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DedicatedtotheconservationandrestorationofLouisiana'snaturalresources. ~" TuTtJepartineutofWildlifeandFisher, LouisianaConservationist ISSN0024-6778 Volume51,No.6 BatonRouge,LA 70808 M.J. "Mike"Foster,Governor JamesH.JenkinsJr.,Secretary JamesPatton, Undersecretary JohnRoussel,Asst.Secretary Comments PhilBowman,Asst.Secretary WildlifeandFisheriesCommissioners BillBusbice,Jr.,Chairman, Lafayette ByTamesPatton,Undersecretary DanielBabin,Houma Aswe approach the dawn ofthe GlynnCarver,Ph.D.,Many new millennium, we would like to ThomasGattle,LakeProvidence saythatthefuturelooksbrightforthe JeraldHanchey,Lafayette pDerpoagrrtammesnt.anHdowefvaceirli,tieisndiocfatiotnhse NThoormmaasnKMeclClya,llJ,eanCearmeettreon are otherwise. Recently the Department released its Five Year DivisionAdministrators Fiscal Projections and Revenue BennicFontenot,InlandFisheries Proposals, a major report requested KarenFoote,MarineFisheries by Governor Foster and the TommyPrickett,Wildlife CommissionerofAdministration, MarkDrennen. Neverbeforeattemptedonthis BrandtSavoie,Fur/Refuge scalebytheDepartment,thisstudyisfocusedontherateofgrowthof threethings: LyleM.Soniat,Ph.D.,Information/Education •demandsforservicesandopportunities; WintonVidrine,Enforcement •keyelementsofcost;and, •sourcesofrevenuenotdedicatedtoaparticularuse. MagazineStaff Thestudy'sfindingissobering:bothdemandsandcostsaregrowingfasterthan LyleM.Soniat,Ph.D.,ExecutiveEditor revenue. MarianneM.Burke,InformationDirector Canwecurbdemand?Dowewantto?Thereisongoingandwidespreadpublic JaniceCollins,Editor supportfortheexpansionofthewildlifemanagementareasystem.TheLouisiana CatherineCarlockSimpson,NewManager EconomicDevelopmentCouncil,chairedbyGovernorFoster,madethisapriority ThomasGresham,StaffWriter ofthestate. VISION2020,astheirplanisknown,callsfortheadditionof150,000 LisaDobsonNoland,StaffWriter acresby2018,whichisanincreaseinacreagenotseensincethe1970s.Sportsmen JoelCourtney,StaffPhotographer continuetoaskformoreplacestohuntandfish.Likewise,non-consumptiveusers LindaAllen,CirculationManager wantmoreplacestocamp,hikeandobservewildlife. Externalindicatorsofgrow- SybilJackson,MarketingManager ingdemandincludetherapidlyincreasingnumbersofall-terrainvehiclesandper- soopnmaelnwtatoecrccurrasf,titnheouorppsotartteu.niAtsieLsoutiosiparnoav'isdpeophuulnattiinognainncdrefaissehsiangndgrmoournedsdevweill-l rWeisldpCloinofspeiybralinegdfhotFri1suh9nes9ro9ileisbc.yitTtehhdiesmLaponuuubislsciircaaintpaitosDn,epipsahnrootttomgernatphosf becomemorecostlyfortheDepartment. orothermaterials. Canwecontrolrisingcosts?Seventy-twopercentoftheDepartment'scostsare TheLouisianaConservationistispublished forsalaries, fringebenefits, technology, transportation equipment and insurance. bimonthlyexceptJanuary/FebruarybytheLouisiana Think of how these costs are rising in your business, or your household. The DepartmentofWildlifeandFisheries,2000Quail Departmentgetsnoinsidedealsorpricebreaks. Wecanonlyreacttorisesinthese Drive,BatonRouge,LA 70808,225/765-2928. coststhesamewaythateveryoneelsedoes:wemakedowithless...andless...and Second-classpostagepaidatJohnsonCity,TNand less.Canwekeepondoingthis?Notreally. TheDepartmenthasfeweremployees additionalmailingoffices.POSTMASTER:send tnehaarnlyit7h9adpericnen1t9.85,butthecostsofsalariesandfringebenefitshaveincreasedby aBdodxre9s8s00c0h,anBgaetsontoRLoouugies,iaLnAaC7on0s8e9r8v.ationist,P.O. Canwemakerevenuegrow faster?Oratall?Anoverhauloftherecreational RegulationsoftheU.S.Departmentofthe