Skagit County brant goose season limited to 3 days‏

[h2ofowlr]

January 4, 2016
Contact: Don Kraege, (360) 902-2522

Skagit County brant goose season limited to 3 days

OLYMPIA – The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) today announced restricted season dates for a January brant goose hunt, after counts of the birds in Skagit County indicated their numbers were below the level needed for a full season.

This year’s brant season in Skagit County will be limited to three days – January 9, 13, and 16 – based on criteria set when the season was adopted by the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission in August.

“The number of hunting days depends on how many brant are counted during aerial surveys,” said Don Kraege, WDFW’s waterfowl section manager. “Two recent aerial surveys of Padilla, Samish, and Fidalgo bays each had counts of less than 6,000 brant, the number needed for a full season.”

In recent years, a full season has meant eight days of hunting, although bird counts haven’t supported that many days in the field since 2013, Kraege said. Last year, a low count of about 3,600 brant resulted in cancellation of the late-season brant hunt in Skagit County. 

Kraege said WDFW brant hunting regulations in Skagit County have been restricted since the 1970s to conserve the limited population of Western High Arctic brant that winter in the area.

The causes of the reduced Skagit brant population are unknown, but may be the result of a shift to southwest Alaska by wintering brant, he said.

[Stein]

Now I just need to figure out where to go, bet there won't be many guys on the public land those three days!

Maybe those are good times to hit the regular duck spots.

[BOWHUNTER45]

That's good news for some . Have not done that in years ..I had 2 brant mounts and gave them away years ago ..wish I had them back ...good luck to whoever is going !

[Fungunnin]

Why is brant only open in Skagit and Pacific counties?

[BOWHUNTER45]

I do not know !! They must feel there are enough around to harvest a few !

[Mfowl]

Why is brant only open in Skagit and Pacific counties?

That's where they winter, those counties have big bays with eel grass beds and fresh water estuaries. I'll be out there, we sea duck hunted last Sunday and had a couple pass by in range. Plenty more rafted up.

[Fungunnin]

I saw a flock in the south sound today. Is that unusual?

[h2ofowlr]

I saw a flock in the south sound today. Is that unusual?

No, they are spread out.  I see them off of Keystone and Camano frequently as well.

[Fungunnin]

Worth trying to go after? How do they eat?

[Cougar125]

Yeah...saw it online yesterday.  Oh well.  Still trying to find somebody to go out with though since I don't have a boat.  If anybody has an open seat on any one of the 3 days and wouldn't mind filling it, I'd be more than grateful.

[knighttime25]

Anybody make it out for the brant opener today? Nice weather but tides were pretty lame, next weekend the tides look better to get some birds moving

[h2ofowlr]

Buddies limited today.  Heading out for the following two days!

[Cougar125]

Got my limit today.  First time ever hunting them.  The tide was pretty lame.  Onesies and twosies flying in Padilla.

[saltwaterhillbilly]

Got my limit today.  First time ever hunting them.  The tide was pretty lame.  Onesies and twosies flying in Padilla.

Got any pics of your harvest

[Cougar125]