Lonzo McDaniel of Marysville, Calif., noticed ducks and geese prefer to sit on small islands, floating logs and narrow strips of land such as rice field levees. However, few hunters take advantage of this behavior, unless such resting areas occur naturally or as man-made land practices in their hunting waters.

Lumber and a block of Styrofoam form the bases of Lonzo McDaniel's strip of land and artificial island.

So McDaniel decided to build floating platforms that mimicked out-of-the-water loafing spots and to place decoys on them to give his setup a realistic effect. His idea was judged to be so innovative in concept and so simple in execution under field conditions, it was awarded third place in Category 2 of the 2008 Boats and Blinds Contest, sponsored by Avery Outdoors.

"Ducks and geese love to loaf in a place where they can get out of the water to rest," McDaniel said. "Drive to any waterfowl sanctuary in your area and you will see ducks and geese sitting on islands, logs and narrow strips of land. The birds like these places because they give them security. Any land-based predator, such as a fox or coyote, would have to cross areas of water to reach them if the birds are on an island or floating object, and this would alert the birds of the danger and give them time to fly or swim away."

McDaniel said much of the waterfowl hunting in his area of California is done in flooded rice fields. In most of the rice fields, blinds are constructed of steel, dug partially into the ground and located in the levees. Situating blinds on levees is done for the convenience of farmers, not to help the success of waterfowl hunters. Only a few exceptional properties allow waterfowl hunters to place blinds on islands in the fields away from the levees.

"To achieve a safe and secure feeling in the waterfowl looking over a decoy spread, knowledgeable hunters always place most of their decoys on the levee or dike," he said.

"However, this is not easily done if the dike is covered with a heavy growth of cattails or other weeds."

So, with an eye toward instilling the illusion all is well last hunting season, McDaniel built what he calls a "narrow strip of land" and an artificial island to set up full-body mallard decoys.

"It's an off-season project anyone can do," he said. "It's easy and fun, doesn't take much time and will create that sense of security you are really looking for in your decoy spread next hunting season."

As the foundation for building his narrow strip of land, McDaniel used a wide plank. The plank could be a 2-by-8-inch, 2-by-10-inch or 2-by-12-inch board about 6 to 8 feet long, easily obtained at any lumberyard. Pine, Douglas fir or redwood would fit the bill.