CONTACT:
Jessica Carloni: (603) 868-1095
Andy Timmins: (603) 271-1742
December 9, 2024
Concord, NH – New Hampshire Fish and Game wildlife biologists have completed their annual pre-season duck banding effort. This project entails attaching hundreds of metal bands to ducks throughout the state and is conducted in the U.S. and in Canadian provinces throughout the Atlantic Flyway in August and September. This large undertaking is crucial to sound waterfowl management in New Hampshire because it provides survival-rate data. Survival data is combined with breeding-plot data and National Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program (HIP) survey data in a model that is then used to determine annual season regulations.
Each metal band has a unique sequence of numbers, and biologists record the species, age, and sex of each duck before it is released. At the end of the season, all data are submitted to the Bird Banding Lab at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Maryland. When a hunter harvests a duck with a metal band, or a wildlife viewer reads the band through a spotting scope, they are asked to report the information to a website provided on the band (www.reportband.gov). It takes just a few minutes to report the encounter. You may see a phone number inscribed on the band also, but the call center supporting the toll-free phone number has been discontinued. Please report band recoveries online at www.reportband.gov or by sending your information to: Bird Banding Lab, 12100 Beach Forest Road, Laurel, MD 20708.
“Please take the time to report your bands,” urges Jessica Carloni, the NH Fish and Game Department’s Waterfowl Biologist. “A substantial amount of effort went into putting these markers on, and these band reports provide important management data. It’s also very interesting to learn how old the duck is and where it was banded.”
This year, a total of 638 ducks were banded in New Hampshire before the hunting season began. This included 480 mallards, 148 wood ducks, 8 black ducks, 1 mallard/black duck hybrid, and 1 green-winged teal. As a result of 36 consecutive years of pre-season duck banding, 16,405 ducks have been banded in New Hampshire.
Banding ducks is not a simple undertaking. Biologists invest a considerable amount of time in putting out bait to attract ducks to locations best suited for banding. Numerous capture techniques exist for catching ducks; the two most widely used in New Hampshire are bait traps and rocket nets. Bait traps are simple enclosures with a closing-door mechanism. Rocket nets are very effective at catching large groups of birds. Three rockets are attached to a large net. When the ducks are close enough, biologists trigger a detonator, which fires the rockets, propelling the net into the air, catching the ducks unharmed underneath. Bait traps accounted for 66% of the ducks banded this year and rocket nets for 34% of captures.
“We are extremely grateful to the private landowners who allowed us to access their property to band these ducks,” said Carloni. “Their support makes the collection of this valuable information possible.”
Late season waterfowl hunting opportunities remain available in New Hampshire. Learn more by visiting www.huntnh.com/hunting/waterfowl.html.
Waterfowl management is funded by Wildlife Restoration Grants administered by the US Fish and Wildlife Services, Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program: Partnering to fund conservation and connect people with nature.
