I'll start.

Other than a below average Thanksgiving opener at my spot in north Alabama, I don't believe another duck, goose or anything else (migratory or local) with a feather has been killed this year on the property. Worse still, cell cams are showing beautiful images of prime habitat in perfect condition, but there's not a bird in sight for months now. Unlike many years, I'm not dealing with flooding or drought or poor crop production, or beavers. The stars actually lined up perfectly in every facet........except for the most important element - waterfowl. I have confirmed with all surrounding landowners that they are experiencing the same thing. Really didn't need to call any of them as the sound of shotguns hasn't interrupted the morning stillness in weeks.

Worst season in decades, probably worst season in my lifetime, and it's not even close.

I keep holding out hope that the next weather front up north will finally push the birds down from where they are hung up in the migration, where the season has long since closed, and where plenty of food that they can access still exists. Just hasn't happened yet. Probably won't happen during the hunting season. And may not happen at all this year.

I thought this would make me feel better about the situation. You know, get it off my chest and off my mind. Not so much. Not so much.

Brother, I am there with you. This is not the only year of near zero ducks at our holes. I tell you how bad it is for me, I have not even bought a federal stamp! All of the guys I have talked with whether they be pond, swamp, river or flooded food hunters they all say the same thing. IT SUX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I said it in an earlier thread this year. Season dates for the South need to be moved. Change my mind......................................

One area that is pounding ducks? Atlantic coast up North. Been seeing a lot of pics of hunts (based off FB pages).

I have been 4-5 times this year in the bay/river and have been astounded at the lack of shooting I hear. I have also heard reports from people that live along the bay that they have not heard many shots at all this year.

I killed more teal in September during the two times I hunted.

This is my 10th year duck hunting and the 4th year I've hunted the delta (not the Mississippi one). It seems like there have been progressively fewer ducks killed each season down here. I really wish I had an idea why.

Lack of consistently cold winters and ice up North for over a decade, excess food on the ground in those areas and a migration South that never occurs. We all know that ducks imprint and fly where they were taught to fly. If over several generations of ducks, significantly fewer fly to North AL or Mobile Bay and a younger generation doesn't imprint, won't they eventually quit showing up in our part of the world? Only thing that reverses this is a few long, sustained winters with extreme cold and ice in the upper Mid-West. Doubt that will happen.

Best year I’ve had in a while. Limited out just about every hunt on woodies, which is about all I can expect in central Alabama. Have heard several others struggling, and my buddies struck out in Arkansas. Not sure what the fix will be.

I am not sure I remember exactly when we went to 6 duck 60 day seasons but I read the framework whitepaper when they did it. Didn't say much in there about the Ducks at all the vast majority of the discussion to go to 6/60 seemed to be based on the economic impact of lengthening the season.

I think we've shot the ducks that migrate over the last 20 years as they have poured money into wetland projects all up from Missouri to N. Dakota. The State of AL to my knowledge still sends our AL Duck Stamp money up there to build more wetlands for the ducks to breed on. Maybe that is important. Maybe it is not as important as improving something in this State like maybe forcing AL Power to give up at least a little property somewhere to add a wetland WMA and using the money to build a dewatering unit..

Back when I started Duck hunting people all up through the Dakotas didn't really hunt that much. They did hunt, but the difference was they had to time the season because it was shorter. They always had better hunting in the years they timed and hit the sweet spot where they had open water. But in other years they didn't get it exactly right and you could tell it back then off the end of your gun barrel there were more ducks. That's stating the obvious I know.

What has happened is we went to 60 days and everyone up through there over the last 20-25 years has built duck holes, flooded fields, etc. because under a 60 day timeline they got birds. That's guaranteed. So now all the land is leased and there are duck holes everywhere you look. As farming has become less profitable farmers have turned to leasing land to make up the shortfall and dang near every single one of them that can have a duck hole is leasing their fields.

Now onto the 2nd issue in my mind and this is where things begin to fall apart. There has always been discussion of ducks imprinting on an area as far back as I can remember. Take the above and couple that with higher numbers of ducks that do actually fly South still getting shot over 20 years. Fewer go back each season and return the next.