blwiraciyedngsbeeatcfhkeeeignsac1ph9e8bd7eu.tlwAeeiefsanilrcooansngtdsoavrneeraddsrouneea;vbeltnehueefelaeanstsdtcrtouhcmetpuDrreeephawerontsumilevdnethcewhliaplnltgpheersoDpweoepsraeerstmumacehdneta IdbAanenstpiyeasrriptooemfrrerssnatotcrneai,clztcofloheylodoperbrr,eoalhlniilaebytviietaossnusahinlesltaooerwrdifgspuihrlneo,dghiaarsgsacemrbosiermeoinhnnaadnttidhisieoccnraipim.ni- structureinthenearfuture. However, thefiveyearprojection clearlyshowsthat natedagainstinanyprogram,activityorfacility licensefeerevenuesdonotgrownearlyasfastascosts,andanadjustmentevery operatedbyarecipientoffederalassistanceshould thirteenyears(oreveneverytenyears)willnotkeeptheproblemfromrecurring. writeto:Director,OfficeforEqualOpportunity, ThefixthatisneededistodedicatetotheDepartmentsomeportionoftaxesorreg- U.S.DepartmentoftheInterior,Washington,D.C. istrationfeesnowcollectedandretainedbythestateforotherpurposes,including 20240._ sales taxes on hunting and fishing gear, boats, motors and all-terrain vehicles. t$h5i1s.7p5u1bl6i0c.Adpopcruomxeimnattewlays35p.u0b0l0ischoepdiesatofatnhisavdeorcaugmeenctoswteroef Recognizingthatthebudgetistightstatewide,theDepartmentdoesn'twanttopick publishedatanaverageprintingcostof$23,910.44.Thetotal thepocketofanyotherstateagencyorprogram.Wewillproposeagradualsolution cdoosctumofenatllwparisntpiunbgliosfhethdisfodroDceupmaernttmeanvteorfaWgielsdli$f2e3a,n9d10Fi4s4h.erTiheis,s whichwilldedicateonlytheannualgrowthorincreaseinthesetaxesandfeesover 2000QuailDrive.BatonRouge,Louisiana,70808,byBourque theWbaeseneyeedaryoofu2r00s0u.pportinthiseffort.Ifweallworktogether,wecansecurethe dPLroaiurnidtssiinagfn,oar.IpnrcTi.h,nitsitnomgaptbreyorvisiatdlaetweianasfgoeprnrmcianitteiesodneisontnaacbolcuiotsrdhdoeaodnrcpoeuprpwsoiurtathnuttnhitetoiseRts.aSni.-n futureofalloftheprogramsandfacilitiesoftheDepartment. 4th3e:3p1rovPirsinitoinnsgooffTtihtilsem4a3teorfiatlhewaLosuipsuiracnhaasReevdiisneadcSctoartduatensc.ewith 2 LouisianaConservationist LOUISIANA g« f-^ # t Conservationist Big Bucks—Where They Live and Grow ExceptionalhabitatisthekeytotheproductionoftrophydeerinLa. ByDavidMoreland Teddy's Tensas President Theodore Roosevelt's famous bear hunt in Tensas Parish. (1983 Louisiana Conservationist reprint) ByMauriceCockerham The Dead Zone MarinefisherybiologistsunravelthemysteryoftheGulf's"DeadZone." ByJimHanifen, TerryRomaireandJojoEstrada His and Hers Duck Blind Aduckhunterandabirdwatchersharethesamesunrise. ByRita Variable Small Game and Waterfowl Hunting on Wildlife Management Areas Louisiana'sbestkeptsecret. WMA £ Profile ElmHallWildlifeManagementAreaoffersa varietyofoutdooropportunities. Photography Showcase Louisianascenesandspeciesarevisuallyhigh- lighted. Education Corner Z8 AdaptedBirds ByGayBrantley&AmyOuchley Species Profile: The Canada goose LawLines HuntingonPublicLand—HowSafeisIt? ByMajorKeithLaCaze Front& Conservation Notes Back Covers WildlifeandFisheriesnewsbriefs. WadillOutdoorEducation CenterMural Bayou Kitchen Photo by LyleM.'Soniat,Ph.D. RecipesbyChefPhilippeParola. PublishedbytheDepartmentofWildlifeandFisheriesintheinterestofconservationofLouisiananaturalresources. JB1UC B*I(G GEOW :M FIHLEY STORY & MieancientcivilizationofMesopotamia control structures at the head of the PHOTOGRAPHY inwas located in the historical region of Atchafalaya River. The alluvial soil from BY DAVID Asia known as the Fertile Crescent. riverdepositsisidealforcrops. Thebottom- This curve intheSyrian Desertbeganin the land hardwood forests growing along these MORELAND west along the River Jordan and stretched rivers are ideal