Took a Merganser
 

Took a Merganser this morning. It was a legal take.

I guess that's a 1 day late birthday present!

Don't try to eat it!

Its that bad, huh? Well, lucky for me, I did research. I found out how bad it was BEFORE attempting to cook it.

After further review, I decided not to risk it, and I gave it a funeral.

At least I got in some target practice!

Wildlife is not meant for target practice! If you do not know the species of waterfowl on the wing or on the water before you shoot, it is irresponsible to shoot and kill it! Your research should have been before you started to hunt ducks so you knew what you were shooting at. I do not think your response was clever or appropriate, or puts hunters in a good light!

You make a really good point. Thank you for pointing that out. You're right, I should be sure of my target before I shoot. I guess that makes me an irresponsible Hunter, then. Not trying to be hard on myself, just facing facts. The fact is, I need to work on my identification skills.

See your PMs

In Illinois the basic daily limit is 6 ducks of any species. However, daily limit can consist of no more than the following: 4 mallards (of which no more than 2 can be hen mallards), 3 wood ducks, 3 scaup, 2 redheads, 2 canvasback, 2 black ducks, 1 pintail and 1 mottled duck. Possession limit for ducks is three times the daily limit by species and sex.

Can shoot five Mergansers a day in Illinois. Mergansers do not count toward your daily limit of ducks, but only 2 can be hooded mergansers. Merganser possession limit is no more than three times their daily limit, including max of 6 hooded mergansers. We don't eat them either.

Most ducks are easy to identify while on the wing, but some aren't. Best to know which ducks are severely limited like a hen mallard or a pintail and avoid shooting too many of them.

Good target practice. We have so many around here.

Really?? Wildlife is not meant to be used for target practice, if you know you aren't going to eat a species that is protected, don't shoot it. You certainly are not a sportsan and please don'r call yourself a hunter with your attitide.

Oldtimr is right. Not trying to be rude, but it is just plain wrong to shoot something just for target practice.

I admit, I was wrong to do it myself, and I learned my lesson.

It is VERY wasteful to shoot something that you dont need to use. If you are going to take an animal, you need to use as much of it as possible and not be wasteful. Target practice is NOT an excuse to shoot an animal.

We are stewards of this planet. As such, we as humans can use the resources around us like the animals (the ones we can legally take,) for our needs. HOWEVER, we also have the responsibility to maintain those resources for future generations.

If we take an animal, and have no need of the resources it provides, we are being wasteful.

In a nutshell, only take what you plan to use.

Jared

:rock::party0007::cool2:

Hunting can be legitimately defended. Killing something just because it's moving cannot. It shows a lack of respect and indifference to life which is reprehensible. It also gives anti-hunting groups more ammunition.

Exactly! We can’t shoot everything that moves thinking it’s what we want to shoot. It’s unethical and wasteful.

Woops I guess I should have put an lol at the end of that to show I was not being serious. A lot of people joke about that up here that that is all that they are good for but no one actively trys to shoot them. I wouldn't want to waste the cost of a shell on them personally. The only species of animals that should be shot if you dont intend on eating them or putting them to use are invasive like starlings.

I've heard it said that the best way to cook merganser is to season it heavily, lay it on a board and bake at 350* for 2 hours, remove from oven, throw away the merganser and eat the board.

As for shooting wildlife for practice I am wondering why there is no season for cormorants? These fish eating birds are all over around here wherever there is fish holding water. They do a number on the fishery. I'm sure they taste as bad as mergansers but they should be culled.
Fact is that is some areas they are: https://lancasteronline.com/sports/m...2705c1d8b.html
However, reading this article I noted that the federal agents culling the cormorants are using small caliber air rifles with pellets! Funny how we must use steel shot but these guys are using lead pellets to cull these birds.

I know its been talked about here in Michigan.

Boneless and skinless merg breast...pound thin with a mallet. Flop in instant potato buds, they have many flavors. Pan fry until it looks like a lil chicken fried steak,,,gravy, the leftover instant spuds and veg.
We try not to shoot mergs, but it happens especially in the gloom. If you can't eat them because of pickiness, feed them to the dog..intentionally wasting them is lame and illegal.
Anybody who thinks they can identify all birds while pass shooting them in early light and them moving 60mph+ is wrong, obviously.

The solution for that is if you don't know what they are don't shoot them. Mergansers don't fly like other ducks and they look different in the air than puddle ducks and other, even in poor light just like Cormorants, if you can see them you can tell if they are mergansers. I have been hunting ducks for a long time and I know a merganser in the air before it is in gun range. Some people can stomach them just like some people can stomach Coots. I am not one of those people so I just flat don't shoot them! If I have to go through all kinds of antics to make something that tastes like crap taste like a fart so it isn't as bad I let them go on by.

