# Where Are The Ducks?



## Matt Jones (Mar 6, 2002)

I thought this was a pretty interesting article. Being in the major flight corridor I think we sometimes forget what the rest of the country is seeing in regards to duck numbers...

http://www.deltaduckhunter.com/news/news.htm


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## gaddy getter (Dec 2, 2003)

that was awfully depressing


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## gandergrinder (Mar 10, 2002)

Dennis is dead on.

I drove around south of Jamestown this weekend and things are not looking good. Alot of the wetlands were turned over and the ones that were not are bone dry. On top of that we do not have enough snow to do a bit of good. We can get alot of rain and still not make a dent. I honestly predict very little production this year south of 94 if we don't get alot of rain. :eyeroll:


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## H2OfowlND (Feb 10, 2003)

I 2nd what GG said. I was also south of Jamestown this weekend and it's not looking good at all for sloughs!! If we don't get well above normal spring rains and above normal summer rains, and that means all summer, we will have a tough time raising the same amount of ducks like we have the past few years. The only good thing out of this is we will get more upland cover from the dried up sloughs, if it isn't plowed under. Even in a 20 mile stretch from 94 southward the snow cover varies A LOT! In my opinion it will be a tougher year for hunting south of 94, much tougher. Also, with more land being leased up by the G/O's its gonna get down right nasty. So if you boys know how to do the rain dance, GET ON IT!!!

H2OfowlND


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## cooter77 (Sep 30, 2003)

sad but true

Where I live in wi the river levels are low due to the lack of moisture already but to make issues worse the dnr is purposely lowering water levels to allow for vegitation to grow. This may be ok for high water years but all of the sloughs have dried up not allowing for small ponds of water for the ducks to nest and hide out. If I were a duck I would not hang out here either.


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## scissorbill (Sep 14, 2003)

This is more than just an interesting article it is theTRUTH. The time has come and it is probably too late already, to actually do something about the pitiful shape of waterfowl and waterfowl management in this country.I am probably older than most here as I have hunted ducks for 40 years and it is sad to see what a pathetic remnant of a once great resource it has become. I remember my Dad telling me to enjoy it as my kids would never see what I witnessed , how prophetic.Yet we are told that duck populations have never been higher, what an insult to anyone who has an even basic understanding of history and conservation. I am sick to death of todays arrogant self serving so called hunter who is more interested in the latest spinning wing decoy or mallard machine or $200 duck call than he is about the real state of the resource. Commercialization of everthing including wildlife is now become the norm. These hunting shows make me puke. Gutless legislators and gutless conservation groups like DU are also a big part of the problem as is the internet. Spring snow goose seasons with electronic calls unplugged guns and a kill the vermin mentality is putting and end to this once great tradition. The on-going spring seasons will prove to be one of the worst decisions ever made in waterfowl mgmt. What we need is people with the balls and intelligence to tell it like it is.What we dont need is another feel good group to build afew wood duck houses and think we are actually making a difference, Delta waterfowl does an admiral job but they need help. people like Tony Dean have done yeomans work but they cant do it alone. Wildlife needs champions now more than ever. Wake up boys the clock is ticking.


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## Matt Jones (Mar 6, 2002)

The last issue of Delta's magazine had an article questioning 1999's so called "Record Flight." With the amount of wetland loss that's occurred since the 50's to think that there were more ducks at the turn of this century than in the 50's, or even 70's is absurd. Scissorbill touched on a lot of good points but I think what we really need is an Accurate means of counting the population. It makes you wonder if the counts are being miscalculated by human error or if they're being artificially inflated on purpose. There's so much politics these days in the regulation making process that I could definitely see money playing a role, which I suppose is pretty obvious.

I agree scissorbill that sportsmen need to wake up soon or it's going to be too late. The problem is really don't see any of the presidential candidates making a difference...and we all know how devoted Bush is to saving wetlands. :eyeroll:


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## born to hunt (Mar 13, 2002)

How do you count millions of ducks, anyway? I swear that last year a couple times I saw a million duck in my decoys....and I still missed...

Really I think it may be that in history the counts were conservative, and now with better equipment we can more accurately get a count... The problem is they compare today's numbers achieved by modern counting methods to history's numbers with old counting methods.. Just doesn't seem like an apples to apples comparison.

Any thoughts or am I nuts?


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## fretch (Sep 13, 2002)

I think Matt hit it right on the head in saying that money is one of, if not THE driving factor in all of this. Of course state officials are going to lobby for a liberal season when they see the dollar sign hanging in the rear view mirror. It adds more money into their back pockets and more money into the state. Conservation groups like DU or Delta can only do so much, but at the same time you gotta wonder, the more hunters, the more money for them as well. I think that it is time for lobbyists in state departments as well as national departments to finally put forth some sort of effort to save the sport of waterfowl hunting. Make waterfowl hunting a privelage, not a right. Develop lottery systems, limited seasons and bag limits. I hope that someday I can sit in a slough with my son and be able to grant them the experiences that were granted to me. My $.02


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## WhakGreenie03 (Feb 20, 2004)

scissorbill said:


> Spring snow goose seasons with electronic calls unplugged guns and a kill the vermin mentality is putting and end to this once great tradition. The on-going spring seasons will prove to be one of the worst decisions ever made in waterfowl mgmt.


I dont see the spring goose to be a problem. Numbers are getting higher and higher every year, and the SOB's are getting smarter too. The time and effort that goes into setting up a thousand decoys is not a cake walk. Yes, i see how the unplugged guns and electronic calls can be a sore spot for some people, but waking up and setting up even 500 decs has to give someone some respect for the sport. I see duck numbers diminishing and wish that some more people would be more active in voicing their opinion. Voiceing it on this website can only go so far. The internet is a beautiful way to get active in things that you would normally be unaware of. In my view, duck populations should be managed in a few ways at first. Try to lower the bag limit. I would imagin that hunters wouldnt mind decreasing thier bag to see better success in years to come. Maybe even have thebag limit adjust with the rainfall or wetlands available. Limit NR's license with the lottery system. I dont think that residents should have to have a lottery for everything. We all know how hard it is to get drawn for out west with all the NR having land and taking tags. All in all, lower the bag limit for better success using methods that dont hurt but manage the hunting experiance for better ones to come. Just my .02. Dont get mad and thow them at me.


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