for wildlife. The combina- northwardtotheTigrisandEuphratesRivers tionofthetwolandusesisawinnerwhenit andthensouthwardtothePersianGulf. The comes to growing trophy class white-tailed word Mesopotamia is Greek and means deer. between rivers. Because of the annual flood- The Habitat Type Map (Map I) readily ing of these rivers the soil was very fertile. shows this distinct crescent shaped area of Duringthehotsummerstheriversprovided Louisiana. Thelocationfordeerlistedinthe water for irrigation consequently this desert Louisiana Big Game Records is shown in becameaproductiveagriculturalregion. MapII. A somewhat similar Fertile Crescent can Most of the trophy deer killed in' befound inLouisiana. TheRedRiverforms Louisiana are taken in parishes within and the western leg of this upward turned cres- alongtheboundariesoftheFertileCrescent. cent with the Mississippi River being the St. Maryand EastFeliciana Parishes arethe eastern leg. The two systems somewhat two exceptions. In St. Mary Parish four of merge togetherwith theaid ofchannelsand these six deer were taken by bow on the 4 LouisianaConservationist cized and touted as the wave of the future. Much ofthis discourse is coming from own- ersofhighfencedareasand fromdeerbreed- ers. Genetics is not a problem in Louisiana. Mostofthedeerusedtorestockthestatedur- ing the fifties and sixties came from within Louisiana (Graph I). Recent studies in the statehave shown thatintroducing deerfrom northern states does not benefit wild herds. In fact, when these northern deer are taken out of the pens and away from the feed troughs,theirgrowthanddevelopmentisnot as good as our native deer. The Big Game Recordsareproofpositivethatgeneticsisnot aproblem. Habitatisthemainingredientforthe pro- ductionofqualityortrophydeerinthisstate. In Louisiana our deerherds are a product of the native habitat. The habitat provides the nutritionneeded forbody growth and antler development. Nutrition comes in many forms including woody and herbaceous browse, hardwood mast such as acorns, soft mastsuchasmayhawsandpersimmons,and agriculturalcrops. Methods for improving nutrition include management of native habitat, such as log- ging and thinning forests, planting year round food plots with agricultural forages , and artificial feeding. Very few clubs or landowners can afford to grow year round forages or feed deer throughout the year to produce bigger deer. Most of them simply can'tgrow enough agricultural type forages. Clubsand landownerslocatedintheagricul- turalregionsofthestate,theFertileCrescent, Atchafalaya Delta WMA. This small area is haveadistinctadvantageoverthosewhoare open for bow hunting only and has a very relyingonjustnativehabitat. shortseason. Deer quality is determined by the habitat Thelowhuntingpressureallowsbucksto type(TablesIand II). Habitatsitesthathave reach an older age and the fertile soil of the agoodhardwoodcomponentintheforestare Atchafalaya River Delta enhances plant more productive than those dominated with growth. EastFeliciana Parish contains good pinetimber. MapIIalsoillustratesthispoint. uplandhardwoodforestswhichareassociat- Withoutyearround agricultural plantings ed with the productive loessal soil found in andartificialfeedingdeerherdsonlowqual- West Feliciana Parish. Many clubs and ity habitat sites cannot develop into the real landowners in this parish have also been trophy deer that many hunters desire. Year managing for an older age class of bucks. round feeding and planting programs are The combination of good habitat and