a good thing for hunting. Regardless of how much habitat you have, if they are consistently pressured (which they are) they WILL leave and find somewhere else to be. Wouldnt anyone? Also, i think the blind per acre ratio has sky rocketed over the past 10 years. Not a good thing at all

[BGcoreg]

Originally Posted by Quackhead62

I think another big factor nobody brought up yet is the number of people hunting now since the duck dynasty fad. Every little puddle of water is leased up and the ducks have very few places to rest like they did in the past.


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I agree that every little puddle may be leased up... But that sure doesn't mean it gets hunted..
Also not picking on you or anything , just happens you say stuff I like to quote and give my opinion on lol


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[Quackhead62]

Originally Posted by BGcoreg

I agree that every little puddle may be leased up... But that sure doesn't mean it gets hunted..
Also not picking on you or anything , just happens you say stuff I like to quote and give my opinion on lol


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Not taking any offense to it what so ever. I think one thing we can all agree on is we would like to try a different configuration for duck season.


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[Quackhead62]

You must be one of these duck dynasty hunters. How about you let the grown men have a meaningful discussion.


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[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Originally Posted by Quackhead62

You must be one of these duck dynasty hunters. How about you let the grown men have a meaningful discussion.


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I've been hunting a long time. Numbers were increasing way before Duck dynasty This ain't a drop in the bucket of numbers of hunters in the 70s. Drink that DU kook aid though

[Quackhead62]

I agree the weather was a big issue this year. But with newer hunters that haven't been brought up hunting they don't understand how to hunt correct and the sky busting and all doesn't help the ducks from becoming educated. Just because hunters increase doesn't mean that new habitat is created there are still the same amount of rice fields and marsh as there was a few years back before the numbers of hunters went up.


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[Lreynolds]

To answer the focal question of this thread:

I hunt the Coastal Zone and prefer:
Open the second Saturday in November and run for 3 weeks.
12-day split.
Re-open and run until 1 week before the end of the framework.