mike rossi

The South Shore Waterfowlers Assoc. on Long Island will be having the 34th annual Duckboat Show & Waterfowl Festival Sunday October 26th, 2014 at Cedar Beach in Babylon 8am-3pm Information can be found at www.sswa.org

Register to vote Sign NYDH's Petition (link below) Petition to allow the DEC to continue to have the authority to manage invasive species to protect native wildlife – please sign and share – your participation is extremely important! Suggested “talking points” if you want to add to the petition (not required) Talking Points on Mute Swans Part 2 1. Mute swans undermine the recovery of imperiled wildlife and conservation projects targeting native species. 2. Mute swans make the conservation of native wildlife more expensive. 3. Every conservation dollar used for mute swans is one dollar diverted away from native wildlife, including vulnerable species. http://www.thepetitionsite.com/832/485/616/veto-s-065889-a-and-a-08790-a/

http://secure.campaigner.com/Campaigner/Public/t.show?7fvww--3rg7o-ydbvlc7&_v=2

But the game isn't over yet.... Can we at least equal the number of lawmakers whose decision we are protesting? That would be ONE more signature.... Can we equal the total number of lawmakers? That would be 26 more signatures.... Sign on at the link below and share it among hunters! http://www.thepetitionsite.com/832/485/616/veto-s-065889-a-and-a-08790-a/

In addition to what Dove Huntress posted; the importance of electronic petitions should also be stressed. Once a suitable base of people are organized (5,000?) they will be asked to sign a web-based petition. We have one going right now about mute swan management and the participation indicates we are a long way away from launching a mourning dove petition. Hunters are skeptical about e-petitions for a variety of reasons, but it is essential that we grow away from that. This is going to require hunters to tell other hunters to indeed sign these petitions. Without use of this tool the dove movement will be much slower. Another factor is participation in the public review phase. Even if legislative approval is granted and signed into law by the governor, the DEC will open up a proposal for a new hunting season to public review. This does NOT require physically attending meetings. It is essential that more hunters become engaged in public review periods and learn what to communicate in them. Expect a very large response by anti-hunters during a public review phase of a mourning dove hunting proposal. Hunters must meet that the best they can in numbers, but equally important is in making factual, relevant science-based public comment. Even outnumbered, better comments will add weight. Same goes for letters to newspapers. We do not advise writing the media unless dove hunting is attacked, then address that attack. This is not an issue to be on the offense with, few , if any, hunting issues are... The antis will do this to get others to make a public comment resonating with their arguments. They will also do this to intimidate legislators by producing the illusion that so many voters in the media's readership area are anti-dove hunting. It is a public opinion battle tactic they have used successfully for many decades so take it seriously and get involved.

Any particular brand and/or style of bell with a more pleasant sound than others? Doesn't make sense to listen to a bell all day that doesn't sound good...

I don't know if its too late but I am pretty sure Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge has a controlled waterfowl hunt (lottery). I think there are a few other controlled waterfowl hunts out that way, on state or county parks, but I am going from memory of something I didn't pay much attention to because I live far from there. If you are not set on a lottery hunt, you need to do what everyone else does, learn habitat and behavior of waterfowl, scout, and ask permission if it is private land.

LOOK UP Senate Bill 02039 Directs the commissioner of DEC to remove peregrine falcons from the endangered species list and to promulgate regulations for their use in falconry. (Several states have took great effort to allow use of peregrines and other states have pending legislation to allow it and/or broaden it, as does NY right now senate bill 02039) Preamble: I am not well-informed about falconry, but at some point it does require taking birds from the wild. Some parts within the falconry regulations make stipulations about actually the trapping of the birds. If you are implying that raising birds in captivity makes this different, I disagree. Keeping captive wildlife that is endangered or threatened is considered by most wildlife professionals to be a bad idea, except in the most dire of cases such as when populations are extremely small. Peregrines have recovered somewhat and people keeping them for hunting are not the same as conservation programs employing captive breeding for release into the wild. The administration of falconry also requires that a disportionate amount of DEC resources, one example being facility inspections. If there are 250 falconers, and (assuming) everybody gets inspected only one time, that's 250 days - an entire years worth of salary for a conservation officer or biologist Although falconers may be charged for a permit, they do not buy items subject to Pitman Robertson tax. The DEC bends over backwards for 250 falconers and I subsidize it. The FWS and 49 state wildlife agencies bend over backwards for 3,000 falconers and I subsidize that. And as a result, it may reduce my opportunity to see peregrine falcons in the wild... Furthermore, falconry is an esoteric activity which very, very few people have the money and other resources needed to participate. Although I agree falconry is interesting and can understand why people are in to it, the intention is to debunk the widespread arguments about the lack of interest in dove hunting, the lack of money the DEC has, that its all about a show of hands, and the legislature has all these big priorities they cant find time to look at dove proposals. Furthermore captive peregrine falcons do not make biological sense yet the DEC and other agencies have still made exception, possibly an exception to the Federal Endangered Species Act - a bad precedent, for a small number of people. We also need to consider the responsibility of the DEC, in theory and to some extent by legal mandate to manage the resources in a way that distributes them as equally as possible to all people. Falconry just isn't an option for 99.9999999% of people....

