Arley Posted January 14, 2018 Report Share Posted January 14, 2018 Hi Guys, Has any one else noticed a decrease in the number of Mallard and Teal about this season? I have never seen so few ducks flight in on my ponds as this season. On occasions we have had some floods in the area but even early in the season very few ducks were flighting in. The exception is the amount of Manadarins, in Shropshire we are seeing as many of theses as Mallard! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moongeese Posted January 14, 2018 Report Share Posted January 14, 2018 Ducks in my area been going down in numbers every year. Geese have held up though. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted January 14, 2018 Report Share Posted January 14, 2018 Nothing like last years numbers here in the outer Hebrides Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted January 14, 2018 Report Share Posted January 14, 2018 Only place I’ve seen good numbers is on local parks and village greens. Our marsh has been very poor with ducks this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancer425 Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Just my thoughts on this. I have not seen any officially compiled figures, but i have seen slightly less this year and i agree this as been a trend for a few years now, but it as been mild this season and the last few. And i tend to feel shooting the foreshores you might see a few less as inland feeding of ponds not frozen up much. the duck are more spread out. A couple of less disturbed areas i shoot still seem to have decent duck numbers, but i do think a lot more are cleaning out scrapes and ponds feeding to encourage duck numbers and this is coupled to the mild weather perhaps clouding the true number of ducks in some areas. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIDES EDGE Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Its official because it was on Country File the other week (and they are always right) wildfowl numbers are down this year due to the mild winter they were at Welney there are certainly very few in Kent most of us have given up I only saw 2 teal on my last trip out and they were nowhere near me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokersmith Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Some average to well above average numbers in some areas locally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The gouse Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Watch duck flight tonight 26 duck flighted in. last Tuesday 70plus we have only shot this flight twice this season. But I’ve got a fox problem. The lads shoot it Thursday and also have a go at the foxes also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Numbers on the wash seem pretty good. I have had some good flights this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Going by the fowlers I have spoken to you would think duck around here are in very low numbers , don't you believe it , as there are good numbers of duck in the area , not only have the habits of the duck changed , the biggest change are the fowlers who go after them. If you go by the duck returns they will show less duck are shot each season now than 10 / 15 years ago and this season wont be any exception , and rather blame the shortage of duck I would say the biggest reason is the amount of geese we have got . When you get anything up to 15,000 going backwards and forwards on the marshes day after day ,what are fowlers going to go after , geese that they can see whenever they go , or going round a splash of water hoping a pair or two come into it for a shot in the nigh on pitch dark. Also a lot of the goose grounds are fairly easy to get to , and nowadays people have a fair bit of time off from work with many having two weeks off for Christmas so with having time its a matter of lugging a bag full of decoys across a couple of marshes , find somewhere down the side of the dyke , put the decoys out and hope some of them respond to the calling and how realistic your decoys work, plus relying on your knowledge of field craft . So ,over the last decade the people who chase the geese have got very good at it but the duck have more or less been left alone . This might not be the case in other parts of the country, but round here the geese have changed the ways of wildfowling and not always for the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokersmith Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Some of us still prioritise a good tide flight over the big skeins ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 1 hour ago, Smokersmith said: Some of us still prioritise a good tide flight over the big skeins ..... As far as wildfowling go Smokersmith a good tidal flight must be up there amongst the cream of wildfowling , but as one generation call it a day through age ect , is the next generation ready to take there places ? I have got my doubts. My days of sitting in my gun punt in one of the many drains on the estuary waiting for the tides to push the duck off are way behind me now , but when that day came and the odd goose smacked on the mud on a rough winters night you knew you had hit the jackpot and the world couldn't had been a happier place. I did remark the other week where I had spoken to three visiting fowlers who came from the Fens and the Humber and the conversation was always geese , none of them as far as I know ever went after the local duck , geese had completely taken up there fowling now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bell Posted January 16, 2018 Report Share Posted January 16, 2018 Give me an exciting duck flight over geese any day of the week. Just returned from the west coast of Scotland chasing woodcock but managed a couple of mornings after teal on the shore. My mate shot the mallard but I was lucky to get a single pink that came my way at first light. not only was it my first pink but the first one I had ever seen on this particular island...