Leg Irons

Every year the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service, and agencies ran by the states, place leg bands on a variety of birds across the country. Migratory birds, like ducks and geese, are some of the most commonly banded birds. Harvesting a bird with a leg band on it is a special joy for waterfowl hunters.
After harvesting a banded bird, most waterfowl hunters place the band on their lanyard, which holds the hunters duck and goose calls. “It’s like earning a buckeye sticker and putting it on your football helmet. It’s a badge of honor.” Explained Lyle Sinner, an avid waterfowl hunter and Fargo native.
Traditionally one must harvest a lot of ducks and geese before shooting a banded bird. Therefore, it is assumed that if a waterfowl hunter has a lot of bands, they have shot a lot of birds.
Some people can hunt their entire life and never shoot a bird that is banded. Other waterfowl hunters have shot quiet a few banded birds. It all depends on where you hunt and how many birds get banded in your area. However, you could potentially shoot a banded bird anytime, in any location.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife service uses data reported from leg bands to track the flight paths of migratory birds. Bands are also useful in determining harvest information and life span data of specific bird species. A few years ago I witnessed my friend shoot a banded drake mallard that turned out to be 12 years old and was banded in North Dakota about 50 miles from where it was shot.
Each band has a unique number that identifies the species of bird and the specific information about it. When you call a band number in, an operator will ask for the date and location of where the bird was harvested. You will then receive a certificate in the mail containing your name and information on the banded bird.
Along with regular bands, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service puts ‘reward bands’ on some birds. Usually they put these bands with a monetary value on adult birds. Reward bands are typically worth any where from 25 to 100 dollars. The government sends you a check only after you report the information regarding the banded bird to them. Getting paid to hunt, now that’s a nice bonus for anyone!
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife service are not the only ones that band birds. Some hunt clubs put leg bands on birds they release. Pheasants Forever, an organization for the preservation of pheasants, sometimes bands pheasants that they raise and release.
One of the rarer forms of waterfowl bands are Jack Miner bands. These bands have bible verses engraved on them. The Jack Miner family bands the birds in Ontario, Canada. It would be an incredible feat to shoot a duck or goose that was carrying a Jack Miner band.
Nicknames for leg bands are a common place among my friends and I. They are often referred to as: Jewelry, bling-bling, shine, hardware or leg irons. We refer to hunters who shoot a lot of banded birds as having “the force.”
Roughly 3.1 million leg bands have been reported to date. That is pretty small considering that since 1904 about 58 million birds have been banded in North America. Both of these numbers represent hundreds of different species of birds.
It has often been speculated in duck shacks and blinds across the country just what the ratio of banded birds to un-banded birds is. I have wondered this myself and have decided that there just isn’t any way to know for sure. Anyone could shoot a banded bird, and that is a beautiful thing.
Across North America roughly 85,000-banded birds are recovered or recorded annually. They make the hunt just a little bit more memorable and leave the hunter with a little souvenir. The first thing I do when I retrieve a harvested bird is check for a band. I encourage you to do the same. Band information can be reported to 1-800-327-BAND.

The Old Retreiver

Grey face,
Cloudy eyes,
Never jumps,
Always lies,

Scratch the belly,
Itch the ear,
Toss a treat,
Hold back tears,

Dog of a lifetime,
Companion of the ages,
Friend to the end,
Through all life stages.

Why I Hunt

In the fall of my senior year of college at the University of North Dakota I spent most of my time outside the classroom hunting. Inside the classroom I was learning valuable lessons taught by professors in the business school. One of my Profs was, Dr. Greg Patton, a great storyteller who related classroom information to real life. The class was Organizational Behavior; there I related many of the psychological theories to my own life.
As a hunter I found, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, which maps out the path to self-actualization, to have a special meaning for outdoorsmen. The theory states that a person cannot pass to the next tier towards self-actualization until the lower needs have first been satisfied. I believe that by participating in outdoor activities, particularly hunting and fishing, we can see who we truly are.
The first tier on the hierarchy is the basic physical needs that all humans require. This includes; food, water, shelter and warmth. Early humans hunted and fished not only for food, but for shelter and warmth as well. The pelts from large and small game animals were used make clothing and shelters.
In the U.S. today we have plenty of food and shelter, hence we engage in outdoor activities for more spiritual reasons. Yet nothing brings the hunting or fishing more full-circle like the actual consumption of the game. With food on the table and a roof over your head, most humans can easily step onto the second tier in the Maslow theory.
Safety; is security, stability and a freedom from fear in one’s life. Stability can be witnessed first hand with the changing of the seasons. With the end of winter comes spring, with green grass and warm water. Being in the outdoors and witnessing sunrises brings a sense of security that there is more important things in life. Interacting with nature gives one the feeling of actually being alive.
Belonging-Love is the third tier humans most face on the road to self-actualization according to Maslow. This sense of belonging can be received through family, friends and life partners. Spending time with others while hunting and fishing strengthens relationships. A love for the outdoors has taken me many places and allowed me to relate to many people along the way. The hunting trips of my youth brought me closer to my cousins and uncles.
Self-esteem comes from achievement, mastery, recognition and respect. With a passion for the outdoors you strive to be successful at what you are doing. One reads articles, studies game habits, surfs the web, learns new techniques and spends time participating in outdoor activities. Mastering anything is a continual process.
Once you become confident in yourself and abilities one can move to the fifth and final tier of self-actualization. Discovering oneself is all about pursuing your inner talents, creativity and self-fulfillment. Through hunting and fishing you discover who you are by overcoming obstacles and challenging the elements.
I often get asked why I hunt and I try to explain to people that it is my total existence. I am not saying that the outdoors is for everyone. There are many ways in which humans search to discover who they truly are. Through my college education I discovered that I belonged outdoors. I am as sure of it, as I am that the sun will rise over the St. Croix in the morning.