selec- veryexpensive. Itisthereforeimportantthat tive buck harvest strategies will produce huntersand landownersonlowqualityhabi- qualitydeer. tat sites manage within the capabilities of Thereareseveralfactorsnecessaryforpro- what the habitat will produce. These deer ducingqualityortrophyclassdeer. Habitat, maynotqualify fortherecordbookbutthey age, and genetics are generally listed as the certainlycouldbecomethe quality deerthat key factors. Genetics is being highly publi- mosthunterswouldmount. November/December 1999 5 . Age is the second important ingredient necessary for growing big deer. As a buck grows older his antlers usually grow larger. Heavyhuntingpressureonthebuckpopula- tion will result in a male population with veryfewolderanimals. Thiswasthecasein Louisiana during the eighties. The antlered portion of the deer harvest on most clubs consisted primarily of young one-year-old bucks. Biologists advised clubs and landowners toreducethehuntingpressureon theyoung ^M malesandallowsomeofthemtogrowolder. Kjfi% ^\. AsshowninGraph II thestatewideyearling buckharvesthas dramatically declined over theyears. Some southern states have had to create mandatory antler regulations in order to \ .^^ i removethehuntingpressureontheone-year- old age class. There are some Louisiana hunters who would like to see Louisiana go toafourpointorbettersystem. Whileitwill forcehunterstopassupthesmallerone-year- MAPI LOUISIANA DEER HABITATTYPES oldbuckswithspikesand antlerslessthan4 1 Bottomland Hardwood 6. Longleaf Flatwoods points, it really doesn't provide a good sys- 2. Swamp Hardwood 7. Historic Longleaf temforproducingbiggerbucks. Yes,thedeer 3. Coastal Marsh 8. Upland Hardwood wnioltlhbaeveaytehearmoalsdsert,hbatutmoitsstanhtulnetresrwsoaurledlosotikl-l 4. SE Pine/Hardwood 9. Costal Prairie ingfor. Theantlerharvestwouldconsistpri- 5. NW Pine/Hardwood 10. Streambottom Hwd. marily of two-year-old deer with mediocre racks. Hunters desiring to grow larger deer wouldstillneedvoluntaryrestrictionstopro- tecttheseyoungadultbucksandallow them toreach theagewhereantlerqualityisatits LOUISIANA DEER HABITAT TYPES best. MAP RECORD DEER Residents who hunt the public lands in II Louisiana also have the opportunity to harvest a quality or trophy deer because there aremanywildlifemanagementareaslocated intheFertileCrescent. LoggyBayou,Russell Sage, Big Lake, Red River, Grassy Lake and Thistlethwaite are just a few WMAs avail- able. There are also several good federal refuges managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service within this zone. Record book deer have been killed on the Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge and Lake Ophelia National Wildlife Refuge. Shorter deerseasons,goodhardwoodforestmanage- ment, and adjacent agricultural land work togethertoproducetrophydeerontheseareas. David Moreland is the state Deer Study Leader. He is an official measurerfor the Boone & Crockett Club, the Pope & Young ClubandtheLonghunterSociety. 6 LouisianaConservationist GRAPH GRAPH I II SOURCE OF STATEWIDE DMAP RESTOCKED DEER ANTLERED BUCK AGE STRUCTURE 1989-1997 In LOUISIANA WISCONSIN TEXAS 70 65 13% 60 55 InIiI iI rrrp 50 78% 45 i i 40 35 Louisiana Deer 2,328 (78%) 30 i Wisconsin Deer 399 (13%) 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 % Texas Deer 261 9%) I%YearlingBucks(1.5yr.) ( AdultBucks(2.5yr.