,,after 40 something years, I still can't always tell a merg from big divers everytime. But, can identify cormorants at distance always.
I would prefer incidental shooting of them and either make awesome chicken fried merg or make dog treats right then and there. Cause, shooting them is fun albiet a tad disappointing when retrieved.
Nobody I have ever hunted with and there have been many, can always identify all birds without fail...always. We don't shoot over dekes, I can see how doing that would make ID easy peasy. Our birds are typically streaking down the river or pouring it on over the dikes and we are only human, thankfully.

You are not a hunter you are a killer who doesn't care what you shoot. I can see that it was a mistake to even respond to your utter nonsense. BTW, I have hunted waterfowl longer that you have and anyone who wants to learn how to ID ducks in the air can do so and your cavalier attitude does not reflect well on hunters. So, blather on to impress yourself, I doubt you are impressing anyone else here.

🙁....the dog ate your meds?

I want to be the devil's advocate here. Merganzers are fish eaters as well as commorants. Around where I live along the Susquehanna river it is teaming with both and the fish population is showing signs that their presents is reducing them. So why not shoot them to keep their numbers in check. Coyotes are shot and not used same as crows, rats and a gew other animals.

That old PETA broad is gonna get you now....she is perfect morally and optically, you know.
Just because she can't gum a merg...

Skippy, I would be I have more waterfowling experience than you do and I do not like to see birds and animals shot simply because they are there and mergansers are not putting a hurting on fish populations so just keep your juvenile crap to yourself! First Joe Biden, now you!

Oldtimr I said I was being the devil's advoate. I beg to differ on the fish population. https://www.ducks.org/hunting/waterf...mon-merganser; https://www.answers.com/Q/What_do_cormorants_eat; https://www.mossyoak.com/our-obsessi...ing-your-fish;
I drive over one bridge on a regular basis and I've seen as many as 150+ comorants standing side by side across the breast of the dam (I'm a pretty darn good estimator). Not knowing how many are in the water plus you add in the merganzers in the area and that is a lot of fish taken. Both trash fish and game fish like bass, perch, pike, pickerel, musky etc.that never get a chance to grow.
And just for the record I never said I shot them I just said that those animals were not used sans maybe coyotes for their pelts. As a kid I heard of several people going to the landfill and shooting rats with their 22s but something I never did.

Bronko, my response was not directed at you, it was directed at Fogie.

I am a bit late to the argument and since it was stated about not shooting animals and not eating them what about good ole yotes? Definitely agree that no animal should be just target practice though.

Now I eat most of what I take but I draw the line lol. I also won't eat the hogs I take but I will donate them to a buddy that likes them.

As far as waterfowl I am kind of new to the sport and have found that if the meat doesn't taste too good to soak in saltwater for 3 days then make jerky. Seems to have helped with some snow geese anyway. Good luck in your hunts.

..except that you made a feeble attempt to address the thing that he opined.
You aren't a hunter, you are a killer..you already said that you wouldn't eat a coot or a merg because you can't cook or some ridiculous blather meant to impress someone. You shouldn't be in the field with a gun if you would refuse to eat what could be shot incidentally.
You profess of perfection in your bird ID skills, I highly doubt that is fact. Yep...
You are a killer, not a hunter...for shame. :wink:

You have just proven my opinion of you, you are one excuse after another. You have the same excuses as all the other so called duck hunters that can't tell what they have shot till is is dead on the water because you are afraid if you take the time to identify what you shoot you will lose the shot. No reason for any more dialog.

You need to eat what you shoot and quit losing mergs and coots in the bushes, okay?

Fogie I'm sorry but Oldtimr is right. You absolutely need to know how to identify the waterfowl species you shoot. And resulting in making rude comments is no way to act in a forum. My advice is go in the off season and just watch the ducks and learn and watch videos on the subject. You should be able to easily identify coots, merganzers, teal, woodies, mallards, pintails and the rest. If you can't you have no business in a blind. The Federal Wildlife has no leniency when it comes to shooting illegal game or going over your limit.
And if you won't eat it don't shoot it. Or at least cook it for your dog. Maybe he'll eat it..

I can and do identify birds before shooting, but being human and not shooting over dekes...sometimes a merg dies. Nothing illegal, no hawks or cormorants, sometimes a merg before I can call the kids off or just don't differentiate between one and a diver flying low and fast down the river. Sometimes if shooting is slow, I'll let the kids shoot them for fun, to watch some retrieves, a sub-par dinner or dog treats. Screw any a-hole who wants to talk ****e about that. The biologists who actually know something say I can shoot seven a day if I want to, ignorant old doofus here be damned.
Seems like something he doesn't like to do is being wasteful, but as far as I am concerned he can eff himself..-)))

Been doing this plenty long, nothing goes to waste and no cranky old lunatic is going to make me feel guilty about anything I do. Long enough to know how to not over limit per species, or any other way. Have spent every day between Thanksgiving and season's end bird watching for 36 years since buying my duck camp, so...doubtful that I am in need of more to say what is what.
Look back at this thread and see who started the rudeness..he was acting like a fool before I even commented. "Killer not hunter" seems to be something he throws out as often as his back I bet. Read through and get back to me.
Mergs are legal and edible, no matter what his ancient highness of excellence thinks.