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Closed area / Sanctuary

2K views 4 replies 5 participants last post by  KAhunter 
#1 ·
I manage the habitat at my duck club. We have about 400 acres set aside as a permanent closed zone/sanctuary. It is never hunted. There is a year round creek running through the middle of it and we heavily manage the rest for smartweed, swamp timothy and water grass production.

My problem is some of the members of my club want to open the closed zone to shooting for the last two weekends of the season. What to folks think about that? Is there any research or papers anywhere that I can consult?

My feeling is that any disturbance will discourage long term use of the closed area and negatively impact our success rates.
 
#2 ·
I don't know if you are getting any Federal or Local assistance to maintain that, but if so, there could be a possibility that your club could lose it if it's hunted. If not, and it's a matter of concern of the ducks coming back..they will. I would have only a couple hunts the last week of the season :smile:
 
#4 ·
i have a good friend who famrs rice. around him there are lots of other rice farmers. he keeps about 100acres as 'safe' for the birds, including a large roost pond. he never hunts the roost, most of his neighbors do hunt their roost the last week or 2 of the season.

everybody down there has basically the same size/type of land, hunting pressure, and crops on it. everyone does well every year(at least relative to the state based on conditions). however they have had pop. counts done and he does maintain sigificantly more birds/acre than his neighbors.

but take it with a grin of salt anecdotal evidence is the weakest for of evidence.
 
#5 ·
all depends on your history of hunting the surrounding area. Its great that you have a rest area. Most people around here only have rest areas where the govt wont let them hunt. If the hunting is good where you usually hunt i would leave it alone. If you want to slide in there for a week at the end probably wont hurt anything. I wouldlnt hunt it every day but maybe 2 or 3 days the last week and thats it. We have a small impoundment we managed heavily during the year (only hunt once a week, always make sure there is enough to shoot) but at the end of the season we wear them out, hunting every day for the last three days... I would say go for it. Just dont over hunt it. We will hit them hard at the end and then feed them after the last hu nt when the season is out and a week later we have 5 times as many
 
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