Passport to Texas

2017 winner, Drew Lillie (on left), and friends after a successful hunt.

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This is Passport to Texas

Would you like to go duck hunting on the Texas Gulf Coast? Or in the flooded-timber of East Texas?

Well you don’t have to choose just one. You can do both hunts if you win the Big Time Texas Hunts Waterfowl Adventure. Here’s Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Private Lands and Public Hunting Program Director Justin Dreibelbis to tell you more.

One hunt is on the coastal prairies where you’re going to be hunting ducks and geese. The other area that you’ll be duck hunting will be in flooded-timber in East Texas. Here you’re going to be focusing on some different species like Wood Ducks and Mallards. You’re hunting with trained guides, trained dogs. Meals, lodging, all taken care of. Both of these hunts are really high quality waterfowl hunts that any duck hunting enthusiast is going to be excited about.

You and up to three guests can enjoy this excellent waterfowl adventure with hunting providers Central Flyway Outfitters and BigWoods on the Trinity.

We hear every year that hunters from Big Time Texas Hunts are returning to hunt with these outfitters again and again.

Don’t miss your opportunity to win. Enter online today at the Texas Parks and Wildlife website. Just search for Big Time Texas Hunts.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Be ready to get out and hunt teal. They wait for no man.

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This is Passport to Texas

Good environmental conditions in teal’s northern nesting areas mean more birds and a 16-day early season in Texas.

Blue-wings are the most abundant, and are very common to Texas early and late in the year. Green-wing teal are kind of our winter residents. And Cinnamon Teal, for the most part, are more of a western bird. They’re not real common in Texas, but we do encounter them from time-to-time.

Kevin Kraai (CRY), waterfowl program leader for the Texas Parks and Wildlife, says teal do not behave quite like other duck species.

One thing I like to tell hunters is these birds are actively migrating this time of year; it’s very dynamic from one day to the next. So, just wake up and go. You never know if today is the day that the migration is going to be strong. You can go out one day and there will be nothing, and go out the next and be covered up in them. So, I just say wake up and go. Find good shallow habitat, shallow water that has abundant food. And there’s a really good chance there’ll be teal there that day.

The season opens Saturday, September 15 and closes Sunday, September 30, with a six bird daily bag limit.

We haven’t looked this good in a long time. Right now we have abundant freshwater, from the Texas High Plains in the panhandle, all the way down to the Texas coast.

Find more hunting information on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series. Through your purchases of hunting and fishing equipment, and motorboat fuels, over 40 million dollars in conservation efforts are funded in Texas each year.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Waterfowl hunting at Guadalupe Delta WMA.

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This is Passport to Texas

If you plan on hunting migratory game birds in Texas this fall, you need to be HIP – HIP certified, that is. HIP stands for Harvest Information Program.

It’s purpose is to gain information on waterfowl and migratory bird hunters nationwide. Basically a name and address and a little bit about their previous year’s hunting activity—as well as what they plan on hunting what they plan on hunting in the upcoming year.

Kevin Kraai is Waterfowl Program Coordinator. He says the HIP program helps wildlife professionals improve resource management practices as well as track various waterfowl populations throughout the country.

It’s a very useful tool in setting the future year hunting regulations and management decisions.

Being a HIP certified waterfowl hunter isn’t just a good idea—it’s the law.

Officially it is a requirement by law that every individual that plans on hunting migratory birds in the state of Texas us HIP certified. If you are not HIP certified and you are hunting migratory game birds, you are subject to game violations.

We have a link to information about becoming HIP certified at passporttotexas.org.

The Wildlife and Sportfish restoration program supports our series and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motorboat fuel…

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

The Bigwoods on the Trinity. Waterfowl hunting

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This is Passport to Texas

The regular duck season continues through January 28, in most of the state. Wildlife biologist, Dave Morrison, says overall, you still have good hunting ahead of you.

Total numbers of ducks are down. But when you take a look at the overall picture. We’re still at numbers we’ve never seen before.

The past five years offered “unbelievable” hunting, said Morrison. And while the populations of the ten species they surveyed this spring changed…it’s not bad news.

This year, five are up, five are down. But the good news is that—with the exception of pintails and scaup—all of them are above their long-term average. So, we’re still anticipating ducks showing up in Texas.

He says if you went out last season, then expect a similar outcome this season.

When you think about what Texas has been through, something that’s similar to last year is probably pretty good. Harvey wreaked havoc along our coast. But that habitat is recovering faster than anticipated. [1.5 seconds ambiance]

And for goose hunters: light goose season ends Jan. 28 in the east zone and February 4 in the west zone.

Texas is blessed; we’ve always had pretty good goose hunting here in this state. From the perspective of snow geese, we’ll have probably about the same as last year, simply because the numbers really haven’t changed.

The Texas Outdoor Annual has seasons and bag limits for all waterfowl.

The Wildlife Restoration Program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Duck hunting

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This is Passport

Although waterfowl numbers are expected to be somewhat lower than last year, they’re still near record when compared to the long term average; the total number of ducks headed south looks promising

Conditions on the coast this year are going to be better for the ducks. What’s better for the ducks is not necessarily better for duck hunters. When you have dry conditions, birds are concentrated. Now there’s going to be good habitat conditions across the coast so everybody is going to be sharing in the wealth this year.

Dave Morrison is Small Game Program Director at Texas Parks and Wildlife. He expects an above average duck season with broader distribution of birds, despite a slight down turn in overall populations compared to last year. Having said that, the outlook for goose is should be better.

I actually had the good fortune of going to the breeding grounds this summer. We spent two weeks up there in Manitoba banding geese and from what I saw, it looks like goose numbers are going to be better than last year. We saw quite a bit of young of the year in there and so production looks like it’s going to be up. When production is up for geese, it means you got a bunch of young ones coming down that have not seen this game before, makes them more available to the hunters. So hopefully, our goose season may be a little bit better this year than last.

For complete waterfowl hunting information in Texas, get the Texas Outdoor Annual. Find it on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

The Wildlife Restoration program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.