MOJO’S Duck Season Somewhere Podcast
Sea to Sky Outfitters Is Worlds Apart
Ramsey Russell’s arms are still tired from hauling in redfish and speckled trout when Orin Lonadier arrives, but they fly into a great conversation about real American Dream living. Where did Orin grow up, when did he know he wanted to be a guide, and how’d he get into the outfitting business? What’s it like working year-round in parts of the world that are polar opposites? What’s the most interesting leg band he’s ever seen? Any favorite fish and crane recipes? Is guiding as easy as he makes it look in social media? How important is people skills? What most compels Orin, what’s he like most about his job? Hold the rod with both hands and hang on, folks, because Orin starts stripping line and running like a big bull redfish from the get-go. Fun episode.
Related Link: Texas Panhandle Goose-Crane-Duck Hunting with Sea to Sky Outfitters
Understanding the Klamath Water War
Way up near the Oregon border in northern California’s Klamath Basin are 6 national wildlife refuges. The Lower Klamath NWR was established by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908 as our nation’s first waterfowl refuge–and in the 1950’s, more pintails were counted at nearby Tule Lake Refuge than even exists in the world today! But for the most complex water system in the world, times have changed. “Policy drought” is being exacerbated by unprecedented natural drought conditions and as everyone clamors for their fair share of water, Pacific Flyway waterfowl for which this region is famously essential, are dead last in line. Why is the ecosystem out of balance? What failing “single species management” policy has broken it nearly to the point of collapse? What various interests are competing for scarce water resources and who is doing what about it? Why is this Plan B, and why isn’t the initial plan in play? What’s being done to mitigate avian botulism? Why will rescuing this vital ecosystem require win-win-win collaboration? Third-generation farmer, Scott Seus, and Director of Operations for DU’s 9-state Western Region, Jeff McCreary, explain this complex topic excellently, spelling out how its affecting ducks, hunters, local communities and all of America.
Related Link (Video): Klamath Water War–American Grown: My Job Depends on Ag
Is the Great Salt Lake Biting the Dust?
As one of the last functioning inland saltwater ecosystems in the United States, and certainly the largest, the Great Salt Lake’s wildlife value as expressed in numbers is eye-popping: stages two-thirds of North America’s swan population; yields 1/2 of North America’s cinnamon teal; satisfies 40% the world’s aquacultural brine shrimp demand; benefits 10 million birds comprising 338 species annually, to include 1/3 of phalaropes and 95% of eared grebes existing in the world. Hunters and society have subsequently benefited, too. But severe drought conditions are greatly exacerbating long-standing water politics. The outlook is dire. Rich Hansen from Utah DNR briefly gives current updates on waterfowl productivity and habitat management implications, describing why they’ll luckily be spared major avian botulism outbreaks. Jaimi Butler from the Great Salt Lake Institute then provides big-picture assessments of the Great Salt Lake’s importance and drought-induced effects, describing catastrophic consequences and offering possible solutions. We true duck hunters know what Theodore Roosevelt meant when he said, “Wildlife and its habitat cannot speak, so we must and we will.” This thought-provoking episode speaks to that.
Related Link: Obituary for the Great Salt Lake: Even Lakes Are Not Immortal
Growing Up Venice Louisiana
The lonely Bell Chasse Highway runs down the Mississippi River’s west bank, terminating at the end of the world in Venice, Louisiana. From there to the Gulf is nothing but the kind of marsh for which Louisiana is truly known as “Sportsman’s Paradise.” Jesse Morris got his first boat while 13 years old, plying local waters for shrimp, crabs, whatever he could catch, on his way to becoming a 5th-generation commercial fisherman. But the Lord works in mysterious ways. What was it like growing up 70 miles from the nearest McDonald’s? What’s the difference between brown, white and tiger shrimp? How’d Jesse get into guiding duck hunts and fishing charters, and what’s the duck hunting like out of Venice? How has the marsh changed in his lifetime–and does he really eat coots? Jesse is soft-spoken man of few words, like someone that’s spent a lifetime fishing, but his informative insights speak volumes about this amazing region. Related Link: Louisiana Duck Hunt – Coastal Marsh Venice.
Q&A with Bigwater
Ramsey Russell and Mark Wilson aka Bigwater huddle around a table in the A/C on a hot summer afternoon. Bigwater talks about a recent trip to Omaha. He then asks Ramsey questions from listeners and himself, anything from packing light to what goes on behind the scenes at GetDucks while not traveling to thoughts on hunting pressure. Got a question or topic you’d like to hear? Inbox Ramsey at @ramseyrussellgetducks, or email ramsey@getducks.com.
Prairies Are Powder Keg Dry
It’s a scorching 107° F in North Dakota when Delta Waterfowl VP John Devney calls to give Ramsey Russell an update on the most cursed words that exist to a duck hunter’s ears: the Prairie Potholes Region is dry. Bad dry. Just how dry is it, and what drives drought cycle in the PPR? What’s “the biology of drought”? How’s this year compare to past droughts, and when did the lowest ever recorded pond counts occur? Why are there less Benellis afield killing half the number of mallards? We’ve not counted ducks in 2 years due to border closures, does Adaptive Harvest Management make allowances? Why does Devney describe the Pacific Flyway as suffering both natural and policy droughts? Any upside to this brutal cycle? The Duck Factory ain’t firing on all cylinders, folks. The western half of the entire US is dry as a sun bleached bone in the desert. Tune in to this and upcoming episodes to learn more about why it matters to you.
