Conservationists Seek Oversight of DFG Dedicated Accounts

The Mule Deer Foundation is an active member of the California Outdoor Heritage Alliance, sponsor of State Senate Bill 1172.

COHA has announced that SB1172 has passed the State Senate with a 39-0 vote. The bill must now pass through the State Assembly and the Governor’s office to become law.

Below is a news release from the COHA regarding the bill, which provides Fish and Game Commission oversight on expenditures of money obtained through sale of big game tags including deer. For many years sportsmen have struggled to verify where big game tag funds have been spent. Despite laws that state these funds must be spent for the benefit of the species for which the tags are sold, that has not always been the case. Big game fund raising tags for deer also fall into this category.

SB1172 is modeled after the California Duck Stamp program which has a proven track record.

Here’s the release:

California Outdoor Heritage Alliance (COHA) News Release regarding SB1172

Hunting Tag/Stamp Accountability Measure Passes Off Senate Floor – Despite threats of opposition from animal rights organizations and other groups, SB 1172, by Senator Bob Dutton (R-Inland Empire), easily passed the California State Senate on Thursday by a bipartisan vote of 39-0.  The bill, which is sponsored by COHA and supported by numerous hunting and conservation interests throughout California , would provide much-needed accountability and transparency over the use of hunting license tag and stamp revenues. 

 

SB 1172 was introduced in response to continued revelations over the misuse of certain hunter-generated monies within state government.  To help address this ongoing problem over the long-term, the measure would ensure that separate fiscal accounts are provided for all such monies and that they can only be used for certain game species conservation and hunting purposes.  The bill would also require the Fish and Game Commission to publicly verify that any proposed expenditure of hunting license tag and stamp money would, in fact, be used for game species conservation or hunting purposes.  In addition, SB 1172 would require the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) to consult with hunting-related conservation groups on proposed projects that would be funded from the accounts, while allowing such groups to assist DFG with much-needed habitat protection efforts.  Finally, the measure would require that any land that is acquired with hunting license tag or stamp revenue be open for, or provide access to, public hunting opportunities.

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Do High Gas Prices Mean Fewer Mallards in 2008?

Looks like ethanol production is causing more than just a shortage of corn for cattle feed. Not only is the price of gas going up, but so is the price of food. Increased food prices means more corn and wheat production this year.

 

These prices are good for farmers, in fact they may be too good as far as duck hunters are concerned. As corn and wheat prices rise, farmers till and seed more and more marginal ground. The news from Ducks Unlimited is that North Dakota alone will lose about 15% of its Conservation Reserve Program lands to tilling this year.

 

Therefore, a couple million acres of habitat will be put back into production. With changes on this scale, Ducks Unlimited is concerned that duck populations will be drastically impacted.

 

Without habitat for nesting and water for brood survival, ducks perish. Will we see a reduction in duck numbers and bag limits this coming season?

 

I guess we’ll find out next falll, but a reduction in duck numbers is probably what radio personality Tony Bruno calls “a stone-cold lock” or maybe its just a lead-pipe cinch.

 

We’ll find out come October.

 

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Double Band Day

 A couple years ago I shot a mallard drake on the last day of the season, as I approached the bird I could see a metal band on its leg. As I lifted it from the water I could see a second band on its other leg. It was late morning and this greenhead was my third of the morning. It was a very appropriate time to call and end to the 2005/06 waterfowl season.

At the time, it was unclear to me why a duck would be banded twice. I found out later, when I reported the find, that the second band was a $100 reward band. I eventually surmised the double “reward” banding was an effort to determine how many banded ducks were being killed and not reported.

I’d guess that my average for bagging banded birds is about one every two years. I’ve been hunting ducks for forty years and I’ve got 11 bands to my credit. However, the bands all been recovered during the last 15 years as during that time frame we’ve hunted on a club that has a high percentage of mallards and mallards are the duck most likely to be banded. I didn’t bag a single banded bird until 1993.

Last week I hunted on a day when the weather was very cold and I found the only spot on our club where the mallards were coming in to feed. It was a seldom-hunted pond that had a lot of watergrass and smartweed. It’s right next to camp and the ducks are typically leery of coming into this pond during daylight, except when it gets cold and they get very hungry, as was the case this day.

By early afternoon I had my limit of mallards and one bull sprig. Sitting down to pluck the birds and relax while watching the others who were still hunting, I realized that one of the mallards was banded. What a pleasant surprise. But the biggest surprise was revealed as I lifted the pintail. It had a band as well. My first banded pintail and also the first time I’ve ever bagged two banded birds in one day.

Once back home I eagerly submitted the numbers to Laurel Maryland over the internet. The sprig was banded in August of ’07 in Alaska and the mallard was banded that same month in Alberta, Canada.

Over the years I’ve bagged a couple other ducks that were banded in Canada with the farthest-banded bird being a snow goose from the Northwest Territories. I once bagged a banded Canada goose that was banded 12 years prior to the date I shot it. In general, most of the banded waterfowl I’ve shot were adults when banded so the age was at least the difference between the date I shot it and when it was banded. The exception was the Canada goose which was too young to fly when banded. Most of the banded mallards I’ve taken were banded in California or Oregon, but two mallard drakes were banded in Alberta..

I’ve found that shooting only greenheads seems to increase the number of banded birds one recovers in California. My guess is that mallards are the duck most often banded and that drakes are preferred because the return from banding will be maximized, so, if you want to collect bands, concentrate on mallards and don’t shoot hens – a good practice anyway.

Here’s a chronological list of my band recoveries, banding locations and dates:

Species                 Band date  Location Banded  Recovery date             

Canada Goose             6/23/81       New Dayton, AB        12/22/93

Mallard Drake              7/29/94       Benicia, CA                10/19/96

Mallard Drake              7/02/94       Benicia, CA                  1/04/07

Lesser Snow Goose     7/12/02       Banks Is. NWT            1/04/03

Mallard Drake              8/30/99       Tilley, AB                   12/29/03

Mallard Drake              8/03/02       Summer Lake, OR       1/25/04

Mallard Drake              7/31/01       Gustine, CA                12/07/05

Mallard Drake              8/10/03       Benicia, CA                  12/2/06

Mallard Drake              6/14/05       Summer Lake, OR      10/20/07

Pintail Drake                 8/8/07         Fairbanks, AK            12/29/07

Mallard Drake              8/8/07         AB                             12/29/07

  

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