Weather and migration?

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Re: Weather and migration?

Postby FlintRiverFowler » Wed Nov 19, 2014 4:22 am

Bad17 wrote:Well so far from all of my logs all I can see is clusters of good ducks. I'm sure if I was a math genius I could figure out the formula and know where and when lol.

My brother has a friend who's dad can look at the weather and will tell you if you're goin to shoot any ducks or not. He says the guy is right 95% of the time. Maybe he cracked the code.
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Re: Weather and migration?

Postby Deltaman » Wed Nov 19, 2014 10:24 am

Lot of factors in the mix, and every year is different. 25-30 years ago, a good hard weather push from the North would usually bring new birds with it to the gulf coast. Times have changed..........changes agriculture practices have short-stopped a lot of birds, and as long as there is food available, they have no reason to move any further South than necessary. If you are on a major flyway, I think that you see more evidence of a push with the fronts. I hunted a few seasons in North Mississippi with a friend, and being in the heart of the MS delta flyway, there was a noticeable increase in birds with the hard fronts. So much so that he would take off of work at the drop of a hat when a good cold front was due through the area. Hunting along coastal Alabama, not so much, and we only get a trickle, being out of the main flyway path. Some fronts push birds to us, but it is very unpredictable. Hunting in coastal Louisiana last weekend, I talked to the bird counters when they stopped by our camp. They told me that there was a significant increase of birds in the marsh after last weeks fronts. Again, in the heart of the flyway. I look at it the same way I look at fishing.........the only way to know is to go, and you damn sure can't kill'em sitting on a couch.
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Re: Weather and migration?

Postby outboardman » Wed Nov 19, 2014 2:00 pm

The Duck Hammer wrote:
NuffDaddy wrote:
The Duck Hammer wrote:I can honestly say I have no **** idea how it works. Three years ago we had fresh birds every week of the season. This year and last have been a crapshoot to see a single bird.

This year has been **** up for the area i hunt. Mallards were almost non existent. I don't know if it was because their northern migration this past spring was held off so late because of the ice or what. In the first 2 weeks of the season we killed 2 mallard hens total. And didn't see many more.


Brother told me that they got a two man limit of teal Sunday morning in short order. First sign of teal they've had and they used to be a main staple from day one. Based on that I assume we are a little under a month behind.


Yes migration a month behind, weather a month ahead. Can't wait to see them all fly by when they go.
Got to love the mud.
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Re: Weather and migration?

Postby Bad17 » Wed Nov 19, 2014 2:12 pm

FlintRiverFowler wrote:
Bad17 wrote:Well so far from all of my logs all I can see is clusters of good ducks. I'm sure if I was a math genius I could figure out the formula and know where and when lol.

My brother has a friend who's dad can look at the weather and will tell you if you're goin to shoot any ducks or not. He says the guy is right 95% of the time. Maybe he cracked the code.


Well hell. You should find out and write a book and become filthy rich.
If it flies it dies. If it lands... It dies too.
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Re: Weather and migration?

Postby jarbo03 » Wed Nov 19, 2014 11:06 pm

I read a report that was done with Cheyenne Bottoms in central KS, noting periods of peak migration. Over how ever many years it was, with good water conditions they reached peak migration almost exclusively within a 1 week period in mid November, regardless of weather.
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Pheasant: 4
Quail: 2
Prairie Chicken: 4
Dove: 168
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Re: Weather and migration?

Postby huntfishnv » Thu Nov 20, 2014 12:45 pm

In Montana cold=ducks andgeese- everywhere you can look. Literally, the first cold snap below freezing for a couple days is the most amazing thing I've ever seen hunting. Numbers go from shooting a couple a day to you can't reload your gun fast enough.

Down here in Nevada, different story. Cold snaps produce some birds, but it seems to me new birds migrate in on warmer days, but still later in the season.
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