COLUMBUS, OH -- Ohio's waterfowl hunters are having one of the best season starts in years due to some great duck hunting weather. Cold, wet, windy weather across the upper Great Lakes states caused early migration and brought good numbers of ducks to Ohio, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.
This years colder and windier weather has definitely provided hunters an advantage to what theyve seen the past five waterfowl seasons, said Steve Barry, state waterfowl biologist at the Crane Creek wildlife research station. Although duck numbers are about average for this time of year, weve had several northeast and northwest fronts that have increased waterfowl activity since the mid-October opener and made the birds more available to hunters than theyve been in recent seasons.
Lake Erie's southwestern shoreline boasts a long heritage of waterfowl hunting and is considered Ohio's largest duck magnet. The area's wetlands provide important resting, feeding and staging areas for hundreds of thousands of migrating ducks and geese each fall. Sandusky Bay and adjacent wetlands serve as a migration staging area for the highest concentration of black ducks any place in the world.
On opening day this year, hunters at Pickerel Creek State Wildlife Area (map in .pdf format) in Sandusky County bagged a record 301 ducks. During the Special Youth Hunt, held prior to regular opening day, youth hunters at Pickerel Creek harvested an average of 2.5 ducks per youth. Species diversity has also been excellent this year with mallards, wood ducks, black ducks, pintail, blue- and green-winged teal, widgeon, gadwall, and ring-necked ducks being harvested. More pintails were taken at Pickerel Creek during this years opening week than during the entire 2001 season.
Hunting success remains good and should improve even more as temperatures get colder and new ducks move through the region, said Jim Schott, manager of Pickerel Creek State Wildlife Area. The best advice I can give to hunters is to hunt the weather. Watch for cold fronts, high winds, rain, snow, and ice, and for new ducks to move into the area.
Duck hunting is weather dependent. Schott explained that waterfowl feed more often in cold, wet, windy weather to keep body temperatures higher. Cold weather conditions drive ducks off Lake Erie and adjacent bays and into area marshes, he said.
Hunting at Pickerel Creek State Wildlife Area is by permit only on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday during both the first and second segments of the split waterfowl season. Lottery-style drawings are held for morning hunts at 5:15 a.m. and afternoon hunts at 11 a.m.
Denis Franklin, manager of Magee Marsh State Wildlife Area (.pdf map) in Ottawa County reported similar early season success. Hunting success has tapered off recently, but Franklin expects the season to pick up again once the region gets additional cold, windy weather.
Lottery-style drawings are held at Magee Marsh during the second half of the split season on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday at 5 a.m.
The duck hunting season (except pintails and canvasbacks) in the north zone is open through November 30, with a second split season opening December 7 through December 23. The north zone season for pintails closed November 17. Both zones have a closed season on canvasbacks.
In the south zone, the second split of duck season (except pintails and canvasbacks) is open December 14 through January 19, 2003. The south zone season for pintails closed November 2, with a second split season opening December 14 through January 4, 2003.
The daily bag limit for ducks is six, which may not include more than three mallards (only one of which may be female), one black duck, one pintail, two wood ducks, two redheads or three scaup. The season is closed on canvasbacks. Possession limits after the first day are twice the daily bag limit.
Hunters looking for a place to hunt at some of the state's prime waterfowl hunting locations, including the Lake Erie region or other Ohio areas, should consider a hunting outing on a state wildlife area. Information is available in Publication 295, Waterfowl Hunting Regulations, available from hunting license vendors, Division of Wildlife district offices, or by calling 1-800-WILDLIFE.
People planning to hunt waterfowl are required to answer several questions for the Harvest Information Program (HIP) survey when purchasing their hunting license. A state wetland habitat stamp endorsement and a valid and signed federal duck stamp are required in addition to a hunting license when hunting waterfowl. The 2002-2003 hunting licenses and wetland stamps are on sale now and remain valid through February 28, 2003. For complete waterfowl hunting regulations, refer to Publication 295.
Waterfowl hunters can find updated waterfowl abundance information from the biweekly waterfowl survey which is available at Ohiodnr.com. Wildlife biologists conduct the survey from September 1 to April 1. The survey is used to monitor waterfowl abundance during fall, winter and spring migration throughout the northern portion of Ohio.