Clinton News-Record, 1978-11-23, Page 8•
t1
PAGE 8---CLINTON NEWS -RECORD, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 23. 197t
Ducks Unlimited to help expands Hullett Marsh
By Steve Cooke
The Hullett Wildlife
Management Area is only
four miles from Clinton,
yet too few people really
know about it, or what is
happening there. The
original concept of the
area is an admirable one
and should prove to be a
big step forward in the
game management
policies of the Ministry of
Natural Resources. The
5,600 acre area in the
middle of Southwestern
Ontario lends itself to
experimentation and
closely monitored trials
in small game
management.
The major interest in
this area, because of its
nature, is the propagation
of wild ducks. The Hullett
area is a low spot in the
Maitland watershed of
which approximately
2,000 acres flood
regularly in the spring
and sometimes in the fall.
The principal aim of the
Ministry is t� establish a
large area of permanent
wetlands here to attract
ducks and provide
breeding habitat. Long
range plans are to
establish a series of
dykes and dams which
will do just that, and this
fall Ducks Unlimited, a
non-profit con-
servationist group, is
jumping in to give what
assistance they may.
Last summer, the
Ministry constructed a
small pond (depending
principally on natural
runoff) to see how the
ducks responded and it
met with resounding
success. Twelve broods of
ducks are believed to
have been raised on that
little pond last summer,
and that's 12 more than
were here last year. With
this type of success in
sight, 1 can hardly wait to
see the final outcome
when the proposed 2,500
or so acres are flooded.
This massive flooding
plan will provide a major
staging area for spring
and fall migrant ducks
and numerous nesting
sites for native ducks. I'll
bet that Huron and the
surrounding counties
have never seen as many
ducks as there will be
around here in a few
years.
As I mentioned before,
Ducks Unlimited (D.U.)
are coming in to un-
dertake this major
project. The Ministry of
Natural Resources has
done the preliminary
survey of the area and
this winter, D.U. is
coming with their ex-
pertise and vast ex-
perience to do a detailed
topographical survey of
the area. While the
master plan is still
several years from
completion, it is hoped
that next summer will see
the start of the con-
struction of several
smaller ponds (like the
one built last year) that
will start to give im-
mediate results and still
tie in with the overall
project.
All the work at Hullett
is not geared toward the
hunter and birdwatcher
however. When speaking
to John DobeI, the district
biologist for the Wingham
District, he indicated that
the possibility of ex-
cellent fishing in the
flooded area will also
exist. Unfortunately,
since the ponds will be
geared to duck produc-
tion, they will not be deep
enough to provide good
trout fishing. Bass and
panfish should flourish,
however, and stocking
programs are being
considered. There will,
however, be several
restrictions. Motors on
boats will not be allowed
and boaters will not be
permitted to interfere in
any way with nesting
ducks.
Many other projects
are underway as well to
provide optimum habitat
for other wildlife species.
Extensive plantings of
trees, shrubs and cover
grasses have been going
on for several years, but
it will still be a while
before the benefit of these
plantings becomes ap-
parent. Food plots of
corn, milo (sorghum),
sunflower and buckwheat
are planted every year to
help winter over species
such as pheasant and
quail.
Ringneck pheasants
were also released ,this
year on a "put and take"
basis with the returns
monitored as closely as
possible. Six main
release sites were
selected by the Ministry
staff and over 400
pheasants were`'`'ttirned
out at these spots. Even.
though the release areas"
are marked, bagging one
of these elusive birds is
still quite a chore. A good
dog and lots of walking
are still required before
you can sit down to a
•x
pheasant dinner. These
birds have all been
banded with plastic rings
on their legs and the
Ministry asks that if
anyone shoots a banded
bird, please turn the color
coded rings in.
Boxes at the release
sites have been provided
for this or the rings may
be turned in to the
maintenance building
near the goose viewing
area. So far about 50
percent of the bands have
been returned. It is hoped
that this program will not
only supply the Ministry
with some indication of
hunter success, but will
also help them plot
pheasant movements and
determine preferred
types of cover in the
Hullett area. This in-
formation could even-
tually lead to the
establishment of per-
manent native pheasant
populations in this area.
Studies are also being
done with. Bobwhite quail.
Last winter, a covey of
approximately a dozen
was discovered and
apparently carried over
well. During the course of
the summer somewhere
in the neighborhood of 300
quail were released by
dog trial people and the
Ministry. These quail will
be watched as closely as
possible over the"coming
winter to see how they
can cope with the heavy
snows we get in Huron
county. The possibility of
a short quail season will
idepend largely on the
results of this study.
The Hullett Area is also
available for a host of
other outdoor
recreational pursuits.
Trails have been laid out
that lend themselves to
hiking in the summer as
well as snowshoeing and
cross country skiing in
the winter. Dog training
clubs are also en-
couraged to use the
facilities for field trials
.and training purposes.
Ornithologists and
Photographers will find a
large variety of birds to
observe (some of the
most interesting being
the Great Blue Herons in
the north central area).
and a complete bird
check list is available on
request. The amateur
archeologist can have a
ball there as well,
scratching around on one
of the three Indian sites
located on the banks of
the South Maitland River.
The ministry of natural
resources has one policy
for the area which is
rigidly enforced. They
state that the area "of-
fers natural features for
public enjoyment.
Visitors to the area are
asked to respect any and
all regulations as well as
the rights of the private
property owners in the
Area vicinity."
Since they have had
problems with senseless
vandalism to signs, etc.,
they are ready to jump
down hard on anyone
found destroying
property there. They ask
that you, the beneficiary
of the project, report any
incident of vandalism you
see. Littering is another
problem that is not only '
unsightly, but is costly.
Anyone found littering
will be prosecuted to the
full extent of the law. I
can fully understand
their point of view in
these matters.
The economic impact
that this project will have
on Clinton _ and. the
surrounding area should
be quite significant. I
predict that visitors to the
area will increase in
leaps and bounds in the
future, with the peak
occurring during the fall
hunting season. Within 10,
years, I'll bet that Hullett
will be one of the most
popular places in Ontario
for family outings.
With this in mind, why
not take a drive out there
and look around now.
Keep tabs on the area and
grow with it. You're
bound to develop a warm
feeling about the place,
and better yet, you'll be
just a little closer to good
old Mother Nature.
An experimental flooding plot at the Hullett
Wildlife area has proved highly successful for,
nesting ducks, and if Ducks Uniunited;a-n n -profit
�n� -M1.�.� . yam..
Bali-
conservation group gets involved, more such ponds.
could be in the making, (photo by Steve Cooke)
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Pheasants are held in large flight pens at the
Mullett Wildlife area to condition their wing
muscles prior to being released for hunters at
selected spots in the hunting area of the preserve.
(Photo by Steve Cooke)
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