# Definition of "Sky-Busting"?



## rpeckens (Oct 14, 2003)

We had an experience this weekend @ one of the managed areas were the guys in the zone next to us were shooting at anything that came into their zone. They consistently were shooting at ducks that seamed to be too far away. Now mind you they were killing ducks but on the other hand they wounded three that I could see and countless others that they may have hit to die later.

I thought we called this sport "Duck Hunting"? In my mind "Duck Hunting" is calling and decoying the birds into range where you can get a clean kill not just shooting at everything that flies by. Watching a duck work and respond to your calling is to me fascinating, getting them to commit is the reward.

So what is the definition of "Sky-Busting"?

Additionally, I took a walk through or zone and found seven (7) dead ducks.


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## tippycanoe (Sep 5, 2000)

IMOP, I think people that shoot 50yds and beyond are skybusting. I don't shoot at anything beyond 40yds, but there are those that use 10ga., hevi shot, etc that I feel end up pushing the "effective" kill range. I have seen it at managed areas too, birds falling at 50-60 yds, but I have also seen them coast away and die, with no hopes of ever being retreived. I do not consider people who hunt like that as "duck hunters", they are people who just want to shoot a box a shells just to see if they can get something to fall, its sad and unfortunate.


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## stacemo (Oct 23, 2003)

We did a lot of shooting but all at birds in range yesterday. I only saw one cripple of ours and we crippled him over the decoys. I walked 1/2 way across the field to find it. On my walk I found two floaters that were pretty old. This managed area that I was hunting has always been like this. It is sad but I always hope that others will learn to respect the game.

The guys diagonal from us did shoot at some high ducks. There is nothing you can do if people don't care. 

I was out with my 13 yr old son and he maybe twice shot at a far duck which I reprimanded him for. 

This year I have seen more of a problem with people shooting too many hens. I found a pair left right in the hunting area. I even found one that somebody breasted out right in the field.

There are no answers to this problem that I can see.


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

An old subject that never seems to go away. This is like talking about politics, religion, abortion, etc. There really isn't a right answer....it's all about your perspective on the subject.

Two things you need to think about when discussing so-called "skybusting". First, many are out hunting with one goal....to shoot a limit. They take pride in doing so, and really get off on it. They judge a successful season strictly by numbers of birds shot. I'm not one to criticize them for it because years ago when I first started hunting, I was that way. I'd brag all day about doing so. But limits mean nothing to me any longer. It's all about quality now.....calling them in, getting them feet down over the dekes, picking drakes over hens, etc. But again, that's just my own feeling. If a guy is out there to shoot his limit, and he's legally licensed, I'm not about to criticize....after all, it's legal to do that.

The second thing to consider is use of dogs. Over the years I've seen party after party in the managed areas that take long shots. My opinion after all of these years is that many of these guys take longer shots because they don't have to personally chase the birds down through that god-awful field muck at Shiawassee or Fish Point. They have good dogs that do it for them. And let's face it, a good dog is a valuable tool. Not only do they save you a ton of work on those retrieves, but they find a lot of birds that you probably would lose without a dog. Next time you have a group of......I'll call them "long shooters" to be kind....next to you, consider the dog thing. Do they have a good dog that's chasing these birds down for them. Believe me, I've thought about that one for years.

For me personally, a shot over 40 yards is a long shot. Not that I'm saying you can't kill them consistently at longer ranges, just my own preference, based upon my own shooting ability, is to limit myself to that. I also rarely take passing shots any more. If they aren't decoying in well, I usually pass. Again, could I take more ducks by shooting passing shots....you bet. I come home a lot with only one or two birds when I easily could've had more. But since I'm no longer interested in numbers, I usually pass. To me there's nothing better than to call them down, and have them feet down above the pocket before you shoot. If you're patient, even at the managed areas, you'll get that. You may pass up a lot of shots in the mean time, but that is what a quality hunt means to me. Again, not criticizing others, this is just my own preference.


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## Branta (Feb 6, 2002)

I'll give you a quick example of a successful Sky Buster.

If a group of geese (let's call them geese since these yahoos thought so too), come flyin over your zone in a nice V, awfully quiet like and you Pop one really high only to find out it was a Cormorant...

You might be a Sky-Buster!!  

It'd be funny if it wasn't so sad... I think I've seen it three times this year at the point. how many times have you watched a flock of 'rants moving along only to hear some guy start uncorkin' on them? And the stories of shooting Swans thinking they were geese still amazes me.

THEY'VE GOT THE $%&#@! THINGS MOUNTED IN THE OFFICE, YOU'RE WARNED OF IT AT THE START OF THE DRAW AND IT'S PRINTED IN THE REGS and yahoos are still crackin' them. Idiots.

If you can't see a break in the color of a gooses neck to it's body because it's all dark... that's way too high.

If you can't tell a hen from a drake from a black duck becuase it's "all black"... That's too high as well.

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edit: that doesn't mean that they're in range if you can though. keep your shots to within 35 yds.


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## The Big Dutchman (Sep 1, 2003)

Please call your local CO or the RAP line. What those "hunters" did was illegal, and people like them will keep doing it until other sportsmen get involved. What they're doing is called WANTON WASTE--killing or wounding a miigratory bird without making a reasonable attempt to retrieve it.

Everyone there was duckhunting. Why should those particular guys get a free pass on the law? If people duckhunting now can pick or choose which laws they will or will not obey, then we'll have a pastime that will rapidly go downhill.

It is not a fun thing to watch, is it? It's just depressing.


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## Mike L (Sep 8, 2003)

I see guys at the point all of the time breaking the law. So am I supppose to stop hunitng and go call the violatioin in ? Aint gonna happen! I've mentioned what I see to Tim and Gary and they can't do anything eigther, all they can do is report it to law enforcemnet. The point needs to have a couple of CO's hang around the point for the first couple of days and check guys for plugs ,shell type's and amounts etc. We've only been checked once out there and that was very late last year. Check em when there going in and a few of them coming out. It would put a stop to a lot of this crap. I did see guys shoot at swans but in one instance it woul dhave been a tough call. They were quiet and coming right out of the sun. If there coming straight at you it's a tough call. And these guys were rookies too, heck they shot when the swans were still 60yds out. Once we yelled at them they didn't shoot any more.


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## Zofchak (Jan 10, 2003)

I agree that fish Point needs more C.O's. I have hunted it for the last ten years and only been stopped once. I have seen swans, hawks, gulls, and pheasants shot at all of them by the same people that were minutes before shooting at black dots in the air. 

I'm all for very high fines for shooting both protected birds as well shooting more than ones limit. The higher fines will easily pay for the extra officers. 

As for the extra hens being left out in the field, I think a once a season "extra hen tag" would be a good idea for our duck limits. I know not to shoot unless I'm sure of the target, but I have also shot more than one duck with one shell as well as birds behind the bird I was aiming for. It's ashamed to see a bird left in the field to rot. As for people that shoot and ID later I have no sympathy, if your that blind or that ignorant try golf.


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