Freshwater Fishing
Shellcrackers are the rule, but a mixed creel is likely
Retired guide Doug Lown said that when fishing for shellcrackers around high spots that drop into deep water, catching multiple species is pretty common. […]
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Sidebars
Two slam-dunk, late-season turkey calls
Of all the game species with which North Carolina is blessed, wild turkeys are one of a very few that must be pulled into shooting range with a series of calls. […]
Freshwater Fishing
Shellcracker particulars
The shellcracker, also known as the redear sunfish (Lepomis microlophus), is native to the southeastern United States but can be found all over North America. […]
Sidebars
Judge a gobbler’s age in the field
Hunters judge turkeys by a collection of characteristics, including weight, spur length, beard count and beard length. Every hunter wants to harvest an old, trophy gobbler, but, knowing a tom’s age is a tough task in the field — before and even after the kill. […]
Inshore Fishing
Go chartreuse or go home
For more than a century, lure manufacturers have tried to develop the perfect size, shape and action to get a fish’s attention. […]
Freshwater Fishing
The redear sunfish: nature’s perfect nutcracker
The redear sunfish, known scientifically as Lepomis microlophus and informally as bream, stumpknocker, cherry gill, rouge ear sunfish, Georgia bream and shellcracker, is a slab-sided fish with a red or orange edge along its ear flap, a characteristic that distinguishes it from other sunfish. […]
Redfish
Be stealthy and keep your distance
During the spring, redfish, trout and flounder step up to the plate and really begin to gather up the groceries. […]
Sidebars
Bad weather, good hunting
For a species with a brain the size of a walnut, wild turkeys are fairly clever at avoiding the talons or the teeth of predators, but their poor sense of smell allows hunters and other predators to take a few turkeys each year. […]
Freshwater Fishing
Follow the fry
When the shallow areas of the Santee Cooper lakes green up in the spring, they provide ideal places for small fish to hide and spawners to being their annual ritual. […]
Hunting
Organic fertilizers not just for hippies
Each year, landowners with an interest in providing food for wildlife spend countless hours on the tractor, at the farm supply store and at the kitchen table trying to develop a productive crop. […]