Date: Wed, 28 Jan 1998 11:05:20 -0800

From: mprice at mindlink.bc.ca (Michael Price)
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Subject: Re: Ringed Teal

Michael and Tweets,

Some hunters are better about this than others (I defend none of them
however). I used to go hunting with my father, uncles, and grandfather
and when I was VERY young (5 or 6) it was my job to identify birds
before they were shot at whether it was shouting "HEN" or "ROOSTER" when
a pheasant was flushed or saying "Teal" "Mallard" "NO DUCK" "Snow" "Swan
- NO SHOT" when hunting waterfowl. I will tell you that at dawn and
dusk (traditional high activity hunting times) you often have only a
profile to go by, and telling the difference between a Ringed Teal and a
Green Winged/Blue Winged/Cinammon would be difficult. I remember my
father crying once when he shot a wood duck that he swore he "knew" was
a wigeon when it was flying.

I've seen swans, herons, bitterns, curlews, cormorants and many other
birds blasted out of the air by hunters who had the "if it flies by me
its dead" attitude. I've also seen game wardens haul such folks off in
handcuffs for such abuses (my father was a county sheriff and my
grandfather a judge - they were CAREFUL hunters and demanded the same of
others).

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Rob Conway
Cougar Mountain, Bellevue, WA
47.551N 122.142W

robin_conway at hotmail.com

<Q) // Icarus was a waxwing;
((``// Too bad his dad wasn't a flycatcher.
||
^^

=====================================================================
Hi Tweets,

Regarding the hunters who shot the Ringed Teal Callonetta
leucophrys--not the world's most inconspicuous duck--if they didn't know
what they were shooting, how come they could shoot it? Thought they had
to look before they shoot.

Michael Price

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