Mystery feathers on the trail - do you keep many?

[BowLurker]

Hi FlyFusion folks!

I'm in the YYC area, and lately we've had a ton of fresh snow, along with cold, cold temps. It's an odd combination. Maybe its tougher for the birds this year..?

On the way back to the car one day, I noticed a few feathers on the snow.....nice tan colour, not a 'kill site' just a bunch ruffled off, near the trail.

I tried to tie a couple in at home, but very waxy still. I'm not a bird hunter, so forgive me, but it's a light tan, has down, and really small dark brown 'hackle' patterns... would you keep the 3-7 feathers?

Didn't hear any crow/magpie noise..not a person in sight while walking...( no dog friendliness either! ) I'm stumped..? Did an owlet fall? Was a nest being re-arranged? Duck, duck, duck? 

It's kinda cool to tie in some of these 30mm long feathers...no matter how waxy they are.

-M. 

 

 

[SilverDoctor]

Pictures?

[scel]

My wife is an avid birder (also a professional biologist).

It is my understanding (which is admittedly completely second-hand) that feathers simply do not 'ruff off' especially in the winter time.  Many owls start breeding at this time of year.  There are a surprising number of nest sites within city limits.  There have been many strong north and west winds over the last couple of days.   Since owls (and other birds of prey, like a sharp-shinned hawk) will just roost somewhere and pluck off some feathers before eating, it is very likely there is a nest site relatively close by.

it is kind of a crappy picture, but this hawk was sitting in my back yard only 4m away, but he was sitting under a massive group of cedar waxwings (which is what I would guess the bird your feathers are from) in the mountain ash right beside the tree he was sitting in.  https://photos.app.goo.gl/tIRSSxtVIdIW8wEG3

My wife picks me up feathers all the time.  My personal favorites are Canada goose and swan flight feathers---biots for stoneflies, copper johns, and prince nymphs.  They also tend to be part of the 'non-edible' group, so they are easy to salvage.

Post a picture of your find.  Collectively, we can probably figure out what it is.

[LastBoyScout]

I was lead to believe feathers from the wild/road kill generally have feather eating mites that could get into your entire feather supply. Back when there was very little available we would treat wild feathers with Borax to kill the mites. It might be BS but with so many feathers now available at very reasonable prices I never risk using wild feathers.

[scel]

On 21/02/2018 at 8:25 AM, LastBoyScout said:

I was lead to believe feathers from the wild/road kill generally have feather eating mites that could get into your entire feather supply. Back when there was very little available we would treat wild feathers with Borax to kill the mites. It might be BS but with so many feathers now available at very reasonable prices I never risk using wild feathers.

I voiced the same concern.  My wife schooled me.

You are not wrong in that birds will often carry mites.  These mites, however, do not eat the feathers.  They eat the bird.  A bird with mites will often look like its feathers are disappearing, but that is a side effect of the blood sucking bites.  Once the host is dead, there is very little reason for the mites to stick around.  Without a blood-serving host, the mites have little interest in other feathers.

As a decontamination protocol, the feathers go immediately into a plastic sample bag.  With as much of the air removed as possible, the plastic bag then goes in the freezer for at least 2 weeks---most of the time for 4 or so weeks.

[BowLurker]

It was told to me that it was a Mother Drake. I'm not a Hunter, so I didn't know.

-M.

[professori]

Do you mean "mother mallard"?  A drake is a male duck.

[Dangus]

Well there is a drake dead at the head of the island at 130 ave.  

Saw something flopping around and thought it was caught in something. Ran to intercept it mid river, only to find out that it was just dead and rolling over in the current.  Otherwise looks to be in good shape. Looked like his wife got eaten as there was a wing in the eddy too.

[BowLurker]

Hey folks, been away from my main computer for a while. Keep in mind I found these feathers back on February 19th.

Here's an image of the last feather of 5 that I kept. They didn't have any flesh or bugs, they were just very waxy to the touch, so I'm assuming a 'mother mallard' (thanks professori ) The small pile of feathers was just in a small group on clean snow. 

Might use this last one for tails or legs on smaller stonefly patterns. It was kind of neat to use feathers in a fly from a 'local' bird.

-M.

5 hours ago, Bron said:

Well there is a drake dead at the head of the island at 130 ave.  

Saw something flopping around and thought it was caught in something. Ran to intercept it mid river, only to find out that it was just dead and rolling over in the current.  Otherwise looks to be in good shape. Looked like his wife got eaten as there was a wing in the eddy too.

Hey Bron, were you fishing at Dog Park this morning, and did you try to intercept this dead Drake today, on the crossover from the island? I thought you had lost a net or something! (what is he doing ?!?)  

-M.  

 

[Dangus]

That’s mallard flank...on the sides under the wings and maybe onto the belly a bit.

lots of good uses for it if you google it.

no was down around fcp area.  

[BowLurker]

34 minutes ago, Bron said:

That’s mallard flank...on the sides under the wings and maybe onto the belly a bit.

lots of good uses for it if you google it.

no was down around fcp area.  

Thank you. It's not a big issue, as stated, but saved a prime piece for my first true "Salmon Fly". 

No desire to grab a dead Duck. If I shoot it, maybe...but I haven't yet learned to shoot at just birds...

Dunno who was flailing around in the water at Dog Park/Confluence...swear he lost something important...nearly lost Himself wading too!! .

Thanks FFForums.. 

-M.

[professori]

In the spring all the mallards hanging around lakes and ponds at the city parks in the Lower Mainland (Vancouver area) molt all over.  4-5 years ago I grabbed a couple of large zip lock bags and filled them with primo mallard flank feathers.  Put them in the freezer for about a month and them tossed a mothball in each bag for another month.  I have a life-time supply of mallard flank in a number of useful colours (tan, brown, olive, green, pink, blue and natural).  Took me about 1/2 an hour on beautiful sunny may day to do it.