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I gotta brag alittle I got my first band this morning. I figured I would never get one, especially hunting up in the hills but the drake woodie I got this morning was wearing some jewlery. The banded duck was also my buddy's dogs first retrieve. It sure made for a special morining in the slough. One I will remember for quite a while.

I have got a real good picture I wanted to post but I cant figure out how.

Congratulations on your first band! Now you will be flipping ducks and checking feet for the rest of your life!

Congats, One down a life time to go

Congratulations Hotty Totty, I've been duck hunting for 25 yrs & have bagged only two banded ducks(both mallards) - I still remember both vividly. It's odd how some folks seem to get bands much more frequently than others, guess those ducks with jewelry are just plain scared to come by me .
Hope there are more in your future. Good luck!

Man GC that statement is so true. I check the legs of every bird we retrieve in the field and then check em all again when I am cleaning the birds. Pretty shameless, just don't want to let one slip through the cracks.

Congrats HT!

Apparently bands do slip through the cracks on occasion. There's a duck picker in the Stuttgart area that I use when I'm up there. As of last year, he had 16 bands on a string that he collected from birds that have been brought to him. Three of them had come in just that year. He said that he keeps them that way, in case anyone wants to come back and try to claim one, but has never had anyone ask. So apparently, those 16 hunters never even saw the bands.

Look closely!!

Congradulations Hotty-Toddy!!!!!!!!!!!!! I, myself only have one band so far. It came off of a Woodie Drake also. But, it happened to be my first duck ever harvested. You can imagine the sand my buddies raised. Especially the ones who have been hunting for years with no bands of their own. However, their cussing fits turned into pride toward me. That made it even better.

Many more to you

motherducker

GOOD FEELING!! GOT MY FIRST LAST YEAR OPENING DAY OFF OF A MALLARD DRAKE. CALL IN THE BAND YOU'LL GET A COOL CERTIFICATE THAT WILL TELL YOU ALL THE DETAILS ON THE BIRD. THE ONE I SHOT WAS BANDED IN WISCONSON IN 1995 I THOUGHT IT WAS AMAMZING THAT DUCK WAS SEVEN YEARS OLD!!! CONRATS AND HOPE THERE WILL BE MANY MORE TO COME. VMAN

It'll really be interesting to see where the little bugger came from. Most all of the refuges in Mississippi band wood ducks. The first banded woodie I shot was near Starkville and I was certain to find it had been banded at Noxubee. NOT - turns out it was banded near Paris TN. The 2nd was shot at Mahanna many years ago and I figured it just had to come from Yazoo NWR. NOT - was banded way up in Minnesota! Congrats. Holler back and tell us where it came from.

Congrats!!! I have yet to bag a duck with jewelery, but I keep checking!!

I got my first band today. The first shot of the morning, I landed a nice little wood duck drake. I saw the band about as quick as I got to him. Its a great feeling, because I am the type of fellow; I figured that never would happen to me. But there he laid just pretty as you please on his back with that banded leg sticking straight up for me to see. It made me look twice as hard the rest of the day at everything we shot. I am just wondering now how long I'll be doing that?????? Years and years I think!!!!!!

Hot Damn!!! Hail Yes!!!

Wildfowler-Interesting post.I would think that with all the regulations surrounding migratoty birds,the picker should know exactly whose duck he's dealing with,and just give them the band when they pick up their order. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I have a theory about banded ducks that I would like some feedback on.

Some places seem to produce more banded birds than others.For instance-Of approximately 1000 birds,killed in the hole I hunt over a 2 year period,there were at least 10 banded.A friend of mine who guides can account for the same number of ducks,over the same period-at another area,with 0 banded.
I believe that ducks imprint on certain migration patterns,and if you happen to hunt in a place where ducks from a banding site go,you are much more likely to kill a banded bird.

Possible? or Total Hooey?

sportsman

P.S. I almost forgot.....Congrats On The BAND Hotty Toddy

Congrats Hotty Toddy!!!!! Ya'll win the egg bowl and you get a banded duck all within about a week! Must be nice......

I'm still looking for jewelery on the ducks I shoot, but no luck. I wonder about what 450 was saying b/c I know a guy that killed probably 10 bands in about 3 years hunting one particular area in the state and never killed a single one where we usually hunt. I never knew if it was because of migratory paths or what. My cousin shot a woodie last year that was banded in D.C. and another guy I know got one banded in Maryland.