Banded Birds

[KP-Skagit]

My neck of the woods (Skagit Valley) does not seem to get many banded birds but over the weekend I got my first banded duck. That is 1 in a couple thousand average... Shot several banded snows over the years.

It was interesting data to see. Drake mallard. Banded in 2018, hatched 2017 or earlier in Fairview Alberta. So rough numbers about 8 years old which seems decently up there.

All the snows were from Wrangell Island, most were a couple years old, one was 14.

Thought it would be an interesting topic to discuss on here.

What bands have you all seen? How old were the birds? Where were they from.

[salt n sage90]

One of my few Skagit Co. bands.
9+ year old bull Pintail.

[metlhead]

2 from Delta, BC and 2 from Toppenish. Oldest bird was 2.

[WSU]

I've got 2 out of thousands of birds.  1 was a teal banded at the Yukon delta and one was mallard from northern alberta that was something like 12 years old.  I don't remember exactly because it was years ago.

[fowl smacker]

I've killed 5 banded birds over the years
2 mallards, 1 bufflehead, and 2 Canadian geese.  I can't remember all their ages, but one of the mallards was 9.

[baldopepper]

Get a lot more long traveled ones this time of year.. used to get a lot of em early in the season where we hunted, but all were local bands from the federal bird refuge nearby.

[Rob]

Not waterfowl, but I saw this girl in my front yard the other day.  I have never heard of tagging turkey before.

[h2ofowlr]

I believe my oldest is a snow at 16 + years old.  I am pushing 90 bands.  We will see if I can hit the 100 mark in the next few years.

[frazierw]

My neck of the woods (Skagit Valley) does not seem to get many banded birds but over the weekend I got my first banded duck. That is 1 in a couple thousand average... Shot several banded snows over the years.

It was interesting data to see. Drake mallard. Banded in 2018, hatched 2017 or earlier in Fairview Alberta. So rough numbers about 8 years old which seems decently up there.

All the snows were from Wrangell Island, most were a couple years old, one was 14.

Thought it would be an interesting topic to discuss on here.

What bands have you all seen? How old were the birds? Where were they from.

My dad shot a mallard this year that was banded in Fairview as well.  Banded in 2023 as an adult.  My oldest was a double banded hen mallard that was banded in Othello in 2010 as an adult, and shot in 2022.  Both bands were almost completely smooth, I had to get them acid etched to get the numbers off of one.  My uncle shot a cackler this year that was banded in Shageluk Alaska.  I've only harvested banded mallards, but I did find a dead Gadwall that was banded in Southern Oregon.

[KP-Skagit]

Man there are some old ducks out there!

[Dan-o]

Man there are some old ducks out there!

I had no idea a wild bird could live that ling.

[ASHQUACK]

13 plus year old drake Harliquen. Band was smooth, banded as an adult in Canada.

[CedarPants]

My first band was a drake mallard I shot a bit northwest of Pasco back in 1997 or 1998. It had been banded 12 years prior in northern Alberta.

[boneaddict]

13 plus year old drake Harliquen. Band was smooth, banded as an adult in Canada.

That’s like the trophy of all trophies. Wow!!!

[erronulvin]

Oldest band I've got is a 7y/o snow band from NW  territories

[ASHQUACK]

13 plus year old drake Harliquen. Band was smooth, banded as an adult in Canada.

That’s like the trophy of all trophies. Wow!!!

Thanks! It has a very special place on my wall. And since its the only band I've ever got that I know I shot its very special.

[duckmen1]

Never shot any banded waterfowl. Many years waterfowl hunting with solid success. Only a spruce grouse from Conconully area.

[Feathernfurr]

Our group has about 15 in 10 years, gotta be out of thousands of birds. All mallards, most of them banded in the region we killed them within the 2 years prior to harvest and generally juveniles when banded.

[MackDaddy509]

Myself and many of my huntin partners have killed dozens of honker bands (many local to the Yakima Valley). I was lucky enough to get a double banded honker back in high school, bird was 11 years old from BC w/ a $50 reward. Also killed a 4 year old double banded drake mallard, banded in BC w/ a $50 reward.

