Late season dates and limits

Rubberhead* · 08-20-2013, 07:28 PM

http://www.dnr.sc.gov/news/yr2013/aug22/aug22_late.html

DUCKS (Excluding Sea Ducks) - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Nov. 23--Dec. 1; Dec. 7--Jan. 26 - Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 6 total, including no more than 4 mallards (2 hens), 2 pintails, 1 fulvous whistling duck, 1 black-bellied whistling duck, 3 wood ducks, 2 redheads, 2 canvasbacks, 2 scaup and either 1 black duck or 1 mottled duck. - Possession limit: 18 total, including no more than 12 mallards (6 hens), 6 pintails, 3 fulvous whistling ducks, 3 black-bellied whistling ducks, 9 wood ducks, 6 redheads, 6 canvasbacks, 6 scaup and any combination of 3 total for mottled ducks and/or black ducks.

MERGANSERS - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Nov. 23--Dec. 1; Dec. 7--Jan. 26 - Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 5 (not to include more than 1 Hooded Merganser) - Possession limit: 15 (not to include more than 3 Hooded Mergansers).

SEA DUCKS (eiders, scoters, long-tailed ducks) - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Oct. 12--Jan. 26 - Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 7 (Not to include more than 4 scoters) - Possession limit: 21 (Not to include more than 12 scoters) -- Sea ducks taken outside of the regular duck season may be hunted only in Atlantic Ocean waters separated from any shore, island or emergent vegetation by at least one mile of open water. COOTS - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Nov. 23--Dec. 1; Dec. 7--Jan. 26 - Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 15 - Possession limit: 45.

CANADA GEESE/WHITE FRONTED GEESE (Late Seasons) - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Nov. 23--Dec. 1; Dec. 7—Jan. 26, Feb. 6—Feb. 15- Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 5 (not to include more than 2 white-fronted geese) - Possession limit: 15 (not to include more than 6 white-fronted geese). This excludes all of Clarendon County, that portion of Orangeburg County north of SC Highway 6 and that portion of Berkeley County north of SC Highway 45 from the Orangeburg County line to the junction of SC Highway 45 and State Road S-8-31 and that portion west of the Santee Dam.

BLUE and SNOW GEESE - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Nov. 23--Dec. 1; Dec. 7—Jan. 26 - Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 25 - Possession limit: No limit.

BRANT - Open Dates (All Dates Inclusive): Dec. 28—Jan. 26 - Hunting hours: 1/2 Hour before Sunrise until Sunset - Bag limit: 2 - Possession limit: 6.

There is no open season on harlequin ducks.

Nov. 16, 2013 and Feb. 1, 2014 are Federal Youth Days. Only hunters 15 years of age or younger may hunt waterfowl (ducks and geese) on these days. The youth(s) must be accompanied by an adult of at least 18 years of age. The adult is not allowed to carry a gun or hunt, and does not have to be licensed. The regular duck season limits apply.

**mudeagle** · 08-20-2013, 07:47 PM

Possession limit change is great but I miss my extra bluebills already

**Phone Man** · 08-20-2013, 08:04 PM

Possession limit will make you not have to eat so many ducks on out of state trips

**Cedar Creek** · 08-20-2013, 08:20 PM

Originally Posted by mudeagle

Possession limit change is great but I miss my extra bluebills already

Duck kabobs,duck jerky,duck gumbo,duck samwich,duck kabobs,duck jerky,duck paninis,and a big ass plate of walleye........

**drwilly** · 08-20-2013, 08:42 PM

why is the possession limit 4 pintails instead of 6? is this a typo? if so 2 govt bureaucrats should get fired for each missing pintail.

**GobblerHntr** · 08-20-2013, 08:47 PM

Why hasn't SC gone to 2 Hooded Mergansers?

**Relentlous** · 08-20-2013, 08:52 PM

I thought usually there was a 2 week break between the seasons.

**GobblerHntr** · 08-20-2013, 08:53 PM

are you complaining?

**Steelin' Ducks** · 08-20-2013, 08:55 PM

What is this duck hunting in SC you speak of??

**Relentlous** · 08-20-2013, 08:58 PM

Originally Posted by squatty

are you complaining?

Yea cause thats the weekend I swap call with fellas at work so im not on call during the season but once

**BigBrother** · 08-20-2013, 09:07 PM

Can someone please explain to me why SC is consistently the only state in the union that continuously shorts the limit contrary to the USFWS framework?

**jon428** · 08-20-2013, 09:12 PM

Look at the youth days. We usually have a day during the split in the first of December and two federal days after the second season. This year it has changed. We went from a total of three days to two.

**BigBrother** · 08-20-2013, 09:19 PM

Youth day should be every day, IMHO.

The burning question is:

Why does SC have two scaup, and the framework recommended 4?

**BEAR** · 08-20-2013, 09:22 PM

I'll take it! Now to figure out a good late season destination for Green Wings and Shovelers. I don't have pictures of Daisy retrieving either species.

**coot nasty** · 08-20-2013, 09:28 PM

Originally Posted by BEAR

I'll take it! Now to figure out a good late season destination for Green Wings and Shovelers. I don't have pictures of Daisy retrieving either species.

That should be easy if you know what I mean.

Rubberhead* · 08-20-2013, 09:29 PM

Here's the short answer to the questions...

The federal framework closes the season on the last Sunday in January and Thanksgiving is a moving target (the fourth Thursday in November). Because of the calendar 2 out of every 7 years will have a short (5 day) break the other 5 years there will be a 12-day break. We are in one of those two years with a short break. Next year will be that way too.

The Federal framework offers two youth days. Until last year, those two youth days had to be consecutive. They've always had to be offered on days when school was not in session. Since the two youth days couldn't be split, it was not possible to offer a early and post-season youth day so the then Chairman of the DNR got the idea for a 'State' youth day where one of the 60 days of the regular season would be used as a youth day. Up until this year, that state youth day was scheduled on the Saturday during the break. However, because of the calendar forces a 5-day break, there is no Saturday in the break so the second youth day (now also a Federal youth day) had to be scheduled the Saturday prior to the opening of the Thanksgiving season.

I'm really not sure about the possession limit on pintails.

Rubberhead* · 08-20-2013, 09:31 PM

Originally Posted by BigBrother

Why does SC have two scaup, and the framework recommended 4?

The framework for the Atlantic flyway only offered 2. I think the Central and Mississippi flyways are allowed 3 and the Pacific has a shortened season on scaup.

**BigBrother** · 08-20-2013, 09:43 PM

When did it change? I saw it come out a couple months ago, and the scaup and teal were the two critters I looked for specifically.

I really hope I am not disremembering...