For much of the US, waterfowlers look to have a little something extra to be thankful for on Thursday.
Hello folks, and as always, welcome to Waterfowler.com.
A cold front moving across the US has the potential to make a lot of waterfowlers glad for the extended holiday weekend. While snow and cold moves across the upper mid-west and out toward the Atlantic, Waterfowler.com wants to wish all our members and guests a Happy Thanksgiving.
Remember, a Waterfowler.com Membership is a great Christmas present, for yourself or any duck and goose hunter on Santa’s list. Join Waterfowler.com Today.
And now, on to the Migration Report.
Pacific Flyway
Warm weather across the upper flyway will give way to cooler temps over the next few days. With the colder weather, bird numbers across the upper flyway should start to rise again. Diver and sea duck numbers along the coast remain fair to good, but wigeon and mallard numbers have fallen off over the past week, from Washington down to northern Oregon.
That trend should reverse as temps fall back to normal and dip a bit toward the cold side of the scale.
Mid-flyway, bird numbers appear to be on the rise from southern Oregon through most of northern California and all points east. Wigeon, pintail, light geese and teal are all moving down the flyway with regularity, and that trend should continue as the mercury to the north dips down near or below the freezing mark.
CENTRAL FLYWAY
Birds are on the move. Much colder weather has birds bailing out of the northern flyway and moving south in good numbers. Some reports show all but the hardiest of ducks gone from North Dakota and portions of southern Canada. Dark geese, however, remain in these areas in huntable numbers.
Central and southern flyway states should see a significant increase in duck numbers with or slightly behind the front that is moving across the northern tier midweek.
MISSISSIPPI FLYWAY
A cold front that has brought snow and high winds to the upper flyway should move new birds down out of Canada and help increase duck numbers from the Great Lake States and all points south.
Local birds that had been holding in IL, WI, OH, IN and MN should bug out with the recent snow, while new ducks and geese are expected to move into the upper flyway with, or just behind the Thanksgiving cold front.
Snowfall across the upper flyway is not likely to be heavy or long lived, but it should be enough to move a fresh batch of ducks and geese farther south.
ATLANTIC FLYWAY
Waterfowl numbers remain good across the upper Atlantic states. With a cold front moving into the region around Thanksgiving, snow and high winds will make hunting rigorous, but should bring in a fresh wave of ducks and geese.
The cold and snow forecast for the upper flyway may move birds down the coast, but warm wet weather south of the front is likely to bring the migration to a halt around South Carolina, at least for the time being.
Some small pockets of teal and divers have moved as far south as Florida, but other than these calendar birds there has been little migration into the southern portion of the flyway in recent days. On the bright side, there is still a lot of season left for the lower tier states.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Here’s hoping that your tables are filled with food, your hearts with joy, and your homes with the ones you love. Oh, and your decoys with the birds of your choice.
