Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations More about waterfowl on your ponds

"If you don't raise geese/ducks, they won't be around to hunt. Wetlands and other habitat are declining at an alarming rate. If everyone would allow waterfowl to nest undisturbed on their ponds for a couple of years, populations would start to rebound instead of the steady decline."

Thank you, h20fwlkillr, at least one person here seems to understand my motives and logic.

Norm, I totally understand what you are saying. I just have a different agenda. I enjoy all forms of wild birds here. However, I will kill snakes, coyotes and raccoons on our property on sight. I also discourage the Geese from visiting the pond and it's 5 acre lawn next to our home by my using that pond for dawg training daily. They Geese don't like that activity anymore than we like their poop.

We bought 132 acres of land here in N TX two years ago for the specific purpose of putting in six different dawg training / duck shooting ponds ranging in size from 2 to 7-1/2 acres, where we could also build our home and enjoy retirement.

All six ponds are in, 2 additional wetlands areas have since been added and we have a growing population of several species of wild ducks and now a dozen Canada Geese availing themselves of our waters. Egrets, herons and a number of different types of water birds are now residing or regulary visiting on what used to be virtually barren pastures

I buy and use pen raised mallards during the off-season part of the year for Retriever training purposes. We release 25% of the birds we buy as juveniles (after clipping their flight feathers) to imprint them here so when they join the fall migration, they will hopefully return again to raise a brood here. We presently have nine different duck and goose nests with eggs in them, that I've found so far.

Over the years I've taken so many thousands of ducks and geese I'd be embarassed to admit the numbers. I've also been a member of Delta Waterfowl, Ducks Unlimited and done whatever I could to give back to the sport that I've enjoyed so much. Now I have a chance to give back in another way by providing wetlands habitat and supplementing the wild waterfowl population.

The only time I am offended by the goose and duck poop is when they wander into the barn (concrete floor) when left open to chase bugs and then leave their semi liquid fertilizer behind!

Teaching grandkids about dawgs and ducks ...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Remi5-30-3.jpg

Expanding a small pond and adding a wetlands area ... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Newpond10-3.jpg

Training a young pup, sometimes with live mallards, in the new area ...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/March%202006%20forward/4f26b874.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Remi9-11-8.jpg

The older dawg gets some too ...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Cap9-29.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Cap9-11-4.jpg

The mallard holding pen ...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Mallards8-1.jpg

Ducks and geese enjoy the new wetlands areas ...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Pond7-23-5jpg.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/March%202006%20forward/acaca8a1.jpg

It's not ONLY waterfowl and hunting here ...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Jay6-11-3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v413/NevadaJim/Jay6-11-4.jpg

Cappy your place is amazing. I have done a similar project to yours, but on a much smaller scale. I have an on going addition to my wetland area. I worked out a deal with a local dirt hauler to enlarge it by 2+ acres. He is cutting it down to an 18" max depth with several small islands. Unfortunately he is a small operation and will take a couple of years to complete it---one truck load at a time. It is good though, I don't have to spend any money. My wife told me I have spent enough on my obsession as it is!

I just completed water control feature to my creek to allow me to flood it in the fall. It runs thru an oak and hickory forrested area, so it should really bring in those woodies.

As soon as I get a chance I'll post some pics of my ponds and blinds. Maybe a few of my dog working. I hunt Weimaraners. I am still amazed at his drive to retrieve waterfowl, even in the cold. He out performs my buddy's Labs, and it makes him mad. I recently got another pup. She is going to be a great pointer, but not sure yet on the water sports.

I agree, wetlands are important, here are a few pictures of an award my little brother got back in 2004 for improvements on his 70 acre (never been plowed) wetland in Nebraska's Rain Water Basin, the RWB covers seven counties in NE. The sad thing is that 97% of the wetlands in that area have been drained an plowed under, it used to be a major waterfowl production area. Just in the last two years, one across the road from his house was plowed under, and another one just south of his property was plowed under 4 weeks ago. The destruction continues. Wetlands are not only important to waterfoawl, they are important to people as well, they help filter nitrates and other contaminants out of the ground water that people drink.

