What is baiting?

[Smoke68]

[Smoke68]

As I was reading up on the link in the OP, I noticed a regulation I've never noticed before:

"Rallying. You cannot hunt waterfowl that have been concentrated, driven, rallied, or stirred up with a motorized vehicle or sailboat."

I hunted some public land Saturday and had never seen it so bad. Not even an early flight of ANYTHING. We were on our way out, powered by a 2.5HP mercury 2-stroke, when we flushed some woodies about 200 yards away. I shut the engine down, and we came to a complete stop. I understand that we were legal as it pertains to "hunting from a motorized vehicle" as we were not under any motion as a result of a motor. BUT I didn't know it would have been illegal to shoot those ducks had they flushed towards us.

Our guns were unloaded and cased, so it wasn't an issue. But at the distance the birds flushed, I would have easily been able to uncase, load up, and fire had I wanted to. Personally, I just don't think that's very much fun or sporting. But I didn't know until now that it would have been illegal.

Learn something new every day!

[Wingman]

[eSJay]

[Deltamud77]

[Don Miller]

[Deltamud77]

[the tree]

Wingman, I believe you help the sport by answering questions on a public forum.

[Hambone]

I had always been under the misconception that a hunter could be ticketed for hunting over bait simply by having brushed up against cornstalks and knocking kernels to the ground. This idea always seemed to me to be unfair and simply intended to provide a ticket-happy game warden an opportunity to write citations.

I was much relieved to read the linked USFWS bulletin that clarified the point with the following language that has already been mentioned:

It is legal to hunt over "standing or flooded standing crops where grain is inadvertently scattered solely as the result of hunters entering or leaving the area, placing decoys, or retrieving downed birds. Hunters are cautioned that while conducting these activities, any intentional scattering of grain will create a baited area. "

I never had a problem with the regulation prohibiting hunting over corn that was intentionally knocked down for the sole purpose of making bait, but inadvertence was another story.

On another regulatory note, there is a compelling argument that the existing tagging and transport regulations are written, and can be enforced, in a way that tends to penalize well-meaning and otherwise legal hunters.

[flyhi2]

What about beans that were left in front of the pit by the farmer to "leave some food"? Obviously, by now every single bean has popped out, so there is no grain to manipulate. There is nothing but a stalk there. Can those stalks be manipulated so that we can hunt the pit? Open water is out of gun range.