Waterfowl Noob

[8SteelTown]

This will be my first year at Waterfowl. I know next to nothing about them besides the regs and reading past stories. I have a few spots that duck and goose fly through and will be jumping them instead of traveling to waterways and hunting blinds.

My question is: Is there anything un-obvious I may need to know? Plucking, treating, shot placement, etc...

I have a steel choke and steel shells so that's no issue. I know there are limits on sex and species and it'll be next to impossible for me to identify them at first light (since I just don't know). I'll have to shoot the duck first, identify it, and determine if I can shoot additional ducks based off what I've already dropped.

Any additional insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Jesse

 

[squidy]

Ill be out for my first season too so i hear you that

 

[ilovesprig]

Jesse,

I'll be honest with you.....Shooting 1st and then ID'ing bird afterwards is asking for a citation (wardens will have no mercy on a "noob"). And is probably just not ethical.....Unfortunately, hunting waterfowl nowadays is very difficult. Not like the old days when you could basically just shoot 7 ducks.....You really need to hunt with someone that can ID birds while flying.

If your just pass shooting or jump shooting your probably going to get mostly mallards depending on where your hunting.....Your allowed 2 hens of the 7 mallards your allowed.....The shape and size will be similar in size at dark-thirty.....If the duck is very small. It's probably teal (bw, gw, cinnamon). And your allowed 7 of either sex.....Pintail, which shouldn't be a duck your pass shooting, your allowed 2. The size and dull colors will be similar to gadwall (7) and widgeon (7).....Shovelers (7) are of medium size, but again will mostly be dull in color.....Their bill is the giveaway on them, but again tough to see at dark hours.

Divers are much more difficult to ID and the limits are very restrictive........1 canvasback, 2 redheads, 7 ringnecks, and 3 scaup (bluebills). Your not allowed any scaup until after Nov. 1st.

There are a number of bluebills hanging out at Wister (513B). Sure as I'm typing this, someone will bring some in.

There are other ducks, but there are no restrictions on them (wood ducks, ruddys, goldeneye, scoters, etc.)

Buy a good duck ID book and go on line and see what the shapes and sounds of each duck looks like......I think Ducks Unlimited has this info on their website.

Good luck

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ducks.org%2Fhunting%2Fwaterfowl-id&ei=nZI-VO_LCae9igKCp4HQAQ&usg=AFQjCNHJHok9v5l9tUBszsLa0FG40c0Stw&sig2=l9c7-bN1umToPBACbXZnJA&bvm=bv.77412846,d.cGE

 

[El Matavenados]

I was in that same boat a few years back. I had been hunting for almost 15 years, but had never duck hunted. My biggest worry, like you, was in identifying ducks, so as not to shoot something illegal. Here are my recommendations:
1. Read and re-read the regs until you know them backward and forward. Know the difference between the zones.
2. Study your bird identification. I suggest youtube videos (so you can see them in flight) and www.pbase.com. That last is a place where people post their photos online for others to view. You can get pictures of live ducks, instead of illustrations. The males are easier to identify- it's the females you really need to worry about.
3. Your most common ducks in SoCal are Northern shovelers (spoonies), Ruddy ducks, teal (blue wing, green wing, cinnamon), mallards, pintails, wigeon, gadwall, redhead, ringneck, scaup, canvasback.
4. Listen to the calls of the birds. Again, youtube is your friend.

 

[8SteelTown]

Thanks fellas. The one spot I'm going to has a majority of mallards. Every time I've been hunting other animals, it's all I've seen. Assuming they were mallards based off of the colors but I'm probably wrong. I'll start cramming as to avoid getting in trouble. I appreciate it.

 

[smalls]

This will be my first year for waterfowl too I was thinking of heading out to the Colorado river or salton sea on blm land and see how it goes any one want to get a group together and figure this out together new and experienced I have a few decoys I got from someone who lost interest?

 

[MasterBlaster66T]

I am a waterfowl noob too and am interested in going. Trying to get drawn at Wister. Anyone know if I need my dog there?

 

[ilovesprig]

I am a waterfowl noob too and am interested in going. Trying to get drawn at Wister. Anyone know if I need my dog there?

I don't think the word "need" is necessarily true......Why not bring him (or her) and teach them the ropes too?.....I will not hunt without my labs......Not only do they save me tons of walking in the worse mud in the world (Wister). But as a conservation tool, they save me a lot of birds that I probably would have lost.

 

[MasterBlaster66T]

Ok thanks, I just didn't know if walking in the mud was even possible there.