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The Ins and Outs of Hunting Geese
Geese represent (specifically Canada Geese) represent North America's most common waterfowl. They are fairly large birds that adapt well to human-modified areas of habitat. They frequently habit golf courses which have permanent man-made bodies of water. Also, parking lots entertain populations of geese as well. Due to increasing numbers of geese taking up permanent residence in human controlled areas some consider them pests. Since 1999 the US Wildlife Service has taken action to cull flocks of geese, whether through lethal measures of adult geese, addling of eggs, or even destroying nests. Other responses to increasing geese populations include the extension of hunting seasons.
Goose hunting occurs throughout the United States wherever geese can be found. As waterfowl, marshlands or wetlands are the prime areas of concentration for geese. Hunters employ shotguns, blinds, and decoys as common methods of hunting geese. Each has a specific purpose in hunting the birds.
The shotgun kills the birds. Simple enough. However, it's important to know what size of shot to use and even to consider what gauge of shotgun to use. Twelve, sixteen and twenty gauge shotguns are all common choices, with twelve gauge shotguns likely being the most popular choice. Buckshot cannot be used to hunt geese since it is illegal, but 5,4,3,2,1 and B, BB, BBB shot are all used to hunt waterfowl generally. Since geese are so large sometimes even T-shot is used to bring them down.
Hunters hide in blinds to conceal themselves from the birds they hunt. When used in conjunction with decoys, hunters lure unsuspecting birds to within range of the blind, pop out of the blind, and then shoot the birds. Blinds vary in construction and type, but all serve the purpose of visually concealing the hunters so the birds do not prematurely detect them. In addition to blinds and decoys hunters also use various calls to attract birds. Calls exist for nearly every type of bird and even come in differing varieties in order to relay specific messages to the birds since birds make different sounds to communicated different messages (e.g. 'it's safe to come down now' after danger appears).
As an outgrowth of goose hunting's popularity hunters can employ goose hunting guides in order to solidify their chances of success. Goose hunting guides must have sufficient experience to handle decently sized groups of hunters and know how to react to daily changes in field conditions. Those guides who are experienced can make the difficult task of shooting waterfowl much easier, especially for those just starting to hunt.
About the Author Bay Prairie Outfitters & Lodge (http://bayprairie.com) offers you the service of expert
goose hunting guides . Art Gib is a freelance writer.
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