I guarantee that if you leave these photos online, including on this forum, that anti-hunters will find them and repost them and use you as an example.

Not sure I understand your question. Whats next you ask... Answer: a new law so that falconers can use peregrine falcons instead of the several other birds currently legal to use and possess for falconry... But some might find it interesting that several states have made new laws for falconers who want to use one particular bird of prey (peregrine falcon). It wasn't good enough to use a variety of other raptors, they want to use the peregrine. The laws governing falconry take into account whether the bird is native and/or its conservation status. The peregrine is a native and its status is threatened or endangered , I am not sure which or if its a federal or state listing. As a result, falconry regulations traditionally have not allowed keeping peregrines and/or using them to hunt with. Only 3,000 people nationwide participate in falconry - some states report only 3 permit holders.... I think NY told us they have 250 (but they also told us they have 10,000 trappers, lol...) A number of states passed new laws to allow the use of peregrines. What about New York? NY has legislation pending right now which will probably pass, yet they wont bother to look at dove hunting proposals.... What makes this even more egregious is that mourning doves are within the top ten most numerous birds in North America. By contrast, the peregrine is a listed species. People are objecting to hunting of doves, but don't flinch at allowing people to kidnap fledgling peregrines from the wild, even though they have other species they can use, they want to use the peregrine much as other hunters want to use a crossbow, muzzleloader, or what have you... When the states started doing this, they had to first get the authorization from the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Obviously federal and state biologist believe this can be done without much impact, however look at the irony here: its ok to take birds considered imperiled; but not ok to take the mourning dove, considered a " species of least conservation concern", one of the most abundant, and resilient to harvest... All along NY hunters are told over and over how busy the lawmakers are, the DEC is busy, and interest in doves is low - yet they pass laws for like two people who want to use a falcon instead of a red tail hawk or any number of other birds currently legal to possess and use with a permit... I am going to backtrack: Chenango Dave or someone might reply that taking a few fledgling peregrines would not effect populations because of natural deaths. I have heard falconers or biologists advocating for falconry argue this. I understand the concept of "compensatory losses to the population". However, that concept is applied to species with high reproductive rates and healthy populations - such as mourning doves. Never before has a biologist suggested compensatory loss to justify taking a rare species and/or one with challenges such as habitat loss, poisoning, low reproductive rate, loss of genetic diversity - all plaguing peregrine falcons. So you guys tell me why. How do a fraction of 3,000 people nationwide or one or two in a state out of 50 or so suggest enough "political support" to drive a peregrine bill into law? its pretty obvious that those desiring a dove season in NY, NJ, Michigan, Connecticut, Mass, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine have been treated like second class citizens...

“Ninety-nine percent of all the incidents that happen every year are due to people who blatantly disregard the first four safety regulations that we put out to students.” Those are: always point the muzzle of a gun in a safe direction; treat every firearm as if it were loaded; identify your target and what lies beyond; keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire, Crittenden said. “It’s those last two that really get people in trouble when they disregard them,” he said. They need to add to that "always know exactly where everyone you are hunting with is at all times.... And why no blaze orange while hunting squirrels?

The early goose season closes on September 25 for that exact reason; so that the resident goose population can be harvested with less change of harvesting the migratory goose population. That is also the reason why the higher bag limits and relaxed regulations are allowed in September but not during the regular season.

Read about why the "majority" doesn't mean squat... Articles on this website continues until you hit the Tweet / Twitter button on the bottom. http://nydovehunting.weebly.com/is-lack-of-interest-credible.html

Are youth seasons about them getting their first deer or about getting them to appreciate the process of hunting? I think its just a little silly to think you can or should, sample hunting like food....

