If back-to-school sales and scorching temperatures have got you down, look on the bright side of August — we’re just weeks away from the opening of hunting season.

Lake Waco Corps of Engineers hunting coordinator Jay Morris called last week with this year’s Lake Waco hunting changes. Most permits will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis, with the exception of the general deer season’s drawn hunts.

Dove permits are valid through the month of September and allow access to all hunting areas marked on the Lake Waco hunting map. Only 50 permits, each allowing up to three guests, will be issued.

September teal permits are good from Sept. 10-25, and as with dove, are available to the first 50 hunters (with three allowed guests) and allow access to all hunting areas on the map.

Duck permits will also be issued to the early birds, but the dates have yet to be determined. Duck permits are the same in number and allowances as dove and teal.

Archery hunters should also apply early, and their permits will be valid from Oct. 11 through Nov. 4. All marked hunting areas on the map are accessible, and crossbows are allowed following TPWD guidelines. Only 100 permits will be issued, and no guests are allowed to accompany a hunter except children between the ages of 12 and 17. No turkeys may be taken with this permit.

The general deer season permits will be selected by a random drawing. The application deadline is Sept. 7 and should be turned in at the Corps office. A public drawing will be held at Airport Beach Park Pavilion on Sept. 10 at 5:30 p.m.

Applicants whose names are drawn and who are present can request the area they wish to hunt and one week during which to hunt as their names are drawn. Those who are drawn and aren’t present will be assigned a time and place. The permit does not include turkey hunting.

Spring turkey permit applications will be accepted beginning Feb. 1, 2012. Permits will be issued to the first 60 hunters, who may have up to two hunting guests. The permits will run from March 31 — May 13 of next year.

Feedback is encouraged and will be used in designing future hunting programs. To give your input or ask questions, call Morris at 753-5359.

Caution in the wild

Wildlife experts are predicting an uptick in human-wildlife interactions as drought conditions force animals from their traditional habitats in search of food, water and comfort.

One of the most likely places snakes and other creatures find relief is in a backyard that has pets because of the availability of food and drink.

Most Central Texas snakes are harmless and beneficial to people. Living near a corn field, I know the value of corn snakes as mice-catchers. But even non-venomous snakebites can cause infections, so it’s important to use caution when outdoors.

A good piece of advice is to not put your hands, feet, or any other body part into a place where you can’t see.

Restoring reefs

Reefing operations began in Port Mansfield last week in a joint project between the Coastal Conservation Association, Habitat Today for Fish Tomorrow and Texas Parks & Wildlife.

Over 4,000 concrete culverts will be deployed about seven nautical miles offshore from Port Mansfield. They will join 800 other culverts and an old tug boat on the Gulf floor. The concrete tubes are sunk to provide habitat for fish and marine life, and the project is expected to increase marine wildlife numbers and create a recreational diving destination.

In transporting the culverts to the reef site, a 200-foot barge loaded with tons of concrete made several trips through the Port Mansfield harbor and channel. Water depths in many places were less than 5 feet, causing the tugboat to push itself and the barge through mud.

The Texas Artificial Reef Program’s near shore reefing effort began in 2006 and aims to establish a 160-acre reef site at each major port in Texas. The program has 63 reef sites in the Gulf of Mexico including Port Isabel, Corpus Christi, Port Aransas, Matagorda and Freeport.

Other projects in the Gulf include the Texas Clipper Reef Project. In this program, 12 Liberty ships which ironically survived combat sinking attempts during World War II were sunk in the 1970’s to create the core of the reefing project along the coast.

To find the acres of new fishing opportunity, plug the following coordinates into your GPS: (WGS 84 format for GPS units) 26 degrees, 31.535 minutes north and 97 degrees, 9.215 minutes west.

Hunters for the Hungry

Texas Hunters for the Hungry has exceeded 2 million pounds of venison donated over the last 20 years.

This year the program has contributed 178,662 pounds of venison to more than 100 organizations that serve low-income people across Texas.

All meat donated to HFTH is distributed to families and individuals in need through local food banks, food pantries and soup kitchens.

For more information call 1-800-992-9767 ext. 506 or follow the link on the Centex Outdoors website.

 www.centexoutdoors.com

717-8907