Hunters can apply online for 2017-18 controlled hunts
Hunters can now apply for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation’s 2017-18 controlled hunts.
Applicants have until May 15 to sign up for the hunts at wildlifedepartment.com.
For a total cost of $5, sportsmen can put their names in the running for Oklahoma hunts for deer, elk, antelope and turkey. Some of the available hunts are once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.
Others include hunts on Wildlife Department or other governmentowned or managed lands where unrestricted hunting would pose safety concerns or over-harvest might occur.
Popular hunts include the elk and deer hunts on the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and the archery deer hunts at the McAlester Army Ammunition Depot.
Hunters’ names are drawn at random for the hunts. Anyone not selected for the upcoming season earns preference points toward future drawings.
Anglers are enjoying a strong paddlefish season
Rising rivers have resulted in some great paddle-fishing this spring in northeastern Oklahoma.
At the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation’s Paddlefish Research and Processing Center at Twin Bridges State Park near Grand Lake, more than 1,900 spoonbills had been checked in through Thursday, the largest weighing 99 pounds.
Last weekend, anglers were lined up shoulder to shoulder in Miami’s Riverview Park on the banks of the Neosho River to snag paddlefish.
“It’s been really good,” said Barry Bolton, chief of fisheries for the Wildlife Department, of the fishing. “We’ve had several fish checked in weighing 90 pounds or more.”
The excellent fishing should continue if spring rains keep the rivers flowing, he said. “If the water goes down, the whole thing could shut off like flipping a switch,” Bolton
said.
Hackberry Flat Day scheduled Saturday
Hackberry Flat near Frederick in southwestern Oklahoma will be celebrating its 20th anniversary on Saturday. The Hackberry Flat Wildlife Management Area offers 7,120-acres of wildlife recreational opportunities and is a prime bird watching destination.
Guided tours of Hackberry Flat are scheduled during Saturday’s celebration, which begins at 9 a.m. and ends at 2:30 p.m.
“We got 5½ inches of rain last week, so the wetland is wet,” said Melynda
Hickman of the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. “The shorebird migration has kicked in, there are a lot of ducks and the wading birds have come in. We have a ton of birds there and more coming in.”
In addition to the tours, Hackberry Flat Day will include a chuck wagon offering Dutch oven cooking treats, a butterfly exhibit and bats from Alabaster Caverns State Park.
Anyone wanting to take a tour is encouraged to make a reservation by emailing Hickman at melynda.hickman@odwc.ok.gov.