Got the same survey here in Virginia.
When I first started duck hunting here in central Virginia,in the mid-60's a mallard was a trophy duck-- nearly all "big" ducks bagged were blacks, and, over the years the ratio reversed. Now, mallards dominate with only a very modest increase in blacks, despite a greatly reduced limit on blacks.
If one takes the time to read the USFW's rationale for the proposal, one will how flawed the it is-----for example, they openly state that mallard populations have decreased less than 1% annually since the early 2000's in the Atlantic Flyway compared to three other species--only ONE of which has a significant breeding population in the Atlantic Flyway! Secondly, the Flyway kill aren't local birds-- most are migrants---they're NOT locals, as we seldom kill mallards until late December.
Keith made some very valid points, and I urge all to read the flawed proposal on the USFW's website. I, for one will continue to spend a lot of money (largely wasted) on the sport--under protest. If they want to try another useless tack they can re-institute the stupid "point system", and eliminate hens from the bag limit.