When you hunt off your back you can only use so many decoys. The trend among waterfowlers has been realism - full bodies and flocked heads and tails but I go with the lightest weight, Off course the lightweight dekes are always as durable either, another trade off. When I was in the Midwest, were the wind always blows, wind socks were great. With that wind, even if you could use full bodies the motion trumps. They make some that stay half open without wind, but for me, I just don't feel confident looking at a pile of garbage in the field. I compromise with silhouettes, but lugging the stakes isn't that easy. I found a few foam shells, but when the wind does blow, you sometimes have problems, plus you have to attach the heads in the dark, another step. They came out with a full body foam, but many people have complained the shape doesn't bounce back. People also have complained about the carry lite shell deforming and geese flaring from the slotted appearance. I am thinking of trying a few inflatables (Cherokee sports), at least a few for motion with the silos. IMO inflating them at 3 am isn't an option, so carrying them out inflated may be lighter, but the bulk is still there. So I am thinking a few mixed in with the silos for motion. Another problem with the silos is the mud accumulating on the stakes, but I haven't found a better compromise. Forget about assembling/disassembling the stakes from them as well, that would be impractical if not impossible in the cold/dark. Gotta be careful with those stakes though, including the dog. Don't kid yourself with more and more guys learning to kill 50, 60, 100 Canada geese a weekend it will make interest in dove hunting in NY harder. You know bag limit on doves 15; bag limit on September geese 15.... With the limit on snows even more (25 a day) as more guys learn to hunt them fewer will have a desire for doves. But as you know, 6 dove decoys fit in your pocket or you can hunt dove without decoys, so dove hunting would open up more opportunities for more people or just give goose hunters an occasional break from a more rigorous hunt. Since the DEC wants populations of both Canada and snow geese reduced, that is another reason they may not be as enthused about a dove season - it might reduce the harvest of geese, especially the September canadas... I know I will continue to hunt both. As a matter of fact, I often hunt with a dove shell in one barrel and a goose shell in the other barrel, set both decoys and use the barrel selector...

Yeah, that's the message, all it takes to be a hunter is willingness to pull the trigger.... Put him in a dove field or a beaver impoundment after wood ducks and teal - he wont have time to analyze it. And when he shoots he will have missed. And when he gets home he will be exhausted. He might then still be unsure about hunting, but for different reasons....

The kid's attitude might have been much different if the hunting was done under fair-chase conditions, the adults were not so overbearing, and the NY Times wasn't filming it for a documentary. And, yes, I am saying that hunt was not under fair chase conditions. Perhaps youth seasons designed to create sub- sporting conditions do not really encourage new hunters but do the opposite? Or encourage one type of hunter but not the other? I have walked up to deer I could have shot, but I never actually walked up to a deer and shot it. There was no woodsman ship, ethics, knowledge about wildlife, or even physical exertion involved in that hunt. The camaraderie was arguing or dictating. Few good memories come from that hunt... If a non-hunter or anti-hunter charged there was nothing to this hunt but using animals for target practice, could you make a defensive argument? I could not...

Doc, There is a difference because I am AWARE this may be a trap. The adult in this video, and the several dozen who got duped in the 1970s with the Guns of Autumn, had no clue. I suspect the father in this video was told by the NY Times this was a documentary about youth hunting seasons or youth hunting or about hunting as a family activity. If it was in fact such a documentary, the producers would have selected better representatives of the sport. Instead, they found a couple of rogues and an innocent kid and made hunters/hunting and especially, the concept of encouraging youth to hunt, look bad. Yes the fact that it was NY Times should have been a tip off from square one - the Times is NEVER pro hunting or neutral. Back to the Greene NY Crow Down. The club members refused to interview with this Andrew Revkin dude. However, one club officer made a statement using a lot of ten dollar words that didn't draw any conclusions and was meaningless. So what Revkin did was go ahead without an interview, wrote the article anyway, and did include the club officer's statement in a sarcastic manner. So, in this case, not responding did not help. If they contact you - they are definitely going to write an article or make a film. If they interview you, they want you to say things that make your position to look bad. If you present information that is favorable to hunting they may or may not publish it, but if you present unfavorable information they will certainly publish it.... Therefore, if you are a good spokesman, you should speak, if you are not a good spokesman, you should not. Anytime mainstream media based out of a metro area is involved a red flag should be waving at you. However, as I did with this college run Outdoors magazine proceed with caution at all times with the media. It would be instructional to compare this video, the Guns of Autumn, and other so-called documentaries about hunting by the NY Times and similar media with the hunting documentaries produced by Texas Parks and Wildlife and other professional wildlife organizations. (I posted several on here). There is quite a contrast...

