Author: WM Pro

Hunter Shot While Duck Hunting

It’s being reported that a duck hunter near Port Arthur, Texas, has been killed in a duck hunting accident on the upper Texas coast. Jefferson County Justice of the Peace Bob Morgan says 30 year old Matthew Thomas Janson, of Houston, was hit by a shotgun blast as he and a friend were firing at ducks at J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area.

Morgan says the Sunday shooting is being investigated as an accident. He says the men launched a boat in Sabine Pass and that the shooting happened about an hour later in a marsh. The hunting partners were at compartment 17 of the South Bayou Unit of the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area when they began shooting simultaneously at ducks. Continue reading Hunter Shot While Duck Hunting

Texas Big Bass Fisheries Should Thank Durocher

Phil Durocher, longtime head of Inland Fisheries at Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, is ending his 35 years at the agency. He doesn’t go alone, however. His wife, Jean, also retired on December 31, ending a 35-year run as a nurse in one doctor’s office. Durocher walked away from the top fisheries job at TPWD a little scarred from past fights, but knows he played a role in pushing Texas to the top of bass fishing in North America.

He spent more than a few hours standing before hostile crowds and commissions, quietly offering up his positions, often using his gun bang-damaged ear to pretend he didn’t hear the semi-silent cursing and complaining from his audience. That was especially true in 1986, when Durocher was TPWD’s front man traveling the state promoting a change in bass fishing regulations that would forever alter the world of fishing. Continue reading Texas Big Bass Fisheries Should Thank Durocher

Texas Addressed Conservation Issues

Just last week, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst announced interim charges for Texas Senate committees that will explore issues and solutions during the interim period before the 82nd Texas Legislature convenes in January 2011. Among the agencies addressed was the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). Below is a listing of some committee interim charges relevant to TPWD and its mission that could impact its constituents.

Natural Resources

  • Analyze and compare the differences in cost between immediate implementation of the State Water Plan compared to staged development over time.
  • Review the joint planning process for management of groundwater resources and monitor the progress of groundwater conservation districts’ efforts to establish, before the statutory deadline, desired future conditions for aquifers.
  • Study the need for the state to regulate the drilling of new wells within proscribed depths and distances of Texas rivers, in order to prevent the draining of surface water from alluvial plains of river basins.
  • Monitor the environmental impacts, including water usage, and role of the TCEQ and other agencies in oil and natural gas development in areas of the state such as the Barnett Shale Continue reading Texas Addressed Conservation Issues

Texas Coast Duck Hunting Report

Duck hunting along the Texas coast had been hit and miss this season, even with the cold weather pushing down some new ducks. Duck hunting reports indicate ice was a problem on the coastal prairies for waterfowl hunters. Ponds iced over two inches thick in some places, and that made for tough duck hunting. Few birds moved, according to several outfitters submitting duck hunting reports.

Many hunters along the coast reported seeing an influx of birds overnight, probably because the area had the most open water and feeding areas. However, coastal hunters on the bays said the bird flight was slim as well, but not for lack of birds. Port O’Connor and Rockport are holding large rafts of red heads, lesser scaup, pintails, and some gadwall. Continue reading Texas Coast Duck Hunting Report

Texas Bays Depend on Freshwater Inflow

On Monday, January 11, 2010, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s (TPWD) Water Resources and Coastal Fisheries staff attended a meeting of the Guadalupe-San Antonio Basin and Bay Area Stakeholder Committee. A similar meeting recently took place for the Trinity-San Jacinto Basin and Bay Area Stakeholder Committee, where members heard presentations from their appointed science team about freshwater inflow recommendations for Galveston Bay. Outdoor enthusiast understand the importance of freshwater flows for the health of coastal habitat, widlife, specifically waterfowl, and fish species, and it’s good to see the problems are being addressed.

Three other bay-basin committees are also working on the Nueces, Sabine/Neches, and Colorado/Lavaca systems. All this stems from Senate Bill 3 passed by the Texas Legislature in 2007, which established a comprehensive, statewide process to protect environmental flows. The process relies upon input from local stakeholder groups composed of balanced interests ranging from agricultural water users to commercial anglers–all with a vested interest in water rights. The hoped-for outcome is protected environmental flow regimes to help ensure healthy rivers and estuaries. Continue reading Texas Bays Depend on Freshwater Inflow

Texas Panhandle Duck Hunting Reports

Duck hunters in the High Plains Mallard Management Unit are shaking their heads at the direction geese have gone according to recent duck hunting reports. It seems there has been no solid pattern for geese according to several waterfowl outfitters in the Amarillo area. Some days the birds never leave the roost! Snow goose hunting has been tough as well.

Duck hunters also had a tough time finding open water, and outfitters said many birds moved out of the area to find water. Playa lakes were unhuntable due to ice. Prospects are fair to good for the remainder of the hunting season. Continue reading Texas Panhandle Duck Hunting Reports

Record Cold Weather Impacts Texas Coast

Texans have been busy winterizing facilities, businesses, and residences and otherwise managing a record of sub-freezing days, but the biggest natural resource impact so far appears to be fisheries along the Texas Gulf coast. Texas has about two million acres of bays and estuaries susceptible to freezes. There were three major freezes during the 1980s, including one in 1989 when the temperature at Brownsville dropped to 16 degrees and an estimated 11 million fish were killed.

This week, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) issued a news release asking saltwater anglers to voluntarily help protect red drum, spotted seatrout, snook and other aquatic resources, including flounder. The release said “in addition to killing game fish in shallow bay waters, a hard freeze can also cause surviving fish to congregate in a few deeper areas where they become sluggish and prone to capture” and asked anglers to avoid catching fish populations in these natural refuge areas. Continue reading Record Cold Weather Impacts Texas Coast