Our group killed an 8 year old banded Pintail drake from Tokyo, Japan out of Moses Lake in 2022. 12 dudes in the corn, my close buddy from high school won the draw. The bird was banded on his birthday 8 years prior.

Pretty cool stuff.

[frazierw]

The Tokyo Pintail and the smooth Harlequen are absolute trophies.  So cool to find that stuff in our state.

[Feathernfurr]

I think the Tokyo pintail has to go on the wall even if it was absolutely destroyed, simply because of the story.

[KP-Skagit]

Tokyo... That is something else...

[Jpmiller]

I hate this thread, but only because of jealousy. I’ve never shot a banded bird. Used to waterfowl a couple times a week, guys in the group got them while I was there but never even on a bird there was a question if I could have shot it. Wanted one so bad, I envy you guys. One day…

[MackDaddy509]

Tokyo... That is something else...

It took me a couple weeks to get ahold of the imperial bird sanctuary over there. Finally a completely “normal” sounding man who spoke fluent English got on the phone. I gave him my info, and they sent the bird info within another week or so.

[KP-Skagit]

Tokyo... That is something else...

It took me a couple weeks to get ahold of the imperial bird sanctuary over there. Finally a completely “normal” sounding man who spoke fluent English got on the phone. I gave him my info, and they sent the bird info within another week or so.

I have heard pintail will get turned around in the breeding grounds and hop flyways, wondering if that was the case there. Doubt it traveled west to east!

[MackDaddy509]

Tokyo... That is something else...

It took me a couple weeks to get ahold of the imperial bird sanctuary over there. Finally a completely “normal” sounding man who spoke fluent English got on the phone. I gave him my info, and they sent the bird info within another week or so.

I have heard pintail will get turned around in the breeding grounds and hop flyways, wondering if that was the case there. Doubt it traveled west to east!

Correct, spoke with a USFWS waterfowl guru, I believe his name was Brad Borton, and he said likely scenario was since Northern Pintails breed in Siberia (both from North America and Japan), the drake followed a hen over to Alaska and down… he also told me that our bird was the first Japanese banded pintail ever reported in Eastern WA. Fourth to be reported in WA state since they started keeping track (I believe since the 1960s).

[CedarPants]

Tokyo... That is something else...

It took me a couple weeks to get ahold of the imperial bird sanctuary over there. Finally a completely “normal” sounding man who spoke fluent English got on the phone. I gave him my info, and they sent the bird info within another week or so.

I have heard pintail will get turned around in the breeding grounds and hop flyways, wondering if that was the case there. Doubt it traveled west to east!

Correct, spoke with a USFWS waterfowl guru, I believe his name was Brad Borton, and he said likely scenario was since Northern Pintails breed in Siberia (both from North America and Japan), the drake followed a hen over to Alaska and down… he also told me that our bird was the first Japanese banded pintail ever reported in Eastern WA. Fourth to be reported in WA state since they started keeping track (I believe since the 1960s).

That is really cool!!

[erronulvin]

I'd have to say we have killed a pile of snows over the last 10 years here in the columbia basin and have finally have gotten in the few bands that have came from NW territories and wrangle island russia. And out of all the snows this is the first year I've seen a collar in flight. The next coolest band I've killed is a aviary banded pintail

[MackDaddy509]

Not waterfowl, but I saw this girl in my front yard the other day.  I have never heard of tagging turkey before.

Killed a banded gobbler in the Blue Mountains back in 2015. Could never get in contact with the local Bio, but heard there was some Trap & Transplant nuisance town birds that were relocated.

[Dan-o]

Not waterfowl, but I saw this girl in my front yard the other day.  I have never heard of tagging turkey before.

Killed a banded gobbler in the Blue Mountains back in 2015. Could never get in contact with the local Bio, but heard there was some Trap & Transplant nuisance town birds that were relocated.

That would be cool!

[Rob]

Not waterfowl, but I saw this girl in my front yard the other day.  I have never heard of tagging turkey before.

