As the 2009-2010 General Waterfowl Season ends with a resounding bang, waterfowl hunters across the nation are storing their bags of duck decoys and packing up their trucks and trailers with a massive assortment of snow goose decoys. Before we fire the starting gun to our coverage of the Spring Snow Goose Conservation Action, Waterfowler.com takes time to reflect on the season past.
Hello folks, and, as always, welcome to Waterfower.com
While the ducks begin pairing up for their annual courtship rituals, waterfowl hunters across the nation are gathering for some old-fashioned, post-season armchair quarterbacking. Of course, the staff at Waterfowler.com revels in this wonderful time-honored tradition as much as the next hunter and there is never a shortage of theories, analysis or opinions to explain why ducks did what they did, or didn’t do, over the past season – with each thought fueled by that magical element of hind-sight.
While the nuances of the 2009-2010 Waterfowl Migration will be debated in our offices until the start of the next season, there are a few recurring themes that can be sorted into the bucket we call “the factual consensus”. Without a doubt, west of the Rocky Mountains, it was the oddest season of migration patterns since Waterfowler.com began reporting in 1997. From early cold fronts to mid-season heat waves, ending in piles of snow and ice that came hard and fast for many. While the progression of weather was somewhat typical, the timing of weather events and their severity was most bizarre. If that wasn’t enough for the Central and Mississippi Flyways, the odd weather coupled with the fact that so many ducks were breed in the U.S. Prairie Pothole Region that migration events were vastly different than previous years and simply befuddling at times.
Quite simply, the season east of the Continental Divide was a statistician’s worst nightmare, and the results (albeit high or low for where you hunted) are the type of results you simply throw out of the trends analysis because it was such a far departure from historical records. In contrast to the oddities in the east, the migration patterns in the western-edge of the Pacific Flyway was shockingly typical – complete with the traditional Christmas fog that western waterfowl hunters remember so well.
As we progress through the years of tracking the annual migration, the only constant we can cling to, count on and assure our readers is that migration is wildly unpredictable and infinitely exciting. This season will be different from the last, and from the next. Looking back at our preseason prediction of an El Nino influenced migration was correct. When the anomaly weakened in early December (as expected) the wrath of winter arrived and ducks also moved when we had anticipated. What we did not expect was the early October cold front that drastically changed the timing and paths of the early migration of smaller ducks — which is the single most influencing factor to this year’s migration oddities. When the results of that early migration were combined with too little precipitation in the southwest and too much in the east, coupled with a plague of harvest delays across the U.S, the predictable suddenly became vastly unpredictable – but that’s duck hunting.
At the end of the day (or season) the waterfowl hunter realizes that the double-edged sword of unpredictability is the reason we do what we do. We head to the field and look at blank skies with the hope that we did our homework and put ourselves in the path of unpredictable chaos. When we succeed, we are greeted with the heart-pounding whistle of wings and the retort of gunfire in a crescendo of duck hunting bliss. Yep, that’s hunting and we’ll do it season after season, good day or bad, in pursuit of that perfect waterfowl hunting moment.
As we assemble our detailed flyway-by-flyway season summary, Waterfowl.com reminds our readers that the Spring Conservation Report area is open for spring tracking. If you didn’t get your fill of duck hunting this season, the Conservation Action offers the opportunity to feed your need. A spring snow goose trip is a few clicks away from your fingertips, so take time to interact with your fellow members and plan a light-goose hunting adventure.
Waterfowler.com readers are invited to join us in the Virtual Online Lodge in Second Life throughout the off-season – where the ducks are always flying and the season is always open. We have a number of sporting clay competitions and other events planned for the coming months. We look forward to sharing your thoughts and tales of the season in our 3D environment that includes real time text and voice chat. While you can access the lodge anytime day or night, the official rendezvous for members is Thursday evenings.
Until our next report, we’ll see you in the Online Lodge!
