After a fall that seemed more like winter, most of the US is now caught up in a winter that feels more like fall. Warmer weather, for most parts of the country, has hunters wondering if the migration is slowing down, or maybe even moving back north.
Hello folks, and as always, welcome to Waterfowler.com.
It is still too early to tell if the warmer weather is going to bring a reverse migration, but with temperatures running well above freezing in northern portions of most flyways, there can be little doubt that ducks and geese will respond to thawing waters and newly available food sources.
With the New Year Waterfowler.com is taking on a new look. Over the next week or two we will be streamlining the navigation menus on our home page and making a few other cosmetic changes. These changes are designed to simplify navigation and put all of the latest migration information at your fingertips. From our Migration Map, to the more than fifty state and international Field Report pages, Waterfowler.com provides hard core duck and goose hunters with the information they need to stay on “The X” from opening day of teal season to the last shots of the Conservation Order. JOIN TODAY!
And now, on to the Migration Report.
PACIFIC FLYWAY
The storms keep coming. Though there will be a brief, very brief, lull just before the weekend, the coastal reaches of the flyway are in for another round of heavy rain and high wind and surf. Conditions along the coast will be very dangerous as this next storm rolls in. Extreme caution is advised for hunters in the western portion of the flyways who plan to hunt bays and larger bodies of water.
As storms continue, the push of ducks inland across the Cascades should continue. The last few fronts served to improve bird numbers in the interior flyway, though high gunning pressure has made birds more difficult to decoy. Secluded, hard to reach areas have been producing better hunts, but even these areas seem tough to pattern as the birds search out newly available flooded ground. As is typical with late season waterfowling, scouting and altered tactics will proved better results over the next week.
As a result of the recent fronts, southern exterior and interior portions of the flyway saw a boost in waterfowl numbers. As the Pacific storm engine cranks up yet again, birds are likely to be pushed down the flyway and inland, into the eastern states of the middle and lower flyway.
CENTRAL FLYWAY
With temperatures running thirty or more degrees above normal in the upper flyway and highs reaching up to the low eighties for the southern states, migration along the Central Flyway is staggered, at best.
A shift of birds northward into Kansas and Nebraska was reported over the last several days. Thawing waters and melting snow have made ample feeding and resting areas available that, until recently, were buried in snow.
Mid tier states should see increased bird numbers as some portion of the migration moves back north to take advantage of the thaw. Colorado has seen better than average gunning in the past week, and reports indicate a strong number of ducks and geese still holding in the state.
Southern flyway states have seen a slight drop off in migration activity as the warm weather has taken hold of the region. Though overall waterfowl numbers along the Texas Coast and into portions of New Mexico remain good, activity is likely to slow as the mercury rises toward the eighty degree mark.
MISSISSIPPI FLYWAY
As the snow melted and the temperatures rose, the reports from the mid tier of the flyway began to roll in of flight ducks, coming from the south. From Iowa to Ohio hunters are reporting significant flights of ducks and geese moving back north to take advantage of thawing waters and fields no longer under a blanket of snow.
Gunning continues to be good from southern Missouri and along the Ohio River Valley. A low pressure system moving up the Ohio River Valley is providing enough rain to flood newly thawed fields and raise local rivers. As more water becomes available look for birds to shift to newly flooded areas.
The southern flyway is still holding good number of ducks and geese, but the continued lack of rainfall has made hunting tough on most public grounds. In many parts of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, traditional wintering grounds that should be holding good numbers of ducks, are bone dry. Gunning pressure on the available waters has been very high and reports tell of ducks and geese with Doctorates in decoy detection. Private lands that have been able to manage water and pressure, have been having good shooting; though, even these areas report increasingly wary birds.
Warm weather on tap for the next week is likely to slow overall waterfowl activity, but the long term forecast indicates a return to cooler weather shortly after the turn of the New Year.
ATLANTIC FLYWAY
Rain moving up the Ohio Valley will invade portions of the upper flyway, as the weekend draws near. As the system continues north-east toward the Atlantic, portion of the far northern flyway may see significant freezing rain and some snowfall.
Below the freeze line, from New York to Pennsylvania eastward to the coast, rising water and thawing lakes and streams will provide a wider range of options for both waterfowl and waterfowlers.
Brant and sea duck numbers along the northern coast have been on the rise and should continue to build over the next week.
Rain and above average temperature for the mid tier states could slow the action down for the near term. Bird numbers have been better than average for many parts of the central and southern portions of the flyway, but the warmer weather may make these birds more sedate and content to hold tight in ‘out of the way’ locations, away from the intensified Holiday hunting pressure.
The mid season lull for the southern half of the flyway looks to be in place, but as lulls go, it isn’t too bad. The increased early migration has enough birds in the area to make the hunting worth the effort.
Across the US it seems like Mother Nature is playing a mean trick. Fall was like winter and now that winter is here, it feels more like fall. But the whole month of January is still ahead and, as we all know, winter can come back in a hurry. Here’s to the New Year and with a little luck, a return to colder weather.
Happy New Year from Waterfowler.com.
