Re: Season
Posted:
Fri Nov 23, 2018 2:14 pm
by Ericdc
Date: nov 23
Time: left at 9:45
Location: pit blind
Cloud Cover: complete cloud cover but high clouds (the worst)
Wind Direction and Velocity: light SE to calm to SE 5-8
Temperature: 40’s
Barometer:
Moon phase:
Special Notes: were initially excited about a little wind only to have it die when the flight happened
Waterfowl Activity: mostly high gadwall and teal
Waterfowl Responsiveness: a few groups would break but didn’t finish anything
Hunters: Eric Ryan Joseph Gage
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): Gage’s Chessie pretty much barked at the best chance we had on teal today as they were working....thankfully it calmed down later when we worked others
Special Equipment: 2 mojos on remote
Kudos: other than having a safe hunt, I can’t think of any
curses: no wind when our small window of a flight happened
Birds By Species:
1 gadwall
1 green winged teal
Photo Ops:
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Nov 24, 2018 8:41 pm
by Ericdc
Date: 11-24-18
Time: rode it till 12:20
Location: pit blind
Cloud Cover: heavy fog until 9 AM then clearing
Wind Direction and Velocity: nice Southerly then calm after fog broke then back again and stronger
Temperature: 50’s and then pretty warm once fog lifted
Barometer:
Moon phase:
Special Notes: while I was looking for a cripple on other end of field, Ryan heard speck coming and sat down on levee (I had just dropped him off from looking for cripple)
Specks came through fog with feet down and he got 1.
Waterfowl Activity:geese wouldn’t come through fog then once fog lifted they were in traveling mode. Real good late morning duck flight once sky cleared, mostly gadwall high and from south
Waterfowl Responsiveness: called at every flock of ducks that came over but they didn’t break, birds we got surprised us.
Hunters: Ryan and I
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s):
Special Equipment: 2 mojos on remote
Kudos: hung in there and got to see a good flight
curses: lost a speck in the deeper flooded stubble on west end
Birds By Species:
1 speck
1 green winged teal
2 gadwall
Photo Ops:
Ryan and birds
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sun Dec 02, 2018 4:11 pm
by Ericdc
Date: 12-2-18 last day of first split
Time: rode it till noon
Location: pit blind
Cloud Cover: clear
Wind Direction and Velocity: 5-10 S to SW to W... not the 10-15 I was hoping for but better than it has been
Temperature: 50’s to 60’s
Barometer:
Moon phase:
Special Notes: got to bring Garrick on one last hunt before he moves to Georgia next week for his new job with our company.
Waterfowl Activity: decent duck flight till about 9 then the ducks stopped. Very good snow goose flight all morning, lots of new birds coming out of Arkansas, along with some new specks, but mostly snows.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: pintails worked as pretty as they can, gadwalls were funky, and if I could have got a sliver of the specks I broke in range we would have had 6, but they would not give me a shot. Blind brushed very well, just smart mostly adult birds like John has been saying with no dumb young ones to make you feel like a pro.
Hunters: Garrick Spencer and I
Guns:
Malfunctions: me not having my gun loaded with 15 pintail hanging over the decoys.....has just finished off a gadwall cripple and got back to blind...just forgot
Dog(s):
Special Equipment: 2 mojos on remote
Kudos: Spencer killed the 2 biggest drakes out of a hen heavy bunch. Both guys have never hunted geese and really enjoyed the speck show even though I couldn’t seal the deal
curses: Garrick didn’t shoot well and I couldn’t put any geese in range for them.
Birds By Species: 2 gadwall 2 pintail
Photo Ops:
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sun Dec 02, 2018 5:44 pm
by Rick
Nicer sprigs on those birds than those we've shot.
Re: Season
Posted:
Sun Dec 02, 2018 7:20 pm
by Darren
Gorgeous couple of bulls there
Sure hope the field game turns in second split for both of us
Re: Season
Posted:
Sun Dec 02, 2018 9:14 pm
by Ericdc
Darren wrote:Gorgeous couple of bulls there
Sure hope the field game turns in second split for both of us
Always does. We got the food when they get here
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Re: Season
Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2018 4:35 pm
by Johnc
Ducks may get better
Specks will remain very tough. No juvi’s. No mistakes. Blind ,decoys,and calling must be right or it won’t happen.
They’re going to initially respond,but that changes once they hang up. Once they hang up,game over
Re: Season
Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2018 6:42 pm
by Ericdc
Johnc wrote:Ducks may get better
Specks will remain very tough. No juvi’s. No mistakes. Blind ,decoys,and calling must be right or it won’t happen.
