Application process for alligator season underway
JACKSON – The 2018 Public Waters Alligator Hunting Season in Mississippi will be open from August 31–September 10, and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks began accepting applications on Friday.
The process continues through 10 a.m. on June 7. A total of 930 permits will be available within seven hunting zones across the state for the 10-day season. Permits are limited by a random drawing and an application is required.
The application is free, but there is a $2.34 processing fee. Applicants may only apply in one alligator hunting zone of their choice. Applications will be accepted on-line at www.mdwfp.com or at any point of sale location where Mississippi hunting and fishing licenses are sold. The first drawing will take place on or about June 13. Drawn applicants will be notified by email with a link to purchase their permit with a 48-hour deadline. Upon the purchase deadline, any unpurchased permits from the first drawing will be entered into a second drawing of available applicants. Drawn applicants from the second drawing will also be notified by email with a link to purchase their permit with a 48-hour deadline. A credit card or debit card is required to complete the online permit purchase.
To be eligible to apply for an alligator hunting permit you must be a resident of Mississippi at least 16 years of age at the time of application. Nonresidents with a Mississippi Lifetime License are eligible. Applicants must have one of the following licenses to be eligible to apply: a valid Mississippi Sportsman License, All-Game Hunting/ Fishing License, Small Game Hunting/Fishing License, Apprentice Sportsman License, Apprentice All Game License, Apprentice Small Game License, Senior Exempt License, Disabled Exempt License, or Lifetime License.
For more information regarding alligator hunting rules and regulations, visit www.mdwfp.com/alligator or call 601-432-2199. Follow on Facebook at www. facebook.com/mdwfp or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ MDWFPonline.
JACKSON – Governor Phil Bryant has proclaimed June as “Great Outdoors Month.”
Mississippians have a tradition of protecting the environment and enjoying the outdoors. Outdoor recreation is an ideal way to exercise and enjoy memorable experiences with family and friends.
Mississippi’s 25 state parks, eight national park units, six national forests, and more attract millions of visitors each year and reflect every facet of our state’s rich natural and cultural history. It is up to all of us to maintain and enhance our legacy of environmental stewardship and enjoyment of the great outdoors.
Visit a state park this summer and enjoy a wide range of outdoor activities including miles of scenic trails, a variety of camping opportunities, and much more.
For more information regarding Mississippi State Parks visit www.mdwfp.com or call 601-432-2200.
JACKSON – See, touch, and learn about snakes.
MDWFP’s Mississippi Museum of Natural Science will host “Snake Day” on Tuesday from 10 a.m.–3 p.m. “At Snake Day, you can see and touch live snakes, learn the value of Mississippi’s native snakes, and learn how to tell the difference between venomous snakes and nonvenomous snakes,” explains museum director Charles Knight.
Snake expert Terry Vandeventer will lead interactive educational sessions from 10 a.m.–11 a.m. and from noon–1 p.m. Live snakes will be exhibited with experts on-hand to answer your questions from 10 a.m.–3 p.m. Crafts and activities about snakes will be ongoing from 10 a.m.–3 p.m.
The event is also Scout friendly. Girl Scouts of Greater Mississippi will earn the “MDWFP Museum of Natural Science Snake Day Patch” and Boy Scouts will meet several requirements for the “Reptile and Amphibian Merit Badge.”
Visitors can also see the museum’s famous twoheaded snake and explore other oddities in the exhibition, “The Science of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!” (included with museum admission).
Don’t let this event slither away.
Visit http://www.mdwfp. com/museum or call 601576-6000. Activities subject to change. Admission is $6 for adults, $5 for seniors (60+), and $4 for youth (3-18). The museum is located at 2148 Riverside Drive in Jackson, Mississippi. Follow on social media at www.facebook. com/msnaturalscience and www.instagram. com/MSScienceMuseum and www.twitter.com/ MSScienceMuseum.
BILOXI (AP) — A statue saluting the Mississippi Gulf Coast’s fishing industry has returned.
The seven-foot-tall (2.1-meter) bronze sculpture was unveiled Thursday at the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum in Biloxi.
The Italian bronze figure replaces the original 15-foot-tall (4.5-meter) golden fisherman monument. It was damaged by 2005’s Hurricane Katrina and then stolen, dismantled and partially recovered.
The new statue is smaller and looks different, but still features a man casting his net toward the water.
It stands on a granite base with plaques naming more than 800 seafood industry families. News outlets report it also includes names of the kings and queens from the annual Biloxi Shrimp Festival and Blessing of the Fleet.
The unveiling at the Point Cadet museum comes days before the annual opening of Mississippi’s shrimp season.
TUPELO AND CLARKSDALE – The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks and the Mississippi State University Extension Service are hosting two pond management workshops.
One workshop will be held at the Union County Extension Service Office located at 112 Fairground Circle in New Albany on Tuesday at 6 p.m. Those interested in attending this workshop are asked to preregister by calling the Union County Extension Service Office at 662-534-1917.
The second workshop will be held at the Coahoma County Extension Service Office located at 503 East 2nd Street in Clarksdale on June 12 at 6 p.m. Those interested in attending the workshop are asked to pre-register by calling the Coahoma County Extension Service Office at 662-624-3070.
An hour-long presentation will include topics on pond design, fish stocking, harvest, aquatic vegetation control, liming, and fertilization. A question-and-answer period will follow.
“These workshops allow biologists and private pond owners the opportunity to discuss all aspects of pond management,” said MDWFP Fisheries Bureau Assistant Director Larry Bull. “We talk to many people each year who request assistance managing their ponds. This is a great way for us to provide personal how-to information that can help pond owners achieve their goals.”
For more information regarding fishing in Mississippi, visit our website at www.mdwfp.comor call at 601-432-2212.