On Nov. 13 the Pier 90 boat launch was closed due to ongoing work on a floodgate on Bayou Verret, also known as Sellers Canal. But work has been competed ahead of schedule and the launch has reopened for hunters and fishermen.
“Hunters and fishermen wanting to use the Pier 90 boat launch can do so without any interruption of daily operations,” Courtney Mongrue, of Pier 90, said. “We do not expect any closure in the foreseeable future.”
Many duck hunters took advantage of the opening of the launch to access the northern side of the Salvador Management Area. Kolby Donnaud and Dustin Zeringue were on one of a dozen boats that launched on Monday morning. They managed to harvest five spoonbills and six poule d’eau.
“We were happy to launch at Pier 90,” Donnaud said. “(Before the launch reopened) we had to make long boat runs from either Bayou Segnette or Bayou Gauche to reach our favorite hunting spots.”
Rene Baudoin and Alex Dufrene managed to kill only poule d’eau on a very windy and cold morning.
“We thought after this strong cold front many ducks would have come down, but we were only able to shoot a few poule d’eau.” Baudoin said.
Mongrue said he expects business at the launch to pickup this week.
This was the second time that Pier 90 was forced to close due to the Western Tie-In construction. In May, the launch shut its doors for a month while the Corps of Engineers installed flood gates on Bayou Verret. In November, the company hired to build a lock system on Bayou Verret moved a barge to the site, which blocked the entire canal, Mongrue said.
Trophy field care for ducks harvested
Duck hunters often consider mounting a duck or goose harvested in the field as a trophy. Here are some tips if you are planning to mount a bird as a trophy according to McKenzie’s taxidermy.
Do not gut the bird. Rinse off any blood on the feathers with water and take the bird immediately to a taxidermist or freeze it. Put the bird into a plastic bag for freezing being careful not to damage the feathers, including the tail. Let the bird’s tail sticks out of the bag and tie the bag loosely. Songbirds, eagles, hawks, and owls are protected by federal law and cannot be mounted unless with special permit.
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