Tomales Bay Brant?

 

I spent the past weekend in a small cement block cabin nestled in the dunes of Dillon Beach. The dunes there are tall and formidable as the area is the convergence of several ecological zones: Coastal Bluffs to the north, Point Reyes peninsula to the south, the San Andreas fault to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The whole area is geologically turbulent, and Tomales Bay was born out of it. The bay is a rift valley created by the San Andreas fault, which runs underneath and along the east side of the bay. As it opened to the ocean, the valley filled in with sea-water sometime during the Miocene era. The bay is long, narrow, and shallow. It begins at Dillon Beach to the north and snakes southward towards Pt. Reyes Station, where it is fed by Papermill Creek.

The shallow bay and wetlands create an ideal environment for all types of coastal plants and wildlife. The Miwok indians, one of California's largest tribes, lived for thousands of years in this area and dried their catch in the very dunes where I comfortably camped. Another long time inhabitant of this bay is the Pacific Black Brant. Brant have historically come to this area in the thousands to gorge on the abundant beds of Eelgrass.  After heavy hunting depleted the population in the early twentieth century, a season was declared in 1915 and the population began to increase.  Today, there are about 125,000 Brant in the Pacific Flyway, 60% of which stage or stop over to feed in California during the spring migration from Mexico.  About 500 Brant are taken in California each year, but this small number has nowhere near the effect on the Brant population as the statewide depletion of eelgrass beds, which limits their staging areas. 

The decoy above is a traditional Pacific Black Brant decoy. The carver is unknown, but it is carved from solid redwood and has the simple paint indicative of Brant decoys from the Pacific Coast. It is unique in the inletted style of the joint connecting the neck to the body with six small nails. A dowel joint connects the stylish bill to the head. One clue to its origin is the repainting of the white areas of the bird. Often market hunters in the Northwest would repaint "snow geese as Brant and vice versa, depending on which species was most sought after at the time." (Wildfowl Decoys of the Pacific Coast, Miller & Hanson, p.19)   

Although I may never determine the exact origin or carver of this decoy, I was content to imagine, as I was sitting amongst the dunes of Dillon Beach looking out towards Tomales Bay, this decoy floating among its mates in the eelgrass and beckoning the large flocks to the blinds of the waiting hunters.  

 

Finally... a trade!

The Santa Rosa Decoy Show was last weekend.  This marked the third year I have attended this event. As expected, the coffee was hot and the homemade tuna salad sandwiches were delicious. The gentleman working the door was ready with a smile and a quick joke, "don't buy too many of those wooden ducks, now." I tried to heed his advice as I viewed the long table of shiny birds in perfect formation down the center aisle of the old vets' hall. Moving down the row, I stopped to admire and longingly hold a mint pair of Janson pintails nestled among their high priced brothers and sisters. It was then I realized two things: I wanted a pair of my own and that the only way I was going to get them was to make some sort of play that would  get me into this decoy game. For the past two years I had attended the shows, but I was truly a spectator, no decoy card, nothing to trade. But I was prepared this year - a nice glossy business card proclaiming my status as a collector, and under my arm, a box which contained, what I hoped to be an irresistible lure to land my first trade: three unique decoys. If I had learned anything growing up with a decoy-collecting father, it was that mom liked the decoys a whole lot better when they were traded for, as opposed to, paid for. Knowing my wife would feel the same, I came to the end of the aisle where a well-known collector from Stockton had his display. We had met at the last two shows, and he always had some neat decoys. "What's in the box?" he asked. I tried to be cool, "some traders," I replied. I pull out a real straight Jack Leach Pintail, and a miniature Winterbottom preening Snow Goose made for the Manhattan Eddie Bauer store. I could tell he wasn't interested but he was nice and held the pintail, remarking how it reminded him of an Ed Snyder. He then proceeded to introduce me to Ed Snyder, a real bayman and living legend! A great thrill, of course,  but alas, no offers of a trade. I had one last decoy to show, a David Rhodes yellowlegs. I did not hold much hope for this bird. Although it's beautiful and well-documented, it is geographically-challenged, as there is very little shorebird collecting on the west coast. But as I placed it on the table, with its blue ribbon around its neck, I felt new inspiration. "Well, no one around here collects shorebirds," he said, "but I have a friend who might like this, how much?" I couldnt believe it...it was going down! "$300," I blurted out, hoping not to mess it up. "You see anything here you like?" He gestured towards the bargain side of his table. I had noticed a hen pintail that was real nice. "Would you trade this?" "Sure," came the casual reply. And that was it, the trade was done. I was very pleased with the trade for two reasons: one - I now own a great pair of Joseph "Jake" Ferreira pintails (pictured above),  Mr. Ferreira was regarded as one of the most stylish and innovative carvers in the San Francisco Bay , and two - I was pleased with myself for pulling it off, as I felt I had truly been initiated into the decoy world. This trade signaled to me that I was gaining knowledge and experience in this  decoy game. And maybe with a bit of time and luck, a pair of Jansons may someday join the Ferreiras to roost.    

Miles Traveled...

Here is an interview with Robert V. Bryan, carver of the Pacific Brant decoy above. I did this interview at his home in Walnut Creek in 2007 after speaking to Mr. Bryan a couple of times on the phone. He was born in Arcata, California in 1920; his grandparents were among the town's first inhabitants. His decoy found its way to my collection after traveling across the U.S. at least twice. According to Mr. Bryan, the brant was one of about two dozen that he carved prior to leaving for military service in Korea around 1946. While he was abroad, the rig was used by a close friend Lewis "Lewey" Raice. Lewey Raice was the nephew of Lyle Lancaster of Arcata, whose decoys can be seen Here.  Mr. Bryan used Lyle's decoys to fashion his own rig, and the similarities are evident. After Mr. Bryan returned from the War, he and Lewey used the rig while stake blind gunning in South Humbolt Bay until sometime in the 1950's when Mr. Bryan  lost track of the decoys after relinquishing possession to Lewey. The decoy pictured above surfaced sometime there after in the collection of August Sebastiani, son of  Samuele Sebastiani, founder of Sebastiani Winery in Sonoma, California, where it stayed until the mid-1980's when August's collection went to auction. From there, it found its way across the United States to the Guyette & Schmidt auction house in Maryland, where it was again purchased and sent to my collection where it currently resides. It isn't the prettiest decoy in the collection and it is one of the simplest, but in its simplicity it has a practical beauty.  

My first Decoy

My first decoy was given to me by my father upon graduation from high school in 1989. It is a Wildfowler Bluebill hen. It was made in Old Saybrook Connecticut, the site of the original Wildfowler factory owned by Ted Mulliken. I believe this decoy to be an "Atlantic Coast" model, with a #2 quality feather finish. It was most likely produced in the late 1940's to early 1950's. The bottom has been painted with the initials G.H. in red, assumed to be the owners initials. I am not sure why my Dad chose this decoy, but it has inspired my current Wildfowler collection, and infected me with the decoy collecting bug. I find old wood decoys to be unique examples of American Folk art, as well as, tangible clues to our collective past. I have often heard collectors comment, "if this bird could talk , the stories it could tell." I enjoy researching the stories behind the decoy, the carver, the places, and attempting to give "the bird" a voice.

I am gearing up for the Santa Rosa Decoy show this weekend. Pictures and potential new additions will be coming soon. In the immortal words of the great collector, Delbert Winkelreid, "Keep the dust off 'em".