spectr17
08-30-2001, 05:59 PM
Turn to Idaho to utilize mechanized decoys.
Fenton Roskelley - The Spokesman-Review
You dreamed that those budget-busting mechanized waterfowl decoys you bought would suck big flocks of ducks and geese to your decoy spread and enable you to take home limit after limit. Now you suspect your money is down the drain.
You are irritated that the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission spoiled your dream by outlawing mechanized decoys and you wonder what you will do with your $170 Mojo Duck or your $120 Flambeau Ski Scraper and the $15 quiver devices that look like hockey pucks.
If you are an outfitter, you may have spent $600 to $800 on mechanized decoys so you could rent them out at $30 to $40 a day.
Take heart. Your investment isn't necessarily a total loss.
You can sell your decoys in Idaho. The Gem state's Fish and Wildlife Commission, more oriented to hunting than the Washington commission, considered banning the mechanized decoys but decided not to do so, at least for the coming season.
Or you can hunt ducks and geese in Idaho this fall and winter.
Finding a buyer for your decoys may not be difficult, provided your decoys are relatively new and in good condition. That is, if your price is not too high.
Right now, it's a buyer's market. Potential buyers know you are stuck with the mechanized decoys and would like to retrieve some of your investment. And there are scores, perhaps hundreds, of Washington waterfowl hunters who bought Rojo Ducks, Robo Ducks and similar decoys.
You can advertise in an Idaho newspaper or you may persuade a sporting goods store operator to sell your decoys on consignment. You know, of course, that the store owner will take 10 percent or more of the proceeds.
At least, you won't lose all your investment.
You've got good selling points. You know the mechanized decoys are amazing attractors. If you used them when duck and goose seasons opened last fall and when the "northerns" winged into the state in mid-November, you know the whirling wings of the decoys caught the attention of ducks and geese a mile or two away from your spread.
You also know California researchers concluded after a survey that mechanized decoys are not a gimmick to get waterfowl hunters to plunk down a couple of C-notes.
You also know waterfowl guides and outfitters were among the most vocal hunters who tried to persuade the commission not to ban the decoys. They've seen ducks and geese, after spotting the moving decoys, turn away from spots they intended to land, fly to the spread that included the moving decoys and, without circling, drop their legs to land.
When the commissioners met in Twisp last month and considered a proposal to ban mechanized waterfowl decoys, indications were that waterfowl hunters were deeply divided on the issue.
On one side were hunters who felt the use of the decoys violated the "fair chase" concept that hunters must give the hunted a fair chance to escape. Those hunters also suspected that widespread use of the decoys would result in excessive kills.
Some hunters who favored a ban equated the use of mechanized decoys to the use of live decoys, which were banned many years ago.
On the other side were guides and hunters who argued that use of the decoys enabled young hunters to compete with experienced hunters. They also said that the decoys must be used correctly or they are not any more effective than standard decoys.
The commission voted 6 to 2 to ban the mechanized decoys. The ban includes the quiver devices that, when activated, create riffles in the water around standard decoys.
Kelly White of Kettle Falls, an avid hunter, and Will Roehl of Bellingham, an angler who fishes for salmon along the Coast and trout in Washington and British Columbia, were the only commissioners who voted against the ban. Fred Shiosaki of Spokane, a longtime fly fisher, was absent.
Although most states still permit the use of mechanized waterfowl decoys, it's possible that many fish and wildlife agencies, sensitive to criticism from anti-hunting groups, eventually will limit or ban their use if studies reveal that waterfowl kill rates increase dramatically. Agencies also may threaten to shorten seasons and cut bag limits, moves that would be opposed by most waterfowl hunters. And it is possible the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may ban the decoys.
Meanwhile, several mail order companies will market mechanized decoys.
For example, Outlaw Decoys, Inc., of Spokane, a fast-growing producer and marketer of high quality boats and decoys, as well as distributor of other hunting, fishing and other outdoor equipment, features motorized ducks and geese in its latest 130-page catalog.
Cabela's, one of the largest firms, features motorized decoys on three of the nine pages devoted to decoys in its 592-page fall master catalog.
As more states or the feds ban the decoys, the companies will drop the devices from their catalogs. Mechanized decoys, like dodo birds, probably are headed for extinction.
