# Does this count against my pintail bag limit?



## Raptor1 (Feb 1, 2015)

First crossed duck, what are the regs on how to count these odd balls?


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## Kwalk3 (Jun 21, 2012)

Not sure why that would count against your pintail bag limit. But you should definitely count it against your hen mallard bag limit. From the pictures, I can't see anything that makes me think that it is a cross.

Beautiful bird, by the way.


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## Raptor1 (Feb 1, 2015)

Kwalk3 said:


> Not sure why that would count against your pintail bag limit. But you should definitely count it against your hen mallard bag limit. From the pictures, I can't see anything that makes me think that it is a cross.
> 
> Beautiful bird, by the way.


Yeah it could be, just haven't ever seen wing coloration like that in a hen mallard before. I guess they come in a wide variety. Dog had a fun time chasing it down, if that wing weren't so damaged I'd consider getting it mounted.


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## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

years ago I killed a cross pintail mallard drake. Honestly this isn't a cross.


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## paddler (Jul 17, 2009)

Here's a cross:


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## Pumpgunner (Jan 12, 2010)

paddler said:


> Here's a cross:
> View attachment 125385


That's a cool looking bird! That bald dude in back is making me nervous though, he looks like he's looking for any excuse for a full cavity search....


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## paddler (Jul 17, 2009)

Pumpgunner said:


> That's a cool looking bird! That bald dude in back is making me nervous though, he looks like he's looking for any excuse for a full cavity search....


Yep, they get pretty official. That year US F&W was examining every bird coming back across the border. They opened that shed and spread all our birds on the floor. Many years the border guys just wave you through. I asked them once if they wanted to look at our birds and he said, "No thanks." Irene, on the other hand, works for F&W and takes her job very seriously. She carefully counts every bird. She counted 47 geese this last trip when we only had 46. We ate two while up there. I need to return on her day off. Took 40 minutes this time.


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## sketch21 (Jul 11, 2013)

I'm not seeing any Pintail in that bird.


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## Packout (Nov 20, 2007)

I'd agree the first hen is a mallard. The pic of the real hybrid looks like a young drake. Or was it a hen? 

I shot a full plume hybrid drake one year in January. Pretty bird.


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## paddler (Jul 17, 2009)

Packout said:


> I'd agree the first hen is a mallard. The pic of the real hybrid looks like a young drake. Or was it a hen?
> 
> I shot a full plume hybrid drake one year in January. Pretty bird.


I thought it was a hen, but not sure.


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Paddler, 

Pardon my ignorance, but what is the reasoning behind not cleaning/skinning the birds? Dry aging?


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## paddler (Jul 17, 2009)

CPAjeff said:


> Paddler,
> 
> Pardon my ignorance, but what is the reasoning behind not cleaning/skinning the birds? Dry aging?


Good question. We go up late so meat care isn't an issue. We gut the birds in the field and store them under a tarp at the motel. They stay cold and can age a bit. Leaving the skin and feathers on keeps the meat from drying out, dirt, etc. We breast them out when we get home. If you have Shaw's book, he talks about hanging birds. This is similar.

The problem is that this approach means you haul back a bunch of weight, we had maybe 300 pounds of geese in my truck. I'm thinking about going up earlier next year to target white fronts, but it's typically warmer then and we may need to use a cooler. So we'll probably just take the breast plate with one wing attached. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages.


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## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

paddler said:


> I thought it was a hen, but not sure.


Doesn't look anything like the drake cross I killed. I would say definitely hen.


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## Pumpgunner (Jan 12, 2010)

paddler said:


> Good question. We go up late so meat care isn't an issue. We gut the birds in the field and store them under a tarp at the motel. They stay cold and can age a bit. Leaving the skin and feathers on keeps the meat from drying out, dirt, etc. We breast them out when we get home. If you have Shaw's book, he talks about hanging birds. This is similar.
> 
> The problem is that this approach means you haul back a bunch of weight, we had maybe 300 pounds of geese in my truck. I'm thinking about going up earlier next year to target white fronts, but it's typically warmer then and we may need to use a cooler. So we'll probably just take the breast plate with one wing attached. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages.
> View attachment 125457


I've messed around a lot with different ways of aging meats, in the old days they would take birds straight from the field and hang them for weeks with no ill effects. Longest I've hung a bird whole was 10 days and they were really good. I've let them go 14+ in the fridge and they were still really tasty, almost too mellow for me really. There was a dude on Steve Rinella's Meat Eater podcast who had aged some elk meat for 300+ days and said you could cut it with a butter knife, I've never been that brave though!


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## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

When the weather is warm I will clean my ducks the day I shoot them. When it's cold like it is now they hang for a few days.


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## sketch21 (Jul 11, 2013)

Fowlmouth said:


> When the weather is warm I will clean my ducks the day I shoot them. When it's cold like it is now they hang for a few days.


Hey Fowl, when hanging to age, do you remove the guts first?


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## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

Packout said:


> I'd agree the first hen is a mallard. The pic of the real hybrid looks like a young drake. Or was it a hen?
> 
> I shot a full plume hybrid drake one year in January. Pretty bird.


Did your drake have both the pintail long tail and the drake mallard curly q feathers on the tail. Mine did...


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