MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Sept. 11, 2020 - Ducks in Arizona? That&squo;s right, DU TV cameras head far west this week to lands known more for cactus than ducks and geese.

Join co-host Doug Larsen as he travels westward to the iconic town of Tombstone, Arizona. In a place famous for the gunfight at the OK Corral, he joins DU Regional Director Clint Pace and dedicated Ducks Unlimited volunteers hunting public wetlands and dry fields for numerous waterfowl species, including Mexican duck.

Dry fields? That&squo;s right again, the show that brought you dry field wood ducks in Canada is back with dry field Mexican ducks in Arizona. Only on DU TV.

Getting people involved in an organization all about waterfowl is tough in a state filled with big game hunters. Challenging, but far from impossible.

"Big game hunters, there are a lot more of them compared to duck hunters here,&dquo; Pace said. "It&squo;s a challenge because ducks are not the priority. But wetlands are a key component to all thriving wildlife populations, so DU&squo;s work here benefits a lot more than just waterfowl.&dquo;

DU volunteer Chris Klasen is an Indiana transplant who grew up hunting waterfowl in his home state. He takes it very seriously, in fact he started his own outfitting business in Arizona, AZ Desert Waterfowl (azdesertwaterfowl.com). His DU chapter in Sierra Vista holds an annual banquet with surprising attendance compared to chapters in more traditional waterfowl hunting states.

"At our banquet in Sierra Vista, I would say 90 percent of the attendees are not hunters at all,&dquo; Klasen said. "And among those, I can count on one or two hands the number of actual duck hunters there.&dquo;

The hunts in this episode take place on public management areas carved out of the desert. All he hunts featured, except one, saw ducks decoying to a dry rye grass field.

"I was shocked at how much agriculture there is here,&dquo; said Larsen. "It&squo;s not something I expected to see, pecans, cotton and corn growing in abundance. We were able to take advantage of it and have a great dry field duck hunt.&dquo;

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DU TV airs Mondays at 1 a.m., Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m., Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. (all times Eastern) on the Pursuit Channel. All episodes, plus bonus content and classic episodes, can be found at www.ducks.org/dutv.

Ducks Unlimited Inc. is the world's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving North America's continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved almost 15 million acres thanks to contributions from more than a million supporters across the continent. Guided by science and dedicated to program efficiency, DU works toward the vision of wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever. For more information on our work, visit www.ducks.org.

Media Contact:

John Gordon

901-758-3753

jgordon@ducks.org