They’re going to initially respond,but that changes once they hang up. Once they hang up,game over
Yes. I can’t say I’ve seen a juve speck yet in the birds I’ve worked. They are all the same size and that’s big and broad breasted.
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Re: Season
Posted:
Thu Dec 06, 2018 8:39 pm
by Ericdc
Given the rain predictions for the weekend,
I was able to ride up to the farm this afternoon after checking a couple of my loggers.
Main goal for the trip was to pull a board to try to lower the 6-8” water in our north rice cut to 4-6”, while also give some room for the upcoming deluge, and also get the stuff out of the pit I didn’t want to get wet in case it floods.
It doesn’t look that deep but I measured it in a few places and it’s 8” where our decoys are.
The snows had made a visit to the field and opened it up slightly but not near what they had done to my old field which was solid stubble last Sunday.
Our water level on the south bean side is a little better, but I made a gap in top board to start letting some water out slowly to give it some room before the rain. Didn’t want to pull a full 2x6 just yet, but might as I slowly lower the water to my desired level.
Why not pull some more rice stubble to put in place next Saturday when we open back up.
As far as birds, we had specks in all 4 fields on the farm and a large group of snows on our neighbors to the west.
As far as ducks there were a few hundred on the slick bean field and my old field. Looked like mostly shovelers and big ducks (mallard and pintail), didn’t see any swarms of teal but hope some will come at some point.
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Re: Season
Posted:
Fri Dec 07, 2018 9:16 am
by DComeaux
That's encouraging. I hope they stick around for you.
Re: Season
Posted:
Fri Dec 14, 2018 2:46 pm
by Ericdc
December survey
The 1.94 million ducks estimated on this survey is 36% lower than last December’s estimate of 3.02 million and 32% below the long-term December average of 2.84 million. The Southeast portion of this survey was not completed in November, so no comparisons can be made for that region. However, estimates increased markedly from November in both Southwest (247,000 to 886,000) and at Catahoula Lake (103,000 to 156,000) survey regions. All species increased from November in SW LA except for mottled ducks, which were essentially unchanged. Only ring-necked ducks on Catahoula Lake declined from November (36,000 to 27,000), but approximately that difference was seen on nearby Duck Lake of Catahoula NWR. The estimate of 220,000 canvasbacks is the second highest on record for this survey behind only the 272,000 estimate in January of 2015.
Canvasbacks, ring-necked ducks, and scaup were well above their respective long-term December averages of 49,000, 198,000, and 76,000. However, all dabbling ducks except blue-wings and shovelers were far below their December long-term averages, especially gadwalls, green-wings, and pintails with December averages of 906,000, 480,000, and 344,000 respectively. The estimate for mottled ducks was nearly twice the 19,000 estimated last December but remains far below the long-term December average of 60,000. Although the total coot estimate was only 18% below the most recent 10-year December average of 1,127,000, the 90,000 estimated in SW LA is 79% lower than the 10-year average of 424,000 for that region.
Ducks were evenly distributed between the SW and SE coastal survey regions, but dabbling ducks made up 70% of the estimate in SW LA, and diving ducks were 76% of the estimate in SE LA. In SW LA, concentrations of ducks were seen between Little Pecan and Grand lakes, in the fresh marsh NE of Grand Lake, and on a sewage lagoon near Rayne. Concentrations of both snow and white-fronted geese were noted southwest of Gueydan and north of Lacassine NWR. In SE LA, large numbers of ring-necked ducks and coots were seen in the Upper Terrbonne marshes south of Amelia, and smaller concentrations of ring-necked ducks and canvasbacks were counted in the marsh east of Venice.
Water levels in the marsh were lower than in November but remain high in most non-tidal locations across SW LA during this survey. In tidal saline and brackish marshes, water levels were generally low, including areas that were completely mudflat from low tides and north winds. Despite good submerged aquatic vegetation in specific locations, overall it was spotty and below average in abundance. There was abundant shallow flooding in agricultural areas from past wet conditions and recent rainfall with some flooding in most fields and pastures. In SE LA, water levels were also lower than in November, and good to excellent submerged aquatic vegetation was evident in a number of surveyed locations. With the excellent production of seed-producing annual vegetation seen in SW LA during the September survey, good submerged aquatic vegetation in SE LA, and above-average flooding in the agricultural region, good habitat conditions are expected to be maintained in the coastal region.
Water level at Catahoula Lake had fallen since the November survey, but recent rainfall/runoff raised it again to about 6 feet higher than the management target, providing continued excellent habitat for large numbers of diving ducks but relatively few dabblers. The 90,000 canvasbacks and 156,000 diving ducks are the highest in at least the last 10 years, and the 163,000 total ducks is 16% higher than the most recent 10-year average.
