There is still some grain cropping for corn being provided to attract waterfowl use, and when done right, developing shallow impoundments that encourage growth of natural vegetation also works very well in holding ducks during the winter period.

BALLARD WMA
On Ballard Wildlife Management Area (WMA), the KDFWR now has the ability to flood a good deal of acreage and keep open water over vegetation. The series of moist soil units, as biologists call them, augment other plantings and give ducks and geese a wider variety of what they need to flourish, and refuel on trips south when it gets cold.

"This approach is really a supplement to set a well-rounded table for ducks and geese, in conjunction with the corn growing that goes on around and on the Ballard WMA," said Waterfowl Program assistant Russ Kennedy.

Mitigation money from the construction of the Olmsted Dam project has been used to put in an elaborate water pump system and other habitat improvements that give WMA staff the ability to flood and draw down water in many areas on the refuge. When Mother Nature doesn't cooperate, there is some chance to keep water around for ducks and geese, thanks to this pump and levee system. Birds kept on the WMA help hunters there get more shot opportunities.

Since there has been more duck action than goose action over the last few seasons, the KDFWR recently upped the limit of shells a hunter on Ballard can carry from 15 to 25. The 15-shell limit was designed to literally force goose hunters to be selective in their shot choices. One of the worst situations in goose hunting is when hunters sky bust, or shoot at birds well out of range. It simply makes them wary and harder to call for everybody. Few geese ever fall from the sky when 60- and 70-yard shots are taken.

Now that more ducks are using the area, and the duck daily limit is higher than the usual two-bird limit for geese, hunters may need a few more shells to take a limit of ducks on the WMA, plus knock down a couple of Canada geese as well. Managers took that into account and now allow hunters a little more margin for misses.

There is standby hunting available on Ballard (and Boatwright WMA next door), so if the drawn hunting party doesn't show, which happens pretty routinely, you can get in somewhere to hunt. It is possible this year on Ballard WMA, and perhaps within the entire Ballard reporting area, hunters will be required to report their goose harvest by using the telecheck system currently used for deer, turkeys, otters and bobcats. If you take a goose, you might want to double check that in the hunting season regulation guide book ahead of time. Goose harvests will have to be recorded. There just may be a new way to do that this season. Stay tuned.

SLOUGHS WMA
The Sloughs WMA near Henderson, also on the Ohio River, is the second destination duck hunters should consider. Sloughs hunters have good success on ducks when water and weather conditions are right. Of course, there's no way to predict that, so you have to check a day or two ahead to make sure the water isn't frozen and if birds are using the area. That's a good idea for any public or private land where you plan to try to hunt ducks. Most of the time in December, a freezing over problem doesn't exist in Kentucky, but if a cold snap sets in, you'd better find out just to be sure.

The Sloughs WMA offers limited public blind hunting on several units without advance application. Most blinds that are assigned by a pre-season draw are open first-come, first-served, if the hunter assigned doesn't show up 30 minutes before shooting time that day. It's a fairly safe bet you can find a place to hunt on one of the units that is not a refuge or used for quota hunts, especially if you make a trip there and check in with the area office the day before. The WMA staff does everything they can to accommodate as many hunters as they can, and still maintain a safe and quality hunting environment.