The Standard Sportsman

Overcrowded public ground and limited flooded habitat have some duck hunters calling for the state to simply buy more land. Ohio recently put $50 million on the table, including matching federal funds, to expand public hunting access. So, what would $50 million buy in Arkansas? Not nearly as much as you might think. The guys break down the real-world cost of adding meaningful public duck habitat,...

With the holiday weekend here, we're taking it back to the very beginning. This week's episode is a re-airing of a conversation recorded in September 2023—before The Standard Sportsman officially launched. Cason and Brent tackle a question guaranteed to spark debate: Is Arkansas still the Duck Hunting Capital of the World? Drawing on personal experiences, harvest data, and waterfowl scie...

As her historic seven-year term on the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission comes to a close, outdoorswoman, conservationist, and avid duck hunter Anne Marie Doramus joins the podcast to reflect on her time helping guide one of the nation's premier wildlife agencies. Appointed in 2019 as the first woman to serve a full term on the Commission, Doramus navigated some of the agency's most co...

Canadian waterfowling finds itself at a pivotal moment. As more American hunters head north in search of ducks and geese, participation among Canadian residents continues to decline, raising questions about the future of the country's hunting traditions. Rob Olson, a former leader with both Delta Waterfowl and the Manitoba Wildlife Federation, was at the forefront of efforts to establish safe...

With spring planting season winding down, attention turns to the work that pays dividends for ducks long after the combines are parked. Cason and Brent discuss Louisiana's newly announced black-bellied whistling duck season and debate whether duck hunters and waterfowl managers have fallen behind deer hunters when it comes to working together across property lines. The conversation also cover...

Brandon Stafford has spent more than 20 years in the Arkansas land business, witnessing firsthand the dramatic rise in agricultural and recreational land values. In this episode, he shares insights into the evolving market for duck-hunting properties, the growing importance of privately managed habitat, and how habitat loss has concentrated ducks in fewer areas. Stafford also discusses some origin...

With Cason out on vacation and the holiday week keeping things short, Brent takes the controls for a rare solo episode...no guests, no script, just stories and insight. Using the Executive Q&A featured in Greenhead: The Arkansas Duck Hunting Magazine as a guide, he walks through the same questions posed to prominent Arkansas business leaders, mixing in personal experiences, hunting memories, a...

As the Memorial Day holiday weekend approaches, the guys swap stories about duck bands they’ve harvested or witnessed firsthand over the years. Some are the kind every waterfowler dreams about, while others are almost too wild to believe. Along the way, they dive into the evolution of college baseball and how, much like duck hunting, the sport continues to change with the times before wrapping thi...

Youth sports and duck hunting may seem worlds apart, but beneath the surface they share a common thread: money. In this episode, the guys dive into the growing influence of dollars and commercialization in both arenas, and what it means for the future of the outdoors. They also tackle why outfitters are finding themselves squarely in the crosshairs as duck seasons continue to struggle across the f...

Danny Fulton joins the show to tell the story of building a duck property where most wouldn’t expect one, along the Ohio River in southern Indiana. In a region outside the traditional waterfowl spotlight, the Fulton family has transformed a challenging river-bottom farm into a true waterfowl-focused operation. Danny breaks down the process of acquiring the property, adapting to the constant variab...

Weather gets talked about a lot in duck circles—and for good reason. It affects everything, from breeding habitat to migration timing to what your mornings in the blind look like. On this episode of The Standard Sportsman, the guys sit down with Arkansas native, chief meteorologist, and passionate duck hunter Skot Covert to cut through the noise and talk about what’s really going on. They dig into...

Planting season’s here, but so is a lingering drought that won’t let go. The guys talk tough conditions in the southern flyway, brighter signs from the breeding grounds, and how it all ties together. They also tackle the growing role of politics in wildlife decisions and walk through key 2026–2027 regulation changes, including a controversial non-resident ban at Dave Donaldson Black River WMA, plu...

With so many distractions pulling at kids today and duck hunting facing a downturn, it’s fair to wonder...will the next generation stick with the sport long enough to see things turn around? Cason and Brent dig into that question, sharing stories from their own upbringings and the moments that kept them hooked. They also talk candidly about the role we play as adults and how the conversations we h...

