Lousiana’s Bodcau WMA Closed to Small Game Hunting on Oct. 26-27

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) is reminding Bodcau Wildlife Management Area (WMA) users that small game seasons will be closed on Oct. 26 and 27, as announced with the 2013-14 WMA season regulations and dates approved earlier this year.

The decision was made to close the area to small game hunting on these days to help prevent conflicting uses during the opening weekend of modern firearms deer season.  Additionally this should promote a higher level of hunter safety and satisfaction on the highest use gun deer hunting days on Bodcau WMA.  This has been a common practice for some time on other WMAs which have hunting season structures similar to Bodcau WMA.

For those wishing to small game hunt in northwest Louisiana on these dates, the following WMAs will be open for this activity:

• Bayou Pierre – DeSoto/Red River Parishes
• Jackson Bienville – Bienville/Jackson/Lincoln Parishes
• Loggy Bayou – Bossier Parish
• Soda Lake (portion east of Twelve Mile Bayou) – Caddo Parish

Users are reminded that a Self-Clearing Permit (SCP) is required for all activities on WMAs.  Specific regulations and season dates about Bodcau WMA and other WMAs can be found in the 2013-2014 Louisiana Hunting Regulations pamphlet or viewed on the LDWF’s website at http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/regulations. 

Bodcau WMA, owned by the US Army Corp of Engineers and operated by LDWF, is located in Bossier and Webster Parishes and derives its name from the major bayou that bisects it from its northernmost point at the Arkansas-Louisiana state line to its southernmost tip nearly 30 miles to the south.

The WMA is located approximately 17 miles northeast of Bossier City. Numerous access routes to Bodcau WMA are available. The primary access to the area is by traveling north on La. Hwy. 157 from Interstate 20 at Haughton to the community of Bellevue and then following the signs.

For more information contact Jeff Johnson at 318-371-3050 or jjohnson@wlf.la.gov .

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.