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sako751sg Posted January 16, 2018 Report Share Posted January 16, 2018 Duck have been sporadic with us but its always the case when the weather is so wet/frosty as they have too many options. Just back from the smallest pond and had 6 teal,3 mallard,1 widgeon and 2 hoodies and there must have been over a hundred teal working it.Very cold forcast so the ponds could be out of action shortly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 16, 2018 Report Share Posted January 16, 2018 46 minutes ago, Bell said: Give me an exciting duck flight over geese any day of the week. Just returned from the west coast of Scotland chasing woodcock but managed a couple of mornings after teal on the shore. My mate shot the mallard but I was lucky to get a single pink that came my way at first light. not only was it my first pink but the first one I had ever seen on this particular island...... Well done Bell on getting your first Pink , that will stay in your memory bank for the rest of your life . I can remember my first goose which was a Whitefront as if it was yesterday and that was well over fifty years ago , also I was talking to my brother Saturday when he was beating and he can remember when he and his mate ( who is now dead ) shot three Whitefronts one night when they were both 13 years old and he is now 73. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClemFandango Posted January 18, 2018 Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 On 15/01/2018 at 19:39, marsh man said: Going by the fowlers I have spoken to you would think duck around here are in very low numbers , don't you believe it , as there are good numbers of duck in the area , not only have the habits of the duck changed , the biggest change are the fowlers who go after them. If you go by the duck returns they will show less duck are shot each season now than 10 / 15 years ago and this season wont be any exception , and rather blame the shortage of duck I would say the biggest reason is the amount of geese we have got . When you get anything up to 15,000 going backwards and forwards on the marshes day after day ,what are fowlers going to go after , geese that they can see whenever they go , or going round a splash of water hoping a pair or two come into it for a shot in the nigh on pitch dark. Also a lot of the goose grounds are fairly easy to get to , and nowadays people have a fair bit of time off from work with many having two weeks off for Christmas so with having time its a matter of lugging a bag full of decoys across a couple of marshes , find somewhere down the side of the dyke , put the decoys out and hope some of them respond to the calling and how realistic your decoys work, plus relying on your knowledge of field craft . So ,over the last decade the people who chase the geese have got very good at it but the duck have more or less been left alone . This might not be the case in other parts of the country, but round here the geese have changed the ways of wildfowling and not always for the better. interesting observation. I like shooting geese but I would far far sooner shoot a teal going like a ******* jet with the wind across the salting, or widgeon coming in under the moon. Now that you mention it it does seem goose shooting is in fashion at the moment. as for duck numbers I would say about the same about as last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black powder gunner Posted January 20, 2018 Report Share Posted January 20, 2018 Here in Yorkshire on our in land marsh duck numbers have been down low numbers of mallard very few teal and widgeon before Christmas but in the last three weeks we have had a lot of rain which has flooded the ings bringing large groups of teal and widgeon on to the flood water but not many mallard. Two weeks ago got the sneek boat out and paddled out to a hide I built which is on a flood bank built like a high seat set in some willow trees surrounded by over a hundred acres of deep water set the decoys out along a sheltered hedge line 30 yards from the hide this was at 6 o clock in the morning and waited for day light to break . Has the light was breaking through a dozen greylags flew over just out of range its been the best ever season for geese we have written records of every thing that has been shot on this marsh going back over sixty years and have never shot as many as this year. The next thirty minutes were very exciting with many teal and widgeon coming in to the decoys having had a good few shots and accounted for several teal and widgeon and one mallard decided to call it a day got into the sneek boat and paddled out and picked the shot ducks up and the decoys and headed home for a good breakfast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJsDad Posted January 21, 2018 Report Share Posted January 21, 2018 (edited) I asked the same question a few weeks ago on this forum (Wildfowling Season To Date), because our area of marsh in Kent has produced a very poor return this year. We have been blaming the lack of rain up until late December, which meant that a lot of our splashes remained dry; however not even this can totally account for the virtual absence of Wigeon and Mallard. The heavy rain over the last couple of weeks has flooded several normally productive splashes, but evening flight last weekend only put up a small pack of Teal as we arrived that went of at mach 1 and never returned. We sat it out till well after our normal finish time but failed to see or hear any sign of duck. As part of our agreement we keep a record of all wildfowl we shoot and this is our worst season by far over the last 4 years. Replies to my earlier post gave mixed reports, however we were not the only ones to have had a very poor year. We have seen and heard plenty of Grey`s crossing our bit of marsh particularly at morning flight, but the wind or lack of it, means they never stick