Killed a banded gobbler in the Blue Mountains back in 2015. Could never get in contact with the local Bio, but heard there was some Trap & Transplant nuisance town birds that were relocated.

Interesting!

[Henrydog]

I am not a huge waterfowler.  I have never shot a banded duck in the roughly 300 I have shot, but it is something I always hope for.

The Turkey band made me think, anyone else remember when the womens prison in Connell used to raise the pheasants and the wore bands that said Coyote Ridge on them, and they were planted randomly all over Eastern Wa not just dumped in the middle of the road in pounded release sites.  Not even close to being the same as a banded duck, but it always ended the argument if it was a planter or a wild.

[crabcreekhunter]

Probably have 30 bands, goose (mostly all from coulee city area, some consecutive numbers from over a 8 year period).  Dove bands from the basin, and ducks mostly from Canada and basin area, few Idaho bandings.  Not a bird, but shot an ear tagged doe in the Mesa area that was born in captivity at WSU on a reproductive study in 2010 (raised wild and released in St. John) and killed in 2019. Was a twin and parents were Natalie and Revere.

[Angry Perch]

Man there are some old ducks out there!

I had no idea a wild bird could live that ling.

Same. I never would have guessed.

[TeacherMan]

I banded a few hundred over the summer, if you need a spot that will have a majority of its birds banded drop me a line, just kidding about the second part 

[YoungFowler]

I have three personally, approximately 1/400 or so. All mallards, all banded as adults 7+, 8+, and 3+ years old. I did report a neck collar on a Canada that I could read while it was alive, 14+ yro in Spokane area. Most recently, we took a buddy from out of state sea duck hunting and he shot a banded scoter! Doesn't have data submitted by the bander yet, pretty fresh.

[C-Money]

I've been fortunate to end up with 7 banded mallards. Band sites include California, Alberta, 2 around Ephrata. The one always stands out the most to me was a noticeably large mallard drake, 4 or 5 years old, banded in St. Johns Newfoundland. That duck must have flown over the North Pole and got in with some pacific flyway birds. Very proud of that one! My boy has hunted quite a few years now and hasn't gotten one yet. A band is something high on his list of accomplishments!

[erronulvin]

Finally recieved the gps report of the collared snow i killed this year, she really loved the columbia basin the last 2 years lol

[206]

THAT is cool. 

[snit]

I haven't hunted ducks going on 20 years, but growing up bird hunting in the 80's I was an avid waterfowler with the old man. We were mainly free-lancers, then once I was on my own I really got after it, hunting the Lower Yak until it froze, then the mid-Columbia with a large spread when the weather turned quite sour, up into my mid-30's. I just did a quick count on our old lanyards, and between mine and dad's calls, we have almost 40 duck bands, mostly mallards (just a few from geese). Nothing too "exotic" in regards to locations, but I do remember way Northern Canada regions; Great Bear/Slave Lake areas come to mind.

One memorable hunt on the last day of the season, I called in a high-flying single green head...had to work him hard, and the old-man killed him, and he had a well-worn band. "WOW..that was cool", we said! An hour or so passes, and we spot another loner drake and pop's reciprocates for me...and yep, I kill that duck and it's banded too! BUT...they're consecutively numbered bands, and it's been like 7 years since they've been banded! So that was pretty ironic.  (it's been YEARS since I've looked at the certs, so the time frame could be +/- a yr).

The banded Harlequin/Japan Bull-Sprig are both B&C in my book! I got back into upland bird hunting this year with a new lab pup and I really enjoyed it. Honestly, I don't miss all the time/effort that goes into setting up for big water duck hunts though...but I do miss the thrill of working birds with my Kingyon Calls.

[Kola16]

Finally recieved the gps report of the collared snow i killed this year, she really loved the columbia basin the last 2 years lol

I could get used to this type of content  Imagine fishing 100 miles offshore, or summiting a 10,000+ foot peak and a flock of snows fly over you

[hunterednate]

Finally recieved the gps report of the collared snow i killed this year, she really loved the columbia basin the last 2 years lol

That is so cool. Thanks for sharing.