where are the ducks?

[tickweed]

Really slow. anybody seeing many birds in W Tennessee with the full moon?

 

[Dodge Man]

I know a few people killing a bunch around the MS river. With it still up I assume it is holding several ducks that would be here otherwise.


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[Dodge Man]

Also as of right now there is no snow cover or major cold temperatures North of us. Not much even forecasted for the next 10 days.


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[Dodge Man]

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[Southern Sportsman]

Seems like every year there is a lull between the opening week and Christmas. Last few days have been dead everywhere I've heard of. Unless things improve tomorrow, I'll probably deer hunt this weekend.

 

[RUGER]

We stomped on them pretty good at gooch today.
Ended up with one gadwall Susie lol

I will say this, two different times we had groups of 15-20 greenheads
locked up and that #%*^# eagle cruised through and they hauled butt.
Ugggg I hate eagles lol

 

[Bgoodman30]

Typical mid December full moon mild weather suck. There are ducks around but it's going to be hit or miss until there is some decent weather and the night lights are turned off...

I'm heading over tomorrow but in no hurry to make the mornings hunt with clouds and no wind...

I imagine someday between now and Tuesday is going to be some good new duck action.


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[Displaced_Vol]

Typical mid December full moon mild weather suck. There are ducks around but it's going to be hit or miss until there is some decent weather and the night lights are turned off...

I'm heading over tomorrow but in no hurry to make the mornings hunt with clouds and no wind...

I imagine someday between now and Tuesday is going to be some good new duck action.


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From your keyboard to the Duck Gods' ears!

Got out Tuesday here in SC KY. Saw a few but not quite the numbers I was hoping for-
Worked a pair, got the hen but whiffed on the drake. Should have had one or two more but that's the way that goes.

 

[Displaced_Vol]

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What app is that Dodge Man?

 

[Dodge Man]

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What app is that Dodge Man?

MyRadar Weather App


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[Displaced_Vol]

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What app is that Dodge Man?

MyRadar Weather App


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Thanks. I've already got 3 weather apps but I don't believe any have that specific kind of map. I'll check it out.
Tell them to send you a commission check.

 

[tickweed]

Mississippi is falling , on a steady decline. only ones l know killing regularly is a few blinds on open lakenoe

 

[Bgoodman30]

Dakota's are froze and northern MO is about to get pretty hard this weekend with snow in the forecast.

Probably not the motherload but they're coming soon.. Hopefully we get some killing weather ourselves before too long ?


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[ShortMountain91]

Came here to solve the mystery of where the ducks are and left with a great radar app. Hey I'll take it!

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[Levee Jumper]

There are lots of ducks on several of the refuges in Northwest TN. I hunted about 2 miles from a refuge for the last 4 days and did pretty well. We would go an hour or so without seeing a duck then we would have 100-300 just show up out of nowhere. I suppose they just get up and stretch their wings a time or two a day. Ultimately you would get one good volley out of all of them and they would go back to where they came from. I image they will get up to check out the fresh water in the fields if we get any substantial rain this weekend.

 

[Southern Sportsman]

I image they will get up to check out the fresh water in the fields if we get any substantial rain this weekend.

Let us hope.

 

[Andy S.]

.......only ones l know killing regularly is a few blinds on open lake

Same here. My neighbor hunts with them and they've done really well thus far, at least from what I've seen.

 

[Bgoodman30]

There are lots of ducks on several of the refuges in Northwest TN. I hunted about 2 miles from a refuge for the last 4 days and did pretty well. We would go an hour or so without seeing a duck then we would have 100-300 just show up out of nowhere. I suppose they just get up and stretch their wings a time or two a day. Ultimately you would get one good volley out of all of them and they would go back to where they came from. I image they will get up to check out the fresh water in the fields if we get any substantial rain this weekend.

Welp yesterday afternoon was ok. Saw plenty come off the refuge. Pretty slow this morning and this afternoon they gone..
Like they left last night..


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[Dodge Man]

There are lots of ducks on several of the refuges in Northwest TN. I hunted about 2 miles from a refuge for the last 4 days and did pretty well. We would go an hour or so without seeing a duck then we would have 100-300 just show up out of nowhere. I suppose they just get up and stretch their wings a time or two a day. Ultimately you would get one good volley out of all of them and they would go back to where they came from. I image they will get up to check out the fresh water in the fields if we get any substantial rain this weekend.

Welp yesterday afternoon was ok. Saw plenty come off the refuge. Pretty slow this morning and this afternoon they gone..
Like they left last night..


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We didn't see much this morning because of heavy fog. But once it lifted I saw more ducks today then any other day this season. We had a good day after 10:30-11 this morning.


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[Bgoodman30]

There are lots of ducks on several of the refuges in Northwest TN. I hunted about 2 miles from a refuge for the last 4 days and did pretty well. We would go an hour or so without seeing a duck then we would have 100-300 just show up out of nowhere. I suppose they just get up and stretch their wings a time or two a day. Ultimately you would get one good volley out of all of them and they would go back to where they came from. I image they will get up to check out the fresh water in the fields if we get any substantial rain this weekend.

Welp yesterday afternoon was ok. Saw plenty come off the refuge. Pretty slow this morning and this afternoon they gone..
Like they left last night..


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We didn't see much this morning because of heavy fog. But once it lifted I saw more ducks today then any other day this season. We had a good day after 10:30-11 this morning.


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Wow nice! I guess that's where they went because we didn't see a duck after 11am and almost nothing going to roost. [emoji2371]


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[Dodge Man]

This is looking a lot better.


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[Bgoodman30]

Curious to know how the afternoon went for those hunting? Didn't go but hearing some thumping at the house.


