Rain and storms continue to be the big story for much of the US as the month of June closes out its second week. While many areas are still in drought, most of the duck factory has broken out of that classification, at least for now.
Hello folks, and as always, welcome to Waterfowler.com.
Water may be one of the key factors for breeding habitat where North American waterfowl are concerned, but as they say, timing is everything. The effect of the continued late spring rains on this year’s duck hatch is keeping a lot of the guessing about season lengths and bag limits at bay for now.
June also marks the spring return of Waterfowler.com Journal. If you are a current WFC member you should receive your copy by the third week of this month. If you don’t receive it by then, please contact memberservices@waterfowler.com to verify your correct mailing address. Issue 13 is already in the works and scheduled for delivery in early September, so if you are not already a member sign up today to make sure you are on the list for the next mailing.
If activity around the WFC ProShop is any indicator, waterfowlers across the country are getting a bit antsy for the opening bell of the 2004-2005 season. Stop by the ProShop today and start loading up on the things you need for next season. As always, WFC members receive special discounts on every item from the WFC Online Proshop.
The bi-weekly Waterfowler.com Wingbeats eNewsletter will now also appear in the Member News section of the WFC home page. With each issue WFC brings members useful news, tips and tidbits from the WFC community and the waterfowling world at large. Wingbeats also announces random bi-weekly door-prize winners and a Feature Member Profile on one of your fellow WFC members.
And now, on to the breeding ground report.
As we said earlier, timing is everything and these late spring rains could prove to be trouble for this year’s duck hatch. Areas where the heaviest rains occurred have seen both nest abandonment and flooding, and soggy ground has forced farmers in many areas to replant during critical nesting periods. Only time will tell how all this fits into the AHM model used to set this year’s fall seasons.
First impressions from the May pond counts could be misleading. Until the brood counts and production surveys are done, it is anybody’s guess what is in store this year, and if the folks in charge are guessing they are keeping it to themselves as of now.