to a fixed flight line and all efforts to get under them have been frustrated. Edited January 21, 2018 by JJsDad Previous post inserted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arley Posted January 28, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2018 Since my original post I have shot 3 separate flights, two in Shropshire and 1 in Worcester. Grand total for 3 flights is 3 Mallard drakes all from one flight. This is the worst season I have had for 20 years flighting. Despite regular feeding the ponds haven't produced in this are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richie10 Posted January 29, 2018 Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 Well, put in some duck nest tubes, put something back, have refuge areas that aren't shot. If everyone put a little effort in you get more back. I see it in some of the clubs, people want to shoot but don't want to help in the off season. We have seen a lot of success with the tubes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arley Posted January 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 Have used nest tubes on my own shoot for 5 years, last year only 2 tubes used I also run at least two Larson traps and 1 mink trap and release duck on my own small shoot on have used nearly two tons of wheat feeding since late July. Despite this the numbers of duck are down in this part of the country however Geese are doing well. Will set up some tubes on our small syndicate shoot in the next couple of weeks, might be too late for this year, I have found they work much better the second year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The gouse Posted January 29, 2018 Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 43 minutes ago, Arley said: Have used nest tubes on my own shoot for 5 years, last year only 2 tubes used I also run at least two Larson traps and 1 mink trap and release duck on my own small shoot on have used nearly two tons of wheat feeding since late July. Despite this the numbers of duck are down in this part of the country however Geese are doing well. Will set up some tubes on our small syndicate shoot in the next couple of weeks, might be too late for this year, I have found they work much better the second year On our shoot we have several duck flights which have not been shoot this season. i was going to put duck tubes on them as at the min there is 10 to 30 duck on each one. We take shoot on this year so learning curve! I have ordered duck for the big ponds which will be driven. So world you order duck for the flight ponds also if you say thay do not work to well the first year. Our just feed them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted January 29, 2018 Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 22 hours ago, Arley said: Since my original post I have shot 3 separate flights, two in Shropshire and 1 in Worcester. Grand total for 3 flights is 3 Mallard drakes all from one flight. This is the worst season I have had for 20 years flighting. Despite regular feeding the ponds haven't produced in this are. You say this is your worst season for 20 years . Do you only shoot a flight pond or do you do coastal or inland flashes ? If you mainly shoot your ponds , did it have enough water in early on in the season ? Do you shoot it morning or night ? Is the feed being eaten and is there any tell tail feathers around the edge? Do it shoot in better in a certain wind direction ? Are there commercial ponds in your area that drawing duck in ? This haven't been a superb season but it haven't been a disaster neither , Widgeon are our main quarry and most nights you will see duck and with the right weather one or two end up in the bag , a lot of fowlers have been concentrating on the Pinks and going by the amount of shooting going on , I recon they have had a good season . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arley Posted January 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 2 minutes ago, marsh man said: You say this is your worst season for 20 years . Yes, I have kept a shooting diary for over 30 years Do you only shoot a flight pond or do you do coastal or inland flashes I shoot on mostly fed ponds but also inland flashes but I travel to a number of the Wetlands site for work If you mainly shoot your ponds , did it have enough water in early on in the season ? Pools never drop that much and have been fed from late summer Do you shoot it morning or night ? Mix of morning flights and evening. One of my ponds shoots better in the morning Is the feed being eaten and is there any tell tail feathers around the edge? Yes but not the amount I would expect, the numbers haven't built up all season Do it shoot in better in a certain wind direction ? I have shot less this season due to the lack of birds about Are there commercial ponds in your area that drawing duck in ? No, I have the river Avon and Severn boarding two of my shoots and the areas are normally very good for ducks. I will continue to feed for the next couple of months on a couple of my ponds and hope the birds have a good breeding season. This haven't been a superb season but it haven't been a disaster neither , Widgeon are our main quarry and most nights you will see duck and with the right weather one or two end up in the bag , a lot of fowlers have been concentrating on the Pinks and going by the amount of shooting going on , I recon they have had a good season . Sorry Marshman forgot to thank you for your reply Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stimo22 Posted January 29, 2018 Report Share Posted January 29, 2018 Hi All Just got back from our final flight of the year, we shoot on a inland lake and pond. This year has been a cracking season and we shot nearly double the duck we have in the last two years. Not a record year but only 7 birds down from our record year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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