Ducks flock to Salvador for second split of season

The Salvador Management Area is truly a Sportsmen’s Paradise.

The opening weekend of the second split turned out to be great for duck hunters with many local and area hunters bagging their limits of ducks and poule d’eau.

“The results of hunters’ success was due to the limited access area and Davis Pond Diversion,” Wildlife and Fisheries biologist Shane Granier said. “Mixed bags included mallards, dois gris, blue and green wing teal, mottled ducks, black ducks, wood ducks, redheads, and canvasbacks.”

The numbers of ducks killed in the limited access area compared to outside of it was equal or comparable for hunters. The limited access area is holding ducks that would otherwise be scared off by the sound of motor-powered boats, said Granier.

The Davis Pond project, since the BP oil spill, was run at full capacity all summer long. Grass beds flourished in Lake Cataouatche and Salvador due to the increase in nutrient-rich Mississippi River water.  The increase in aquatic duck food is helping to keep ducks in the area, Granier said.

Many hunters have come to the area from Larose, Cut-Off, and Thibodaux.

“Pointe-aux-Chene does not have any grass beds and it means no ducks,” Chris Dantin, of Larose, said. “Lake Cataouatche is like a big salad bowl for poule d’eau and migrating ducks. That is why we come to hunt here.”

Some hunters were asked to donate ducks from their hunts for a Duck Data Collection Survey. Chris Chiasson, Austin Dunn, and Cody Heurtin, all of Bayou Gauche, had a great hunt and donated a mature dos gris.

“I needed 10 ducks for my survey report and many hunters were very cooperative,” Kerry Champagne, a Wildlife and Fisheries technician, said. “The survey is to analyze meat and liver tissue from ducks. The study is looking for hydrocarbon contamination from the oil spill and the Asian influenza.

“We do these studies to help keep the public informed of such contamination.”

Forty ducks from Pass-a-loutre, 20 ducks from Pointe-aux-Chene, and 10 ducks from the Salvador Management Area were collected this past weekend, Granier added.

Wildlife and Fisheries estimated that there were a total of 188 ducks killed in Salvador on Saturday. Most of those (101) were shot in the Salvador Management Area, while 53 were killed in the limited access area.

Thirty four ducks were shot in the Davis ponding area.