Snow geese

[Brooklyn FurTaker]

Anybody hunt snow geese on here?

[NeverSeenNorHeard]

Yes

[mike rossi]

You betcha.

[Four Season Whitetail's]

Must be a bit of a difference between Canada's and Snow's? We get a pile of guys asking to hunt the Canadian but really none to hunt the Snow.s?  We get them by the thousands when they come thru but no hunters. I do notice that they are a jumpy bird..Like they cant sit still and jump up from one field to another and then back to the start field again over and over. Kinda strange.

[Doewhacker]

Must be a bit of a difference between Canada's and Snow's? We get a pile of guys asking to hunt the Canadian but really none to hunt the Snow.s?  We get them by the thousands when they come thru but no hunters. I do notice that they are a jumpy bird..Like they cant sit still and jump up from one field to another and then back to the start field again over and over. Kinda strange.

 

 I think some guys are not used to the idea of hunting Geese this time of year. They do seem jumpy, like they have ADD. 

[Larry]

I work in Geneva and I haven’t seen any snows yet.

[martin]

Must be a bit of a difference between Canada's and Snow's? We get a pile of guys asking to hunt the Canadian but really none to hunt the Snow.s?  We get them by the thousands when they come thru but no hunters. I do notice that they are a jumpy bird..Like they cant sit still and jump up from one field to another and then back to the start field again over and over. Kinda strange.

 

My uncle and I drove around and when they landed, we asked and a lot of farmers said no. I'm hoping to do some this year if my schedule permits it. 

[Rockspek]

That's not snow on the ground

[covert]

Must be a bit of a difference between Canada's and Snow's? We get a pile of guys asking to hunt the Canadian but really none to hunt the Snow.s?  We get them by the thousands when they come thru but no hunters. I do notice that they are a jumpy bird..Like they cant sit still and jump up from one field to another and then back to the start field again over and over. Kinda strange.

I have only been hunting waterfowl for 2 years but the guys I hunt with say that they are very cautious.  With the size of the flocks there are sooo many eyes to fool that if a couple see something they don't like they won't come in.

[stoneam2006]

image.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpg

That's not snow on the ground

This in the fingerlakes region....grew up in Canandaigua and used to have flocks like that land in the fields behind the house pretty cool sight....them and the Canadian geese

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[Rockspek]

This in the fingerlakes region....grew up in Canandaigua and used to have flocks like that land in the fields behind the house pretty cool sight....them and the Canadian geese

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Pictures were taken in canandaigua on sand hill road

[Four Season Whitetail's]

First real big flock just hit feet on our biggest corn field...Has to 500-1000 in this flock. Hard to tell of course but they sure turn a field from brown to white in a hurry.

[Jason118]

Bunch in Walworth on Cary lake today ~ to my knowledge first time ever

Edited March 7, 2016 by Jason118

[mike rossi]

These birds have a lot of refugia on both private and public land. Although the FWS and state agencies have created regulations adapted for culling, rather than conservation, and encourage hunting snows, they are handing over our public lands to bird watchers for the spring season. In NY and other states, many refuges, coops, and even a few wmas open to waterfowl hunting in the fall do not allow hunting during spring migration. 

 

I guess the idea is the hunters who are able to access private land will take some birds, and the agencies will further reduce populations with egg addling on the nesting grounds.

 

When they addle eggs, they shake them - which kills the egg but the goose still thinks it will hatch. Instead of crushing the eggs or removing them, which gets the birds to renest which although decreases population a little bit, but less.

 

Result of egg addling - the snow geese hunters are encountering each year are increasingly less juveniles, but rather older educated birds that are difficult to fool and know where the refugia is and were the hunters are. (in addition to knowing what decoys look like). Remember geese are not like doves, grouse and pheasant which few live to 2 or even one year of age, geese live long and learn to avoid hunters. Those ganders know more about hunting than most hunters.... The adult followers do too. 

 

Do many hunters have great success hunting snow geese? Answer yes indeed, but you need to know what you are doing and work hard. Some groups kill 200 or 300 snows in one hunt, but not everyone is going to be able to do that. Few will kill 100 in a season. But that  is not what it is about - every bird is a trophy! 

 

 

 

 

[Four Season Whitetail's]

These birds have a lot of refugia on both private and public land. Although the FWS and state agencies have created regulations adapted for culling, rather than conservation, and encourage hunting snows, they are handing over our public lands to bird watchers for the spring season. In NY and other states, many refuges, coops, and even a few wmas open to waterfowl hunting in the fall do not allow hunting during spring migration. 

 

I guess the idea is the hunters who are able to access private land will take some birds, and the agencies will further reduce populations with egg addling on the nesting grounds.

 

When they addle eggs, they shake them - which kills the egg but the goose still thinks it will hatch. Instead of crushing the eggs or removing them, which gets the birds to renest which although decreases population a little bit, but less.

 

Result of egg addling - the snow geese hunters are encountering each year are increasingly less juveniles, but rather older educated birds that are difficult to fool and know where the refugia is and were the hunters are. (in addition to knowing what decoys look like). Remember geese are not like doves, grouse and pheasant which few live to 2 or even one year of age, geese live long and learn to avoid hunters. Those ganders know more about hunting than most hunters.... The adult followers do too. 

 

Do many hunters have great success hunting snow geese? Answer yes indeed, but you need to know what you are doing and work hard. Some groups kill 200 or 300 snows in one hunt, but not everyone is going to be able to do that. Few will kill 100 in a season. But that  is not what it is about - every bird is a trophy! 

They sure are getting pretty thick around here. You are right.Kinda like Doves..There is more power and money from those that would rather look at these birds as to have a hunting season on them. Thats for sure.

 

[mike rossi]

They sure are getting pretty thick around here. You are right.Kinda like Doves..There is more power and money from those that would rather look at these birds as to have a hunting season on them. Thats for sure

 

The Humane Society tries to drive a wedge between bird watchers and hunters, and to a certain extent they are successful. I do not want to drive that wedge deeper.

 

 What I have gathered from my conversations, is that many bird watchers think of doves like fisherman do carp, that they are so common they are boring. Other conversation I have picked up on is a growing sentiment that doves displace other birds at feeders, they even joke about how "peaceful" doves are, driving off even blue jays.

 

I am not saying some bird watchers or some  bird club chapters do not oppose dove hunting, however, the Humane Society operates on Ad nauseam premises - they repeat things over and over until it becomes accepted as fact. The Humane Society wants it to look like it is the birding community against the hunters, when in fact the Humane Society plus other anti hunting organizations are alone for the most part.

 

The DEC and the( FWS for refuges) does a pretty good job of balancing the needs of bird watchers and bird hunters. However the Humane Society claims that the hunters are favored and bird hunting interferes with bird watching. They make statements like they are sticking up for bird watching opportunities, instead of animal rights - their true agenda.

 

In truth, however, bird hunting enhances opportunity for bird watchers. And, although I think opportunity between the two groups is mostly balanced, a couple public areas used by snow geese excessively favor bird watchers. 

[mike rossi]

 This is what I mean....