The Crystal Grill in Greenwood, Mississippi
In the sedate Mississippi Delta hamlet of Greenwood, population 14 thousand, the Crystal Grill has served ever-growing menu selections of made-from-scratch family recipes since 1933. Owner Johnny Ballas has been working there for as long as he can remember. Long-time friend Mike Rozier remembers back in the good old days, when he was 8 years old, that every duck hunter in Leflore County gathered there for home-made pancakes and sausage. How has the Mississippi Delta and duck hunting changed since then? Who was One Arm Jenkins and other colorful characters they remember? What are the “Scatters,” and what happened when Leflore County Hunting and Fishing Club dues went from $12 to $20? What have been favored menu items for nearly a century? Anywhere in the world, a proper taste of local culture is acquired by simply finding a table at the right restaurant. Because whether you’re talking the best veal cutlet on earth or duck hunting, it’s really all about people.
Giving Up Is Not an Option
Having grown up duck hunting California’s Bay Area and, later while in college, the Sacramento Valley, it was like a dream come true when Mike McVey graduated college, moved nearer to the Oregon border, and started hunting fabled Tule Lake. McVey has since been California Department Fish and Wildlife’s Wildlife Habitat Supervisor for Shasta Valley Wildlife Area. He describes the worse drought observed in decades, its effect on both waterfowl and habitat management. How exactly is the drought impacting Klamath Basin? Why’s this region especially important to Pacific Flyway waterfowl–and to American waterfowl hunters? What’s “reverse moist-soil management”? What is avian botulism, why is this region prone to outbreaks, how many ducks might it kill, what species are most susceptible? How’s duck hunting changed since McVey’s been there? How important are hunters – and hunting revenues? And why does McVey say, “to give up is unacceptable?” Fast-paced as a sleek, well-used semi-auto shotgun, today’s episode is as interesting as informative.
A Duck’s Eye View of Southeastern US Waterfowl Habitat
Today’s guest is a self-described super nerd that played college ball, knew he wanted to be a biologist since childhood, and remembers falling in love with ducks when a flock of wigeons pitched into an Oklahoma farm pond he was hunting. Dr. Heath Hagy is now US Fish and Wildlife Service Waterfowl Ecologist for the National Wildlife Refuge System in the Southeastern United States. Using broad research and applied habitat experiences, Hagy works with 131 Federal Refuges, states and other entities managing waterfowl habitat resources. How does Federal Refuge habitat management compliment surrounding land uses, and why is the landscape level considered? How important are emergent marsh habitats for waterfowl, how might managers increase invertebrate biomass? What are wetland habitat complexes, why are they extremely important to how waterfowl perceive and use geographical areas? Why is habitat quality and quantity a moving target–and might there really be duck food deficits in parts of the Mississippi Alluvial Valley? What about water versus food as limited resources? How might hunting pressure have changed things in the past couple decades, and could it affect waterfowl distribution? How important is waterfowl sanctuary? At the landscape level, how is waterfowl habitat changing across the southeastern United States? Why is the North American Model a crowning achievement in waterfowl management and what makes it possible? Like a plate heavy with gravy-topped goodness, this episode hits the spot, addressing many of those duck-related topics that we hunters wonder aloud among ourselves in duck blinds and around tailgates nationwide.
Of Lion King Mentalities and Trophy Truths
While shooting barnacle geese and greylag geese together in the Netherlands decade ago, Ramsey Russell and Brian Lynn could never have imagined the ferocious battles with embittered anti-hunting crazies awaiting their respective futures. As VP Marketing and Communications for Sportsmen’s Alliance, Lynn now daily fights anti-hunters tooth-and-nail, wielding facts and advocating policy like a modern day dragon slayer. Who knew Dutch anti-hunters read American hunting magazines, and what lead to Ramsey Russell’s name being shouted by politicians in Netherlands Parliament? How could anti-hunters be described demographically, what triggers them, and what does money have to do with anything? What’s behind the Oregon Ballot Initiative, calling for complete cessation of hunting and fishing? How’d laws banning coyote hunting contests in the Southwestern US bounce through Blue and Red states alike, escalating into proposals that could ban retriever hunt tests, make breeding a sexual abuse crime, or make possessing “any wildlife” a felony? Long after most of us forgot all about Cecil the Lion, how has federal language since been appropriated to ban wildlife import – and what interests do EU and US have in Africa wildlife anyways?! This fascinating discussion is going to be a real kick in the cajónes to anyone thinking that our hunting lifestyle is a God-given right in America. It ain’t.
Related Links:
Potential Ballot Initiative in Oregon Proposes Ending All Hunting, Fishing, Trapping
Oregon: Epicenter of New Vegan World Order
Commercial Duck Hunting Undesirable in Netherlands Newspaper Story
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