+) I Total Restocking 2,988 (100%) TABLE TABLE 1 II 1998/99 1998/99 AVERAGE LIVE WEIGHTS ANTLER DEVELOPMENT MALE DEER/PUBLIC LAND PUBLIC LAND Average#Points HabitatType 1 1/2 21/2 31/2 41/2 HabitatType 6mo. 1 1/2 21/2 31/2 BottomlandHardwood 4 7 8 9 Bottomland Hardwood 63 133 171 186 Mixed Pine/Hardwood 3 6 8 7 MixedHardwoodSwamp 61 127 163 188 BasalCircumference Bottomland Hardwood 2.6 3.5 4 4.8 UplandHardwood 70 119 159 177 MixedPine/Hardwood 1.9 3.1 3.8 3.8 Mixed Pine/Hardwood 56 103 139 157 BeamLength Bottomland Hardwood 7.7 14.4 17.2 20.2 HistoricLongleaf 54 95 127 151 Mixed Pine/Hardwood 5.3 10.3 13.1 12.9 InsideSpread Bottomland Hardwood 6.4 11.7 13.8 16.7 Mixed Pine/Hardwood 5 10.3 13.1 12.9 November/December 1999 7 JamesHendersonharvestedthis1771/8 typicalB&Cin ThisbuckwastakenwithamuzzleloaderbyMichael CaddoParish. Willson LakeOphelia NWR inAvoyellesParish. Are Spikes Trophy Deer In Waiting? Spikebucks havebeen a focal pointofdeermanagement discussions formanyyears. Years ago mostbiologists referredtospikesasinferiordeerthatshouldbeharvestedfromtheherd.EarlyresearchinTexassupportedthisidea. However, later research at Mississippi State University indicated that spikes could become trophy deer if they received adequatenutritionovertime. Becauseofthismanybiologistsarenowsayingdon'tshootspikesandsome stateshaveevenpassedmandatoryregulationsprotectingthem. Canwefindsomecommongroundinallofthisand cometoaconclusion? In Louisiana deerherdsoccupyinggood habitatwhere thepopulationisinbalance, one-year-oldbuckswill pro- ducebranchedantlers. Lowqualityhabitat,overpopulation, andlatebornfawnsaresomeofthereasonsforhaving oneyearoldspikedbucks. AccordingtoharvestdatafromLouisianaherds,oneyearoldbuckswithbranchedantlers weighmorethanoneyearoldbuckswith spikes. Insome instances thisdifference inbodyweightismorethan50 pounds. Willthesesmallbodiedspikescatchupwiththeirheavierbrothers? In penswheredeerareartificiallyfed,haveaccesstoadditionalagriculturalforageand theirpopulationisclosely controlled, research indicates that these small spikes will develop into quality or trophy deer. There has been no researchdonewithdeerthatarestrictlydependentuponnativehabitatforgrowthanddevelopment. However, theharvestdata fromLouisiana wheredeerherdsaredependentuponnativehabitatalone forgrowth andantlerdevelopmentindicates thatthesespikesdonotcatchup. Theywillproducebranchedantlersbuttheywill continue tohave lessbody weight and antlermass than theirbranched antlerbrothers. Consequently, ifa club or landownerwantstoproduceanolderagedbuckwithgoodbodyweightandantlermass,theoneyearoldbuckswith branchedantlerswouldbethebetteranimalstoprotectandnottoharvest. 8 LouisianaConservationist I? jsoSI 1 i. 1 ^» I1HI 1 f ! 1 ml H 1 STORY BY MAURICE COCKERHAM ; November/December 1999 9 Reprintfrom1983 woodsoftheSierras." animals pasthislocation. Ithad not September/OctoberLouisiana Thegamehadnotbeenscarce. He worked. He was an experienced Conservationist had hunted the plentiful deer and hunter and woodsman, so he had hadtakenanicebuckwithadifficult joinedthechaseandnowsuccesswas The big man was not unaccus- shot through heavy cover. He had athand. tomed to horses nor hunting, hunted the numerous wildcat, and As he crouched in the canes, his but this was a chase to test the enjoyed horseback riding simply for eyes picked out the form of a large, mettle of man and beast. For hours thepleasuresoffreedominthisfabu- dark creature moving in his direc- they had plunged through the lous forest. He had even astounded tion. Thebearwasstanding upright swampy bogs and palmetto flats of the other members of the hunting and moving slowly, occasionally the north Louisiana woodlands, party by stripping his clothes off in pausing to confront the pursuing skirted the edges