In the 1970's a major TV station, I think it was ABC, aired prime time "The Guns Of Autumn" and a few months later "The Guns of Autumn Echo." The first film was a documentary over two hours long that had clip after clip of scenes exactly like this video. Several dozen of hunters who were filmed said "they were tricked into filming what they thought was something for the country's bicentennial. ABC said okay will do GOA Echo and you guys (hunters) can give your side of the story. All Echo did was make hunters look even worse, it was more of the same, except worse. The moral of the story: Don't talk to the media and don't agree to being filmed unless you are trained in doing so. The NY Times contacted the club holding the Greene NY Crow Down and butchered them last fall. I suspect they also wanted to speak to the Holley Squirrel Slam people as well. Just yesterday, we got a post on NY Dove Hunting's facebook page from someone asking for dove hunters to interview. We deleted the post, but I did call the number provided, but nobody answered. We also checked out the person who made the request - he had nothing on his face book page indicating he was associated with the magazine he said he writes for or is a hunter. The magazine he cited, is college - run and he apparently attends that college, but no indication he is on the magazine staff. We also looked at the magazine, an "outdoors" magazine, but no articles about hunting. Not to be arrogant, but if he calls me back, I will let him interview me, after cautioning him not to misquote or mischaracterize my statements, but I am prepared to speak to him. I wouldn't want someone on our page not prepared to be interviewed by him.

I would give second thought to the strategy of following other hunters in hopes they push a bird to you, for safety as well as ethical reasons. Taking a stand in a field and waiting is not what I mean, but some hunters will move along with hunters working the cover, sometimes without being seen by the hunters they are following. Another point is don't shoot low flying birds. Remember: "If it's low, let it go".... The OP is asking about how/where to hunt pheasant as well as teaming up with other hunters. It is difficult to answer how/where, because despite all the criticism about hunting released pheasant they are more unpredictable than just about anything you will ever hunt. While true, at times they can be unpredictably easy, they also can be very difficult quarry. The only true answer to the question how to hunt released pheasant is: with hard work and common sense. As a rule of thumb, if you hunt released pheasant on a fairly regular basis, and you don't at least occasionally flush woodcock, grouse, and cottontails, you likely are not working the cover enough and/or moving too fast. Yes, hunters will tell you they never see grouse, woodcock, and rabbits, but they are there. Even released pheasant are there and evade many hunters. I caution against getting into the mode where you think it is absolutely essential to get out there with crowds of hunters on opening day or right in the morning on stocking days, believing that unless you do all the birds are gone. It is a good idea to go out on off days or at least in the afternoon when most hunters are gone. What is nice about pheasant hunting is that it is not equipment intensive. But if you invest in good waxed cotton pants and jacket you keep (some) of the thorns out of your skin and stay dry. Expect the uplands to be soggy and wet, so you need waterproof boots as well. Don't even think of upland hunting without wearing blaze orange either.

Hunt waterfowl for a year or two, you will start to like dogs...

That is what many hunters believe, but its more like many of the birds initially released are disorientated and easier to find. Its not totally false though, because besides a heavy initial harvest two other things happen- heavy predation and some of the birds will move several miles a way. But no, its not a waste of time or anything like that, and with less pheasant hunters out there and a more difficult quarry its better IMO. Without a dog it is usually even more difficult, but some dog less hunters can have exceptional days when things quiet down and the birds, at least the roosters, cackle and can be tracked by sound.

The winner of the 2014 Federal Duck Stamp Contest is Jennifer Miller of Olean, N.Y., with her acrylic painting of a pair of Ruddy Ducks. Jennifer's art will be...come the 2015-2016 Federal Duck Stamp, which raises millions of dollars for conservation. See all of the contest entries: http://bit.ly/1qwTOMS. Learn more about the Duck Stamp: http://www.fws.gov/duckstamps

Lets keep in mind that the zeal to oust Cuomo (who last I heard had a 35 point lead) we should not forget about the much easier to vote out politicians, such as Grisanti. Its like you guys cant overcome the trophy hunter mentality even when it comes to voting, always after the biggest fish or rack... And Grisanti isn't no small fish, he is problematic for sportsmen. Without term limits the thirty year olds of today can live a lifetime with him in office like the older folks have grown up with Sheldon Silver and others... Now is the time. If we need to get voter registration cards and/or rent a bus and cart sportsman in the Buffalo area to the polls lets do it!

http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/politics/cuomo-finds-endorsement-decision-in-grisanti-panepinto-race-difficult-20140919