Where are the ducks? Answers

[Maggie Glover]

I went duck hunting weekend before last. I will not say where but it required me to drive through WV if that helps. There I saw everything I needed to see to answer all or most of the questions that have been asked here, even the rhetorical ones. What I saw had so much of an impact on me, I did not even go to SC this past weekend. I am not sure that humans could do much to change the reason those birds were in that place and at that time. What I will say is that replicating that great habitat in SC means little if there are no birds here to use it.

As an exercise, you should look at every state north of use and see when their duck season ends. Then ask yourself, "Why would they use their 60 days at the end of January?" Like the story of the bank robber when asked why he robs banks, he scratched his head in confusion, the simply said, "because that is where the money is." This is the same reason why some northern states have season deep into January. MG

[Griffin]

Ok so to be the devils advocate. Someone explain to me why there are mallards in Idaho right now with no flooded corn anywhere near. Or why there are mallards in Nebraska where there is not flooded corn.
This is as of yesterday mind you.

[Calibogue]

For starters, different flyway different birds......

[swampknob]

Also little snowfall and river that doesn’t freeze. Plenty of corn in the fields not covered in snow.

[Calibogue]

I will say, watching the data presented on those two videos paint a pretty darn compelling story as to the impact by flooded corn impoundments of the Upper Mississippi Flyway!

[Rabbitman09]

Corn ponds used to be cool and ok until too many people got into it. Flooded u harvested ag crops has got to be outlawed in order to allow the birds to migrate naturally. Moist soul only. The rich influential folks won't be for this because their corn ponds hoard the birds on their property. If allowed to find food naturally, we will all have birds again. We can't control the weather but we can control the legal baiting practices that have been allowed for far too long.

[Calibogue]

What kind of gross adjusted income does it take for one to be considered rich and influential? I know lots of people with corn ponds many of which I would not consider to be rich and influential.

[Catdaddy]

No corn


No tamies




.

[willyworm]

No more flooded corn, only 2 mallards... I'm liking this idea more and more. Might start tightening the vice even more on the tamie operations.

Anyone wanna go in with me and invest in a gadwall raising operation? You can still take 6 of those.

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[2thDoc]

I'm not speaking specifically to my area because there are places that have birds in those that don't just like every other part of the state. There are some really strange caveat because I know as well as you Kevin, places that typically held Birds did not this year and it was not because of pressure. When you figure out these migratory Birds you let me know.

i can darn sure agree with this...and I agree pressure is a HUGE key but there are too many other places that get pressured that hold ducks. I think there is something in a duck's DNA that makes them act so crazy.

and, no, I darn sure dont have it figured out but I, like you, probably have a pond that would negate every conceivable blame....

[2thDoc]

tin bucket ridge doesnt count, CD

[BOGSTER]

If it were possible to close the loophole that allowed us to flood crops out of normal ag practices, than the only logical
conclusion we can come to is that most owners would shift to rice.

That would mean a lot of homegrown rice in the US again.

I’m a fan.

[cat III]

Rice is what brought ducks to South Carolina in the first place , not corn

[BOGSTER]

Ducks were here before any ag.
The rice didn’t bring them here, it simply concentrated them.

From someone that has hunted flooded corn my whole life:

Flooding row crops for waterfowl is baiting them plain and simple.
There is zero difference in adding water to corn and adding corn to water.
JABIII and I have back-and-forthed over this for years.

Flooding corn for ducks was primarily a southern practice.
It was all fine and well when just the Deep South did it, because we were at the end of the migratory path.
We were the final destination.

As waterfowl hunting became more commercialized and profitable, northern states, higher up the Flyway began flooding crops on a massive scale.
Now they have halted the natural cycle of migration to exclude the south.
And that’s not ok.

For the betterment of the ducks, and to correct a wrong, I would certainly support outlawing the flooding of any crop that doesn’t require flooding under normal ag practices.

Moist Soil or Rice.


It can, and should be done, and I believe with time would reset the migration to traditional grounds.

[Catdaddy]

tin bucket ridge doesnt count, CD

I posted that because there were 2 mallards there during Thanksgiving. We watched them periodically until last week when the number reached 25 mallards.. Last week was the first time it was shot all season. The point being, it's not some super hole but the zero pressure it's had all year collected the few mallards in the area as they sought refuge. Only saw 1 wood duck.

There aren't many ducks.



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[santee11]

I went duck hunting weekend before last. I will not say where but it required me to drive through WV if that helps. There I saw everything I needed to see to answer all or most of the questions that have been asked here, even the rhetorical ones. What I saw had so much of an impact on me, I did not even go to SC this past weekend. I am not sure that humans could do much to change the reason those birds were in that place and at that time. What I will say is that replicating that great habitat in SC means little if there are no birds here to use it.

As an exercise, you should look at every state north of use and see when their duck season ends. Then ask yourself, "Why would they use their 60 days at the end of January?" Like the story of the bank robber when asked why he robs banks, he scratched his head in confusion, the simply said, "because that is where the money is." This is the same reason why some northern states have season deep into January. MG

Try to be clear so people can understand what you are saying.
-my wife

[2thDoc]

i dont see how you are going to outlaw the flooding of crops. it just isnt going to happen. if you want to make a change in the laws, try to think of something that might actually pass. all this is nonsensical gibberish bc it doesnt have a chance in hell of passing.

we are on the southern end of the migration. short-stopping is occurring. outlaw impoundments north of us? you cant have your cake and eat it too.

[thunderchicken]

I don't get to travel chasing ducks like I did at one time, but the last time I was around Bellhaven NC I talked to a guy that was getting ready to dike in 1000 acres (plant corn) and sink four 8 inch wells. The field already had pivots. After seeing what had and was happening in coastal NC in regards to duck operations, it's a miracle we even see a duck in SC.

[swampknob]

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[Palmetto Bug]

I can't get past the notion that more food will eventually mean more ducks. Even if the current population of ducks is getting short-stopped, eventually something is going to fill the void left down south. As they say, "horror vacui" or "Nature abhors a vacuum."