Great photos! And a visit from Congressman Tom Osborne to boot. Does it get any better?

I love this thread and this forum because it shows members making their dreams come true and improving the land at the same time. It also shows we are not all about fish all of the time. There is more than one kind of pond lover, with a diverse interest in ponds and I say welcome to all!

Nice pics. I might have to talk to you in a year or so since my lab is about to enter retirement. I still have ducks on my place.

Why wait a year? My 7 year old male was 5-1/2 when I got the female pup. This way they have at least 4-5 years of hunting together. You'd be surprised how much the younger dawg can learn from the older one.

And how much new life and vigor the young one can bring out in the older one.

Here are some pics of my dog and pond. The pic of him and the doves was actually taken a couple of weeks after the pond was built. The tree in the picture is under about 6' of water now. The pond is about 2' low in the other pics. It is also alot larger now by about an acre. I have to find some current pics to post.

Glad to see you have your boy wearing a neoprene vest. It tells me that you are a responsible and compassionate gun dawg owner. Whenever water or air temps drop, my two get their vests on immediately despite their traditional Lab coats that protect well below freezing.

Here's my hunting patrtner (wife Carol) with our two water monkeys after an early morning hunt.


My two are all business and very serious about their "jobs" as duck dawgs when out with me. In the house, however, they are full time rascals and this is a typical example of their "bitey face" game that will go on forever if I don't tell them to find something else to do.

Bruce wrote:
He did sign lots of autographs while he was at my brothers house, including two of my Husker football media guides from his championship years. It impressed that T.O. took the time to do this in front of a small crowd in the middle of virtually no-where at someones private residence, to me it says something about his character in a non-election year.

Back to the issue of the significant loss of wetlands, I am far from an expert on the issue but what I do know both saddens and frightens me at the same time. I can tell that there is a great deal of interest from a number wetlands experts regarding the one my brother owns due to the fact that it has never been disturbed. The shear volume of bio-diverstity in his wetland is incredible compared to state owned restored wetlands down the road. Even the Ne G & P has been out to try and figure out why migratory birds prefer his place over the restored ones just down the road. There are 14 species of grass in his wetland compared to just 3-4 in the nearby restored ones. He also has some sort of rare arrowhead plant that is only found in small number of other places in Ne. He has several grad students at the moment studying the biology of his place. This tells me that once a wetland get plowed under, it can be restored, but it will take a very, very, long time to ever re-cover the bio-diversity it once had.

Here is a post dog owners should read about geese and their by-products.


http://www.pondboss.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=20;t=001579;p=1

and a prior thread on geese and ponds

http://www.pondboss.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=20;t=001634#000004

Hey Guys,

This is a bit off-subject however...what are the regulations about food plots for water fowl? I would like to plant a duck/geese mix down by my pond. At what point do I break the law when hunting over the food plot?

Thanks,

Gator

Gator ... You need to read the State and Federal "Baiting Regulations" rather than rely on folks on the internet. Having said that, here's my belief in a capsule.

You can plant anything you want and hunt over it PROVIDED you DON'T artificially or intentionally manipulate the crop is such a manner so as to scatter seeds or the crop itself other than "normal and ordinary" agricultural harvest practices, for the purpose of attracting waterfowl.

You could, as an example, plant all the BioLogic waterfowl mix, millet, sorghum and corn (what I plant) you want on and around your waters as long as you don't knock down the plants so as to create scattered food. The mere walking out and back through planted food to put out decoys or retrieve downed birds is NOT an act that would cause a baiting charge against you. Driving through the food with an ATV knocking the plants down would probably be a citation.

Go here for more info ... http://www.fws.gov/le/HuntFish/waterfowl_baiting.htm

Thanks Cappy I appreciate your comments.

Most people i ask think about the same as you - You can plant and hunt over the planted field, but cant manipulate the crop in any way except what happnes during a normal harvest.

