Waterfowl

Probably due to less and less available places to hunt upland game. Can't speake as to other areas of the U.S., but here in Maryland we have NO pheasants and about the only decent upland hunting is for squirrels and turkeys, rabbits and places to hunt them are getting more and more scarce. Plus, Maryland has a rich tradition of waterfowling.
 
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Duck Dynasty:thumbsup:
 
You bet, Early Teal Season and a few times during the upland season
 
Upland4Ever said:
Why all the sudden the big number boost in waterfowl hunters?
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What is the source of your data and what is the data that suggests this?

Duck numbers are way up the last 2-3 years in Dakotas. Waterfowlers have excellent access to public land because wetlands are cheap to buy by game and fish and farmers can't farm them.

My hunting started when I was 16 and hunted primarily waterfowl. Public water access is abundant in most states (at least in upper midwest)
 
I like duck hunting, not nearly as well as any upland hunting. But as Stephen Stills said, " If you can't be with the one you love, honey, Love the one your with". I got decent opportunity to hunt duck and geese 30 miles away, pheasant's and quail which we used to have here, are around 90 miles away, to low density populations. The duck conservationist got a big jump on us uplanders!
 
I haven't heard of any big boost to waterfowl hunting. I hope this is the case though. it may be a sign that we're bring more people into the hunting world.:)


As far as waterfowling goes, I think there are more areas to gain access to hunt ducks and geese vs pheas/quail/grouse. A waterfowler can bring birds into his decoys therefore even a picked cornfield surrounded by more picked corn fields can be utilized by the waterfowler.
 
The good populations of local Canada Geese has created a lot of hunter interest. Land owners aren't near as protective of the waterfowl as they are of Pheasants.
 
numbers

there has been an increase in hunter participation of late, two of my shorthairs will cold water retrieve, yes, ice on the river, and another thing to consider as we become fatter, lazier, more out of shape, older, maybe sitting on your butt in a duck blind is more fun than chasing stupid dogs in field that seem to be having fewer and fewer birds, while pheasants in many places are under stress, for the past few years, ducks have not been, even the scaup have bounced back some, hunting most anything anytime beats doing house and yard work

cheers
 
You've got is Musti, waterfowl populations are at near all-time highs just when upland populations are at long-term lows. Add to that the unbalanced ratio of many waterfowl areas being in public access and the best upland habitat being tied up with deer leases and the shift is rational. Shooting 6 ducks by 10 is easier than working all day for a 3-4 rooster limit and those older, fatter, maybe lazier fair weather hunters would rather do the ducks and geese over the birds. Just the fact that they can sit in the same blind and potentially limit on both ducks and geese weighs in. I've had opportunities to shoot roosters flying over the decoy spread too, so there are plenty of reasons to choose a blind some days.
 
I once saw a covey of quail fly right over a box blind on a lakeshore to a swamp at dusk, I assumed they were roosting in the swamp on some dry hummock. I have certainly seen lots of roosters go in within 15 minutes of dark to roost in a cattail swamp. Roosters were coming out of a "bare" or plowed field. I agree with both points, going after birds which are scarce, and we are all getting older. If you can find the ducks, and geese, it's easier. But we still have to eat them! After 20-30 recipies it's still back to the drawing board, I do find a healthy dose of Duck Shack wine before dinner, after you skipped lunch, and had a light breakfast, makes those better!
 
The best recipe I've had my boss Stuart taught me. Fillet the breasts off of the bone. Cut some jalepeno' in half and deseed. Wrap the breast around 1/2 of a jalepeno' then wrap the breast with two strips of double smoked pepper bacon and toothpick together. Make yourself a foil tent and cook on the grill. You won't stop at just one! Now don't expect coot, merganzer, and divers to be your best option. Use some of the mallards and gadwall for your first try.
 
Prairie Drifter said:
The best recipe I've had my boss Stuart taught me. Fillet the breasts off of the bone. Cut some jalepeno' in half and deseed. Wrap the breast around 1/2 of a jalepeno' then wrap the breast with two strips of double smoked pepper bacon and toothpick together. Make yourself a foil tent and cook on the grill. You won't stop at just one! Now don't expect coot, merganzer, and divers to be your best option. Use some of the mallards and gadwall for your first try.
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You could wrap a turd in bacon and it would be edible........ just saying.
 
I tried it. The best I have tried is lightly sauted mallards in duck fat, and butter, just light brown in the skin, with rare as rare steak in side. I did have some goose jerky that was good. Best items I have found waterfowl needs the skin on, for everything but the jerky. Needs to be rare, or it gets dry and bland. Yes I would avoid mergansers, coots, shovelers, the red heads, cans, and ringnecks are as good as any. But we don't get them much here. Another year and another culinary challenge.
 
All is very true, but even those that want an easy hunt I would go to a game farm and you get the dog work along with a great taste pheasant quail or chucker. That's what I love about grouse hunting I guess it's not the number of birds I shoot, but the journey for that one bird.
 
ducks

one, it helps to know one duck from another as some ducks taste great and others don't, also depends on where and what they have been feeding on, duck wraps are wonderful, sounds like you guys need to learn your ducks and then learn how to cook, don't ever cook your duck well done is a great start, actually many years ago coots were in fact sold during the market gunning days and brought 5 cents apiece, not really sure what they did with them though or how they killed the taste

cheers
 
I have duck hunted for years and continue to hunt most every day of the season. Here in SW Arkansas if you want to hunt upland birds you buy and release, hunt a game farm, or drive for 10 hours-So I duckhunt.

Never learned to like the taste of duck and always gave away my birds until two years ago. A friend gave me the following;

Breast out the duck and filet into large bite sized pieces. Wrap in bacon and toothpick- slice of jalepeno also if you like. Place in a container, cover with soy sauce with two cloves of crushed garlic in the mix. Marinate for 6-8 hours, remove, drain, and pour a good covering of molasses syrup over all.

Throw on a hot grill and cook until no more than med rare. Delicious I promise!

BobM
 
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