Another 19,300 ducks were counted on the Northwest Louisiana survey, primarily on the locks, lakes,
oxbows, and fields along the Red River and upper Toledo Bend reservoir. That is 60% more than November, 26% higher than the 15,000 counted last December, and nearly twice the long-term December average for this survey. Gadwall was the most abundant species (4,900), and along with ring-necked ducks (4,500), mallards (3,200), green-winged teal (2,700), and shovelers (1,800), accounted for 88% of the ducks counted. Approximately 8,000 ducks were counted between Locks 4 and 5 of the Red River, and 7,500 were seen on managed impoundments near Loggy Bayou, but good numbers were also seen at Bayou Pierre WMA. Changes in habitat conditions were mixed from November with less flooding in rice fields but Wallace Lake is now at pool stage and Lake Bistineau water level has risen.
In Northeast Louisiana, 118,000 ducks and 121,000 geese (<5% white-fronted) were counted on selected habitats during the traditional cruise survey that was standardized in 2005. That is an increase from the 104,000 ducks and 96,000 geese seen during the November survey, but is 26% fewer ducks and 45% fewer geese than counted last December. Four December surveys in NE LA have been missed or incomplete since 2005, so comparisons with averages may be suspect, but the counts from this survey are 46% below the December average for ducks and 36% below the average for geese. Gadwall (27,000) was the most abundant duck species that along with ring-necked ducks (26,000), pintail (20,000), canvasback (13,000), shoveler (12,000), and mallard (11,000) accounted for 92% of the ducks counted. The surveyed area continues to be wetter than normal with backwater flooding in all river systems and above average flooding in agricultural habitats. The rice harvest is complete, but several hundred acres of soybeans remain in the fields. The largest concentration of ducks was seen at Mollicy Farms where 24,000 ring-necked ducks, 12,000 canvasbacks, 10,000 pintails, and 6,000 mallards were counted. Another 20,000 dabblers were counted in agricultural habitats south of Vidalia, and 14,000 around Bunkie/Grand Cote NWR. The biggest concentrations of geese were seen in agricultural fields east of Bayou Lafourche in Richland Parish and in the Bonita/Mer Rouge area.
Lastly, in December and January, LDWF conducts a scaup survey on Lakes Maurepas, Pontchartrain, and Borgne. An estimated 134,000 scaup were seen on this survey including 2,300 and 132,000 on Lakes Borgne and Pontchartrain, respectively. The birds on Pontchartrain were tightly concentrated on transects through the northwest portion of the lake. There were few birds on all other lines. That is far more than the 14,400 scaup seen on this survey last December, 34% higher than the most recent 5-year average of 100,000, but 33% lower than the long-term average of 190,000 in December.
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Re: Season
Posted:
Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:23 pm
by Darren
Not seeing the referenced Lake Borgne scaup, very few ducks overall here so far.
Good luck tomorrow!
Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Dec 15, 2018 4:46 pm
by Ericdc
Date: dec 15 2nd split opener
Time: left at 11:30
Location: pit blind
Cloud Cover: low heavy with on and off mist
Wind Direction and Velocity: 5-10 WNW
Temperature: stayed in upper 40’s and might have gotten cooler later in morning
Barometer:
Moon phase:
Special Notes: best opener to 2nd split we’ve had on this farm (for some reason openers are not our best days). Really encouraged by the number of ducks we saw.
Waterfowl Activity: lots and lots of ducks high and out of the south. Mostly teal, gadwall, and pintail.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: teal would break very good then it was a guessing game to where they would give us a shot with the cross wind direction. Later morning gadwall worked very well for the most part. Called 2 specks in early and shot them real close. Then couldn’t compete with big body on west side of tree line from us.
Hunters: garrison Peyton my nephew Colin and I
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): Colin did well
Special Equipment: 2 mojos on remote
Kudos: we shot pretty well and I’ve got our water levels pulled down from first split to exactly where I want them.
curses: lost 2 birds
Birds By Species:
15 green winged teal
7 gadwall
2 specks
Photo Ops:
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Dec 15, 2018 6:43 pm
by DComeaux
Nice hunt! Let loose of the green wing would ya.
Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Dec 15, 2018 9:14 pm
by Ericdc
Rick wrote:Excellent.
Thanks, it was an encouraging seeing all the teal we had.
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sun Dec 16, 2018 3:26 pm
by Ericdc
Didn’t go this morning, not going to miss church for calm to light winds.
They got 7 teal and 1 ringneck.
