News Release

Craig Rieben, USFWS

703 358-2225

Craig_rieben@fws.gov

Alicia F. King

571-214-3117

Alicia_f_king@fws.gov

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed continuation of liberal hunting season lengths for the upcoming 2009-2010 late waterfowl seasons. Duck hunting season lengths would be 60 days in both the Atlantic and Mississippi Flyways, 74 days in the Central Flyway, and 107 days in the Pacific Flyway. Highlights of the proposed frameworks include: a full season on pintails with a one bird daily bag limit in the Atlantic, Mississippi and Central Flyways, and a two bird daily bag limit in the Pacific Flyway and a full season on canvasbacks with a one bird daily bag limit offered nation-wide. Additionally, the Service is proposing to have a bag limit of 2 scaup in the Atlantic, Mississippi and Central Flyways for the full season and a bag limit of 3 scaup in the Pacific Flyway for 86 days.

States select their season and earliest season beginning and latest ending dates from within the frameworks which establish the maximum season length and bag limits.

The proposed late season waterfowl frameworks will appear in a mid-August edition of the Federal Register for public comment and on http://www.fws.gov/migratorybirds/fedreg/MGBHR.HTML.

To see the "Status of Waterfowl" report and video as well as last years harvest figures, please see Ducks: A hunting season is proposed of not more than 60 days between September 26, 2009, and January 31, 2010. The proposed daily bag limit is six and may include no more than four mallards (two hens), three wood ducks, two redheads, two hooded mergansers, two scaup, one black duck, one pintail, one canvasback, one mottled duck, one fulvous whistling duck, and four scoters. The season on harlequin ducks is closed.

Ducks: A hunting season is proposed of not more than 60 days between September 26, 2009, and January 31, 2010. The proposed daily bag limit is six and may include no more than four mallards (two hens), one mottled duck, three wood ducks, two redheads, two scaup, one black duck, one canvasback and one pintail. The proposed daily bag limit of mergansers is five, only two of which may be hooded mergansers.
• Geese: Generally, seasons for Canada geese would be held between September 26, 2009, and January 31, 2010, and vary in length among States and areas, with daily bag limits varying from one to three. States would be able to select seasons for light geese not to exceed 107 days with 20 geese daily between September 26, 2009, and March 10, 2010; for white-fronted geese the proposed season would not exceed 72 days with a two-bird daily bag limit or 86 days with a one-bird daily bag limit between September 26, 2009, and February 15, 2010; and for brant it would not exceed 70 days with a two-bird daily bag limit or 107 days with a one bird daily bag limit between September 26, 2009, and January 31, 2010. There would be no possession limit for light geese.