Research 9.17.13

Hey people. So today I'm going to talk about the LDWF and what they are all about then follow it up with a current event for a little bit of perspective.

Starting in the late 1850's Louisiana began to realize that they were the owners of one of the most dynamic habitats in the entire western hemisphere.  As states began to ratify constitutions and regulate their residents it became very clear that Louisiana should do the same, especially regarding the abundant resources they had.  In the beginning, fishing regulations stood at the forefront of public policy because this resource was critical to feeding masses that resided in the state as well as the millions up and down the Mississippi River and along the Gulf Coast.  Following the installment of numerous fishing laws, Governor John Parker approached the Louisiana State Legislature in 1909 with a simple proposition:  create a governing body of like-minded conservationists, whose sole purpose would be to oversee fish and game trade/regulations in the state to make sure that conservation of Louisiana's resources remained at the forefront of public policy within the state.  A year later the Louisiana Board of Commissioners for the Protection of Birds, Game and Fish merged with the Louisiana Oyster Commission to form the Louisiana Department of Conservation.  This department stood at the head of wildlife and fisheries conservation until the people of Louisiana amended the state constitution to officially create the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the agency that enforces and regulates all policy to this day.

http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/louisiana-wildlife-and-fisheries-co

So to give yall an idea of exactly what the LDWF does, I'll provide a link to a publication that came out this summer.  I'll briefly explain what the document "means."

http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/hunting/migratory-and-waterfowl

--- Essentially what you see here is the official release from the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (an independent branch of conservationists within the LDWF) setting the dates for the legal harvesting of waterfowl within three different zones.  The reason the state is divided into zones is because the ecosystems within them are much different than the others. Therefore, to sustain and ensure stable flocks of migratory birds inside these zones, the state sets strict regulations for hunting inside of them.

Good Hunting,
Gersh