After duck season ends, bird hunters get another month to hunt the marshes and fields chasing other feathered game.
Louisiana offers sportsmen excellent opportunities to hunt snipe, but few people take advantage of it. The long season begins in November and generally runs concurrent with waterfowl season. The second split lasts through Feb. 28 with a daily limit of eight.
Snipe like open, wet grasslands, fields, fresh to brackish marshes, weedy shorelines and similar environments with shallow muddy pools, sandbars and mudflats. They also like wet cow pastures, spongy meadows, damp crop fields, weedy river or lake shorelines and other mushy spots where they use their long bills to probe soft mud for invertebrates. People might even find them in tiny shallow or drying forest ponds surrounded by pine trees. A hard rain can create a snipe haven overnight.
“Any marsh or soggy field where a person can walk comfortably, with short grass and shallow pools makes a good place to hunt snipe,” said Nate Verdin, a snipe hunter who grew up in Des Allemands but now lives in Loranger and runs the YouTube channel Falling Tide TV. “In the marshes, I look for places with short grass, preferably something recently burned. I also look for little shallow pools in a place with easy walking. It’s tough to walk through a soft marsh.”
Challenging targets
In southeastern Louisiana, look for snipe in Manchac, Pearl River, Pointe-aux-Chenes and Salvador Wildlife Management Areas. The rice fields in southwestern and northeastern Louisiana can provide good snipe action. People also hunt some rice fields in central Louisiana. Rice fields remain private, so people need permission to hunt these properties.
Small, swift and erratic fliers, snipe make incredibly challenging targets. They seemingly possess an uncanny ability to sense where a person plans to shoot, only to veer off in a completely new direction at the last microsecond as the pellets whiz past it.
“I like the challenge of hunting snipe,” Verdin said. “When they fly, snipe do all kinds of aerial gymnastics. They are challenging to hit when they jump up and it’s tough to get a bead on them. The shot must be right on them because they’re not big. The vital area on a snipe is about the size of a quarter.”
In fact, the word “sniper,” describing a military marksman, originated with British sportsmen hunting snipe. With the firearms available before the late 19th century, only the best sharpshooters could consistently hit these fast, evasive fliers. Consequently, the most skilled shooters earned the title “snipers.” That moniker stuck.
February fun
The best snipe action occurs after waterfowl season ends. In February, few sportsmen head to the marshes or rice fields with shotguns. Even on the most popular public lands, snipe hunters rarely see any competition after duck season ends.
“When duck season ends, we don’t have to put up our guns just yet,” Verdin quipped. “We can get out in the marsh and shoot a few more feathered critters for another month. Snipe hunting is a good way to bookend the season.”
In addition, rice farmers frequently drain their fields after duck season ends. Even some public properties drain duck holes after the season concludes. Falling water leaves muddy slush, creating ideal snipe habitat. In rice field country, sportsmen can usually walk on higher, drier levees and flush birds feeding on the mudbanks.
“I mostly hunt shallow natural lakes at a low-water cycle,” said Skip Hutchison, a dedicated snipe hunter who maintains his own website, thesnipehunter.com. “I’ve also hunted pastures and fields. I’ve seen snipe occasionally in small cypress ponds and other waterholes on timberlands when the water is low. Once they get in their wintering areas, they look for the best conditions where they can find food and then don’t move very far.”
Just like ducks, snipe breed in Canada and the northern United States. They migrate south for the winter, usually arriving on the Gulf Coast by mid-October. They head north in April. Often, birds stay just ahead of cold fronts. A severe late January or February cold front could push more birds to Louisiana.
Just like with other hunting activities, people need to do frequent scouting to find snipe. One wet pasture could hold no snipe today. Then, a severe cold front hits and that same property holds abundant snipe.
“During duck season, pay attention to where snipe want to go,” Verdin said. “Remember where the snipe were and go there after duck season ends to hunt them. By the time February comes around, that spot will hold even more snipe.”
Minimal gear
To hunt snipe, sportsmen don’t need to arrive an hour before dawn, cover themselves in camouflage or haul and place huge decoy spreads. In fact, many snipe hunters wear orange hats or vests, just like when quail hunting. In a good spot, simply load up and start walking.
“What makes snipe hunting so much fun is its simplicity,” Verdin said. “It’s not complicated. We don’t need decoys or blinds. We just need good boots, a gun and plenty of ammunition. Walk the marsh watching for snipe to jump up. Have fun pulling the trigger because everyone misses many times.”
Most people simply walk up snipe. Some sportsmen hunt in teams, spreading out at safe distances to find more birds. Walk slowly across the marsh or field, kicking grass clumps and other hiding places. Relying upon their superb camouflage, snipe habitually freeze in thick grass until someone almost steps on them. Even in a cut field, people rarely see live birds until snipe burst from cover.
When snipe do flush, they explode from cover like feathered skyrockets. When blasting off from cover, they jump almost into the sportsman’s face, screeching distinctive, yet indescribable harsh, raspy scaip scaip calls. Once someone hears it, that person will never forget the sound.
Good flushing dogs could help if they stay close to the sportsmen. Even a dead snipe falling just feet away can disappear into the grass. A good retriever will find more birds than people can.
“When I’m hunting snipe, I walk with the wind,” Verdin said. “Like most birds, snipe take off facing into the wind. When a snipe gets up into the wind, it’s coming toward me. That leads to more shot opportunities and better chances to kill them. If we walk against the wind, snipe will be rushing away from us at high speed.”
A social sport
Snipe normally zoom just over the grass like miniature jet fighters, but seldom go far. Most fly just long enough to escape danger and might land about 20 to 50 yards away. They regularly circle around to land behind the hunters. Mark landing spots to flush them again.
Sportsmen can try the “drive and block” method. Split into two groups when hunting larger fields or marshy tracts. The blocking group skirts around the hunting area to take up positions at the opposite end. The drive group starts walking toward the blockers flushing birds. Drivers continue walking toward the blockers as long as safety permits. Groups can take turns driving and blocking. Sometimes, hunters can keep snipe moving for hours.
“Snipe hunting is a very social sport,” Verdin said. “With more people walking the marsh, we can cover more ground and possibly flush more birds. Since snipe hunting is such a social, active event, it’s a good sport to bring some youngsters hunting. It’s great to watch the kids get in some wing shooting for the first time.”
In a good area, young sportsmen see terrific action and fire their guns multiple times. If they can hit a snipe, they can hit anything that flies. Sportsmen don’t need to sit still or quiet for long hours and can take occasional breaks. The adventure might continue all day if sportsmen locate several good hunting areas.
What to use
The diminutive birds don’t require magnum firepower, but maximum pellet spreads. One pellet in the right place easily brings them down. Getting that pellet to hit the right place presents the challenge. A 20 or 28 gauge with an improved cylinder or modified choke works great. Load it with No. 7 ½, 8 or 9 shot.
“I shoot an over-and-under 12 gauge or 20 gauge,” Verdin said. “My first shot is always modified or improved cylinder. The second shot is either modified or full. I want that first shot to be a bigger pattern and the second shot to be tighter for longer range because that bird’s moving away fast.”
Diminutive snipe don’t offer much meat, but they do taste delicious. People cook them in various ways. Many people wrap the breasts in bacon and grill them or put the nuggets in gumbo.
“Snipe are delicious,” Verdin agreed. “I just breast them out. I typically cook them down in a stew smothered with onions and eat them over rice. Sometimes I’ll make poppers.”
With long seasons, liberal limits and little competition after duck season ends, Louisiana sportsmen can enjoy lagniappe wing-shooting action. Just bring plenty of ammunition and be prepared to do some walking!
