# For the guys that can't identify their ducks...



## Silver Bullet (Jan 29, 2015)

Be thankful you don't live out west.  Having to identify subspecies of Canadas on the fly is tough!!!  I did a quick read of this pdf and then did my best looking over the mixed bird pics at the end and I only did so-so on identification.  Not real sure if I could reach the 80% on the required test with only one read-through.

Now, if GA mandated a species ID test before they issued a hunting license, how many less idiots would be in the marsh...


http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resource...e-permits/WillametteLColGooseGuide_081707.pdf


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## T-N-T (Jan 29, 2015)

I would pass.  But not yet.  It would take me some studying.


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## Core Lokt (Jan 29, 2015)

Glad I don't hunt those things..... it would take yrs in the field to able to 100% identify the different species.


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## Hunteradams (Jan 29, 2015)

What if, before you were able to get your license you had to take a test on regulations and id. Thus, when caught doing something it would be strait ticket. No more warnings no excuses.


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## injun joe (Jan 29, 2015)

That's why they make shovels.


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## Hooked On Quack (Jan 29, 2015)

injun joe said:


> That's why they make shovels.





and ditches . . .


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Jan 29, 2015)

injun joe said:


> That's why they make shovels.



That's why I like hunting moving water!


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## Hunteradams (Jan 29, 2015)




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## Scrapy (Jan 29, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> What if, before you were able to get your license you had to take a test on regulations and id. Thus, when caught doing something it would be strait ticket. No more warnings no excuses.



I can identify all the ones I am likely to kill. Even the introducktions like mottled ducks. As far as keeping up with all the regulations and the interpretations by others, my boat would not hold all the lawyers that specialize in everything from Navigable Waters to Migratory Birds.  You might think you know but you don't.

You can be duck hunting and if a rusty fish hook is stuck in your carpet you can find yourself charged for fishing. Good luck with all that. I know the basics and that took years. And there is too much grey area.  

The thread about corn planted versus corn bait is a good example.


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## Hunteradams (Jan 29, 2015)

Scrapy said:


> I can identify all the ones I am likely to kill. Even the introducktions like mottled ducks. As far as keeping up with all the regulations and the interpretations by others, my boat would not hold all the lawyers that specialize in everything from Navigable Waters to Migratory Birds.  You might think you know but you don't.
> 
> You can be duck hunting and if a rusty fish hook is stuck in your carpet you can find yourself charged for fishing. Good luck with all that. I know the basics and that took years. And there is too much grey area.
> The thread about corn planted versus corn bait is a good example.






Yes there is plenty of grey area. Heck every time I get checked hunting I feel like I have done something wrong. But a simple duck id test and common rules such as, duck limits, shell type, jump shooting, baiting, common broken rules. Just a basis for the law to get started. I had to take a test to get my hunters ed. 90 percent of it was junk or could be summed up in treat every gun as if it were loaded. If you broke a simple blatant law there is no excuse first offense ticket. Now navigable water is a different animal, layers don't even know that. As far as the baiting thread, there is a clear cut law on that read the regs. My point with that thread was to discuss weather planting corn was as ethic a hunting style as free chase or as simple as shooting over bait. The thread went a different way. Then there are the guys that say all I shoot is wood ducks but how often do you see these guys with a picture of a gadwall, blackduck, or some other duck that got lost asking what it was. What if a guy went alone to hunt his swamp shot 2 black ducks not knowing what they were. If he had to take the test he would know.


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## Scrapy (Jan 29, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> Yes there is plenty of grey area.  As far as the baiting thread, there is a clear cut law on that read the regs. .



It's grey too! Somebody said hand shucking and shelling a few ears of standing corn would be illegal. And whether I did it before it was flooded or after.  The regulation refers to mechanical manipulation listed as agricultural, not to be confused with bringing in bait and not to be confused with "hand" shelling.  Black birds could have done that.

Also a 2 acre depression that makes corn within a normal 50 acre ag field, that collect water in the fall, the rest of the field is harvested but the combine can't get in the wet spot. Then ducks come and somebody shoots them. Because the field was partially harvested is stupid regs. 

Five minutes into shooting time the sky is grey. The silhoettes are black.   Care to identify a regular mallard from a Black Duck on the wing? Hard enough to ID dead hens. Shovel is good!