I tried reading the formal regulations. IMO, it would take 6 lawyers and a year to figure out all the formal regulations. (No offense to lawyers)

Gator

Here is one with my lab after a quick Teal hunt two years ago.

And whenever I go out he always wants to go along.

Alligator--I don't know if applies in Tx, but in Mo you can mow, disk or burn your food plots. As Cappy says though, you cannot use something to scatter the seed. Whatever means you use must be a bona fide agri. practice.

Cappy-- My weim has such short hair if it gets below 40 he begs to put on that vest. First time I put it on him it was a huge fight. After he figured out how much warmer he was with it on, he started bringing it to me every time he got cold.

Question for the group - do the ducks really care if it naturally falls off the stalk vs. scattered on the ground by a shredder?

H2O - is there a difference in affect between mowing and scattering?

Gator

As my local agent told me "it is all about the intent". Mowing is an agricultural practice...knocking crops around is not.

If the area is flooded, waterfowl prefer the standing crops as cover while they feed. If it is on land, they will very rarely use standing food plots. Mowing, disking or burning is a must. Those short little legs have trouble navigating around the taller growth and it's harder to land in.

Thx H20,

Think I am going to plant around the backside of my pond, close to the edges. As my pond fills up, some will become flooded, the rest will be right on the edge of the water. I normally need to mow around my pond in the fall for agricultral purposes.



Gator.

Gator ... I'd do the planting depending on where on that pond you hunt from. I'm sure that you know waterfowl land into the wind. Therefore I'd try to have the food plot areas closest to where I hunt from and with the prevailing wind at my back.

If you make the plots to large you run the risk that many of the birds will land well out of range. If too small, it will not be attractive enough to gain the attention of passing flights.

If you plant the same crop, and all at the same time, you'll have all of the maturity at one time and it may or may not coincide with waterfowl arrival schedules. I try to plant several plantings a few weeks apart so some of the crops will be mature at the beginning of season with others hopefully making it all the way through the close.

Here's one corner of a shooting pond on our property with a field blind in the distance that is in 6"-8" of water when flooded. The prevailing wind is from behind where the picture was taken and another blind is on the shoreline there.

Hey Cappy,

Thanks for the insight. I have yet to hunt ducks, so all of this is new to me. I had several ducks naturally this year and saw a few wood ducks this spring. I am more intersted in attracting them vs. actually hunting, but none-the-less your advice still applies.

Like a lot of folks I have a deep end and a shallow end on my pond. The shallow end (inflow from a small creek) includes a marsh area and some flooded timber. The pond is a basic triangle, deep end is the widest and is the dam. The dam area is basically open.

I also have a flooded marsh below my dam.

I was thinking about planting on one side of my shallow end of the pond + down around the marsh behind the dam. Is there a preference between planting in the open vs. close to cover? AKA trees/heavy woods?

Gator

In my experience, most ducks prefer to land in an open area as they feel safer from predators. This does not apply to wood ducks and to some extent mallards as they like timber. If you do not hunt the area, they will usually respond to the plantings next to cover as they will eventually grow confident in the location. just my opinions from 40 years as a S. Louisiana duck nut.

I also wanted to add that you should be VERY careful about hunting over mowed crops for waterfowl.. The Federal law allows crop manipulation for doves but prohibits it for waterfowl. By this i mean you can hunt over waste grain left from harvesting or grain that fell off of stand crops. You can not grow a stand of corn and then shred it to attract ducks. I hunt with a Federal game warden and he informed me of this. Contact the Federal warden for the area as they will be happy to guide you as to what is allowed. The local state warden may interpert the often confusing laws as to baiting in a different way. This will do you no good in front of a Federal judge. I am a retired state police sergeant and hunt with state wardens and they all recommend getting advice first.

This is what I have told by the wardon. For doves planted crops that are standing or shredded are ok you just can go spread the seed out where there is no crop and hunt near it unless it has all been picked up.

Ducks on the other hand I have been told that you can't plant to attrach them for hunting purposes.