Habitat manager Hunter Johnson returns to share his spring plans for three very different properties under his care. From dealing with flooding to battling drought conditions, Johnson relies on a deep toolkit of strategies to create ideal habitat for ducks, deer, and turkeys. He’s also been a leader in implementing prescribed fire in Arkansas, using it to control unwanted vegetation and rejuvenate...

Originally aired in October of 2024, the hosts break down the classic, research-backed framework known as the “Five Stages of the Hunter”, a model that explains how a hunter’s motivations and mindset evolve over time. Originally developed by behavioral scientists in the 1970s, the concept is still widely taught in hunter education today. Drawing from personal experience, the hosts walk through eac...

Grant Sinclair and Lee Kjos are two well-known voices in the waterfowling world, bound by decades of freelance duck hunting in Saskatchewan. Kjos’s connection to the prairie goes back more than 50 years, hunting alongside his father, while Sinclair has spent the last 15+ years following that same tradition. In this episode, they reflect on the freedom and tradition of DIY duck hunting across Saska...

Duck hunters often spend more time arguing with each other than focusing on the things that could actually improve the future of duck seasons. In this episode, the guys discuss what the waterfowl community could accomplish if more hunters rallied around meaningful issues. The time to turn the page on the current dynamic is now. They also cover a few practical spring habitat projects listeners can...

Duck season may be in the rearview and the clocks may have sprung forward, but the forces shaping future seasons are anything but quiet. From a struggling farm economy and tensions abroad to legislation on Capitol Hill and some thorny cultural conversations closer to home, there’s plenty happening that could ripple through the waterfowl world. The guys unpack it all, and with the recent passing of...

Justin Reif is a self-taught habitat manager who, through years of trial and error, has learned how to consistently attract ducks to his family farm just west of Lake Erie in Ohio. Adapting to shifting migration patterns, changing landscapes, and the realities of modern waterfowl management, Reif has refined his approach while navigating challenges ranging from unpredictable weather to competition...

Philip Tappan has spent the past four and a half years serving on the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission and now chairs the Rules & Regulations Committee at the AGFC. With the Commission’s proposed changes for the 2026–27 and 2027–28 seasons now on the table, from expanded non-motorized walk-in areas on WMAs to another proposed 60-day, six-duck framework, the conversation around the future of...

Arkansas duck hunter John Adams, Head of Sales & Development at Natural Gear, joins the show with the kind of perspective that only comes from decades spent on public ground. From the “glory days” of Arkansas timber to the realities of today’s crowded boat ramps and ever-changing culture, John doesn’t hold back. He walks us through the early roots of Natural Gear, the evolution of the camoufla...

Duck hunters have always been prone to grumbling, but lately the frustration feels different...deeper, more widespread, and harder to shake. Across flyways and duck camps, many waterfowlers share the same sentiment: they don’t feel heard. In this episode of The Standard Sportsman Podcast , Cason Short and Brent Birch dig into where communication is breaking down and why expectations may be part of...

The 2025–2026 duck season proved one thing: success depended on where you stood and when you showed up. With mallard numbers down and dry conditions gripping much of the Mississippi Flyway and Central Flyway, many hunters faced a hurdle right out of the gate. Then, just as the season wound down, a blast of snow, sleet, and ice slammed the Deep South, locking up habitat and reshuffling birds overni...

Iconic North American waterfowler and legendary outdoor photographer Lee Kjos joins the show, carrying with him a lifetime of sunrises, wingbeats, and miles traveled beneath open skies. From the disappearing prairie potholes of Saskatchewan to the river bottoms of Missouri, Kjos shares what he’s seen this past season and the realities of duck hunting's struggles. His reflections are honest an...

Perry Partain was raised in the L’Anguille River bottoms of East Arkansas, tagging along with his Depression-era grandfather on squirrel hunts and growing up in a time when ducks were abundant, unpressured, and limits could be taken without a duck call or a single decoy. Fast forward 40 years, and the world he knew has changed almost beyond recognition. In this episode, Partain offers a steady, cl...