[fabsroman]

That is a great narrative and those are some great pics. If I had a day like yours, I would have a grin on my face for quite a while.

As far as your grey area at the end of your post is concerned, it isn't grey at all. If you knock down the bird, the bird is yours. Period. Now, if you are both shooting at the same time, it would be really hard for any game warden to figure out exactly who shot what, but you have to be shooting pretty close together. If your brother in law shoots, and then you start shooting after he has unloaded his gun, then anything that falls will definitely be counted as yours.

I'm not naming names or anything, but I am pretty intimately familiar with a guy that shot 9 out of 10 canadas while he and his buddy were hunting them, and the game warden was watching them after the warden had checked them and was in the process of writing up the buddy for not having a state stamp. The game warden never mentioned a thing to either of them, and later on that week the buddy was giving compliments to the other guy's father about the shooting ability of the other guy.

Personally, if I were in your shoes I just wouldn't write about this stuff and I would try to back your brother in law up throughout the entire hunt so that both of you can get your limit legally. He will also get more attempts on the birds that way.

Last but not least, take the brother in law to the skeet range. It is utterly frustrating some times to waterfowl hunt with people that cannot hit the side of a barn with a shotgun. Honestly, I think anything within 30 yards should be dead when waterfowling. Beyond that is where a lot more skill is required. At 20 yards or less, the person has lost the fundamentals if he isn't hitting the birds consistently.

By the way, did I already mention that it was a Great Story and Great Pics?