I think the science was pretty good where waterfowl are concerned, although certainly the early steel loads increased crippling losses. But I don't think the science on upland birds is nearly as solid. For a long time, the poster bird for a potential lead ban in the uplands was the bald eagle--because they'd eat crippled game birds that flew off and died, then die themselves. Well, the bald eagle has made a fantastic recovery even WITH lead shot. We have them all over Iowa now; never used to see them at all. CA managed to come up with its own, unique poster bird, but the rest of us needn't worry about condors.
Some states seem to lean stronger in the direction of a lead ban than others. But things change at the state level too. Ted, I seem to recall when the MN DNR got all excited about Finnish forest management, which basically meant planting trees in nice rows. I think they got over it. And particularly with pheasant hunting the likes of which Minnesotans have not seen in 40 years or so, their thinking on lead may also change. Heck, we might even end up with a dove season in Iowa!
