If you have journeyed over to Seneca Lake you have seen the numerous duck blinds just off shore of the park where there is precious little shallow water. Representation was made to the state and village several years ago and I forget the legalese but in layman's terms the large lakes come under state jurisdiction and the DEC reading was that such hunting with blinds and decoys was quite legal despite proximity to shoreline and docks east and west.
It would be a shame to change a traditional date for the CBC and moving may cause conflicts with other counts. Why not advocate buying duck and habitat stamps and ask the local fish and game clubs to weigh in on possible solutions. Perhaps they would as a group help with the count instead of hunting on the CBC day? John -- John and Sue Gregoire Field Ornithologists Kestrel Haven Avian Migration Observatory 5373 Fitzgerald Road Burdett,NY 14818-9626 Website: http://www.empacc.net/~kestrelhaven/ "Conserve and Create Habitat" On Mon, December 30, 2013 07:52, Linda Orkin wrote: > The opinion that follows is strictly my own and does not reflect any official > position of the Cayuga Bird Club. Although I wish it did. > > I will not be one of the ones that says I have nothing against hunting > because I do, > sorry. > > But even if I thought hunting was a great thing, I feel it is totally bizarre > to > have this slaughter, harassment and disregard for life going on right INSIDE > our own > city limits in a public park where any and all are exposed to this carnage > and risk. > > I am attaching a link to the article that Jane Graves discovered and > published in > our October newsletter re:the imposition of waterfowl hunting in 1933. Too > bad it > was ever started. I would support Dave's suggestion to petition the DEC to > rescind > this permission at the south end of the lake. > > http://cayugabirdclub.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-note-from-past.html > > Have a great count day on January 1. There's still time to sign up if you'd > like. > Email me. > > Linda Orkin > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Dec 29, 2013, at 10:51 PM, Dave Nutter <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> Perhaps the line of fire & proximity of people & buildings was the reason >> the DEC >> police called in the gunners who were in the SW corner of the lake tied to a >> tree >> along the shore of Treman. I saw in the background 2 adults and a child on >> the >> beach of the west shore, associated with the first house, a large new one. >> >> I'd like to petition the DEC to have the south end of the lake, say the >> portion >> within the City of Ithaca, which does not allow firing guns, off limits to >> hunting. >> --Dave Nutter >> >>> On Dec 29, 2013, at 08:47 PM, Anne Clark <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> It sounds as if some of these folks might be illegally close to buildings, >>> although I suppose they argue that their guns are pointing down the lake. >>> On the >>> other hand, in the park area, trails and inlets make a complex problem for >>> claiming that nothing could be in the line of fire when shooting at ducks >>> flying >>> in and over. Do they really stop firing when the ducks swing toward shore? >>> >>> Per the DEC hunting regulations >>> >>> Question: How far from a building do I have to be to discharge my firearm? >>> Answer: You cannot discharge a firearm or bow within 500 feet of any school, >>> playground, occupied factory or church. You cannot discharge a firearm or >>> bow >>> within 500 feet of a dwelling, farm building, or structure unless you own >>> it, >>> lease it, are an immediate member of the family, an employee, or have the >>> owner's >>> consent. This does not apply to the discharge of a shotgun over water when >>> hunting migratory game birds and no dwelling, public structure, livestock, >>> or >>> person is in the line of fire. >>> >>>> On Dec 29, 2013, at 5:07 PM, Kenneth V. Rosenberg wrote: >>>> >>>> I birded at East Shore Park on Saturday mid-day, and at Stewart Park this >>>> morning -- I must say that I have never seen so much hunting pressure at >>>> the >>>> south end of the lake. I want to say clearly that I am not against legal >>>> duck >>>> hunting in well managed areas (and I buy a Migratory Bird Stamp to support >>>> wetland conservation), but what is going on this year does not seem to be >>>> sustainable or an appropriate use of such a large public space. Boats with >>>> hunters and decoys were anchored right under the trees at the Swan Pen at >>>> Stewart Park, at the tip of the red lighthouse jetty, at the wooden buoy >>>> marker, >>>> on the beach at Hogs Hole, and along East Shore -- yesterday there was an >>>> additional boat cruising the center of the lake to chase duck flocks. >>>> Needless >>>> to say there was not a single spot for ducks to rest safely anywhere in the >>>> southern quarter-mile or so of Cayuga Lake (and probably north past Myer's >>>> Point >>>> as well), and any flock that circled around over the south end of the lake >>>> (no >>>> matter how high) was shot at. I don't know if DEC would consider that >>>> proper >>>> management of this important waterfowl wintering area. This seemed pretty >>>> different from the past few years when a few hunters kept the duck flocks >>>> moving >>>> around but there was plenty of place for them to rest -- notably along the >>>> Stewart Park shoreline, which was not available today. >>>> >>>> This activity will undoubtedly affect the numbers of waterfowl on this >>>> year's >>>> Christmas Bird Count on Wednesday (wasn't much to count today). If this >>>> trend >>>> continues in future years, I strongly recommend that the Cayuga Bird Club >>>> move >>>> its count to the days prior to the late hunting season -- this slight >>>> straying >>>> from "tradition" will probably yield more accurate numbers of local >>>> waterfowl >>>> populations. >>>> >>>> In spite of the hunting, I did manage to see a few distant LONG-TAILED >>>> DUCKS and >>>> a single WHITE-WINGED SCOTER far to the north of East Shore Park, and a >>>> flock of >>>> 12 RUDDY DUCKS, along with HORNED and PIED-BIILED GREBES, COMMON LOON, and >>>> 3 >>>> DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS -- all decent CBC birds if they can hang in >>>> there. >>>> There were also TUNDRA SWANS around this morning -- 2 on the ice at >>>> Stewart Park >>>> east end when I arrived, and a flock of 40-50 in the center of the lake >>>> way out. >>>> Later in the morning, as I was scouting around the Farmers Market and >>>> Community >>>> Gardens, several small flocks of swans passed over Ithaca heading south. >>>> >>>> Yesterday, at Taughannock Falls State Park, there were 2 (MYRTLE) >>>> YELLOW-RUMPED >>>> WARBLERS with chickadees at the lakeshore near the south end of the park. >>>> >>>> Let's hope some birds survive the next deep freeze, >>>> >>>> KEN >>>> >>>> >>>> Ken Rosenberg >>>> Conservation Science Program >>>> Cornell Lab of Ornithology >>>> 607-254-2412 >>>> 607-342-4594 (cell) >>>> [email protected] >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Cayugabirds-L List Info: >>>> Welcome and Basics >>>> >>>> Rules and Information >>>> >>>> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave >>>> >>>> Archives: >>>> The Mail Archive >>>> >>>> Surfbirds >>>> >>>> BirdingOnThe.Net >>>> >>>> Please submit your observations to eBird! >>>> -- >>> >>> -- >>> Cayugabirds-L List Info: >>> Welcome and Basics >>> >>> Rules and Information >>> >>> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave >>> >>> Archives: >>> The Mail Archive >>> >>> Surfbirds >>> >>> BirdingOnThe.Net >>> >>> Please submit your observations to eBird! >>> -- >> >> -- >> Cayugabirds-L List Info: >> Welcome and Basics >> Rules and Information >> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave >> Archives: >> The Mail Archive >> Surfbirds >> BirdingOnThe.Net >> Please submit your observations to eBird! >> -- > > > -- > > Cayugabirds-L List Info: > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm > > ARCHIVES: > 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html > 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds > 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html > > Please submit your observations to eBird: > http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ > > -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
