How will the weather effect the coming season?

[6.5x55SE]

1 hour ago, scolopax said:

A lack of rain is good news for the foreshore wildfowler, as I tend to think it keeps some wildfowl on the foreshore and away from flight ponds and floods.   Certainly as soon as we get the first wet spell our estuary teal ‘disappear’,.

Have to say i agree as it's what I've seen over the years 👍 the only downside is the foreshore ( where i shoot  ) is horrendous with midge's and annoying bug's 😤 having said that I've had some very memorable September flights including early Pink's 🤫  

[marsh man]

1 hour ago, scolopax said:

A lack of rain is good news for the foreshore wildfowler, as I tend to think it keeps some wildfowl on the foreshore and away from flight ponds and floods.   Certainly as soon as we get the first wet spell our estuary teal ‘disappear’,.

You could well be right , all our small to medium flight ponds are empty , not that we are over concerned as some years they don't get shot as the keeper no longer get a lot of time to keep feeding them and our boss is not to keen shooting duck over a flight pond .

Our main dykes have still got water in them but the side dykes are now dry , something we have never seen before and the whole marshland looked parched with nothing growing , Geese are about in very good numbers , mainly Greys and Canada's but duck at the moment seem non existent , we didn't know back in the late 60s and the 70s  how well off we were when two weeks before the season we would often count them in the hundreds , either going on laid corn or Winter barley stubble , everyone was getting excited and all had there own places to go , on the clubland you had to mark the marshes in July to be able to go the first day , at that time it was well attended and there was a one or two on every marsh the club rented , then as the years rolled on the early birds started to lose interest and the attendance dropped off to next to nothing , now you do hear a few shots on the first day but with the climate change beginning to take effect the early days we used to have are now only in the history books .

[Krico woodcock]

15 hours ago, marsh man said:

You could well be right , all our small to medium flight ponds are empty , not that we are over concerned as some years they don't get shot as the keeper no longer get a lot of time to keep feeding them and our boss is not to keen shooting duck over a flight pond .

Our main dykes have still got water in them but the side dykes are now dry , something we have never seen before and the whole marshland looked parched with nothing growing , Geese are about in very good numbers , mainly Greys and Canada's but duck at the moment seem non existent , we didn't know back in the late 60s and the 70s  how well off we were when two weeks before the season we would often count them in the hundreds , either going on laid corn or Winter barley stubble , everyone was getting excited and all had there own places to go , on the clubland you had to mark the marshes in July to be able to go the first day , at that time it was well attended and there was a one or two on every marsh the club rented , then as the years rolled on the early birds started to lose interest and the attendance dropped off to next to nothing , now you do hear a few shots on the first day but with the climate change beginning to take effect the early days we used to have are now only in the history books .

The volume of ducks of home bred aren't there anymore.  20, 25 years ago you could go out the 1st of September and shoot ducks till you had enough,and see plenty of ducks flying everywhere too and fro with them kept moving with lads out shooting. My duck shooting is done on all  big inland lakes, rivers , ponds and on floods when water is up. On first day Years ago, you would stand for morning flight for 1st hour or so, when banging would start at around 5.30, 5.45 it would be like world war 3!.. for 45 minutes to a hour then it would quieten down.  We would then start doing the the big rush, and heavy rushy ,sallycorners  with a couple of big strong Springers hunting the ducks out, young ducks sit tight first day,  and you need good strong dogs to keep swimming,  bullocking up through heavy reeds  rush to get them up. But that was early duck shooting for us. Some Times be single mallard jumping, some Times 6 to 8 would explode when dogs be up on top of them. Exciting and physical spot waking the shores banks, dogs hammering up ducks, especially when you a young lad, and after counting the hours , minutes and seconds for the first of September to come. But the volume of ducks now wouldn't even be quarter of of what there use to be.

[jonnybgood]

What area of the country where you?

mallard are no longer about in the same numbers they were on the shore, most lads with flight ponds I know start feeding in August and it pulls alot of duck.