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## Hunteradams (Jan 29, 2015)

Scrapy said:


> It's grey too! Somebody said hand shucking and shelling a few ears of standing corn would be illegal. And whether I did it before it was flooded or after.  The regulation refers to mechanical manipulation listed as agricultural, not to be confused with bringing in bait and not to be confused with "hand" shelling.  Black birds could have done that.
> 
> Also a 2 acre depression that makes corn within a normal 50 acre ag field, that collect water in the fall, the rest of the field is harvested but the combine can't get in the wet spot. Then ducks come and somebody shoots them. Because the field was partially harvested is stupid regs.
> 
> Five minutes into shooting time the sky is grey. The silhoettes are black.   Care to identify a regular mallard from a Black Duck on the wing? Hard enough to ID dead hens. Shovel is good!



There is a more formal list of rules on baiting that explains it. As far as the duck id if you cant tell dont shoot. Its like saying i shot the shadow though it was a deer, sorry i killed your kid. Or wait a shovel will work for that.


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## Scrapy (Jan 29, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> There is a more formal list of rules on baiting that explains it. As far as the duck id if you cant tell dont shoot. Its like saying i shot the shadow though it was a deer, sorry i killed your kid. Or wait a shovel will work for that.



Aw its not that bad! It's a duck sihloette . Not an eagle,
Deer or boy.


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## Hunteradams (Jan 29, 2015)

Scrapy said:


> Aw its not that bad! It's a duck sihloette . Not an eagle,
> Deer or boy.



so, some laws are ok to break and others not?


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## Scrapy (Jan 29, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> so, some laws are ok to break and others not?



No. I'll just hold off shooting till it's light enough to tell whether that thread wide margin on the breast feathers is V shaped or U shaped twenty yards out.


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## injun joe (Jan 30, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> so, some laws are ok to break and others not?



Yep


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## Hunteradams (Jan 30, 2015)

injun joe said:


> Yep



Dang you old guys know it all, hope yall share this good info with some kids. Get them out there show them how to do It right, or at least what you feel is right.


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## WOODIE13 (Jan 30, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


>



The stepper


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## Uptonongood (Jan 30, 2015)

Distinguishing between the subspecies of Canada geese was crazy-making plus there were only specific areas where the species of concern were regulated.  Read this attachment if you want to see how crazy it gets.  You had to pass a written exam to hunt geese in the special management areas, it was always strange to me that they didn't bring study skins or mounts to the classes to help folks see the difference.  The truth is, there is so much variation in coloration that it takes a profession, experienced waterfowl specialist to make the decision on whether or not it is a protected goose. I passed the exam and I'll be doggoned if I could tell the geese apart while they're in the air.  I probably shot a few dusky geese outside of their special management areas which means it was legal to do so.  Crazy.

http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01015/wdfw01015.pdf


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## ghadarits (Jan 30, 2015)

Thank the Lord we don't have that many geese that look almost exactly the same to be concerned with one being in season and the other not. Those regulations look like Alaska fishing regs. 

I'd be afraid to pull the trigger on any of them with my eyesight.


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## Gaducker (Jan 30, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> so, some laws are ok to break and others not?




      Only break the ones you know you wont get caught red handed while breaking them.  You know what I mean....... Dont you?


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## WOODIE13 (Jan 30, 2015)

Or whatever your wallet can handle.  

Mistakes happen, but to tag on wanton waste to over the limit, well, the birds will still come out one way or the other


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## Gaducker (Jan 30, 2015)

WOODIE13 said:


> Or whatever your wallet can handle.
> 
> Mistakes happen, but to tag on wanton waste to over the limit, well, the birds will still come out one way or the other




Down here in Newnan the ex-mayor use to tell the game warden he kept his fine money right here, and pat his shirt pocket.  He didnt care one bit about gettin caught by the wardens cause the good ole boy system took care of him.


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## WOODIE13 (Jan 30, 2015)

Gaducker said:


> Down here in Newnan the ex-mayor use to tell the game warden he kept his fine money right here, and pat his shirt pocket.  He didnt care one bit about gettin caught by the wardens cause the good ole boy system took care of him.



Not much about that...


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## Gaducker (Jan 30, 2015)

WOODIE13 said:


> Not much about that...



Me niether.