•You can contact Fenton Roskelley by voice mail at 459-5577, extension 3814.
Fenton Roskelley - The Spokesman-Review
You dreamed that those budget-busting mechanized waterfowl decoys you bought would suck big flocks of ducks and geese to your decoy spread and enable you to take home limit after limit. Now you suspect your money is down the drain.
You are irritated that the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission spoiled your dream by outlawing mechanized decoys and you wonder what you will do with your $170 Mojo Duck or your $120 Flambeau Ski Scraper and the $15 quiver devices that look like hockey pucks.
If you are an outfitter, you may have spent $600 to $800 on mechanized decoys so you could rent them out at $30 to $40 a day.
Take heart. Your investment isn't necessarily a total loss.
You can sell your decoys in Idaho. The Gem state's Fish and Wildlife Commission, more oriented to hunting than the Washington commission, considered banning the mechanized decoys but decided not to do so, at least for the coming season.
Or you can hunt ducks and geese in Idaho this fall and winter.
Finding a buyer for your decoys may not be difficult, provided your decoys are relatively new and in good condition. That is, if your price is not too high.
Right now, it's a buyer's market. Potential buyers know you are stuck with the mechanized decoys and would like to retrieve some of your investment. And there are scores, perhaps hundreds, of Washington waterfowl hunters who bought Rojo Ducks, Robo Ducks and similar decoys.
You can advertise in an Idaho newspaper or you may persuade a sporting goods store operator to sell your decoys on consignment. You know, of course, that the store owner will take 10 percent or more of the proceeds.
At least, you won't lose all your investment.
You've got good selling points. You know the mechanized decoys are amazing attractors. If you used them when duck and goose seasons opened last fall and when the "northerns" winged into the state in mid-November, you know the whirling wings of the decoys caught the attention of ducks and geese a mile or two away from your spread.
You also know California researchers concluded after a survey that mechanized decoys are not a gimmick to get waterfowl hunters to plunk down a couple of C-notes.
You also know waterfowl guides and outfitters were among the most vocal hunters who tried to persuade the commission not to ban the decoys. They've seen ducks and geese, after spotting the moving decoys, turn away from spots they intended to land, fly to the spread that included the moving decoys and, without circling, drop their legs to land.
When the commissioners met in Twisp last month and considered a proposal to ban mechanized waterfowl decoys, indications were that waterfowl hunters were deeply divided on the issue.
On one side were hunters who felt the use of the decoys violated the "fair chase" concept that hunters must give the hunted a fair chance to escape. Those hunters also suspected that widespread use of the decoys would result in excessive kills.
Some hunters who favored a ban equated the use of mechanized decoys to the use of live decoys, which were banned many years ago.
On the other side were guides and hunters who argued that use of the decoys enabled young hunters to compete with experienced hunters. They also said that the decoys must be used correctly or they are not any more effective than standard decoys.
The commission voted 6 to 2 to ban the mechanized decoys. The ban includes the quiver devices that, when activated, create riffles in the water around standard decoys.
Kelly White of Kettle Falls, an avid hunter, and Will Roehl of Bellingham, an angler who fishes for salmon along the Coast and trout in Washington and British Columbia, were the only commissioners who voted against the ban. Fred Shiosaki of Spokane, a longtime fly fisher, was absent.
Although most states still permit the use of mechanized waterfowl decoys, it's possible that many fish and wildlife agencies, sensitive to criticism from anti-hunting groups, eventually will limit or ban their use if studies reveal that waterfowl kill rates increase dramatically. Agencies also may threaten to shorten seasons and cut bag limits, moves that would be opposed by most waterfowl hunters. And it is possible the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may ban the decoys.
Meanwhile, several mail order companies will market mechanized decoys.
For example, Outlaw Decoys, Inc., of Spokane, a fast-growing producer and marketer of high quality boats and decoys, as well as distributor of other hunting, fishing and other outdoor equipment, features motorized ducks and geese in its latest 130-page catalog.
Cabela's, one of the largest firms, features motorized decoys on three of the nine pages devoted to decoys in its 592-page fall master catalog.
As more states or the feds ban the decoys, the companies will drop the devices from their catalogs. Mechanized decoys, like dodo birds, probably are headed for extinction.
•You can contact Fenton Roskelley by voice mail at 459-5577, extension 3814.