duck/goose bands? how long did you hunt till you got one

[jager]

Really? Guys are poaching ducks and geese just for the bands??
I hunt on the eastside and have never got a band. I don't hunt the migration routes or any great flyways either. 
I can't imagine anyone does this...It's not like they are worth anything... It would be cool to get the info about the duck though.

[Skagit_Hunter]

ANYWAYS....  YEASTERDAY I SHOT A BAND,.... AND IT HAD A DUCK ATTACHED TO IT!!!       

  I think if I ever shoot a band I will raffle it off for WWA......

[1morebuck]

I have hunted ducks and geese since age 10 and got one Green Wing drake with a band four years ago. It was awesome! I was dancing around and very excited to see where the bird had come from. It had been banded in middle Alaska and I got it in Puget Sound, quite a trip. I wear the small band around my neck and show it off whenever I can.

Yes, there are some who take a lot of pride in shooting banded birds, but for me, I shoot the intended targeted bird and if it has a band it is time to celebrate.

[dadada]

can you really tell that the birds are banded while there decoying i cant

 skagit first you want to sell the band on ebay then you want to give it away now you want to raffle it.  thats crazy  you can call me a putz or vane but i still have the honor of shooting two banded birds and yes i will put them on my lanyard  i i dont know anyone who has shot a banded  bird that doesnt have it on their lanard 

[NW-GSP]

I just want the bands so I can recycle the metal   

[Odell]

I've only shot 3 bands in 15 years, and they have all come in the past 6 years on the eastside on mallards. I think if you hunt moses area or try-cities and shoot lots of mallards your odds will go up.

[vandeman17]

I shot two bands in one day and that was pretty cool. Two come in at first light, I dropped one, buddy dropped the other and mine was banded. Then a few hours later I dropped a solo that flew through and it has another band. Crazy thing was we were talking on the drive out how neither of us had a band and sure as chit... 

[chester]

Ive been hunting ducks for 15 years and never got a band 

[Blacktail135]

 Today I watched 200-300 mallards through my 10x42 Leicas at about at 30 yards taking off and landing and I'd be hard pressed to see a leg-band on one with my naked eye coming into my decoys! Maybe some folks have better eyes than I do.
 Yes Skagit_Hunter, I too, think that there are those among us that think a legband is so important as to POACH but, I also think that it is so rare that to label anyone that has a legband or more on their lanyard as "vain" and a poacher is definately a stretch of your imagination. I too think that the sport is taking a turn for the worse when I see on all the media (magazine ads)(don't know about DVD's and TV as I have or watch neither) and forum BS where field photos show folks that look pissed off, stickers on trucks that say "if it flies it dies", skulls and skeletons etched on calls, cartridges that claim to devastate anything within sight etc, etc. Currently, there is a lot of vanity focused on numbers and success but, I don't think that most folks with legbands on their lanyards are guilty of pure vanity. By the way.....what does BF stand for?
 Also there are others of us that own property that have excellent waterfowling and for you to boast of yours with an LOL might be considered a bit vain in itself, eh?     

[carpsniperg2]

There is some strong points on this subject, so remember to play nice guys. No persoanl jabs and keep it cival

[vandeman17]

You got it Matt! I am trying to be civil 

[DuckDr.Duke]

I have 8 Mallard duck bands. I had one snow goose band but I don't know where it went. I just got another one last weekend on a greeny in e.wash. I have been hunting ducks since I was 9 with my dad thats 24 years now. My grandpa had about 10 of them until he quite hunting in the lat 90's.

[Jack Diamond]

People that have been lucky enough to collect bands have something to be proud of.  Never heard of poaching for bands
And find it hard to believe. not impossible but hard to believe.

[macattack2]

47 years of waterfowl hunting and have bands from snow geese, Brant,mallards,pintail,widgeon. 17 total

[DuckDr.Duke]

How the heck can you even see a band on a duck while concentrating on shooting them I sure don't and I have 20/20 vision? I have shot lots of ducks and never seen one with a band while flying.

I wouldn't think someone would want to poach a duck with a band, only way you would see them would be if they are flying with the duck. So how would you see a duck with a band when they are sitting on the water? Maybe the poacher has scuba gear and snares them

I guess if they were walking around in a field you may see one with a band on. But good luck trying to find one after they have been shot at all season.