Western Bird Biologist

In this weeks episode we learn about the importance of wetlands in SONEC (Southern Oregon and North Eastern California) to waterfowl, waterbirds and a way of life on private lands. This is my old stomping grounds where I cut my teeth as a private lands habitat biologist.  How is the NRCS and Intermountain west joint venture helping to protect this important migratory corridor? What does it take to get a cool job like Ed has? Listen in to find out! 

My new friend and co-worker Mike and I were lucky enough to squeeze in some time to chat about Kansas!A place I have never hunted and a place that has had some pretty good upland bird hunting the past couple years. We chat about bird biology, bird hunting and some about his work with prairie chickens and now the National Wild Turkey Federation. 

In this episode Bill and I get a little nostalgic about NAVHDA and Wirehairs long since passed to the happy hunting grounds. We talk about changes in the boise valley, Blue grouse hunting and about some of the wirehairs and wirehair breeders we have known. Some of our favorite dogs which became the foundation dogs for several kennels. Bill had Black Canyon kennels but we talk about Grossklaus, three devils, Blue collar and Bachman bay kennels a bunch of rich bird hunting history with this line of dogs. I hope to interview all the wirehair breeders in the west. 

Monty Gregg a career Forest service biologist that holds the coveted title of game bird centers of excellence biologist covering Oregon and Washington. He has 20 years experience in central Oregon and is the lead for partnerships with the National Wild Turkey Federation. We cover some history of the Forest service, fire management and some current projects we are working on. 

While waiting for an unbelievably thick fog to lift while chukar hunting in the Owyhees Frank Pucccio and I sit in his chukarjeep and record some stories. Frank founded Hun Hill Kennels and gets out hunting an incredible 5 days a week! We cover topics on chukar biology and hunting tactics, raising and breeding griffons and living in southern Idaho.  WHAT the HECK is bird fanciers lung??? How could it change your life and the way you enjoy outdoor sports? Give this podcast a listen and find out! ***New podcast every Wednesday!

Sculling is a method of sneaking up on waterfowl by laying on your back in a special boat with a long whippy oar sticking through a hole in the transom. This method was used by market hunters and is still in use today. In this episode we chat with Humboldt county natives Chris and Steven Jensen about their experiences growing up on Humboldt bay which is the main hub of west coast sculling. We talk about different floats, oars and techniques used by scullers to hunt waterfowl and other things. Scullers are some of the most closed lipped hunting groups you will ever find!  I dedicated this episode to my long time friend Bill Pinches of Arcata, CA who was a sculler, decoy carver and heck of an interesting human!    Rate and review the podcast please!   New episode every wednesday!

***New podcast every Wednesday! Interesting chat about doing bird research in remote Alaska. Bryan has done work on all kinds of waterfowl from Texas, California and Alaska. Bryan studied Brant in Cold bay Alaska for his masters and currently does some interesting work with Brant, eiders and pintails. Bryan is enjoying the rural alaskan lifestyle and getting out and doing some hunting based out of Bethel. I was pretty Jealous of his swan hunting!      

Jeremiah and Johanna both have some interesting perspectives on the future of hunting and cooking wild game. Jeremiah challenges the traditional way we have been recruiting new hunters. The ethics of posting photos on social media. We cover some of the philosophy of why locavores and millennials are getting so interested in hunting for food.We have a great discussion about ways to mentor a new hunter through their first hunt. The wild game cooking discussion will have you thinking about recipes and how you are gonna process the meat before you even pull the trigger.  ***Challenge yourself to be a bean burrito!!!  Check out Jeremiah's Field to plate website!  https://fromfieldtoplate.com/ NWTF is working hard to recruit hunters! http://www.nwtf.org/about/outreach        

Nerd out with Casey and I on the life history and management of Cinnamon Teal in Colorado. Also we discuss remote waterfowl research in Alaska. She tells her story to becoming a bird biologist and bird hunter. She goes from vegetarian to newly minted wild game chef and well on her way to being Dr. Setash! Casey and I talk about hunter recruitment programs we have been part of and mentoring new hunters. We also talk about doing research and habitat projects on private lands and some of the techniques we use to get access to lands for research and hunting.       

