Spring Thaw & Migration, Finally

It’s been a hard winter on animals. There’s lots of places they just couldn’t move around because of the deep snow. I have a trail cam up in a pretty hot white tail spot but it hasn’t taken a pic in months. I was out looking for elk on the prairies in january and saw about a dozen moose and most didn’t want to leave the road, and one that just laid down in the middle of the road, moved 50 yards and then lay back down.

Hopefully the numbers ate ok this fall
 
Been strange here over the last few wks, yard was almost clear of snow at Easter, Red Deer river was sort of broke, had ice jams still, honkers and swans were coming thru, had seen some flies around the yard on some of the warmer days. Bigger ponds were breaking around the edges on the 12th. Clipper came thru at Easter, then again a week ago after the yard was near clear again. Yard is clear again, big drifts are nearly gone, still have one puddle, saw ants out two days ago, a couple of black beetles, some ladybugs, farkin grass is standing up and growing. I'd seen a few songbirds before the last clipper, didn't see any this wk, just crows. Weather report says snow again over next 3-4 days. Spring ponds are looking the best they have in 3-4 yrs at least. There is a remote chance spring is actually here.
 
Great pics spank looks like you are living the life good on you. We see lots of wood ducks in these parts always feel guilty when i harvest one but never have seen or shot a shoveler or pintail around here ,nice birds how are they for table fare ?(y)
 
warzaw said:
Great pics spank looks like you are living the life good on you. We see lots of wood ducks in these parts always feel guilty when i harvest one but never have seen or shot a shoveler or pintail around here ,nice birds how are they for table fare ?(y)
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I never shoot shovelers because I don't hunt water with the exception of a local ranchers dugout I shoot to control the geese at his request and though pintails come to the fields like mallards I rarely shoot them because they are never fully plumed if they have any plumage at all? They do not start to colour much until well into November and they are long gone from this area by then. I no longer shoot brown ducks or hens so my duck shooting is only a couple weeks of season starting around mid-october for greenheads that are colouring up. I could count on one hand the # of pintails I've shot in the past 5+ seasons and they were about 90% plumed. I haven't shot a shoveler in at least 20 years or more, same with divers. Last diver I shot was a canvasback in the 2012 season. I love shooting them with the Nikon in spring.
 
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the spank said:
I never shoot shovelers because I don't hunt water with the exception of a local ranchers dugout I shoot to control the geese at his request and though pintails come to the fields like mallards I rarely shoot them because they are never fully plumed if they have any plumage at all? They do not start to colour much until well into November and they are long gone from this area by then. I no longer shoot brown ducks or hens so my duck shooting is only a couple weeks of season starting around mid-october for greenheads that are colouring up. I could count on one hand the # of pintails I've shot in the past 5+ seasons and they were about 90% plumed. I haven't shot a shoveler in at least 20 years or more, same with divers. Last diver I shot was a canvasback in the 2012 season. I love shooting them with the Nikon in spring.
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That is a interesting reply spank . Great pics those divers put on quit a show. I don't know if you were in Niagara back when Canada geese and mallards were not common and the main waterfowl were divers and black ducks.I shot my first duck a black out of a floater blind that was placed in front of the Henley grandstand in Martindale pond that was in the early sixties. All home made wooden decoys. We use to get huge mallard flights years past over our bean fields shot them over field spreads things have changed a lot don't get the big flights nowdays the geese don't migrate and live on golf courses they taste like :poop: don't shoot them anymore but they still nest in my pond. Have a good summer spank.
 
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