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Texas’ Largest Hunting and Fishing Newspaper Since 2004
May 28, 2021
Bubba Wood and his love for quail
Volume 17, Issue 19
Lake levels on the rise
Bubba Wood is known for his skeet shooting, his wildlife art gallery and his efforts with Park Cities Quail. Photo from PCQ.
Conservationist to receive T. Boone Pickens Lifetime Sportsman Award By Craig Nyhus
Lone Star Outdoor News At the Park Cities Quail Coalition 15th annual dinner and auction on June 4, Martin F. (Bubba) Wood will receive the T. Boone Pickens Lifetime Sportsman Award. Those who know him aren’t surprised. Wood is recognized as a world-champion skeet shooter, the founder of Collector’s Covey in Highland Park Village and the numerous organizations he helped support through the company; a publisher of 14 sporting books and countless wildlife prints; and the creator of the Texas Duck Stamp program, which provided more than $7 million in royalties to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. His true love, though, is quail. In 2008, Wood convinced his friend, T. Boone Pickens, to join the cause through Park Cities Quail, then a chapter of Quail Unlimited, helping propel the organization to one of the most successful and influential in the country. “I got started with my dad,” Wood said. Please turn to page 6
Reservoirs across the state have seen water levels jump due to heavy rains, creating habitat for baitfish and the fry of gamefish. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.
By Craig Nyhus
Lone Star Outdoor News Choke Canyon anglers are excited, even if the reservoir still isn’t yet half full. The lake, known for producing big bass, catfish and crappie, hasn’t had a significant influx of water since 2019, but has come up more than 10 percent in the last month, with more water coming in. “Choke Canyon isn’t getting as much as we
would like to see, but it’s up to 42.1 percent full,” said Dusty McDonald, a biologist with the Corpus Christi Inland Fisheries Division of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. “We haven’t seen it get a bump like that in a while.” McDonald said the new water will be really productive for the lake. “These lakes have been down so long, there has been a lot of riparian growth along
the edges,” he said. “When more water comes in, it creates a lot of habitat, and the new fish habitat creates new hiding places for baitfish and fry.” Across the state, lakes in North and East Texas are nearly all at 100 percent capacity, Central Texas lakes are high, Hill Country lakes are risings and even West Texas lakes are moving up. For Choke Canyon, which has a small wa-
tershed along the Frio River, any water is a welcome sign, and for all of the lakes, it bodes well for the upcoming year. “In our area, Corpus Christi is 60.9 percent full and climbing,” McDonald said. “Coleto Creek and Texana are full — Coleto has been down for a long time. And Lake Findley in Alice filled up real quick. It’s really good timing right now.” McDonald was ex-
cited about some of the small lakes that filled up. “I was in the Valley and the people there were so excited,” he said. “The smaller community lakes are filled up — they offer a lot of fishing opportunities.” McDonald has been watching lake levels across South Texas like a hawk. “I’ve been checking them all every day,” he said.
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID PLANO, TX PERMIT 210
Donating meat from exotics Bill allows food bank donations
Donating meat from exotic animals to food banks has not been allowed. A new bill passed addressing the issue. Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News. Freshwater Fishing Report . Page 10 Saltwater Fishing Report . . Page 11 Game Warden Blotter . . . . Page 12 Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14 Sun, Moon & Tides . . . . . Page 16 Products . . . . . . . . . . Page 17 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . Page 19
INSIDE
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Lone Star Outdoor News Texas House Bill 2213, which allows hunters to donate exotic game, such as axis, blackbuck and fallow deer, to nonprofit foodbanks, passed the full senate. The bill, introduced by Rep. John Frullo (R-Lubbock), now moves to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk for signature. The bill passed in the Texas House of Representatives by a vote of 144-1 on April 16. On May 29, it passed in the Texas Senate by a vote of 31-0.
Current Texas law does not allow the donation of exotic game meat to food banks, only allowing the donation of meat from native game animals. In 2017, Trinity Oaks, which had been processing over 100,000 pounds of ground meat for distribution to orphanages, churches and others in need at no charge, was told they could not process and distribute exotic game unless they were granted an exemption. When COVID-19 struck, the Texas Department of State Health Services issued an emergency waiver allowing the donations. However, the exemption is set to expire.
HUNTING
FISHING
Surprising hunt (P. 4)
Making adjustments (P. 8)
Ranch chores change to axis pursuit.
Saltwater anglers adapt to new water.
Digital tags (P. 4)
Bass and sandies (P. 9)
Electronic licenses considered.
Action on Central Texas lakes.