# Oldest Duck Band



## templey_41

Hey guys and gals! Just wondering if you care to share the oldest bird that you have shot with a band on it. I shot a Bull canvasback in 04'. Couldn't read the numbers on it so I sent it in for them to acid etch it. got the info back on it.

Tagged in Maryland. hatched in 1986 or earlier. Which means the bird was over 18 yrs old! When I got the info back I punched myself in the face several times. :x I didn't get the bird mounted, but fortunately I did get a couple pictures of it!


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## wetspot27

that is one old duck. I killed a blue goose that was banded 22 years prior as an adult bird. the goose is mounted at our farm I will try to get a pic of the mount and the certificate.


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## shooteminthelips

Shot a neck collared Ross Goose last spring that was banded in 1993!


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## Matt Jones

shooteminthelips said:


> Shot a neck collared Ross Goose last spring that was banded in 1993!


That's crazy...the collar lasted 15 years. I think the Feds say on average a collar lasts only 2-3 years on artic nesting geese.


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## shooteminthelips

Here you go Jones!


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## shooteminthelips

Another cool thing that happend is we shot two bands that day 2 hours a part. The neck collar was a single the other ross goose we shot with a band, was in a group of 6. The bands were with in 260 numbers of each other. They were banded the same year same location in Nuvenut. Both very old birds.


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## Dunk221999

My oldest was a 14 year old "Cackler" shot near Gackle, ND November 11th of 2000.

Weight 3.4 pounds.


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## just ducky

13 year old drake woodie taken back in the 90's.


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## PJ

I shot a nine year old drake mallard and I thought that was cool until I read about all of these. Very nice.


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## PJ

Matt Jones said:


> shooteminthelips said:
> 
> 
> 
> Shot a neck collared Ross Goose last spring that was banded in 1993!
> 
> 
> 
> That's crazy...the collar lasted 15 years. I think the Feds say on average a collar lasts only 2-3 years on artic nesting geese.
Click to expand...

Did they say if it was a re-capture? I have helped to band several times and they commonly catch old banded birds and replace bands. Maybe they replaced the collar? Looks pretty new.


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## goosebusters

I shot a blue last spring that was at least two years old when banded in Kentucky in 1996. So it was at least 13 years old.

On a sad note, the band is so worn that it broke in half when I opened it and is now just sitting in my car, held together with duct tape.


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## thorpup

Wow - those are some pretty old birds.

I got a 16 year old honker, banded in IA. Landed in the decoys - the band was so wore almost broke it taking it off as well.

Other than that got an 11 year old mally two years ago!

How many spreads does a snow goose see every year on the way up and down?? It's crazy to me that they can get to be that old! Congrats on being the group to do it!


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## shooteminthelips

It never said if it got changed out or not. Just said the date banded and then where it was banded.


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## barebackjack

I shot a rossie this spring that was banded as an adult in '99, so at least ten years old. Pale in comparison to some on here so far.

I did shoot a two year old mallard banded as a juvy in Maryland. Who says they dont skip flyways?

On a side note, I have four bands on my keychain, three are the bands that say "write bird band laurel MD" (came off a ross and two mallards in the last ten years), but one is an Avise bird band which says to write washington DC and has no phone number on it (off a honker a loooong time ago). Does anybody ever get avise bands anymore? Im assuming their old (if i remember right I shot the honker in '93 or '94, dont recall the age of the bird).


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## verg

barebackjack said:


> I shot a rossie this spring that was banded as an adult in '99, so at least ten years old. Pale in comparison to some on here so far.
> 
> I did shoot a two year old mallard banded as a juvy in Maryland. Who says they dont skip flyways?
> 
> On a side note, I have four bands on my keychain, three are the bands that say "write bird band laurel MD" (came off a ross and two mallards in the last ten years), but one is an Avise bird band which says to write washington DC and has no phone number on it (off a honker a loooong time ago). Does anybody ever get avise bands anymore? Im assuming their old (if i remember right I shot the honker in '93 or '94, dont recall the age of the bird).


For those advise bands...I think you can call the 800 numbers on the other bands?

Last year I shot a young drake mallard that was banded. When I got info back I found it had been banded about six months prior on a slough(wpa) about 1 mile away.


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## franchi

I can't say much for oldest duck band, but newest I might be a contender. I have a two day old band and a five day old band. Didn't see either of those bands before shooting the birds either. Just chance.


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## Ryan_Todd

my oldest was a drake mallard banded as an adult in 1995 and shot in 2003. the thing i noticed about the bird is that it was a lot smaller than the other drakes we shot that day.


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## nodakoutdoors.com

The oldest reported bird was a Canvasback over 29 years old.


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## woodpecker

franchi said:


> I can't say much for oldest duck band, but newest I might be a contender. I have a two day old band and a five day old band. Didn't see either of those bands before shooting the birds either. Just chance.


You didn't use the same blind they did for banding did you?? :lol:


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## franchi

Almost, but not quite. I wasn't too far from there.


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## cgreeny

franchi said:


> I can't say much for oldest duck band, but newest I might be a contender. I have a two day old band and a five day old band. Didn't see either of those bands before shooting the birds either. Just chance.


Oh so thats what we call by chance now huh Franchi..


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## sdgr8wthnter

Shot a 9 year old hooded mergansier. Banded as a chick in Missouri. Second oldest hoody ever reported. So I was told.


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## hunter2good

hey guys, just visiting and thought id chime in on my bands... my first band ever was a 12 yr old drake mallard! then last year i shot a hen that was 1 yr old. then on fri the 5th i shot my first COLLAR band!! yeah i was excited!! a snow goose leg and collar band! it was from nunavut it is 4 yrs old!


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## goosebusters

barebackjack said:


> On a side note, I have four bands on my keychain, three are the bands that say "write bird band laurel MD" (came off a ross and two mallards in the last ten years), but one is an Avise bird band which says to write washington DC and has no phone number on it (off a honker a loooong time ago). Does anybody ever get avise bands anymore? Im assuming their old (if i remember right I shot the honker in '93 or '94, dont recall the age of the bird).


I have two bands that happen to be the old Avise bands. My first ever band was on a Canada and was banded in 2001 and still had the old band style on it, the bander must have had a few of the old ones laying around when he banded it. And the 1996 blue still had an advise. Since then all bands have been call bands. Diver_Sniper has the first website band I've seen.


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