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## WOODIE13 (Jan 30, 2015)

See it quite often, really like when it is not the locals hemming them up, epic


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## MudDucker (Jan 31, 2015)

40 years ago when we had the point system, no sweat.  Now with old age and bad eyesight, would require ground check curve!  lol


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## king killer delete (Jan 31, 2015)

MudDucker said:


> 40 years ago when we had the point system, no sweat.  Now with old age and bad eyesight, would require ground check curve!  lol



I remember you could kill 10 teal a day. 1 teal = ten points a Mallard hen was 90 points but that was Kansas


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## MudDucker (Feb 1, 2015)

king killer delete said:


> I remember you could kill 10 teal a day. 1 teal = ten points a Mallard hen was 90 points but that was Kansas



Believe it or not, pintail and teal used to be the same limit on the Eastern.  My recollection was that we still had a 6 or 8 duck limit and the total had to be under 100 points, except that the last duck you killed, if you were under a 100 at that point could take you over.  Mallard hen was 90 points.  I was shooting pintails down near a certain place where they launch rockets.  I was one under the number and well within my points when suddenly out fo the fog appears what I thought was a mottled duck or black, but it was a hen mallard when I picked it up.  That took me over 100 real quick. Federal game warden quizzed me about the order of kill.  I looked at him without saying anything and he asked again.  His attitude ticked me off, so I asked him if I looked stupid.  He asked again.  I said you know you really should know about the 5th amendment, but since I killed her last, I am going to answer the question.  I learned then that as a prerequisite of the job, you had to have your humor surgically removed to be a federal game warden.


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## emusmacker (Feb 3, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> Yes there is plenty of grey area. Heck every time I get checked hunting I feel like I have done something wrong. But a simple duck id test and common rules such as, duck limits, shell type, jump shooting, baiting, common broken rules. Just a basis for the law to get started. I had to take a test to get my hunters ed. 90 percent of it was junk or could be summed up in treat every gun as if it were loaded. If you broke a simple blatant law there is no excuse first offense ticket. Now navigable water is a different animal, layers don't even know that. As far as the baiting thread, there is a clear cut law on that read the regs. My point with that thread was to discuss weather planting corn was as ethic a hunting style as free chase or as simple as shooting over bait. The thread went a different way. Then there are the guys that say all I shoot is wood ducks but how often do you see these guys with a picture of a gadwall, blackduck, or some other duck that got lost asking what it was. What if a guy went alone to hunt his swamp shot 2 black ducks not knowing what they were. If he had to take the test he would know.



Are you saying jump shooting should be made illegal?


I do agree with you 100% about the Identification though.  my 12 yr old son always gets a kick out of the folks that will text a pic asking what kind of duck is this.  he's 12 and knows nearly every north American species of duck and can even id them in the field flying sometimes.  It ain't really that hard.   Just some don't want to take the time to do it.


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## Hunteradams (Feb 3, 2015)

emusmacker said:


> Are you saying jump shooting should be made illegal?
> 
> 
> I do agree with you 100% about the Identification though.  my 12 yr old son always gets a kick out of the folks that will text a pic asking what kind of duck is this.  he's 12 and knows nearly every north American species of duck and can even id them in the field flying sometimes.  It ain't really that hard.   Just some don't want to take the time to do it.



You know jump shooting, cousin bob on the bow while his brother drives into a group of birds and start shooting. If there was just a class or test on basic commonly broken laws, that way when you were stopped for it there was no I didn't know or any excuse. There are a handful of wma's that I have hunted over the year, that before you entered you had to read a list of rules and then sign a card saying you had read it. You had to have that card on you at all times you were on the property. If they can do it there why not this state and on public grounds. But I guess that's what you do when you sign your license.


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## emusmacker (Feb 3, 2015)

I got you now.  

I thought you meant stalkin the creek bank and jump shooting wood ducks or sneaking up on ducks and shooting them off the water.


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## emusmacker (Feb 3, 2015)

I have another question for you.  You are hunting a swamp, and you see black ducks land 80 yards away.  You decide to find em, you find them in a small patch of water.  You raise to shoot and drop 2 with one shot. one is dead, the other(a drake) is runnign through the woods with a broken wing.  Would you leave him there or kill him?  You can pm the answer if you don't want to incriminate yourself.


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## Hunteradams (Feb 3, 2015)

emusmacker said:


> I got you now.
> 
> I thought you meant stalkin the creek bank and jump shooting wood ducks or sneaking up on ducks and shooting them off the water.



No not at all, there is a true art to that. I am too clumsy to sneak up on ducks.


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## Uptonongood (Feb 3, 2015)

emusmacker said:


> I have another question for you.  You are hunting a swamp, and you see black ducks land 80 yards away.  You decide to find em, you find them in a small patch of water.  You raise to shoot and drop 2 with one shot. one is dead, the other(a drake) is runnign through the woods with a broken wing.  Would you leave him there or kill him?  You can pm the answer if you don't want to incriminate yourself.



