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Latest Rod and Rifle magazine but you are not alone, I see it all the time in other magazines on tv or on whatever ... A pile of ducks all laid out for a photo and what do we see ? All the drakes belly up and all the hens buried underneath... If you want to pretend that you dont shoot hens, dont put them in the photo, if you are happy to shoot hens then mix them up for the photo.
But the hens don’t have nice photogenic green heads!
I was thinking that was a rhetorical question.......
Its from the library ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Mohawk .308
We do it. I wouldn’t say it’s hiding the fact we shoot hens.. couldn’t care less. In my mind we just appreciate a really nice green head so they get top of the pile.. If you shoot a big stag I guarantee the photo won’t focus on the shitty spiker beside him.
still trying to stick to drakes and conserve hens wouldnt be a bad thing would it.:yaeh am not durnk:
Yep it makes for challenging shooting!Quote:
Originally Posted by gsp follower
I try to do this with bigger mobs. Or if there is a pair I try to take the drake out first. Helps out in the spring with more mums around for next years batch!
For sure, opening can be a great time to do it when there’s ducks everywhereQuote:
Originally Posted by gsp follower
IF the ratio of drakes to hens WAS an issue.....making a drake only season in July august or september would make far more sense to me...targeting the rapist mobs would give mother duck a break to raise her broods without being pounced on constantly.
we shoot what comes in,usually try to target drakes first and it seems to run at about 60/40 ratio at end of tally up....
other than parries..the whitehead goes down first....often drake will come back if you dont get him too.
I have not been able to find any data on NZ but i was under the impression [rightly or wrongly ?] that the mallard drake hen ratio was 70 /30 in favour of drakes, due to predation of hens during the nesting season.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
Here is a bit of info from Nth America where it talks about the hunter harvest for drakes is 2 or 3 times higher than for hens and yet drakes still out number hens.
https://www.ducks.org/conservation/w...owl-sex-ratios
Jenn Sheppard who did her thesis on breeding ecology and productivity on mallard ducks in NZ dedicated her thesis to those who "go for green and stay within the limit" which infers to me that she sees hen harvest a limiting factor in mallard numbers ? One of her influential professors also said that "one of the simplest ways that people can manage waterfowl populations is refrain from harvesting females " again hen harvest is a limiting factor in waterfowl numbers ?
So the whole mate for life in pairs thing is a load of crap then?
Do female ducks taste better as with most other species of mammals and fowl?
Im not a duck hunter just in case you cant tell :D
Mating for life ends when a life ends. The other just moves and and finds a new mate for the rest of the next life.
parries pair up and stayed paired for the most part....if you shoot one,as SS has said,life is ended and the remaining bird will "live to love again",there must be the occasional divorce but it gets hushed up.
I BELIEVE greys stay in their pairs
Mallards however live by the four F mantra
comparing KIWI mallards to American mallards is dumb...nest predation over there has snakes n coyotes to take into account compared to our mustilids and cats which they also have....
there has been ooodles of research over the years about greylards...grey mallard crosses/crossing it appears to be contrary to what you would think...its actually grey drakes pairing with mallard hens that produce the most offspring...MAYBE because dad sticks around to help out...unlike the hen who is woed by the shiney green head who has his wicked way,often in a right royal gangbang session with his buddies then buggers off to find next hen,leaving hen with fertilized eggs and NO HELP at all.
Ive seen mallard gangbanging mobs chase hen away from her brood (dont care if she has headache or not in mood) the ducklings were out in open paddock with no help at all and hawks got stuck in while Mum was trying to get away from drakes
the absolute worst Ive seen was a road killed hen on grass verge outside our yard...DRAKES kept visiting for 3 days till ground was muddy all around her by now cold carcass.....I did nt actually see any necrophilia happen but hen was looking rather worse for wear as days progressed.
Yes
Dunno what this thread is about just read title
Where did i make the comparison between NZ and Nth America ? All i did was put up a bit of information of what potentially could happen or BE HAPPENING. I clearly stated that i have not been able to find the sex ratio of NZ mallard ducks.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
Both grey and mallard ducks are seasonally monogamous.
Yes upon reflection it is a silly title.. my bad.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ryan_Songhurst
hmmminfo on where???????/Quote:
Originally Posted by sore head stoat
mallards are seasonally monogamous....REALLY??????????? Isuggest you need to get out more and actually open your eyes..mallard drakes use the four F mantra
4 F's? I didn't know they had fingers?:wtfsmilie:Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
find them,
feel them,
fornicate/f#%$ them
and then forget them
but yes,maybe little feeling going on,thought if made it 3 Fs someone would get confused......ho hum
A few posts back you were telling us that grey ducks mated for life, that was wrong .Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
Now you are arguing with scientists telling us that they dont know what they are saying ?
Grey duck | New Zealand Birds Online
read the first sentence under the headline "Breeding"
Mallard | New Zealand Birds Online
Read the second sentence under the headline "Breeding".
Yes i again repeat the information is from Nth America and i again repeat the heavy predation on hens could be happening in NZ, i have not to date been able to find any info on sex ratios of mallards in NZ. Have you ?Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
NZ DOESNT have coyotes or snakes...so our predation WILL/HAS to be different.....
NO I didnt say greys mated for life....I said they paired up and I believe they stayed paired up and DAD stuck around to help raise kids....
read the forth line in reguards to mallards...they mate with anything they can get on top of...argue with Murry Williams if you like....
decoys in NZ have traditionally been sold 7-8 hens to 3-4 drakes so our decoy spread were hen heavy...to match what is seen...in USA they go drake heavy...
mallard drakes are as randy as a marine on shore leave,will mate with anything which is why you see so much variation around...they are like the travelling salesman who shows up all shiney and flash looking,has his wicked way and leaves hen with babies to deal with alone...a true solo mum
thats from one of three books
keith drapers waterfowl tail
bill Jamesons out for a duck
or Murry Williams early waterfowl in NZ
or a combination of all three.
It doesnt matter a rats arse to a mallard hen what it is eaten by is my guess...Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
Grey ducks, nah dad doesnt hang around as you said..
I will stick with the science.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
We have traditionally used more hens to match our grey duck and grey hybrid duck , NOT because we have an imbalance of more hens
YES