News Breaker

Starting Aug. 1, North Carolina waterfowl hunters will be able to order the federal duck stamp on-line by visiting the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission's website (www.ncwildlife.org), going to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service website (www.fws.org), calling the Commission at 888-248-6834 or visiting a wildlife service agent. 

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has set season dates for doves and other webless migratory game birds, as well as September seasons for Canada geese and teal.

Waterfowl hunters have plenty to cheer about in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s annual report on duck breeding populations that was released late last week. Surveys conducted in May and early June show an 8-percent increase in the number of breeding ducks over last year.

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While corn ranks at the top of the list as a waterfowl food, sorghum will not disappoint incoming flocks, either. The new hybrid varieties of sorghum are capable of producing yields similar to corn that provide food for ducks on their migration.

The last deer fawns and turkey poults should have appeared in June. Consequently, coyote pups are weaned off their mother’s milk and are beginning to feast on a wild assortment of solid foods. Trappers and predator hunters should ramp up their game, paying special attention to their scent control and enticement lures.

Even though duck season is a long way away from June,  hunters with upland waterfowl impoundments need to get their crops planted this month to have them mature by the opening day of hunting season. 

Nestled in the heart of South Carolina’s Piedmont lies Beaver Creek Trophy Club. With more than 3,200 acres of pines, cutover, and swampland, Beaver Creek has the basic habitat components to back up to their name as a trophy club.

Beaver Creek is a relatively new organization, but with a foundation of good members, a good philosophy, prime habitat and a solid plan to become one of the best clubs around.

The 32-member club has already put quality bucks in the South Carolina record book. Last September, founding member Danny Kennington of Heath Springs dropped a 232-pound, 32-point buck that sported a 22-inch spread and 10-inch bases.

For the landowner ready to covert a section of property over to a moist-soil management regime or a permanent aquatic community, specific plantings will jump-start the impoundment and attract have ducks in the first year. While annual grains — corn, sorghum, millet, rice and buckwheat — can be planted around the edges and on mud flats; these plants must be cultivated accordingly with specific herbicides and seasonal care to get a good seed crop during the season. And since these plants are annuals, they must be replanted every year.

For the best results, landowners should plant perennial species for a longer-lasting and more-efficient solution. While often planted for turkeys, chufa is a perfect duck food. Banana water lily, native to the southern states, is one of the best to plant and is gaining popularity across the South. It is an ideal solution for landowners looking to convert their temporary impoundments over to permanently-flooded habitats.

Each fall and winter, flooded areas along the eastern seaboard get bombarded by the annual migration of waterfowl, and duck hunters are always on the prowl for new ways to get more birds into shooting range. From new calls and revolutionary decoying devices to the various grain mixes planted in impoundments that are temporarily flooded, hunters are always going to the drawing board, devising plans to improve their hunting experiences. But the typical dry-land impoundment may not always be the best way to attract and retain a substantial portion of the migrating flock at the time when it matters most. 

For years, the typical agriculture field with perimeter dikes and a reliable water source has been the ideal setup to get a visit from the migrating flock. And no doubt, these dry-land impoundments can be super duck magnets if planted correctly and controlled effectively.  Ducks are suckers for fields flooded with carbohydrate-filled grains, yet, the majority of these impoundments only provide a temporary food source that often gets depleted quickly. And since they are only flooded for a short period of time, these fields are only important to ducks on a part-time basis, with a very limited grocery selection available. 

While most of the ducks on the New River are lesser scaup, other oddball ducks can help fill out a daily bag limit of six that can only include two scaup.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of hunting ducks on big, open waters like the New River is watching a trained retriever making a long, difficult retrieve.