Post Season

[aunt betty]

John you know they're all in Cash, Arkansas swimming on the Crane Farm's ponds.
You don't need to spend the $1000.

[DComeaux]

Could remember a site showing where a number of transmittered mallards were and found a 2007 link to it on the refuge board, but the link is no longer active. Haven't a clue if they learned anything.

Also recall a more local mallard tracking study and Larry saying that rather than all shifting to refuges hideouts, most remained out among us. Suppose one lesson from that study was that they're better at our game than we are.

There was one with grays not long ago; can't recall any official results or reports from it that I had a look at. Did find the following on a refuge forum thread Larry provided some feedback on back in 2009. Of note this is largely a SW La study, not statewide.

What we have learned thus far:

1) Gadwalls are difficult to get on bait. Despite having LOTS of gadwalls on bait during the trapping phase of the mallard telemetry study in SW Louisiana a few years ago, we ended up trapping most of the gadwalls for this study without it. Jacob Gray would set rocket-nets in scouted habitat and fire it when a few gads were "in the area". That meant few ducks captured per rocket shot, extended trapping period, and more technician help.

2) There seemed to be no difference in habitat-use data from birds with external backpack transmitters and those with implanted transmitters. So we should be able to lump the data across transmitter type in estimating habitat use because of similar (or no) effect of transmitter.

3) First year analysis showed gadwalls spending 2/3 of their time in intermediate marsh, 15% in fresh, and 15% in brackish, with very little use of saline marsh, swamp, or agricultural habitats.

4) Because of the extended capture period, there is a problem generating survival estimates.

5) There seemed to be no problem with radio-marked bird making the spring migration.

Obviously, these are very cursory results with very little detail as Jacob has recently completed the data-collection as his marked birds have migrated north. He is now analyzing those data and writing his thesis.

I'm hoping our water stays low, as well as salinity. I'd sure like to get the gadwall back.

if salinity level correlates with gadwall numbers. It would sure explain why we’ve killed less and less each year


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I don't think it does. I've hunted fresh water marsh and we had plenty. I just don't think they're making it down here, and what does are concentrated. Seems to be the norm as of the last few years with many species.

[DComeaux]

As I get older I don't care for that cold stuff anymore, it's just too uncomfortable. I have the clothes for it, but it's cumbersome. I like 40's, and I just want to be comfortable, especially when cold doesn't translate to more birds. That one hunt with high wind, temps in the teens, no thanks.

[aunt betty]

As I get older I don't care for that cold stuff anymore, it's just too uncomfortable. I have the clothes for it, but it's cumbersome. I like 40's, and I just want to be comfortable, especially when cold doesn't translate to more birds. That one hunt with high wind, temps in the teens, no thanks.

I can manage to hunt in my little boat blind down to the teens. The brite side is you don't get all sweaty.
I cheat and use propane heat and hot hands if I have to. It's easy to scout where I go. Cross a certain bridge over the power plant discharge canal. Stop and look both ways. If you see ducks for a mile both ways soaking their feet in the bathtub water...it's on.

Up here to get greenheads you pretty much have to hunt when it's icy and maybe snowy too. Before or after sometimes during the storm.

The ducks go thru here but don't stay or not for long anyway. It's hard and cold.
When it's shitty and dangerous on the lake that's when the ducks arrive.
It's actually safer to head south and deal with snakes and gators.

The outfit I wear works all the way down to the mid-twenties.
Have an old set of the old double layer long johns where one layer is really soft polypropylene. Duofold? They're gold and I wish to God I would have bought more when I could.
Over that goes a fleece "jogging suit". Cheap walmart stuff.
5mm Waders and then a Drake 1/4-zip pullover and I;m good from 20-50 but might melt if it got any hotter or had to actually do anything. I've got a pair of 3mm too. Been using them until it's sub-freezing.

Fleece is a lifesaver if you go swimming. Ring it out and it's pretty much dry.

[Rick]

Perhaps the gadwall have joined the wigeon that were once plentiful in our area and disappeared to points unknown a decade or two back. I've long thought of them as mostly brackish waterfowl, as we don't see nearly as many in our fresh marsh or rice as I hear of from those closer to the coast. But we do shoot some.

Fwiw, the four species logs still available to me thanks to Olly and this site (2014 - 2017) show them running 5th, 4th, 4th, and 7th, respectively, among the species we took. During our first split's general big duck dearth my guys shot just 14 gadwall (vs 23 mallards), which was not surprising, given the givens.

What might be more puzzling was that when colder weather changed our general big duck fortunes in the second split, my guys still shot just 12 gadwall (vs 168 mallards).

[Rick]

Re: cold. Bring it! Can't have snow without cold, and there are a lot of birds that aren't coming unless pushed by snow too deep to feed through.

