Imprinting with the slow season.
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 7:56 am
We were talking about this the other day while hunting on yet another slow morning. What do you guys think about the effects this slow, warm season is having on the imprinting of ducks to the MS Delta? If the weather doesn't get any better for the remainder of the year, do you think we have lost a generation of imprinting with migrating ducks?
It makes a little bit of sense if you think about it... Most of this year's hatch has been held up in Missouri, Illinois, and N. Arkansas due to little or no cold fronts and weather. They don't even know MS exists yet! So just say that next year when they migrate and if we were to get some descent weather, how are these ducks gonna know where to go? I know there will be some older ducks who have been here before to help guide the way, but then many of the older generation will die this year as well. Will they just pick a random hole with water in it? Or will they go to more of a traditional spot that has always held ducks and always will?
To me its comparable to a piece of timber or a field that normally doesn't get flooded. Everyone knows of a place that only gets 'right' once every five years or so. For some reason when this particular place gets water the ducks literally flock to it, and it doesn't matter if its been three, five, or ten years since its been that way, when it gets 'right' they will be there no matter how long its been since a duck was there. Its neat how when these places finally get some water that ten thousand years of instinct kicks in and sends birds to these spots. As much as we try to pattern a duck or plan to hunt this hole or that hole, its funny how they always know where they are going on different days and sometimes we are in that spot and sometimes we aren't.
So when I think about imprinting and loosing this in some of our spots, I go back to thinking about those traditional honey holes that only get 'right' once ever so often and hope that instinct will kick in the next time the weather decides to cooperate whether its this year or three years from now.
What are yalls thoughts on this??
It makes a little bit of sense if you think about it... Most of this year's hatch has been held up in Missouri, Illinois, and N. Arkansas due to little or no cold fronts and weather. They don't even know MS exists yet! So just say that next year when they migrate and if we were to get some descent weather, how are these ducks gonna know where to go? I know there will be some older ducks who have been here before to help guide the way, but then many of the older generation will die this year as well. Will they just pick a random hole with water in it? Or will they go to more of a traditional spot that has always held ducks and always will?
To me its comparable to a piece of timber or a field that normally doesn't get flooded. Everyone knows of a place that only gets 'right' once every five years or so. For some reason when this particular place gets water the ducks literally flock to it, and it doesn't matter if its been three, five, or ten years since its been that way, when it gets 'right' they will be there no matter how long its been since a duck was there. Its neat how when these places finally get some water that ten thousand years of instinct kicks in and sends birds to these spots. As much as we try to pattern a duck or plan to hunt this hole or that hole, its funny how they always know where they are going on different days and sometimes we are in that spot and sometimes we aren't.
So when I think about imprinting and loosing this in some of our spots, I go back to thinking about those traditional honey holes that only get 'right' once ever so often and hope that instinct will kick in the next time the weather decides to cooperate whether its this year or three years from now.
What are yalls thoughts on this??