In brief: Duck and goose seasons approved

With a record number of ducks counted on the northern breeding grounds, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission approved migratory waterfowl hunting seasons last weekend.

Under the waterfowl hunting package, most hunting opportunities approved by the commission will be similar to last year. That includes a split statewide duck season that will be open for 107 days, starting Oct. 17-21 and continuing Oct. 24-Jan. 31.

Washington’s special youth hunting weekend is set for Sept. 19-20.

Idaho’s duck season in the Panhandle will run Oct. 11-Jan. 23 with exceptions for scaup. Goose hunting will open in North Idaho Oct. 11-Jan. 23 with some exceptions for light geese.

Idaho’s youth waterfowl season is Sept. 27-28.

Federal surveys estimate that 49.5 million ducks were on the northern breeding grounds this spring in Canada and the United States. That’s slightly more than last year’s record of 49.2 million ducks on the breeding grounds.

In Washington, limits for mallard, pintail, scaup, redhead, goldeneye, harlequin, scoter and long-tailed duck will remain the same as last season. But the commission raised the daily bag limit for canvasback from one to two per day because of increasing numbers throughout North America.

Goose hunting seasons will vary among management areas across the Washington, but most open in mid-October and run through late January.

In southwest Washington, however, the commission approved several changes to the goose hunting season. Those changes include:

• Closing the season for dusky Canada geese to ensure protection of the birds in areas where the small population of this subspecies winters.

• Expanding the length of the general hunting season into March for other geese.

• Adding all of Clark County to Goose Management Area 2A, and Grays Harbor County to Goose Management Area 2B

• Eliminating check stations for geese, and instead increasing checks in the field to monitor harvest.

Goose identification testing requirements to hunt in Goose Management Areas 2A and 2B will remain effect for this season.  

A new option to the Skagit County brant hunting season was added for the season set for early January. In previous years, WDFW has opened the Skagit brant hunt for eight days when at least 6,000 brant were counted during an aerial survey of the region. The new rule authorizes the department to open a three-day hunt when counts exceed 3,000 brant but fall below the 6,000-bird threshold.

The goose and duck hunting seasons approved by the commission are based on state and federal waterfowl population estimates and guidelines.

Details on the waterfowl hunting seasons are available on WDFW’s website.

Fishing closed

Most Rivers and streams in Olympic National Park were closed to recreational fishing this week as a result of the historic drought.

Not only are water levels low, but the water temperature is higher this summer, the National Park Service said.

Fishermen have been bracing for this since spring when the Olympic Mountains snowpack was reported to be 4 percent of normal.

“Pacific salmon and trout show signs of physiological stress at water temperatures above 60 degrees Fahrenheit, with lethal effects beginning at 70 degrees,” park spokesperson Barb Maynes wrote in a press release.

The closure will likely last through the end of summer, during a time when many people enjoy fishing within the park, Maynes said.

“Really we’re not expecting any significant rains to occur until we get more into October and into the fall,” she said.

Some high country lakes within the park remain open for fishing.