Texas Hunting Leases

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas waterfowl hunters will once again have the Hunter’s Choice bag limit during the 2008-09 seasons. The Central Flyway, of which Texas is a member, will be allowed to complete the three-year experimental Hunter’s Choice bag limit pilot this season despite a decline in canvasback breeding population numbers that mandate a conservative harvest federal framework.

“The other flyways came out in strong support of the Hunter’s Choice experiment in the Central Flyway,” said Dave Morrison, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department waterfowl program leader. “We gave up some things the last couple of years in order to get the Hunter’s Choice and I think they recognized the sacrifices our Flyway has made.”

The Hunter’s Choice allows hunters to shoot five ducks daily, but only one in the aggregate of certain species. In the aggregate category, that one bird could be either a pintail, or a canvasback, or a “dusky duck” (mottled, black duck or Mexican-like duck) or a hen mallard.

All other flyways will see a closed season on canvasbacks and a more restricted season for scaup.

The general duck season length will be the same as last year in the North and South Zones at 74 days and 89 days in the High Plains Mallard Management Unit.

“In the High Plains, the season will be 7 days shorter than last year because we’re taking advantage of a 16-day teal season,” said Morrison.

This year’s North American waterfowl spring breeding population survey showed populations of the 10 most popular duck species was down 9 percent below last year, but remains11 percent above the long-term average with an estimated 37.3 million birds.

“The breeding population is similar to last year, but I expect production to be down and there probably will be fewer young birds heading our way,” Morrison noted. “I would not expect the season to be as good as last year for that reason, but I could be wrong. It depends on what happens up and down the country and how weather condition and food resources play out.”

Following is a rundown of the proposed Texas waterfowl hunting seasons: The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission will finalize the waterfowl hunting season regulations at its Aug. 21 public meeting in Houston.

2008-2009 Waterfowl Hunting Season Dates
(Shooting Hours: ½ hour before sunrise to sunset)

Ducks
Duck Daily Bag Limit: The daily bag limit shall be 5 ducks with the following species and sex restrictions — 2 scaup, 2 redhead, 2 wood duck; only 1 from the following aggregate bag: 1 hen mallard, or 1 pintail, or 1 canvasback, or 1 dusky duck (mottled duck, Mexican like duck, black duck and their hybrids), all other ducks not listed — 5. Merganser Daily Bag Limit: 5 in the aggregate, to include no more than 2 hooded mergansers. Possession Limit: Twice the daily bag limit.

High Plains Mallard Management Unit
Youth — Oct. 18–19, 2008
Regular Gun — Oct. 25–26, 2008; Oct. 31, 2008–Jan. 25, 2009
North Zone
Youth — Oct. 25–26, 2008
Regular Gun — Nov. 1–30, 2008; Dec. 13, 2008–Jan. 25, 2009
Falconry — Jan. 26–Feb. 9, 2009
South Zone
Youth — Oct. 25–26, 2008
Regular Gun — Nov. 1–30, 2008; Dec. 13, 2008–Jan. 25, 2009
Falconry — Jan. 26–Feb. 9, 2009

Geese With Conservation Order
Possession Limit: Twice the daily bag limit for dark geese, no possession limit for light geese.

West Zone
West Zone Daily Bag Limit: Light geese — 20 in the aggregate; Dark geese — 4 Canada and 1 white-fronted goose.

Light and Dark Geese — Nov. 8, 2008–Feb. 8, 2009
Light Geese (Conservation Order) — Feb. 9, 2009–March 29, 2009
East Zone
East Zone Daily Bag Limit: Light geese — 20 in the aggregate; 3 Canada geese and 2 White-fronted geese.

Light Geese, White-fronted Goose, Canada Goose — Nov. 1, 2008–Jan. 25, 2009; Nov. 1, 2008–Jan. 11, 2009; Nov. 1, 2008–Jan. 25, 2009
Light Geese (Conservation Order) — Jan. 26–Mar. 29, 2009
Sandhill Crane
Zone A — Nov. 8, 2008–Feb. 8, 2009 — Bag Limits: 3 daily, 6 in possession
Zone B — Nov. 28, 2008–Feb. 8, 2009 — Bag Limits: 3 daily, 6 in possession
Zone C — Dec. 20, 2008–Jan. 25, 2009 — Bag Limits: 2 daily, 4 in possession
Public comment about the waterfowl proposals will be accepted through Aug. 18. Comments should be sent by e-mail to dave.morrison@tpwd.state.tx.us or by regular mail to Dave Morrison, TPWD Waterfowl Program Leader, 4200 Smith School Rd., Austin, TX 78744. Input may also be made online via the Public Comment link on the TPWD Web site home page.

