Fowl Wrap Up 2023
It occurred to me that I totally forgot to write about this one. Maybe it's because my season was weak! I didn't even really hunt all that much this season.
A few different factors contributed. Lengthy stomach bug, deer hunting, overall just being busy, and a lack of ducks. While this year lacked that unforgettable barrel burner hunt it did have some bright spots. The trip to the UP was a good one and I think we are going to try and do a travel trip again next season. The dog got some reps in although not nearly enough. The girls got out multiple times and are still talking about it months later. I also got to hunt with a few new people this year and see some new places.
I had some really good scouts this year that turned into disappointing hunts. I’ve got to switch some stuff up and try some off the wall things next season or just go and not really worry about it. It is a tough life as a public land waterfowler in West Michigan.
One thing was really evident this year. We just don’t have the habitat to support large numbers of migrating ducks. There is a big time pattern of ducks coming in by the thousands one night and then leaving the next morning. I saw it 5 or 6 times this year and I mean thousands of birds. I don’t know exactly when they come in but they leave right at daylight. They get high and they head south. Hunting pressure isn’t pushing them out, fisherman aren’t pushing them out, but they definitely don’t like something. Maybe it is the lack of emergent vegetation on many of our lakes or the fully developed shorelines which are often rip rap and seawalls. I’m sure some of it has to do with the dominant species of submergent vegetation that diving ducks prefer. There certainly isn’t a lot of wild celery around and there is no wild rice. I’d love to know where they are going next. It’s also no secret that the Great Lakes Mallard is on the big time decline. Domestic duck genetics seems to be a main culprit in that and it is being extensively studied. Hanging out in cities, not migrating, and poor brood survival are all effects from that. It’s really interesting and I hope something can be done but I think we are too late in the game for that.
There’s also the argument that the ducks just don’t get here in time. There’s no doubt that the later and colder things are the better the lakeshore and SW Michigan hunting is. But by then so many thousands of birds have passed us by that we NEVER EVER get a chance at. I’m fortunate that Lake Michigan is right outside of my office and I have seen some crazy migration days. Despite seeing thousands of ducks migrate through on the big lake per year (and I’m not talking about long tails) I have never seen a group that appears to be migrating stop and swing into Muskegon Lake. I’m sure it happens and maybe those ducks have a different path in there but it certainly isn’t the norm.
Despite all those frustrations, I’ll never quite because I love it. The feeling of shooting light approaching and the world waking up is something that I absolutely live for. Watching the world as the darkness fades to light is worth it every time and you never know what is going to happen on a given day!