Throw it in a bowl and mix it all up and what do you get? Empty skies.

The good news is that for the last about 25 years we have allegedly had record number on the breeding grounds every single year. So we stay at 60. Because that seems to make sense we would have near or long-term average record numbers forever? Not sure about that. Seems like something you would hear on CNN.

You can have it open all year long and it won't matter, the ain't coming all the way now. There is generations of ducks now that have no clue their ancestors once made it this far.


The do not come here by th droves as used to, but if they do visit, there is absolutely no rest for them. Just a few years ago there was actual places where they could loaf and not be harassed. No longer is that the case, literally run around and around.

Go back and watch the videos from last years Express Boats duck series. Listen to the guy from Louisiana he's spot on in my opinion.
All of those guys bring something to the table.

Duck hunting is a money game, just watch the guys at White Oaks in AR. The money they pour in to their places and their clients is producing birds. They draw and hold birds, some of the bigger guides have resting holes. I hunted Rich-N-Tones place and they had resting ponds. This was during a 30 day season but that went out the door with the commercialization.

It really has gotten stupid what folks will do to kill a duck.

I agree 100%, there is no rest for them. When we used to swamp hunt a lot, we would hop around and no wear out one place. Killed a lot of good straps like that. Pond hunting too. Jump from farm to farm. There is one farm I have hunted since 1990. Has 5 ponds on it with a big 9 ac one on 550 ac. We put corn out on very back pond and 95% of the time never hunted it, just let them eat and rest. Chit load of ducks, all kinds. Fast forward 20 years, decline in birds even with corn out. Bad deal for guys with 10 yo sons that are eat up & love it trying to get them to some birds. Last two years nearly nothing on that farm and it is 5 minutes from Guntersville water too.

When we first started hunting it, we killed all types from blacks, bull sprigs, readheads, shovelers and of course mallards. Used to have ring necks come in 20-50 in a group. To my knowledge, there has not been a ring neck seen while hunting in 5+ years. Staple now is the gadwall. Just like wood ducks, get boring real quick.

Chit changes and I don't like it. I guess if I am to kill some ducks, I need to move to Missouri, the Dakotas or Oklahoma...........

I've had a great season. 10x better than last year.

Killed 200+ before Jan 1. Killed 20-30 since. Fell off hard

It’s going to take me a few sober days to respond to this but goat killer has the spot on idea. I’ve said for years the 60/6 was the worst thing ever for duck hunting and even though I have enjoyed it I’m afraid we are all paying the price now and hopefully not from now on. I will collect my worn out thoughts and respond fully later.

It's weather. Hearing from MN and WI that they aren't ice fishing yet cause it's too warm. Guess where the birds are?

We need ice and rising falling Temps. This highs in the mid 40's, lows in the low 30's is horrible duck hunting weather.

You must hunt every single day

No chit. I have not seen a 200+ bird season this century!

I know of prominent duck clubs that haven’t hit those numbers this year and barely did so last year

My best friend had a lease for 18 years, same farm with 4 pits. Averaged 1200 a year with 5 guys, their kids and guest. Wasn’t hunted daily by any stretch. Lost the lease 4 years ago as guide wanted the place bad. Have heard the place now isnt the same. One thing that changed the last year he had it. The farms around this place were not hunted. One was hunted like a few times a year. Birds held in the area.

May have killed 300 the last year he had it.

The 6/60 introduced the chaos
Heck just look at the number of duck hunters in Alabama now. Incredible increase just look at license sales.

I started in mid 80s and there was literally a handful that hunted this end of Colbert and Pickwick had maybe 3 groups hitting it. We could hunt almost anywhere with the exception of a few places on Gunaford road and Leighton was locked up. There is not a hole anywhere in those areas without a blind today.

Heck there is even road hunters for ducks now.
Guided Diver duck hunts on pickwick
Folks running up any ducks they see on the River constantly

They quit migrating and weather is a factor but so is pressure.


This is the first year I’ve not bought and AR license in a very long time.

