The progression of the Blue-winged teal migration continues at an unhurried pace. Birds are slowly moving through the flyways and are present in most states from the far north to the deep south. In the Mississippi Flyway, teal are still staging in large flocks in key breeding areas and resident goose hunters in Wisconsin are reporting excellent teal numbers in flooded agricultural fields.
Hello folks, and, as always, welcome to Waterfowler.com.
Temperatures remain above average for this time of year for all parts of the U.S. except the Pacific Northwest according to the latest data from Applied Climate Information Systems (ACIS). With the jet stream bowing lazily below the U.S. Prairie Pothole region over the past week, northern states have been met with some relief from the summer heat but weather patterns have not provided the kind of cold front that can ignite a hard migration of teal.
While this sort of weather pattern does not bode well for a heart-stopping teal season in many areas, it is definitely favored over last years pattern that saw a very early, large migration in mid-August.
Early season success for teal, resident Canada geese and Doves are often defined by good scouting. Hunting in and around active feeding areas can spell the difference between success and failure. Hunting areas that hold teal during the general waterfowl season doesn’t necessarily insure success during the early season.
While resident Canada goose numbers are at an all time high in most areas, their early season patterns change frequently with temperature and local harvests. Hunting pressure can educate geese in a hurry. The field that provided a limit of geese for an entire hunting party today could be easily void of geese the next. In short, there is no substitute for scouting and ability to gain access to active feeding fields.
If you are like most hunters you assume that landowners are less likely to give you permission to hunt when you are simply knocking on doors. While your beliefs would be well founded in common occurrence, there are those who will give you permission to hunt on their property. At the end of the day, access will go to those who are willing to ask for it. If you need a bit of help for that opening line when they answer the door, we suggest the following:
“Hi, my name is << your name>> and my friends and I were on our way to hunt at <<insert name of local person or place they may be familiar with >> and we noticed you have quite a few <<insert species name>> feeding on your land. Would you mind if hunted on your property now or another time?”
Of course, taking a young hunter along on your scouting trips will not only teach them the values of scouting but will also help make the introduction easier for the landowner. Answering the door to a stranger can be unsettling for anyone and kids just seem to help reduce any perception of threat or apprehension.
WFC would like to remind out readers to input data on the Migration Map as often as possible to aid in tracking this season’s migration. Even when activity is low in your area, your hunting reports and map entries are important to us all.
Be sure to join us in the virtual ONLINE LODGE in Second Life on Thursday evenings throughout the season – where you can belly up to the bar and share your hunting adventures with fellow members in real-time text or voice chat in a rich 3-D environment. Of course the sporting clay throwers and virtual duck shooting are open 24/7 and the ATVs never run out of gas.
Until next week, double your efforts on scouting and make a good hunt happen.
