Marking Birds

ebruder

ebruder

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Kingston
Hey guys...

I have a question for you...

I'm pretty new at duck hunting... not a complete rookie... but only a couple seasons under my belt...

Went out today... got a nice little black duck...

But I also connected really well with a mallard... folded him right up dead before he hit the water... he went down into some marsh grass... I took a land mark off a dead tree, and headed out in the canoe... I thought for sure he'd be easy to find... landed only about 40 yds ahead of me, not too deep into the grass...

Long story short, after wading around in the marsh grass for 45 minutes, I didn't find him... I have a dog... but she's only 5 months old and couldn't handle the terrain so I left her in the canoe...

My question is... how do you guys mark where they go down?

I was thinking of a tennis ball... that way it's bright and I can see it... although may not be able to throw it far enough... Smoke grenade? Streamer? Use a bow with a bow fishing line on it... then just follow the line???

Any suggestions... I'm pretty bummed out that I didn't find this guy...

EB
 
Be prepared to get stumped a few more times before you start finding them with ease.
The duck obviously wasnt dead, but rather wounded and found some grass to hide under otherwise you would have found it.
If there was water it may have dove under and grabbed onto the bottom and died hiding from you as you tromped on by.
So, how does one mark the spot...do not take your eyes off where it was last seen, triangulate the spot with a couple of land marks if possible or even this ..you where 10yrds short of where it actually landed...has happened to me many a time, you win some you lose some.
Best Regards,
Rob
 
FLHTCUI
is correct. I don't have many go under water. However I find that most land 10-15 feet past the furthest part I thought it could land, and in one goose's case it landed 160yards+ away from where I shot it. That one was recovered after alot of head scratching and alot of luck.
 
Dont take your eyes of it and if it even twitches when it hits water whack it again. I realize this isnt possible with grass in your particular situation.

Losing any animal sucks. Waterfowling is probably the hardest hunting to have a perfect recovery rate.
 
ALL good advice here... and I'll just repeat some of it:

As a beginner, if a bird falls in the water and is moving at all, blast it again! With experience you'll learn how a mortally wounded duck moves vs one that is planning a getaway, but when in doubt, shoot it again.

If a bird lands in the grass, try not to take your eye off it, and go straight to the spot. It will often be farther 'out' along the sight line than you thought. Birds with any amount of life will try (and succeed) to bury themselves under the grass.. even stone dead ones can fall and be partly covered. After losing several birds this way, I simply vowed not to shoot any more over the grass (without a dog).. just too many lost birds.

The nose of ANY dog is better than the eyes of any human. It would have been a good idea to get the dog out & sniff around. Even an untrained but curious dog might sniff out the bird that you couldn't see.

Keep at it, and if the dog isn't up to it, just try not to drop any into the grass. You'll feel FAR worse losing a dead or wounded bird than passing up a few.
 
I once had a Canada goose try and swim away after being hit hard...well hard enough to break a wing.
When I pulled the anchor and went after it in the skiff the dam thing dove under the water and all I could do was watch the bubbles till it came up again.
The trick here is to do doughnuts around the bubbles tiring the bird out and eventually it will come to the surface to tired to dive anymore and you should be able to retrieve it then.
Of course one needs an outboard in order to do this effectively.
When shooting at a bird on the water aim below the bird and at as shallow an angle as possible too.
Rob
 
Don't underestimate a 5 months old dog's nose or abilities. I had a yellow lab years ago that at 4 1/2 months brought in alot of birds in thick ####ty cover all season. Nothing like throwing them into it to get them used to hunting in it. If you get out there with her your chances go up 100% with that nose working.I'll take a dog's nose over my eyes any day!!
I put down a pair of birds last week. 15 yard shots tops. Both folded in a ball with a cloud of feathers like a pillow blew up, looked stone dead in the air! Took a 1/2 hour of chasing across the slough for the dog to come up with them. They can cover water fast and be in a completely different spot than you when they fall in cover and take off swimming.

And not to criticize Rob here but after 35+ years of hunting I have not known many species of wildlife to commit suicide in an attempt to evade capture. Grabbing bottom IMO is an old timers tale from years gone by when guys couldn't find the bird that went under. Hunting with dogs for waterfowl just as long has taught me that 99% of the time the birds run sub-surface (having seen it often) with just the nostrils of the beak protruding to get air and head for the nearest cover. I have recovered many downed birds along shorelines after seeing them dive under and thinking they were gone and held to bottom as the old timers used to say. The dog's nose has proved that theory dead many, many times over!!
 
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I once played "whack a mole" with a ring neck that I had already shot and hit twice. I was in a canoe and the duck would come up for a split second and I had to cover all 360 degrees around me.

FLHTCUI said:
I once had a Canada goose try and swim away after being hit hard...well hard enough to break a wing.
When I pulled the anchor and went after it in the skiff the dam thing dove under the water and all I could do was watch the bubbles till it came up again.
The trick here is to do doughnuts around the bubbles tiring the bird out and eventually it will come to the surface to tired to dive anymore and you should be able to retrieve it then.
Of course one needs an outboard in order to do this effectively.
When shooting at a bird on the water aim below the bird and at as shallow an angle as possible too.
Rob
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