Small world, isn't it? Mine did her first one ever on Saturday last. Followed by her first across river retrieve of the year to wash it off
Saw the first queen bumble flight too the same day. The duck brood has gone down from four to three.
Saw a mandarin duck investigating a potential nest site yesterday afternoon. Her mate was sat quietly on a small pool nearby. We are getting more and more feral mandarins here and last season saw as many of them as teal!
I think they spread up from a fairly large feral population in the Forest of Dean. They are a bit of a conundrum as they are not on the quarry list as they didn't exist in numbers worth mentioning then. Compare that to Canada geese where the rules on shooting them is more relaxed than anything else. Presumably it won't change as Mandarins don't s**t on golf courses!!
Our wild turkey hunting season starts tomorrow. I can't use the dogs for this but I really enjoy it. I go into the woods behind my house an hour before dawn and try to get in position as quietly as possible. Then I sit and wait calling like a lady turkey after first light. The hunting is exciting when a male bird responds but I even enjoy the days that they don't. Sitting quietly in full camo watching the spring woods come to life in the morning is like a live nature documentary unfolding before me and without the distraction of Sir David Attenborough chattering on in the background.
I'm suspicious of people who don't like dogs, but I trust a dog when it doesn't like a person. - Bill Murray