Blake's Ice

Blake’s Ice

Ice on the motor,
Ice on the decoys,
Sand beneath my feet,

Ice on the river,
Ice on the gun,
A waterfowler’s treat,

Ice on the waders,
Ice on the gloves,
We never face defeat.


Reflections of hunting the Missouri River with Blake Hermal

Ducks vs. Geese

I have often been asked what I enjoy the pursuit of most: ducks or geese. It is a difficult question for a person who would prefer to spend his time scanning the skyline above decoys for waterfowl. For me, I cut my teeth hunting ducks at my family’s lake cabin with my dad and relatives. On my first hunting trip with ‘the guys’, they harvested the first Canada goose ever on our lake. From that moment on I was hooked on honkers. As the recent years have brought an abundance of geese, dark and light, I tend to tip the scales towards the long-necked waterfowl.
When talking about ducks and duck hunting the conversations often focus on low population counts and the poor state of their breeding grounds. The Mississippi and Central flyways were handed the “liberal” season package for the 2006 season, but these liberal seasons may soon be a thing of the past. Droughts and predators on the prairies have had a negative impact on the duck population.
I will continue to duck hunt regardless of the state of the population and lowered limits. I will just have to hunt smarter, doing little things like making the effort to shoot only drakes. With all the negativity surrounding the population of the ducks, I feel that some hunters are even ridiculed for shooting legal limits of ducks when hunting is not the cause of lower populations.
At twenty-five years of age I have come to the conclusion that Mother Nature plays the biggest role when it comes to duck production. Wet springs and dry summers can help duck populations sustain. Ducks Unlimited does a good job setting aside land for waterfowl, and Delta has done an excellent job raising the need the for predator control. Still at the end of the day I feel that the greatest benefit these organizations provide is an awareness of healthy waterfowl environment and waterfowl hunting practices.
If people are not familiar with the sport, they will never have any interest or concern for it. As hunters we need to encourage others to try hunting, or go at least to gain an understanding of why others pursue it. DU and Delta keep waterfowl hunters out in the public’s awareness through many types of media.
If one looked at numbers, they would conclude that our own government, through Federal Duck Stamp dollars, has done the most for the waterfowl population. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has not only set aside land, they have also trapped predators on that land as well. I know that in the past Delta Waterfowl has encouraged hunters to buy additional Federal Duck Stamps, and I would suggest the same. Funding through the Federal Duck Stamps dollars can produce more birds for your buck.
Personally, I volunteer with a local Delta chapter and help out when I can with the Minnesota Duck and Goose Callers Association. I have helped build wood duck boxes with kids for the Minnesota Waterfowl Association and volunteer at the MWA Woodie Camp. I do my arguing for the ducks behind the scenes in low tones but with firm conviction.
One thing that I have never felt remorse for is bringing a Canada goose to the ground with a load of steel shot. With populations of Canada geese as high as they have ever been, there is no shortage. I encourage others to think of the possibility of more special hunting seasons to help keep their populations in check.
With September seasons for harvesting resident Canada geese and a Conservation Order in place for Snow geese, there has never been more opportunity for hunting. I believe that it is these opportunities that have allowed the younger generations of waterfowl hunters to embrace goose hunting. I myself have fallen into this category where mild weather and liberal bag limits have made hunting geese very enjoyable.
Snow and Canada geese are both vocal and social birds. Their responsiveness to calling and decoys makes hunting them a treat. Goose calling has become a pastime where I live Minnesota, and I embrace it. Calling contests for ducks and geese have created excitement among the younger hunters across the Midwest. It should come as no surprise that Minnesota competitive goose callers have excelled in competitions across the country.
This fall whether I am hunting in Minnesota or North Dakota, I will be setting up for geese. Does this mean that I enjoy goose hunting more? A little, I guess. However I will shoot plenty of ducks along the way. Every waterfowl hunter worth his steel shot knows that ducks decoy better to goose decoys than duck decoys. As much as I enjoy hunting ducks, I will continue to target geese. As waterfowl hunters we could all become conversationalists by targeting the high populations of geese. My suggestion would be to start consulting others for good goose recipes.

Camo Is My Favorite Color

My mother never dressed me in a camo baby suit and I did not hunt at an especially early age. It’s not that I wasn’t extremely into hunting when I was young. It’s just that I wasn’t raised in the biz. Today I go to Outdoor Expos and I see all kinds of young kids wearing camo and getting involved.
I have to believe that I am one of a few children that actually played ‘hunting’ when I was a kid; minus my neighbor Matt and his brother Andy. While most kids were playing with Tonka Trucks and marbles we were in imaginary flooded timber. In the afternoon we would be lying in the rice fields next to a kiddy pool full of decoys.
I have never claimed to be a ‘trend setter’, but I would like to mention that I wore camouflage on regular basis before it was considered in style. Of course the camouflage patterns I wore were shadow grass and Advantage, rather than the green military camo the kids wear.
I may not have started the camo trend, but I have certainly benefited from it. I have a couple old hats I would now feel comfortable wearing out almost anywhere, especially in Northern Minnesota and North Dakota.
Today I wear a pair of camouflage sandals, shorts and bracelet on a regular basis. Not only do I feel cool, I also feel comfortable wearing the patterns I wear when I do what I enjoy the most. Camouflage is my favorite color.