of impenetrable 40 degree F weather and plunging dogs. As the bear drew near, the cane brakes and torn their way into the icy waters of Bear Lake. hunter raised his heavy rifle and throughcurtainsofvinesandtangled Plainly he fired. Thebear went downbut was had brush. He would write later, "We not dead. Even badly wounded, a hadallwecoulddotokeepthevines bear will quickly kill any dog that from lifting us out of the saddle, was comestoonear,sothehunterquickly while the thorns tore at our hands chambered another round and fired and faces." Now they were closing again. The second slug broke the Friday, onthebayinghoundsandtheexcite- bear'sneck. ment was intense. The ride ended Those involved in the hunt at the edge of a thick cane brake. | October 17, 1907 recalled later that the hunter had I TThheeyhowrosuelsdcohualvde gtoo nfioghtfartthheeirr. and the hunter iIbheeenhasdotshhroilulteeddwiatnhdhdisantcreodphyabtohuatt wayintothedenseswitchcaneonfJ land shook hands with each mem- foot. was Theodore ber of the party as they arrived at No sooner had the two men] [the scene. Obviously, this black entered the canes than the sound] Roosevelt, [bear was very special, despite the ofdogsbegantomoveagain. The! 'hunter's success with other larger quarry was making what was' 'and more dangerous game. But President of the termeda"movingbay," fightingthe' then, he was a native American dogs as it retreated slowly. The1 United hunterandthiswasnativeAmerican hunterssmashedtheirwaytoapoint game. ItwasFriday,October17,1907 where, hopefully, they would inter- and the hunter was Theodore cept the course of their quarry. The States. Roosevelt, President of the United bigmancrouched lowin thethicket, States. hisbodytenseandhiseyesstraining enjoyed Roosevelt'sbearhunttookplacein foraglimpseofmovementinthetan- all aspectsof the great Tensas forest in northeast gledcane. this hunt, but he still did not have Louisiana and he was to recall it He had been hunting for eleven whathehadcomefor. often. Descriptions of the hunt days in this sprawling virgin forest. Hecametokillabear. Itwasobvi- appear in letters to his children and Althoughhehadhuntedmanytypes oustoallthosewithhimthathehad in an article he wrote for Scribner's of game in many regions and coun- a keen and special desire to take a Magazine entitled "In the Louisiana triesofthe world, this area was spe- bear from thesewoods. Thus farhe Cane Brake." Another reference to cial. In later writings he would say, had not succeeded. Not that there thehuntappearsinhisdescriptionof "Whereverthewaterstandsinpools, was any shortage ofbear. The dogs the rugged terrain encountered on a and by the edges of the lakes and had trailed repeatedly and several latersafaritoEastAfrica. bayous, thegiantcypress loomaloft, othersinthepartyhadmetwithsuc- In 1907muchoftheTensas forest, rivaled in size by some of the red cess. Hewasbeingtreatedwithdef- including parts of East and West gums and white oaks. In stature, in erence, however, and perhaps that Carroll, Morehouse, Richland, towering majesty, they are unsur- was the problem. Until now they Madison, Tensas and Franklin passed by any trees of our eastern had directed him to selected parishes, remained in virgin timber. forest; lordlier kings of the green- "stands" in the deep woods, and Roosevelt'sdescriptioncanhardlybe leafedworldarenottobefounduntil then men and dogs had spent futile improved upon. The forest was a we reach the sequoias and the red- daysattemptingtodrive theharried massive extension of the hardwood 10 LouisianaConservationist