When the Mid Ohio Valley was my home (pre-'83) any mallard we saw prior to significant snow accumulation to our north was almost certainly a pet. Bowled me over that there were so many down here in November, so I'm decidedly among those believing there have long been both photo-period and food driven mallard migrations. As well as being open to the notion that environmental factors here, including guns, are tipping the scale more heavily toward the later.

So I'll continue lobbying for snow to the ferriswheel's axle in Little Rock. And if it thins the number of guns afield here, that's probably a good thing.

[Rick]

That, and it's just flat glorious to be out there with a cheek-biting wind telling you how alive you are.

[Ducaholic]

The group of waterfowl that were forced south in January due to the harsh and colder than normal weather are not our normal migrators. That's why when it thaws they head right back where they came from. Those are the ducks and geese that are the producers. The strongest of the strong.

[aunt betty]

Rick the good ole days exist but you have to race in boats to do it and I'm not ballsy enough to try.
I can point on a map and say "go here" and there will be all the species you want.
Getting there and holding the "hole" which is actually a field will get uhhh militant.
You're going to need an army of six cajuns, three coon-asses, and bubba.

[aunt betty]

The best is where you walk in a circle carefully busting the ice so you can slide the sheet under the existing ice and make a nice big hole all by yourself. One day a guy with a brand new boat thought he was helping by coming in and chopping everything to bits with his rig. Ended up using my boat like a push broom pushing it sideways to "sweep" the ice away. PITA but it worked.

If you're busting ice to put out a spread chances are high that ducks will use it.
Ice tip: use the wind. Even a small breeze will eat away at the downwind side of the ice hole. With planning you can minimize the work to get a hole. Use your body to make waves. The waves crack the ice and the breeze blows the chunks downwind then eats them if it's not too cold. I don't know what to call it...duck walking?
You kind of walk thru the icy water as if you're trying to hula hoop. Weird dance that breaks the ice so your waders don't.

[SpinnerMan]

Interesting on the gadwall. We killed 3 in the field 2 seasons ago. A buddy of mine busts ice on the river and has killed the hell out of them.

I'm decidedly among those believing there have long been both photo-period and food driven mallard migrations.

I have no doubt of this.

I wonder if it applies to more than mallards.

Those that head furthest south with the long seasons are going to get killed the most.

While they all use the same breeding areas and show up in the survey. They are not going to show up down south if they are here when we are iced over hard.

[Rick]

I wonder if it applies to more than mallards.

I see no reason why not. Albeit, all with shades of gray, as well as black or white.

[DComeaux]

Perhaps the gadwall have joined the wigeon that were once plentiful in our area and disappeared to points unknown a decade or two back. I've long thought of them as mostly brackish waterfowl, as we don't see nearly as many in our fresh marsh or rice as I hear of from those closer to the coast. But we do shoot some.

Fwiw, the four species logs still available to me thanks to Olly and this site (2014 - 2017) show them running 5th, 4th, 4th, and 7th, respectively, among the species we took. During our first split's general big duck dearth my guys shot just 14 gadwall (vs 23 mallards), which was not surprising, given the givens.

What might be more puzzling was that when colder weather changed our general big duck fortunes in the second split, my guys still shot just 12 gadwall (vs 168 mallards).

I was going to ask you about that, and even went through your species logs. In the conversation of marsh and gawall, I don't remember seeing many gadwall on your straps.

[Rick]

Rick the good ole days exist but you have to race in boats to do it...and there will be all the species you want...

In our "good ole days," circa mid '90s, down here, we shot nothing but drake wigeon one morning, until we had the fourteen it took to kill four perfect mounters: footballs with clean caps and masks and three inch sprigs. The following morning we did the same with drake grays, except it took 16 to get the four with colored up noggins and broad, clean chestnut shoulder patches. (A very few years later you couldn't kill enough ducks on that farm to make a gumbo. No visable changes, like crawfishing, birds just quit going there.)

In last January 17th's reenactment of the good old days at my mudhole blind, when "...we frequently ended up with way the hey 'too many' mallards and pintails, sometimes literally hundreds, dropping down to supplement the more reasonable stuff," we managed but a single ringneck to supplement our easy mallard and pintail limits. Leaving where the other ten or so species we're apt to shoot were a mystery.

[Rick]

I was going to ask you about that, and even went through your species logs. In the conversation of marsh and gawall, I don't remember seeing many gadwall on your straps.

Gray numbers ran 51, 82, 81 and 26, with those breaking 80 being a sure-enough surprise to me. Ran counter to my plainly wrong impression that they've been almost rare.