Pics from the past

cartervj, when I started in early 80s, there was a core group here in Etowah co that hunted three ways. One would hunt the river and backwaters (Big Wills Creek, Canoe Creek Ballplay Creek), swamps like in Ballplay, or go straight to Scottsboro every weekend. Some of those Scottsboro guys are in their 60-70s and still have a "camp" up there. I still see some of those guys like Pat Reeves, George Ellis and so on. Most of them blame DU for spending millions and pumping it into midwest and north on pothole preservation, planting crops, and making ducks change their migration distance because of these

They guys that hunted the river (that is where I started) would for the most part hunt in sloughs, sandpits or beach the boat on a mud flat and hunt off points. My method back then was riding my bike with a sack of decoys and my 870 close to a slough and ditching it, walking down and throwing out decoys. Killed a good amount of ducks that way. As I got my license, i ventured out with other guys to Weiss and hunted there with some success. I hunted Neely out of a boat until late 90s. All my areas that used to have ducks in them had houses now. This was the start of the "not worth the trouble" anymore.

The Ballplay swamp guys would sure enough kill some ducks. If you did not have an argo, atv to get back off main part, you got scraps. If you could go deep, that is where the magic was and plenty of it. I know of a few guys that stashed old mossberg riot guns in places to use when they got to their holes. Ducks were so close you could use open choke with 6 shot and kill them dead. I remember seeing pics taken by some of those guys and they literally had 50 ducks between 3-4 guns. There was an old pic years ago at The Outhouse in Gadsden with Sam Heaton (staged of course) with three straps full of mallards around his neck standing in the swamp. Mr. Ellison painted a picture of it that was incredible. Sadly, it has been several years since there have been any good numbers of ducks out there.

Started hunting a few farms, like I said in previous post, early 90s. Damn good success for many years. Sure, weather had some influence on the numbers of birds we saw and killed. But for the most part, the ducks just wanted in there. There was one year we had a Dr. hunting with us that was in a generational duck club in Monroe, LA. He said we had better shoots that year than they had in LA. That is pretty big.

The decline for us started in early 2000s but we were blind to the lasting effects. It started with the decrease in the size of the groups we were seeing. Realize, if you had a group of 50+ ducks flying by, no matter what type, that was a big deal. Those groups dwindled down until your core group population was pairs up to 10-15 in a bunch. What sucked was I had a young Son I am trying to teach and get experience calling, shooting, decoy placement, the whole package. Made it difficult for sure. Thank God he got bit and is eat up with it. He has been to ND last two years hunting and is currently out in Oklahoma being a guide. Not a career I want him in but for now, while he can, I say enjoy.

It may come back full circle, but I strongly doubt it. We finally have a winter where there should be not reason not to have ducks and we don't. I just txt a guy and asked him how many he has seen this am. He did not even go. This guy used to hunt 3-4 days a week. This is the state we are in and it is sad. For me, for lack of better words, it really breaks by heart. Knowing how I (and my hunting partners) used to be about ducks and have been evolved into not having the flame anymore.

What were most states' seasons/bag limits prior to the 6 duck a day trend?

It went 3/30 4/45 and then 6/60. Before was a point system and 30 days

2 mallards 3 mallards and then 4 mallards
It’s set by the Federal framework for limits, days and time frame.

So I have a question. I have never hunted Ms before until today. It looks like everybody is hunting what were fallow fields that have been flooded. From my perspective there is no reason for the birds to come to them. I was expected flooded crop fields. According to the guide we are with. It’s pretty standard for landowners to rent these blinds and guarantee water. Would it not make hunting better and hold more birds if there was food.

Baiting or may be a flooded bean field

I know you can’t legally bait but I can’t see why people don’t plant for the birds and then leave it to flood in season. I may be wrong but I would think it’d be more incentive for the ducks to come in.

Why go to that trouble when there’s plenty of idiots in line to be the next one to pay good money for a blind over a giant mud hole.

That’s kinda what I figured. But I was wondering if it would help.

I’ve never seen a fallow field flooded in Ms. plenty of rice stubble and beans fields flooded tho. Sure you aren’t seeing rice stubble?

I’ve hunted fields of flooded sickle pods SW of Clarkesdale and did well. Hunted some club that had breaks.