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department finalized the early season migratory game bird regulations, which includes dove and teal seasons for 2008-09. Texas hunters will see a 16-day September teal season and no changes to the South Dove Zone segments.

The North Zone runs Sept. 1-Oct. 30, with a 15-bird bag and not more than two white-tipped dove; the Central Zone is Sept. 1-Oct. 30 and reopens Dec. 26-Jan. 4, with a 12-bird bag and not more than two white-tipped dove. Possession limit is twice the daily bag.

This year, the South Zone dove season is Sept. 20-Nov. 9, reopening Dec. 26-Jan. 13 with a 12 bird bag and not more than two white-tipped dove. Possession limit is twice the daily bag limit.

The Special White-winged Dove Area, which now encompasses land west of I-35 and south of U. S. Highway 90, opens to white-winged dove afternoon-only (noon to sunset) hunting Sept. 6-7 and 13-14 and reopens Sept. 20-Nov. 9 and again from Dec. 26-Jan. 9. The daily bag limit during the first two weekend splits is 12 birds, not more than four (4) mourning dove and two (2) white-tipped dove. The daily bag limit during the remainder of the Special White-winged Dove Area is 12 birds, not more than two (2) white-tipped dove. Possession limit is twice the daily bag.

Teal season is Sept. 13-28 with a daily bag limit of 4 birds. Possession limit is twice the daily bag.

Hunters should note the dove and teal season dates and bag limits are not included in this year’s Outdoor Annual of hunting and fishing regulations. Information will be available in the Early Season Migratory Game Bird Digest supplement, available Aug. 15 on the TPWD Web site and wherever hunting and fishing licenses are sold.

A proposed dove season rule that would have removed one week of hunting opportunity from the end of the first season segment in the South Zone and added it to the end of the second season segment was not approved. Although public comment was supportive of the proposed amendment, the department has decided to retain the traditional structure because of other considerations resulting from public comment.

“Public comment received by the department indicates a growing concern among hunters, landowners, outfitters, and local businesses that economic factors are increasingly affecting hunting habits or will affect them in the future,” said Mike Berger, TPWD wildlife director. “The department therefore made the decision to leave the traditional season structure in place for the current year while launching an outreach effort to determine if the traditional and historic dove season structure should be altered for future seasons.”

In keeping with hunter and landowner preferences, dove seasons have traditionally been opened on the earliest day legally allowed under frameworks established by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, irrespective of which day of the week the date fell. Under federal law, dove hunting in the United States cannot begin before Sept. 1.

Sept. 1, as opening day of dove hunting in Texas, has been part of the state’s hunting tradition ever since the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 was signed. Treaties with Canada and Mexico established the framework for the taking of all migratory game birds, including dove.

“This year, Sept. 1 falls on Labor Day, a Monday, which is a good thing because it’s a holiday for many Texans, and like having another Saturday,” said Vernon Bevill, TPWD game bird program director. “The bad thing is, the next day isn’t Sunday, it’s back to work Tuesday.”

Similarly, this year’s South Zone dove season opener falls on Saturday, Sept. 20. Traditionally, dove season in South Texas has opened on the Friday after the 20th unless the 20th is a Saturday. Federal frameworks currently prevent opening the South Zone before the 20th.

Berger said recent public comment received by the department indicates a strong preference for seasons to open on a Friday, so as to create a three-day hunting opportunity to open the season. Recent public comment also indicates a preference for the 60-day/15-bird configuration in the South Zone.

“A recurrent theme was the concern that increased consumer costs, particularly transportation costs related to energy prices, make anything less than a three-day opening weekend economically unjustifiable,” said Berger. “Similarly, proponents of the 60-day/15-bird configuration stated that economic considerations would cause them to curtail the number of times they could go hunting, leading them to prefer a higher daily bag limit. In the past, hunters and others have expressed an aversion to delaying the opening day until the first full weekend, preferring the earliest possible opener.”

Hunters looking for a place to hunt dove should consider TPWD’s public hunting opportunities. According to Linda Campbell, TPWD public hunting program director, the department manages more than 50,000 acres of dove hunting units. Hunting access to these areas is available with purchase of a $48 Annual Public Hunting Permit, available Aug. 15 wherever hunting and fishing licenses are sold.

A map booklet detailing locations and additional information about the 143 public dove hunting units is included with the Annual Public Hunting Permit and will be available on the TPWD Web site beginning Aug. 15. A permit is not required to access the map booklet information online.

TPWD dove program coordinator Jay Roberson anticipates an above average hunting season for doves this fall, based on habitat conditions. “We had a pretty dry spring and doves do well in those conditions,” he noted. “The birds weren’t responding last year to predictions of good food availability and many doves stayed to the north. I’m guardedly optimistic this year.”

