"Saginaw Bay water levels averaged 8 inches higher in 2004," claimed wildlife biologist Tim Gierman. "Mild weather through the fall produced slow hunting, particularly in late November and into December. Somewhat surprisingly, there appeared to be a similar number of ducks using the refuge throughout the waterfowl season. The number fluctuated around 10,000 ducks. The number of ducks using the refuge has declined slightly each of the past five years."

Some 8,158 hunter trips were logged at Fish Point during the 2004 season, slightly above the five-year average of 7,827. The harvest of 7,007 ducks was slightly below the five-year average of 7,124. Hunters averaged 0.86 ducks per hunter in 2004. Some 68 percent of the birds harvested at Fish Point in 2004 were mallards. The second most common bird was green-winged teal.

Regarding daily use and harvest at Fish Point during the 2004 season Gierman said, "Food and cover were abundant on the entire area this year. Flooding also progressed a bit faster than in the previous few years. Harvest and hunter use were very intense in October. Success rates decreased severely in November and December, even though there was roughly the same number of birds using the refuge. This occurs every year when waterfowl start using private fields and feeding at night. The hunting public expressed many concerns later in the season regarding duck migrations and fewer numbers of ducks seen."

For information on hunting at Fish Point Wildlife Area, contact the WMA office at (989) 674-2511 or log on to the DNR's Web site at www.michigan.gov/dnr.

Shiawassee River State Game Area encompasses some 9,758 acres of flooded croplands, marsh and flooded woods that attracts thousands of migrating waterfowl and waterfowl hunters. The area is located about 10 miles southwest of Saginaw and is extremely popular with hunters from the Tri-Cities area, Lansing and Detroit. Traditionally, SRSGA provides some of the better waterfowl hunting opportunities in our state.

Heavy spring rains in May devastated crop planting plans at SRSGA in 2004. Without crops to attract waterfowl and cover for hunters to hide in, the hunting suffered. The area received 282 percent of the average rainfall for May. As of mid-June, many of the fields at Shiawassee still had 3 feet of water in them. Fields that were normally planted with corn were planted with soybeans, buckwheat, millet or nothing at all. Word spread quickly about the poor conditions at Shiawassee in 2004. Hunters logged 6,052 trips in 2004 compared to 8,198 trips in 2003. The duck harvest plummeted from 10,770 birds in 2003 to only 6,216 ducks in 2004.

Fortunately, as of mid-May 2005, weather conditions have been much more cooperative. There was adequate moisture to maintain water levels at the state game area, but not too much rain to prevent crop planting at SRSGA. With a little luck, waterfowl hunting should return to normal at Shiawassee in 2005.

For more information on waterfowl hunting opportunities at Shiawassee River State Game Area, contact the DNR St. Charles field office at (989) 865-6211.

Waterfowling success in mid-Michigan depends at lot on precipitation to fill the small ponds, lakes and rivers where waterfowling opportunities exist in this part of the state. Unfortunately, the area received too much rain in the spring, which hurt nesting success and crop planting at Maple River State Game Area north of Lansing. Extremely dry conditions throughout the summer and early fall left potholes dry and river systems at very low levels, which limited waterfowling opportunities. According to DNR personnel and conservation officers, opening day at Maple River produced the poorest hunting in 17 years of bag checks due in part to the low water and lack of crops.