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[Displaced_Vol]

I am curious some of your all's opinion on when they get up to move in relation to a big front. The one going through now has cold & a pretty good bit of snow. But even generally speaking, will they (let's say average mallards) pick up & move before the front arrives in their area? As it is moving through their area? Or, do they ride it out & "survey the damage" so to speak and assess the food availability after the snow before deciding to pack it up & head south?

I know that is an over simplification & there are too many variables not accounted (rather hunting seasons are opened or closed in a given area is a big factor) but I am interested to hear what some of you hands that have been doing this a while have to say.

I feel like in January, any decent warm shot with a south wind & we'll catch some ducks bouncing back up from below us.

I try to keep good notes every year but one thing I haven't done is record weather that's been happening north or south of us. I always jot down what our weather is like, but never make a note of what was happening else where in the flyway.

 

[Crosshairy]

I am curious some of your all's opinion on when they get up to move in relation to a big front. The one going through now has cold & a pretty good bit of snow. But even generally speaking, will they (let's say average mallards) pick up & move before the front arrives in their area? As it is moving through their area? Or, do they ride it out & "survey the damage" so to speak and assess the food availability after the snow before deciding to pack it up & head south?

I know that is an over simplification & there are too many variables not accounted (rather hunting seasons are opened or closed in a given area is a big factor) but I am interested to hear what some of you hands that have been doing this a while have to say.

I feel like in January, any decent warm shot with a south wind & we'll catch some ducks bouncing back up from below us.

I try to keep good notes every year but one thing I haven't done is record weather that's been happening north or south of us. I always jot down what our weather is like, but never make a note of what was happening else where in the flyway.

To me it seems like the cold front starts a "shuffling" of birds, but unless the front is very distinct, I oftentimes think they act like people do...some of them leave when the first flurry touches their butts, and some of them stick it out and don't leave until the ice starts freezing around their ankles - that's why if you have some unfrozen water in the middle of a hard freeze, you can often find wads of them still coming in (even when most have left). Maybe they are individually more or less cold tolerant? I wish I knew. I also wonder if the ones that migrate first are from more local regions, whereas the ones that stick around are perhaps from further away and are still resting from flying in from Canada or wherever.

I bet researchers have this data with all of the electronic tracking data, I've just never seen it.

 

[Displaced_Vol]

I am curious some of your all's opinion on when they get up to move in relation to a big front. The one going through now has cold & a pretty good bit of snow. But even generally speaking, will they (let's say average mallards) pick up & move before the front arrives in their area? As it is moving through their area? Or, do they ride it out & "survey the damage" so to speak and assess the food availability after the snow before deciding to pack it up & head south?

I know that is an over simplification & there are too many variables not accounted (rather hunting seasons are opened or closed in a given area is a big factor) but I am interested to hear what some of you hands that have been doing this a while have to say.

I feel like in January, any decent warm shot with a south wind & we'll catch some ducks bouncing back up from below us.

I try to keep good notes every year but one thing I haven't done is record weather that's been happening north or south of us. I always jot down what our weather is like, but never make a note of what was happening else where in the flyway.

To me it seems like the cold front starts a "shuffling" of birds, but unless the front is very distinct, I oftentimes think they act like people do...some of them leave when the first flurry touches their butts, and some of them stick it out and don't leave until the ice starts freezing around their ankles - that's why if you have some unfrozen water in the middle of a hard freeze, you can often find wads of them still coming in (even when most have left). Maybe they are individually more or less cold tolerant? I wish I knew. I also wonder if the ones that migrate first are from more local regions, whereas the ones that stick around are perhaps from further away and are still resting from flying in from Canada or wherever.

I bet researchers have this data with all of the electronic tracking data, I've just never seen it.

That makes a lot of sense. It's always a gamble when you're taking off work because usually you can't take multiple days every week and if you just wait for the weekends it doesn't really matter anyway. Thanks for chiming in, Crosshairy.

 

[MickThompson]

Based on what I've seen posted, all the ducks are on Dodgeman's duck strap.

 

[RUGER]

Based on what I've seen posted, all the ducks are on Dodgeman's duck strap.

Ain't that the truth! :super:

 

[Andy S.]

Based on what I've seen posted, all the ducks are on Dodgeman's duck strap.

Ain't that the truth! :super:

Ding ding ding.......we have a winner! :)

 

[Bgoodman30]

I am curious some of your all's opinion on when they get up to move in relation to a big front. The one going through now has cold & a pretty good bit of snow. But even generally speaking, will they (let's say average mallards) pick up & move before the front arrives in their area? As it is moving through their area? Or, do they ride it out & "survey the damage" so to speak and assess the food availability after the snow before deciding to pack it up & head south?

I know that is an over simplification & there are too many variables not accounted (rather hunting seasons are opened or closed in a given area is a big factor) but I am interested to hear what some of you hands that have been doing this a while have to say.

I feel like in January, any decent warm shot with a south wind & we'll catch some ducks bouncing back up from below us.

I try to keep good notes every year but one thing I haven't done is record weather that's been happening north or south of us. I always jot down what our weather is like, but never make a note of what was happening else where in the flyway.

Photoperiod, moon, snow, ice, food, water, pressure. Seems some birds come around the same time every year no matter what.

I think a common misconception is that ducks will be riding the north wind on each polar blast. I've seen many more ducks migrate in against the wind before a front especially if there is precipitation involved.


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[Displaced_Vol]

That's interesting, Bgoodman. Are you in a high traffic area for ducks? That's part of the problem I have is just living in an area without big migrations. Ducks around sure, but I'm never going to hear birds constantly flying over head through the night. Except for Sandhills of course.

From what I've gathered I think a lot of ducks make it south of us without ever stopping because they're going off photoperiod or full moons or what have you. Then we may catch them coming back up later.