Had a fantastic chat with my Father, Val Bachman a wildlife biologist for forty years who grew up hunting and guiding in the marshes surrounding of the great salt lake of Northern Utah. We talk about growing up in utah and tell some of my favorite family hunting stories about snipe, pheasants, waterfowl and bird dogs. Dad talks about his favorite dogs, how we got involved in GWP breeding and how he designed our families custom bird hunting camping trailer called "the lions den"

****We will be a releasing a new podcast every wednesday!*** I got to sit around and chat with two Washington Department of Wildlife biologists in the hotel room after we assisted with an upland hunting workshop. We cover a bunch of topics from AZ quail and Utah sage grouse and what type of experiences it takes to become a biologist. We cover just about everything WA game birds and bird hunting. Anis Aoude is the game program manager for WDFW and supervises pretty much everything related to game management in Washington. Chris White oversees the raising and release of 43 thousand pheasants and also happens to own the sister to one of my wirehairs.    

After a day of dog training I was lucky enough to get a chance to sit down with  Jason and talk about his career as a law enforcement officer and his time hunting over wirehairs and Drahthaars in Washington.  This guy is the real deal! Give it a listen!

Dr. Jared Duquette is a wildlife biologist, hunter and all around great dude who is working hard to influence the decline of hunter numbers through recruitment, retention and reactivation or R3. Jared is Based in Illinois but came out to eastern Washington to hunt upland birds with me and the wirehairs. Hopefully, you all enjoy this chat we had. We all need to do our part to help recruit new hunters and keep old ones out in the field. Do your part everybody!

I met Kaylee at the NWTF National Staff meeting in Augusta, Georgia and after sitting next to her on the bar stool for five minutes I knew I had to talk her into being on the show! She has a cool path to becoming a biologist, becoming a hunter and is a heck of a great story teller!! YOU WILL LOVE HER! I cant believe how good her mouth calling is under pressure in the corner of a bar this girl has some serious moves!

Opening day and the glory of what September represents to a bird hunter. A mostly Solo podcast about my first hunt with a bonus Cameo from the lovely Julie Unfried a bird biologist on her first Montana Sage Grouse hunt. I talk a little about my past and how fun it is to keep a hunting journal. Our first recording from the "lions den" ultimate bird hunting trailer. 

Val Bachman was an influential wildlife biologist and habitat manager in Utah for over four decades. We talk about his history and experiences as a biologist. Utah, the great salt lake and the great basin are such incredible places! Learn about the birds and the ecosystem from the perspective of man who dedicated much of his life to Utah bird habitat. 

George Wilson was an early hero of mine and I was very lucky to get this opportunity to talk with him over the phone. George was an upland game bird habitat biologist in northern Utah he has long since retired. We talk a lot about Utah habitat management. George has had an incredible amount of fine bird dogs and has lived the dream life as a bird biologist, traveling bird hunter, dog trial guy and heck of a good shot. George also was part of the shenanigans that got me my first ride in the back seat of a cop car....

Kelly Jobes Gives a colorful history of breeding some awesome wirehairs. We talk about some of the big name dogs and breeders that have come and gone and some hunting stories involving wirehairs in Oregon and PNW. As a wirehair breeder and NAVHDA Judge this stuff interests me even though we didn't delve into bird biology as much in this episode. 

In this interesting conversation Meadow and I discuss some old times and talk about the future of bird hunting. Meadow was actually interviewing me for her podcast which never got going so I published our conversation here! Meadow created some of the first super successful women's hunting programs and really helped jump start the R3 movement. We talk about her drahthaars, her work on ruffed grouse and a lot of our adventures hunting in Northwestern California. Meadow is the real deal an awesome mother, a well grounded biologist, an outdoorswoman, a dog breeder and heck of a good bird hunter. If you want to find out more about the extreme huntress competition you really should consider going to the website and voting for somebody that is a bird hunter and bird biologist!

