CWA ADVOCATES FOR WATERFOWLERS ON CAPITOL HILL
Last week, CWA staff traveled to Washington DC to discuss several issues of importance to our membership, including Klamath water needs, Migratory Bird Program staffing and funding, the Central Valley Project Improvement Act and hunting opportunity on National Wildlife Refuges.
The trip was coordinated with our waterfowl conservation partners at the Central Valley Joint Venture  http://centralvalleyjointventure.org, and included meetings with a number of Central Valley Congressmen and top USFWS staff.
 
CWA believes that the new Administration and Congress offer expanded opportunities to address longstanding issues of concern to hunters and other sportsmen.  However, there remains a continuing need to educate decision makers about the value of protecting critical waterfowl habitat, particularly in the Prairie Pothole region, as well as water supplies for managed wetlands in the Central Valley.
 
CWA recently contracted with a lobbying firm in Washington DC to assist with our federal advocacy efforts.
 
This week, CWA is in Spokane, Washington, to attend the Pacific Flyway and other Flyway meetings, which include updates and discussion of waterfowl regulatory issues, as well as the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference.
WOMEN'S SHOOTING & SPORTING CLINIC AT GRIZZLY RANCH
CWA's Becoming an Outdoors-Woman brings you an  action-packed day of shooting and fun. Designed for all skill levels, the Women's Shoot Day will teach new shooters to safety handle and fire shotguns, rifles, and bows in a controlled and judgment-free environment. For those wishing to challenge their current shooting skills, come try out our sporting clays course, known as "golf with shotguns."  After lunch prepared by famed food blogger and chef Hank Shaw (Hunter Angler Gardener Cook) with wild game tasting, we will branch off for a round table discussion with outdoor experts on how and where to use our new skills.  All firearms and ammo are included for the beginning stations.
 
Click here for more details!
POST SEASON PINTAIL BANDING STRUGGLES
Add CWA's post-season pintail banding to the list of casualties of this wet winter.

Last year, we banded 1,546 birds during February and March, including 1,103 pintail. This year? Zero, so far.

High water made our usual trapping locations inaccessible and an evacuation notice temporarily stranded our gear. Not to mention the fact that all the water on the landscape spread the birds throughout the valley.

This does not just mean fewer birds with bling to shoot next season. The data we collect about pintail populations and movements help make our case for more liberal pintail limits. To learn more about this subject, check out our newly released Spring magazine.

But all is not lost! Our biologists are up in the Klamath Basin, where they will start banding ducks (we're targeting pintail) as soon as the weather allows. The area is full of birds, according to National Wildlife Research Center biologists.

We'll keep you updated on our progress.
HUNTING 101 FOR ADULTS
AT GRIZZLY RANCH
California Waterfowl brings you an action packed day for adults who want to start hunting at the Grizzly Ranch Conservation Education Center.  We will do the 4-hour hunter education program plus work on hunting skills (upland, big-game and waterfowl) and shooting skills, including shotgun, rifle and archery plus lots more.  Special guest, chef and wild-game cook extraordinaire Hank Shaw will serve a great lunch and give tips and tricks on preparing and cooking your own wild game feast.  Event and registration information at http://www.calwaterfowl.org/calendar
CWA REACHES THE MASSES AT DUCK DAYS
Another successful Duck Days in the books! CWA was on hand at the festival in Davis to teach about 600 people about waterfowl biology, art and of course waterfowl hunting. Learn more about our efforts here.
SPRING TURKEY AND PIG HUNTS AVAILABLE IN CWA HUNT PROGRAM
We've got BOTH spring turkey and pig hunts in our hunt Program. APPLY TODAY! Deadlines are approaching fast. We've got hunts near Colusa, King City, Butte City and all over Butte and Colusa counties.

Click here to get your applications in today.
CWA PINTAIL WORKSHOP
A little put off the pintail limit is going down to one next season? So are we. That's why we are bringing together researchers, regulators and hunters this summer to discuss what can be done. A CWA Pintail Workshop is in the works and will take place sometime in late July. STAY TUNED for more details coming soon on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/CaliforniaWaterfowl) and in eNews.
2017 CWA HUNTER SURVEY
Hunt ducks? Then make sure you fill out a 2017 CWA Hunter Survey here. Make your voice be heard and also get automatically entered for a chance to win a Stoeger P3000 MAX 5 camo shotgun!

Already filled one out? Thank you for your input.

The survey will only be available for a limited time. Click here to fill one out today.
March 18-21
Wildlife Conservation Science Education Seminar

EVENT CALENDAR
Tonight
Bishop Dinner
Tonight
Davis Aggies CWA Hunter Party
March 16
Mid-Pen Wild Game Feed
March 17
Yuba/Sutter Banquet
March 18
King City Dinner
March 23
East Bay Dinner
March 25
Dixon Dinner
March 25
North Delta Dinner
March 30
Stockton Banquet
March 31
Brentwood-East County Spring Fling
April 1
Gold Rush Banquet
April 8
SoCal Shoot & BBQ
April 8
Wood Duck Banquet 


CORPORATE PARTNERS 

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California Waterfowl  is an award-winning 501(C)(3) nonprofit, hunter-supported conservation organization with a mission to conserve the state's waterfowl, wetlands, and hunting heritage.  In the last 20+ years, we've completed more than 1,400 individual projects to protect, restore, and enhance more than 490,000 acres, providing habitat for millions of birds and animals.  Our Wood Duck Program has hatched more than 740,000 ducklings, while our Banding Programs have marked nearly 257,000 birds.  Our Youth and Education Programs have reached more than 320,000 children, young adults, and families to help to create a better understanding of biology, conservation, and outdoor heritage.  All efforts are supported largely by donations and the work of nearly 1,500 dedicated and tireless volunteers.

 

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Conserving California's Waterfowl, Wetlands and Hunting Heritage