The sun., 1918-09-29
WOODCOCk SEASON
OPENS OCTOBER 1
Numbers Have Steadily De-
creased: Fate Lies With !
American Sportsmen.
VIEWS OF E. w. NELSON

/ Under the new Federal regulation
woodcocx shooting this season is per-
mitted in twenty-three states beginning
october 1 and closing November 30 and
In fourteen States and the District OF
Columbia beginning November and
closing December 81. The daily bag
limit Is six.
States that give additional protection
may shorten the season accordingly. also
the time for taking the birds and the
bag limit.
In the Sew England and Middle
States. for instance. the Federal regu-
lations give the gunner the opportunity
to hunt from October to November
80. Only the following States laws CO.
incide with these dates' Maine. New
Hampshire and Vermont. Massachusetts
Rhode Island. Connecticut. New York,
New Jersey and Pennsylvania shorten
the season.
New York up State cuts half n month
from the end of the season and on Long
Island half a month from the beginning
of the season, thus making the open
time under Federal regulations and
state laws. up state, October l to No
vember -. and on Long Island. October
IL TO November 80.
The Federal regulations permit hunt
ing from half an hour before sunrise
to sunset. New York. for instance. re-
stricts cunning to after sunrise to pc
fore sunset. thus cutting off one-half
hour. New York also cuts the bag limit
TO four in one day and twenty season.
That the fate OF this beautiful bird
lies lsrgely with American sportsmen Is
the view OF f. W. Nelson, chief Of the
United states Bureau of Biological Sur
vey. DIR. Nelson says OF the woodcock:
For some years its numbers have
steadily decreased. and many sportsmen
and others have had misgiv!ngs as to
it's future This bird has a wide breed
ing range covering much Of the eastern
United States and eastern Canada.
Formerly this species was abundant
throughout this range. and in many dis
tricts it was killed in great numbers,
both by sportsmen and market hunters
II is now 10 reduced in numbers that a
large proportion OF sportsmen favor a
closed season TO permit recovery.
Causes Leading to Decrease.
1--WE shall cease TO wonder at this de-
! crease when we consider the causes
which have brought II about. At as
late n date as 1903. FIVE States. Arkan-
sas. Delaware. Louisiana. Mississippi
|
| ton and the open season throughout the
entire range extended from June Is of
| one year to April Is OF the year follow
/ ing The length OF the seasons varied
! from one month and eleven days In
Michigan to seven months and ten days
! in Kentucky.
| In 1908 the seasons remained the same
/ except that Louisiana that year closed
the season for two years. being the first
| State to offer protection bv closed sea-
| son for 2 term of years. In 1910 Louisi-
ana fixed an open season from November
Is to Fcbruary |. ardNhis. with seasons
| in other States remaining practically the
same as in former years. continued until
the advent of the Federal migratory bird
! law in 1913.
! 'In the regulations under the Federal
! law the open seasons are from october
| to November 80 for the Northern States.
and from November 1 10 December 81
| for the Southern States. except that
closed seasons for terms of years have
been established in Arkansas. Kentucky,
| Missouri. Nebraska. Tennessee and WIS
consin by State law.
| Spring and summer shooting. long
omen seasons and persistent hunting
were the primary causes OF the present
| scarcity of woodcock. The killing OF
Young woodcock in the spring in the
| South and in the North In summer when
only half or two-thirds grown, ana
! lacking sufficient strength to protect
themselves by flight. was no doubt one
of the important factors in this rapid
decrease.
During the spring and summer IL
formerly was customary for market
gunners to beat the bushes for these
birds. which fell an easy prey. In the
| South at certain seasons II WAS the prac-
tice among negroes to hunt the wood
| cock at night with the aid OF torch or
| headlight When blinded or bewildered
by bright light the birds were easily
killed with a stick In this manner fire.
uuently dozens OF birds were taken by
one person ins "a single night
Havoc by Market Gunncrs.
Recent confessions of market gunners
and others graphically describe the
former persecution Of the woodcock. A
resident of Louisiana writes
About twenty years ago they wood
cock) were very plentiful, so much sc
that ] killed them BY the dozen and
shipped them to New Orleans, but they
were in such abundance at that time
that they barely paid the express
charges. | remember once shooting one
on the ground and after | had shot II
picked UP TOUR o'heTs thal Souiu Ho'
see when took aim at the one"
Another old time woodcock hunter
says:
Twenty years ago ! have been OF
hunts where as many as n hundred oil
these birds were killed in one night by
torchlghts. but some ten years a2c
they seemed almost TO disappear from
this section"
The woodcock winters In the Gull
States and as far north as it can find
unfrozen ground hence large per-
centage OF the birds remain each wio.ei
in zone OF hazard where at any tims
they are likely to be caught by Az
unusually severe freeze and brought e
the verge of starvation.
one report states;
"A cold wave accompanied by a gale
struck the coast OF South Carolina or
the morning of December 81, 1892.
and thousands of woodcock were shot