Letter from a Member:

At Duck Junkies, we believe our direction and content should be driven by our members. If you have something to add, a suggestion or just a question, we would love to hear from you! And if you don't mind, we just might publish it! Go to the Suggestion form now.

Here is what Jini had to say when she recently contacted us:

On your home page you acknowledge that you really serve more than just the needs of hunters. I think that's important. I haven't hunted in years, but I know how important hunters are to the management of all sorts of game. I'm an ecologist and wildlife and fisheries biologist. I know there's a ground swell afoot that wants to eliminate hunting. I think all hunting organizations owe it to themselves and the people they represent to include some room for 1. educating the public on why people hunt. 2. what the ancillary benefits are to the hunter and the population of wildlife being sought. And the incredible experience it is to watch the sky darkened with waterfowl or other game whether a hunter or not.

I've worked diligently in the last ten years to help preclude the loss of Suisun Marsh to the efforts of the water development agencies and water users, to use Suisun as "mitigation" for the impacts of "tweaking" water development projects by converting it to saltwater tidal marsh. This is basically a 100K + acres of brackish) wetlands. To address endangered species issues through the ESA Habitat Conservation Planning process. Unfortunately, taking care of only endangered, threatened and proposed species can be extremely damaging to other species. In this case, the long history of managing waterfowl populations and efforts to replace lost habitat stands against waterfowl enthusiasts. Waterfowl, with a few exceptions, have stayed off the ESA list because of money from hunters and other sport enthusiasts which have succeeded.

Also, since the sixties the number of women biologists and other outdoor related professions have burgeoned. Some hunt, some do not; but I think their presence, needs need to be acknowledged and met.
That's my soapbox for the day.

Jini Scammel_Tinling