Roberson reported hearing of good numbers of doves across South Texas and anticipates hunters should have good success if they can identify flight patterns. Conditions are expected to change in the weeks heading into the season, particularly in the wake of recent weather resulting from Hurricane Dolly.

AUSTIN, Texas — New hunting and fishing licenses for 2008-09 will be available beginning Friday, Aug. 15, and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is encouraging hunters to buy early and avoid the rush heading into the Sept. 1 dove season opener.

“If you wait until the Labor Day Weekend, you’re probably going to be standing in line to buy a license,” said Tom Newton with TPWD’s licensing section. “Savvy hunters have figured it out and are buying their licenses early.”

Sportsmen are reminded all current annual hunting and fishing licenses (except for the year-to-date fishing license) expire Aug. 31. Texas issues 2.1 million hunting and fishing licenses annually through 28 TPWD field offices, more than 65 state parks and at over 1,500 retailers across Texas.

Because dove season in the North and Central Dove Zones opens on a Monday, Newton predicts there will be a weekend rush to buy licenses. “Last year, we sold over 350,000 licenses during the four-day period around the opening weekend of dove season,” he recalled. “It takes an average of three-to-five minutes to process a license sale transaction, so it’s likely there will be delays if you wait ‘til the last minute.”

By comparison, Newton said the department averaged less than 20,000 license transactions a day during the two weeks prior to the dove season opener as opposed to five or six times that number on the days around opening weekend.

A last-minute license purchase rush is probably inevitable in some areas of the state, TPWD officials say, particularly along the I-35 corridor where many dove hunters descend. Fortunately, there are other license buying avenues available.

“Hunters who need to purchase a license at the last minute or those who don’t want to stand in line have a couple of options,” said Newton. “They can also purchase licenses online through the TPWD web site (http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/) or by calling (800) 895-4248. There is a $5 convenience fee for either option and a major credit card is required.”

License sales call center hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday — Friday. The online transaction system is available 24/7.

“We sold about 4,500 licenses online and by phone during the peak sales weekend last year,” Newton said. “We’d like to steer more of the traffic to the call center and Internet during the peak volume periods.”

A license confirmation number is issued at the time of purchase for online and phone orders, and the physical license is mailed separately. Confirmation numbers will verify that a license has been purchased, which is sufficient for dove hunting, but will not allow hunters to take fish or wildlife that requires a tag.

“Some people are using the convenience options to purchase licenses for everyone in their family or hunting group,” Newton said. “It can help ensure that everybody who shows up to hunt, especially those coming in from out of state or kids coming in from college, already have a hunting license waiting for them. You can buy a license for someone else, even at the retail counter, but to avoid delays please be sure you have all their personal information.”

In addition to a hunting license, all wing shooters will need to purchase a game bird stamp. To hunt doves or teal in September, a Migratory Game Bird Stamp ($7) is required. Duck hunters also need to purchase a Federal Duck Stamp and receive HIP (Harvest Information Program) certification. HIP certification will be printed on the license at the time of sale only after the purchaser answers a few brief migratory bird questions. Lifetime license holders must also be HIP-certified and purchase the Federal Duck Stamp to hunt migratory birds. All other state stamp endorsements are included with a lifetime license

“Remember, it’s your responsibility to make sure you are properly licensed, so be sure to check your license before you leave the sales counter,” Newton said. “We do get a fair number of requests for re-issuance of licenses because the hunter forgot to get HIP certified.”

There are other mandatory endorsements to consider at the time of purchase, too. An Upland Game Bird Stamp ($7) is required to hunt all non-migratory game birds, including turkey, quail, pheasant, chachalaca and lesser prairie chicken.

Of course, anyone who purchases the Super Combo license package, the best bang for the buck, automatically gets these needed stamps.

Hunter Education Certification is also required of any hunter born on or after Sept. 2, 1971 and who is at least 17 years old. For hunters who are unable to work in a hunter education class before hunting season for whatever reason, TPWD does offer a deferral option.

The deferral option allows people 17 years of age or older a one-time only extension to complete the state’s hunter education requirements. The individual must first purchase a hunting license and then may purchase the deferral option.

Hunters using the deferral must be accompanied by someone 17 years old or older who is also licensed to hunt in Texas. The accompanying individual must have completed hunter education or be exempt from the requirements (born before Sept. 2, 1971). The extension is good for one license year, by which time the person with the deferred option needs to complete a hunter education course.

This option is not available to those who have ever received a conviction or deferred adjudication for lack of hunter education certification. They still must take the course before going afield.