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Re: Season
Posted:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 10:14 am
by Deltaman
Nice strap of birds for the 2nd opener Eric
Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Dec 22, 2018 10:59 pm
by Ericdc
Date: 12-22
Time: packed up at 8:30
Location: My brothers’ marsh lease
Cloud Cover: beautiful bluebird day
Wind Direction and Velocity: light south to SSE 5-10 mph
Temperature: 50’s
Barometer:
Moon phase: big and bright
Special Notes: had the opportunity to split up and decided to bring my Wife on her first duck hunt this year where she’s actually hunt, so she and I hunted the marsh pit and my brothers Corey and Ryan hunted another area.
Waterfowl Activity: absolutely nothing but local blue winged teal
Waterfowl Responsiveness: nothing
Hunters: Eric Tricia Ryan Corey
Guns:
Malfunctions: tough shooting for a first timer but Tricia shot 10-12 times and had a good time.
Dog(s): Boone
Special Equipment:
Kudos: we didn’t scratch and Tricia had a pleasant experience
curses: just no ducks and I’m ready to get back to northeast LA next weekend where we have geese at least, but since the hunting has been so poor we are gonna just rest, try to tree some squirrels with Amos, and enjoy the family.
Birds By Species: 6 blue winged teal
Photo Ops:
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Dec 29, 2018 5:39 pm
by Ericdc
Pics from Tricia’s first hunt
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Re: Season
Posted:
Sat Dec 29, 2018 5:41 pm
by Ericdc
Date: 12-29-18
Time: left at 12:45
Location: pit blind
Cloud Cover:surprising mostly sunny until cloud cover from the south came up at noon
Wind Direction and Velocity: ENE to NNE 10-15 mph
Temperature: low 40’s
Barometer:
Moon phase:
Special Notes: forecast said cloudy, glad they were wrong
Waterfowl Activity: local spoons until about 9, then the flight started and kept up till noon. Not many geese but the few specks we saw, even really high would break for the high pitched cluck and yodel. Gadwalls dropped from way way up.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: had a few groups of gadwall bump off spinners and others came straight in. Specks worked pretty.
Hunters: Joseph dakota and me
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): charter
Special Equipment: 2 mojos on remote
Kudos: first push of big ducks we’ve seen all year. Where are the teal?
curses: we shot horrible on 3-4 groups of gadwall and 10 specks straight over the pit well within range, not gimmes but plenty close.
Birds By Species:
5 gadwall
1 shoveler
1 mallard
2 specks
Photo Ops:
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Re: Season
Posted:
Wed Jan 02, 2019 4:10 pm
by Ericdc
Date: Jan 1
Time: packed up at 12:45
Location: pit blind
Cloud Cover: partly to clear to mostly
Wind Direction and Velocity: NE 5 to NNE 10
Temperature:40’s to 50’s
Barometer:
Moon phase:
Special Notes: brought Tricia to the pit for a just us hunt since other members were not hunting, and a good friend of mine who hunted with us Saturday said he’d rather sleep in.
Waterfowl Activity: best big duck flight I’ve seen this year. Really strong mallard pintail and gadwall flight coming out of Arkansas. Didn’t see many specks at all. Some high migratory snows on and off all morning
Waterfowl Responsiveness: couldn’t break the high flyers but had enough buy in that I should have had my 6. Specks weren’t near as responsive as they were Saturday.
Hunters: Tricia and I
Guns: maxis and pink silver
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): we took turns
Special Equipment: 2 mojos on remote
Kudos: really enjoyed watching the flight come through today and was glad Tricia got to see big ducks work and some very large groups of pintail.
curses: whiffed on my what should have been 6th bird which was a nice pintail drake, and the 1 speck I had locked up was swept away by a bigger group from the north.
Not really a curse but couldn’t get any of the big ducks into gimme range for Tricia but plenty close enough for me, although she did her best with what we shot at. First duck will come someday.
Birds By Species:
2 mallards
3 gadwall
Tricia
Photo Ops:
One of the better gadwall drakes I’ve taken
Hoping this is a sign of things to come for January if the weather cooperates.
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Re: Season
Posted:
Wed Jan 02, 2019 8:59 pm
by Duck Engr
Wow sweet gadwall and glad y’all got some birds! Still hearing awful reports from my area. Have two lease members headed to the camp as I type.
Re: Season
Posted:
Wed Jan 02, 2019 9:19 pm
by Ericdc
Duck Engr wrote:Wow sweet gadwall and glad y’all got some birds! Still hearing awful reports from my area. Have two lease members headed to the camp as I type.
Where are you at again?
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Re: Season
Posted:
Wed Jan 02, 2019 9:37 pm
by Duck Engr
About an hour and a half west northwest of Memphis.