My duck hole is full of barnyard and jap millet along with half of it in moist soil. Mainly smartweed. I try to plant 🌽 where the hap and barnyard is but it was way too wet this summer.

I see no difference in number of ducks between corn and regenerating millets.

We’ve killed the heck out of ducks in flooded cotton stubble.

https://www.ducks.org/conservation/waterfowl-habitat/a-primer-on-moist-soil-management

Yeah. I asked the guide. He said the field we were hunting as well as most in the area were not planted, just left fallow, and then flooded. He said the farmers were getting $6000 per blind for the leases and all they guaranteed was a pit and water. Said a lot had all but quit farming. Field we hunted today had had beans and it was better. Not great but better.

Ah yes, the perfunctory rowed up mud hole. No food, no birds and a PITA to set out and pick up decoy spreads. Dryer winters are leading to more and more of this dictated by normal farming practices to proceed when possible, with no decrease in lease price to compensate.

As said earlier, I hope we’re in the bottom of a long, slow dip and that it will turn around, again! Got a buddy that’s been driving out and hunting small cattle ponds in TX and he sends pics of “tennis shoe” hunts with limits in 30 min...like it used to be on MS Delta & Arkie hunts. Seems the flyway is shifting west, more.

Sounds like the poor mans delta area more commonly know as Marks MS area just west of batesville. Ground there will break about any farmer around.

I don't see the attraction for flooded empty fields unless the birds are using it as a resting pond.

I have hunted fallow fields, but the volunteer rice was as thick as or thicker than if it had been planted.

And hunting pit blinds sucks.

I’ve been three times. And my group has only killed 15 ducks. 12 ruddy’s, and 3 ringers. Been really bad in central fla even though weather has been great! Our normal puddle duck spots have no ducks. I don’t think I’ve even seen a teal this season

I'm glad I got to experience unbelievable flyway hunting while it still existed. It's been getting worse and worse over the last 6-7 years. We've had some good seasons in there, but only when the ice gets thick.

I still go just cause I have a great group but my real focus on waterfowl is on the trips to the dakotas and Canada.

What’d you say? My ears are still ringing from that last volley...I got put beside Jake with his blasted muzzle break!!

My dogs all end up half deaf. My last female lab was absolutely deaf in her left ear. Should could hear in her right. Ported or non ported sound the same to me in the pits. Just right and you’ll hit the deck, then a cussing commences


I do dislike hunting out of pits, perspective and everything else is distorted.

It's bad.

I pulled boards on our place, yesterday...not a decoy thrown on our place, this season.

The ducks aren’t coming back. Ever. Glad I got my duck fix in the ‘90s. You can’t even drive around Guntersville and look at any ducks these days.

Old hunting partner told me he burned 12 gallons of gas mid December around the islands and other places and never bumped up any birds. That sir, is sad.

I usually get calls asking me to quit bowhunting and come out and shoot ducks....This year, not a peep. Talked to one of the guys that usually invites me and he said it was terrible. If they hadn't leased out the farm next to theirs he didn't think they would have even killed triple digits. They usually kill 4 or 5 times that.

At my deer hunting spots I usually hear the duck hunters blasting away, at least for the first couple hours of the morning. I didn't hear much at all this year or see anything other than snow geese and some local canada geese flying over. Feel sorry for you guys.

The son-in-law and his dad and brothers leave a camper in Arkansas just for this time of year. They had been planning a trip for this weekend for most of the season. The water hasn't been pulled down in the area they hunt. Instead of the normal 6" of water, it is around 4'. They didn't even buy their licenses. They just went and got the camper.

Passed on the last weekend trip for Arkansas. Glad I did. 2 teal for a 5 hr one way trip would’ve ticked me off

May see some places up for lease. Or at least a few opening in a few clubs. No birds/ water means folks won’t waste time next year. The money spent traveling and food for a so so hunts just no fun. We can socialize and eat good at home.

One of my best friends said a new alabama group leased the farm next to the one he owns this year (southern Illinois). With the way the season went I can't believe they got any pleasure out of that drive.

It is one thing driving 20 minutes, but 6+ hours is a long way to go for a rough season.