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Thread: Waterfowl Wednesday

  1. #1
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    Default Waterfowl Wednesday

    Even though I don't duck hunt here much, putting these ducks back is a bit of an obsession of mine. Some call me crazy for checking and cleaning out nesting boxes during the Spring / Summer nesting season. A few of my boxes produce 2 or 3 broods that make it to jump day. It's a cool thought that one of these ducks offspring just might be a young hunters first duck and a memory of a lifetime.

    I caught this pair posted up this morning on one my old (guessing 20-25 years) duck boxes. You can see I raised it higher above the water and added a new predator guard to try to protect the hen. I love these beautiful little ducks.
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    Listen to your elders. Not because they are always right but because they have more experiences of being wrong.

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  2. #2
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    Great photo
    Quote Originally Posted by Mars Bluff View Post
    Only thing we need to be wearing in this country are ass whippings & condoms. That'll clear up half our issues.

  3. #3
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    MC is offline Daydreamer Extraordinaire
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    Very nice! I enjoy maintaining a few as well. I try not to bother them in the box, but sometimes my curiosity gets the better of me. Every year I say I am going to cut a box where I can mount a trail camera in the side but I never seem to get around to doing it. They are fun to watch. WD_Box1.jpg

  4. #4
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    Such a great way to introduce people to Wildlife Conservation. Kids X2. The trip over to the Prison Farm to get our boxes each year was something we really looked forward to as yutes. Thanks for sharing!

  5. #5
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    Great job Paul.

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    I want to build a few wood duck boxes, but I never get around to it. Awesome photo

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    Why build when you can get em for free? DNR gives em away just gotta watch the site in the Septemberish timeframe each year and sign up. They even provide the predator guard. Just need the 4x4 post and a place to install it. Add a little bedding material and viola.

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    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    Delta in a nutshell: Breeding grounds + small wetlands + big blocks of grass cover + predator removal + nesting structures + enough money to do the job= plenty of ducks to keep everyone smiling!

    "For those that will fight for it...FREEDOM...has a flavor the protected shall never know."
    -L/Cpl Edwin L. "Tim" Craft

  8. #8
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    Yep, love watching them from the porch. I ain't shot a duck in good all SC in years
    Gettin old is for pussies! AND MY NEW TRUE people say like Capt. Tom >>>>>>>>>/
    "Wow, often imitated but never duplicated. No one can do it like the master. My hat is off to you DRDUCK!"

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by willyworm View Post
    Why build when you can get em for free? DNR gives em away just gotta watch the site in the Septemberish timeframe each year and sign up. They even provide the predator guard. Just need the 4x4 post and a place to install it. Add a little bedding material and viola.

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    Damn inflation. Last time I got them they gave the 4x4s too. But they were crappy pine boxes that year.

    On another note. I’m really interested in getting a couple of those duck dens. Look super easy to put up and maintain.


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    Quote Originally Posted by codeman216 View Post
    I’m really interested in getting a couple of those duck dens.
    Plastic?

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by JABIII View Post
    Plastic?
    Quote Originally Posted by codeman216 View Post
    Damn inflation. Last time I got them they gave the 4x4s too. But they were crappy pine boxes that year.

    On another note. I’m really interested in getting a couple of those duck dens. Look super easy to put up and maintain.


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    Has anyone tried the plastic duck duck dens here in SC? I'd think they might build up too much heat during late Spring nesting and damage the eggs. I believe that was the case with the 5 gallon bucket nesting boxes someone tried.

    On a side note, Blackbellied Whistlers will flap their wings inside a nesting box to cool their eggs if it gets too hot.
    Listen to your elders. Not because they are always right but because they have more experiences of being wrong.

    "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give" Sir Winston Churchill

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    Quote Originally Posted by willyworm View Post
    Why build when you can get em for free? DNR gives em away just gotta watch the site in the Septemberish timeframe each year and sign up. They even provide the predator guard. Just need the 4x4 post and a place to install it. Add a little bedding material and viola.

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    They "sell out" within an hour or two of sending the email about applying. You have to be ready to go as soon as that email comes up. No luck for me the last 4-5 years. I've taken to pulling old dilapidated death trap boxes, piecing the good parts together, and putting them back out somewhere easy to access and maintain instead of getting new ones.

  13. #13
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    I started out repairing old, abandoned nesting boxes. I've found plenty like this one and added them to my inventory.

    I usually scrouge throughout the year from warped, live edge 4 x 4 x 10 treated lumber but sometimes resort to cutting live cedar for posts. They work like a champ too.
    Listen to your elders. Not because they are always right but because they have more experiences of being wrong.

    "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give" Sir Winston Churchill

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by cajunwannabe View Post
    Has anyone tried the plastic duck duck dens here in SC? I'd think they might build up too much heat during late Spring nesting and damage the eggs. I believe that was the case with the 5 gallon bucket nesting boxes someone tried.

    On a side note, Blackbellied Whistlers will flap their wings inside a nesting box to cool their eggs if it gets too hot.
    I’ll let you know if I get a couple and try them. There’s some people I’ve seen online using them in Eastern NC so that’s not a huge difference in temps.


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    Really nice effort. Nice pic as well
    Bad day at fishing is better than a good day at work.

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    The boxes I got years ago were cypress boxes which are still holding up great to this day. They are 10+ years old.
    "run and gun guide service"

  17. #17
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    When using a round post/cut a live cedar, make sure the predator guard doesn't have any gaps around the post after you attach it. The rat snakes can fit through some mighty small holes, and it could turn into a predator highway.

  18. #18
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    True dat!

    Gaps around nesting box pole or post, tree branches growing within reach or high water levels and these suckers will predate a nest.
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    Listen to your elders. Not because they are always right but because they have more experiences of being wrong.

    "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give" Sir Winston Churchill

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