As an ethical hunter, I kill my wounded game, always.  As for taking that bird in, probably not because a game warden is not going to believe me and I won't pay the fine for an accident and being ethical.  (In the field you are guilty until you PROVE yourself innocent.


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## Hunteradams (Feb 3, 2015)

emusmacker said:


> I have another question for you.  You are hunting a swamp, and you see black ducks land 80 yards away.  You decide to find em, you find them in a small patch of water.  You raise to shoot and drop 2 with one shot. one is dead, the other(a drake) is runnign through the woods with a broken wing.  Would you leave him there or kill him?  You can pm the answer if you don't want to incriminate yourself.



Dont quote me, but i am pretty sure the wanton waste law says any downed game you dont recover should be counted against your limit. Does anyone do this no. Also think the law says you have to kill cripples In a timely manner (jeff foiles case). So any way you approach the situation you are breaking the law.


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## tradhunter98 (Feb 3, 2015)

I boy I know was arguing with me about shooting time. He got a ticket for shooting 30mins after time. He still thinks the gamewarden was wrong.


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## Silver Bullet (Feb 3, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> Dont quote me, but i am pretty sure the wanton waste law says any downed game you dont recover should be counted against your limit. Does anyone do this no. Also think the law says you have to kill cripples In a timely manner (jeff foiles case). So any way you approach the situation you are breaking the law.



This gets me just as much as watching someone shoot ibis.  "Well, we knocked down 12 woodies, but we picked up 3."  Really???


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## emusmacker (Feb 3, 2015)

Silver Bullet said:


> This gets me just as much as watching someone shoot ibis.  "Well, we knocked down 12 woodies, but we picked up 3."  Really???



What would you do in that situation?  course you're probably too good a shot to worry bout it.


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## Silver Bullet (Feb 3, 2015)

Na.  I count my cripples as kills.


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## Silver Bullet (Feb 3, 2015)

Maybe I wasn't clear.  I.E. Single shooter/single limit.  Guy cripples/can't find 6 woodies.  Shoots an additional 3 that he can.  Now, he has killed 9!!  Cripples happen.  Lost birds happen.  But those birds have to be counted against a limit...


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## emusmacker (Feb 3, 2015)

Would you walk out with the other black duck?


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## Silver Bullet (Feb 3, 2015)

That's tough. It was common to knock down 2-3 teal when hunting Nebraska s early season  I was always scared I'd go over but it never happened  If I knocked down 2 black ducks, I'd call Le  . Honesty can go a long way...


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## Silver Bullet (Feb 3, 2015)

Teal ball up tight.  I've never seen large groups of black ducks.  The 3rd law of Hunter Ed is know your target and what's beyond it...


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## emusmacker (Feb 4, 2015)

Group of 8 birds on the water.  a hen and drake rise together side by side.   I've seen it, usually see groups of big ducks close to at least 8 to 15.  Maybe I'm just lucky though.


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## AFDuckHntr (Feb 4, 2015)

I grew up out West and hunting in the permit zone for geese was such a pain, but I never realized how much until I hunted in the rest of the country. The key was to be VEEEEERY nice to the check station lady because a 1/10 of a millimeter changes the subspecies of the goose from Dusky to non Dusky. It sounds really challenging but the Duskys are SUPER dark geese as you can see in the picture next to some Western decoys. The cacklers are also really distinctive, about the size of a big mallard and really short stubby necks and bills. Pain in the butt, but you learn to identify your birds.


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## Silver Bullet (Feb 4, 2015)

Man, that's a great comparison pic!  I had a buddy that killed a cackler in MI.  They are like micro geese.  Real neat bird...


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## emusmacker (Feb 24, 2015)

Silver Bullet said:


> Teal ball up tight.  I've never seen large groups of black ducks.  The 3rd law of Hunter Ed is know your target and what's beyond it...



trees were beyond em.  And the target was a black duck.


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## Flaustin1 (Feb 25, 2015)

Id tote it out.  It is what it is.


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## injun joe (Feb 25, 2015)

Hunteradams said:


> Dont quote me, but i am pretty sure the wanton waste law says any downed game you dont recover should be counted against your limit. Does anyone do this no. Also think the law says you have to kill cripples In a timely manner (jeff foiles case). So any way you approach the situation you are breaking the law.



Dang you young guys know it all, hope yall share this good info with some kids. Get them out there show them how to do It right, or at least what you feel is right.


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