Opportunities to hunt snow geese still remain as we near the end of the Conservation season here in the US. With warm weather in store for the extended forecast the geese will be moving fast, so don’t wait.
Hello folks, and as always, welcome to Waterfowler.com.
Warm weather and rains have chased all but the last of the snow out of the Upper Midwest. Recent rainfall for the region will help ease drought concerns as the breeding season for North America’s waterfowl population gets into full swing.
March 2004 went into the record books as the third warmest March in US history. Until recent precipitation events many areas of the country were under severe rainfall deficits, expect Texas where record rainfall fell during the same time period. The warm weather and timely rains have waterfowl ahead of schedule in their spring breeding preparations, which is good news according to some studies.
The latest issue of The Delta Waterfowl Report shows that research done by Gary Krapu of the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center indicates brood loss risk increased by as much as five percent per day between May 17th and August 12th. Earlier nest and brood initiation, such as those being reported in some areas this year increase brood survival potential.
The preliminary work of determining next year’s season and bag limits is underway. The Adaptive Harvest Management (AHM) Task Force is currently deliberating possible changes to the AHM model. With such debates ongoing and the May Pond Counts just around the corner it promises to be an interesting off season.
To keep up with the very latest on any possible changes to AHM and all the other news regarding waterfowl conservation and regulation, be sure to check the expiration date of your WFC Membership and renew or upgrade membership. Login on the WFC home page and click on the link at the bottom of the Current Access Level menu to renew or upgrade your Waterfowler.com membership.
And now, on to the Migration Report.
Snow goose hunting is still going strong along the US/Canadian border, and small pockets of geese are still being reported as far south as South Dakota. In Canada, large concentrations of snows have been reported east of Saskatoon and in portions of southern and central Manitoba.
With warm weather ahead, much of the snow goose migration will likely move across the border into Canada soon, but huntable numbers should remain for northern portions of North Dakota.
Hunters are having their best success with spreads set around potholes and small lakes with a combination of field decoys and floaters. This late in the season the geese have experienced a ton of gunning pressure and provide some of the most challenging decoy and calling work to be found in waterfowling. Late season snows are often edgy and as likely as not to make dramatic shifts in location from day to day. The challenges are great but the rewards are well worth the effort.
