February 2018

February is rabbit-hunting time in Mississippi. Be ready to hit the swamps and briars for swamp rabbits and cottontails.

February is one of the toughest months of the year to be outdoors. On the hunting side, many seasons are finished, and what big and small game that is available has seen a lot of traffic in the woods.

Mississippi hunters put plenty of big bucks on the ground this past season.

Grubs aren’t flashy, and they’re not in vogue right now. But they downright catch bass, and this month is prime time for the versatile lures.

Scott Vance dropped a few jigs into the water, but before he could get all his poles out, the action began.

February is the beginning of a Mississippi largemouth bass’s trip to the spawn, and a great time for anglers to target the biggest of the big.

Walk into any tackle shop this time of year and you’ll likely be overwhelmed with choices of crappie jigs to use to tempt one of the country’s favorite gamefish. How do you decide which one(s) to buy and use?

Winters in the South typically aren't harsh, at least not for more than a few days at a time, but there will be a few times it's nice to have a pot of something simmering and ready to eat to help warm up.

I think February is the best month of the year to fish Ross Barnett Reservoir for bass, which are in the prespawn mode and moving shallow. In many sections of the country — and Mississippi — you will often be fishing for bass in deep water in February, but on Ross Barnett, you’ll catch most of your fish in water 3 feet deep or less.

By the time you are reading this, unless you live in the extreme southern part of Mississippi, the 2017-2018 deer season will already be “in the books,” as they say.

This month, I’m going to touch on a subject that applies to deer hunting with any weapon: managing hunting pressure on your herd. In my opinion, no single factor is more important to your success in terms of seeing and harvesting deer — especially mature bucks.

The Mississippi waters of the Mississippi River are home to pallid sturgeon and shovelnose sturgeon. Unlike many other sturgeon in North America and worldwide that migrate between the ocean and freshwater to complete their life cycle, the pallid and shovelnose sturgeon complete their life cycles entirely in rivers. 

Speckled trout and other saltwater species feed on shrimp and baitfish, shad, mullet, cocahoes and more.

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks will accept applications through Feb. 15 for Wildlife Management Area permitted turkey hunts. 

Mississippi’s No. 1 small-game animal remains the squirrel, although hunting pressure continues to plummet. The number of squirrel hunters in the state has dropped by half over the past 50 years.

The second month is a transition period for many Mississippians, who trade their bows and firearms for poles and rod and reels. Any little stretch of decent warm weather and, wham!, it’s on.

The Barnett Reservoir area will be more colorful in February, as will the streets and hotel parking lots in nearby communities.

February is also a great time to own a pack of rabbit dogs.