[DComeaux]

I will put this here and let you guys decide how to interpret this. As it states, baiting laws have changed several time to suit someone's needs. IMO, as of 1998 it was changed to allow for planting and hunting of standing corn. This has become widespread to our north, and it's even on NWR's and state lands. Have read where some habitat persons and biologist disagree with this practice of "hot crops" for ducks, and prefer moist soil units with natural vegetation. To me, they seem to veer off of the standing crop issue and delve into baiting prosecution. VAGUE or misdirecting, up for interpretation, to me anyway.

Currently, regulations at 50 CFR 20.21(i) prohibit
persons from taking a migratory game bird ‘‘by the aid of
baiting, or on or over any baited area.’’ A baited area is defined as
the ‘‘area where shelled, shucked or unshucked corn, wheat or
other grain, salt, or other feed whatsoever capable of luring, attracting,
or enticing such birds is directly or indirectly placed, exposed,
deposited, distributed, or scattered.’’ The regulations further
provide that the bait must have been removed for ten days before
the area would no longer be deemed ‘‘a baited area’’. The regulations
provide exceptions for areas of standing crops, and areas
where grains were scattered as a result of normal agricultural
planting or harvesting, bona fide agricultural practices, or manipulation
of a crop grown for wildlife management purposes.

An evaluation of this change is to be presented every so often if a change with waterfowl is detected. I don't think this has happened. Thus the push.

This section mandates that the Secretary submit to Congress a
report analyzing the effect of this legislation, and the general practice
of baiting, in migratory bird conservation and law enforcement
efforts under the MBTA. The report is due no later than five years
after the date of enactment of this bill.

And this

The first is whether baiting itself has a significant impact
on conservation of migratory birds, and specifically whether this
impact can be compensated by adjusting the bag limits and seasons.
The second is whether the addition of a scienter requirement
for baiting-related offenses will affect migratory bird conservation
by increasing the practice of baiting among hunters. The third, and
most important, is whether the addition of a scienter requirement
will affect law enforcement efforts. In particular, the report should
consider whether the new standard has hindered enforcement efforts
because of difficulties in demonstrating that a hunter knew or
should have known that an area was baited. The committee intends
to reexamine this issue in five years, after this study is completed

Here's the entire document.

1998 MBTA REFORM_Page_1.jpg

1998 MBTA REFORM_Page_2.jpg

1998 MBTA REFORM_Page_3.jpg

1998 MBTA REFORM_Page_4.jpg

1998 MBTA REFORM_Page_5.jpg

[DComeaux]

1998 MBTA REFORM_Page_6.jpg

[Ducaholic]

D...Josh Goins is not he person to lead this push. I wish you the best but until Larry Reynolds is on board it's not going to move from ground zero.

[DComeaux]

He's not alone.

[Ericdc]

He’s not alone but he’s seriously hurt the “movement”, and possibly forever damaged the credibility of the federation group.


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[Rick]

Have read where some habitat persons and biologist disagree with this practice of "hot crops" for ducks, and prefer moist soil units with natural vegetation.

While I don't see your movement gaining meaningful traction, the potential "slippery slope" would certainly include artificial flooding to attract migratory birds. So moist soil units could also be impacted along with those flooding harvested crop land.

And as a kinda-sorta related aside. Before their honcho went to jail, Knight Oil planted and flooded corn near the Intracoastal for a few seasons. And it held a lot of ducks, though I believe they hunted near, rather than in, it to help keep them there. Fellows next door to them have long had the most productive ag land farm I'm aware of, by virtue of moist soil management for indigos, rather than farming rice. Seeing how many birds the unhunted corn patch (110? acres) held, they considered growing some themselves, but decided to stick with indigos. (Plus 2,500 decoys at their big blind.)

[Ericdc]

What I’ve thought this whole time is that waterfowl managers at the state and federal level manage the resource on a flyway level. What is their motivation to make changes if the resource is not being negatively affected?


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[Rick]

Bio-politics, of course, but the anti-corn crew is screwed there, too.

[DComeaux]

What I’ve thought this whole time is that waterfowl managers at the state and federal level manage the resource on a flyway level. What is their motivation to make changes if the resource is not being negatively affected?


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So, when are you moving to Missouri?

[Ericdc]

What I’ve thought this whole time is that waterfowl managers at the state and federal level manage the resource on a flyway level. What is their motivation to make changes if the resource is not being negatively affected?


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So, when are you moving to Missouri?

??


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[DComeaux]

What I’ve thought this whole time is that waterfowl managers at the state and federal level manage the resource on a flyway level. What is their motivation to make changes if the resource is not being negatively affected?


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So, when are you moving to Missouri?

??


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You'll have to do that in the near future if you want to continue hunting ducks. The dribble we're getting down here will be pulled to legally baited areas. Maybe they'll allow us to watch from a far and reminisce. Not enough birds to go around.