Ken tells us about the bird hunting prospects for Montana and how some of the access programs work. Ken is an expert on bird habitat and how to create it on private lands. We talk a lot about Sharptail, huns, and pheasant hunting tactics. Ken is an Avid hunter and his German wirehair pointer Pixie lives the doggy dream life! Ken is an incredible photographer, biologist, Wirehair owner and a Fantastic human! 

Jeff Knetter is THE person charged with managing upland game and waterfowl in one of the top bird hunting destinations. we discussed some of the bird hunting opportunities in Idaho and some potential regulation changes. Jeff is an avid hunter who hunts over some fine Munsterlanders!

A fun chat with Brandon Smith after his dog Penny runs her Natural Ability Hunt test in Idaho's treasure Valley. Brandon is a great dog trainer, a newly minted NAVHDA judge and a veteran Washington Waterfowl hunter. We do get a little nerded out on dogs and NAVHDA in this episode. 

Hanna Nikonow is the sagebrush communications specialist for the Intermountain West Joint Venture. Hanna loves sagebrush and has the tattoo to prove it! She was born and raised in Wyoming and knows her way around a shotgun and a bird dog. Ron Boehme of the Hunting Dog Podcast co-host's this fun filled episode recorded in a remote cabin in Montana's wilderness in a place you could still see a grizzly bear out on the prairies. Hanna talks about her path to her current role, being a woman bird hunter and training her wirehaired pointing Griffon. 

Mikal Cline has worked all over the west and even studied quail movements in relation to bird dogs at Ames plantation! Mikal gives us a unique view of managing habitat for turkeys in the PNW while working for the NWTF and managing waterfowl in Washington. She recently took a position as the upland game coordinator for the state of Oregon and gives us a rundown of opportunities in Oregon. 

Josh Vest is the science coordinator for the Intermountain West Joint Venture. He has done some awesome waterfowl research in Utah and the south and is doing some exciting work all over the west. Josh has wirehairs and hunts them on upland birds and waterfowl in Montana.

I pinned down the very busy Christian Hagen a research professor with Oregon State university who also is doing work with the NRCS on Prairie Chickens. We talk about life in central Oregon, sage grouse and other upland birds, hunting with his munsterlanders and his recent NAVHDA test. 

Season 1 Episode 5 George Decosta talks about his "farm" a place he is turning into the ultimate wildlife and dog training property. George is an apprentice NAVHDA Judge, a Griffon breeder and a guy who has worked really hard to get to a cool spot in life. I am pretty dang jealous of his setup and trying to talk him into getting assistance from the NRCS for his property and maybe putting the land in an easement some day. 

Season 1 Episode 6. Had a fun conversation about the USFWS and the national wildlife refuge system in Region 6 with Dr. Keenan Adams the Division Chief of the science program. We talk about hunting in Colorado and California and little bit about what it is like to be a biologist with the USFWS and the refuge system. 

Jeremy and I talk a lot about hunting Brant in California and Alaska as well as some biology and hunting opportunities in South Dakota. This is a long one Jeremy and I hadn't seen each other in years so we covered a lot!

My long time friend Brent West and I have a great conversation about migratory bird management, his career and journey as a young biologist. If you have ever sent a migratory bird wing in Brent West probably touched it! we cover some fun topics about bird dogs, hunting stories and his current role in Maine. 

Season 1 Episode 2 Tim Griffiths the western coordinator for the Working Lands For Wildlife Program talks about his history with Sage grouse, Waterfowl, his line of labs, hunting in Oregon and Montana and a whole lot about how wildlife management works from the field level to Washington DC. 

Season 1 Episode 1 Introduction to the Podcast and the host Dominic Bachman. Learn about Dominic's history as a biologist, bird hunter and versatile dog guy.