Wildfowl August 2019 - Equipment Annual Rel #1

CHAMPAGNE SPARKLES floated in the dry, frigid air under a hard blue sky, cold that made you reflex cough and things in your nose crackle on the inhale. The mallards had pumped their way up the Wyoming river, where we’d ambushed them at eye level from high on the bank. Three fell, one floated off. My buddy said, “we’ll get him, they always drift to the same spot.” We found that drake soon after on an ice floe, already frozen over like a fossil stuck in a Christmas snow globe. With that kind of cold, I thought the birds should be clearing out. But these red-legged beauties were just arriving. Mallards are a cold, cold, cold-tolerant bird, known to stay in Canada so long sometimes they starve to death if…

THERE IS NO other way to put it: Last season was tough throughout most of duck country. Hunters often stared at empty skies and wondered when, or if, the birds would show. In many regions, they never did. Mallards in particular were absent in places that normally hold plenty of greenheads. Although the numbers were not available by press time, it’s a safe bet the harvest will reflect the overall mood that was so persistent among hunters last season. But the mallard harvest wasn’t just down last season. It has been falling in recent years. At the same, however, mallard breeding populations have been at or near record highs for a decade. As recently as 2016, there were an estimated 11.8 million mallards on the spring breeding grounds. But nationwide,…

PROJECT DELTA A contractor was chosen for a massive Mississippi Delta restoration project that will allow sediment to flow back into the coastal marshes and restore lost habitat. The Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion Project is expected to restore 16,000 acres of marshland to the benefit of wintering waterfowl. SEA DUCKS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE Scientists at the University of Ottawa are using core samples to determine historic sea duck populations on Arctic nesting grounds. The samples include layers of eider droppings and even the remnants of dead birds, allowing researchers to estimate populations by year. The data can go back hundreds or even thousands of years. The findings helped researchers conclude increased subsistence hunting in the early 20th century led to population declines. WHY HUNTING MATTERS Excise taxes on hunting, shooting and…

CHILD’S PLAY When we were boys, our fathers would tell us children were meant to listen, not speak. That philosophy applies to countless adults, including Maryland lawmaker Johnny Mautz, who said he didn’t understand why his state’s Canada goose limit is being reduced to one bird, but other Atlantic Flyway states will be at two. Eh, John, the Eastern Shore has more hunters, thus more dead geese, so the limit went to one bird. Other states like Pennsylvania and New York have fewer goose hunters, so they don’t need as much restriction. Simple as that. IT PLAYED IN PEORIA We have to do a little bragging on our hometown of Peoria, Illinois. Last spring, one of the most extensive—and expensive—decoy collections ever compiled was on display at the Riverfront Museum.…

GRANITE-COLORED TREES passed on both sides of the boat as guide Jackie Van Cleave navigated through the pre-dawn darkness of Reelfoot Lake in Tennessee. Reelfoot is no place for a novice captain because a host of submerged limbs, cypress knees and stumps lay just below the surface waiting to eviscerate an errant boat that veers off course. But, like so many areas of the country, accessing the very best duck hunting on Reelfoot requires an early-morning boat ride. Duck boats aren’t just reserved for big, public-water hunters, though. If you own a duck impoundment there are advantages to making your property boat-friendly. Adding a ramp increases the value of your property, makes off-season chores much simpler, and you’ll access areas that simply cannot be reached by land—especially if you hunt…

IT’S ALWAYS A relief to see Dr. Price walk into the examination room of our local vet clinic. She’s a Lab lover, which is a plus, but also a die-hard bird hunter. The latest visit with my Lab, Luna, was nothing more than a yearly checkup so she could get a few shots and blood work. Dr. Price and I chatted as she worked on Luna, and I asked what the most common injuries were for sporting dogs at the clinic. Without hesitation she answered, “Lacerations. It seems like bird dogs are always running into barbed-wire fences and getting cut open.” That’s not surprising. I’ve seen dogs barrel into fences and fence-posts multiple times and it’s never pretty. My own personal history with barbed-wire is ugly. On one occasion as…