Migration Alert: Hunting Heats Up for New York Waterfowlers

Success for waterfowl hunters in the Empire State has waxed and waned with the rising and falling of the mercury, though most will tell you the hunting has been better than it has been in years. Success soared when the temperatures dropped, with hunters throughout the state enjoying hot action while their seasons were open. With more cold weather in the forecast for the foreseeable future, things should only get better. 

The Southeast Zone wrapped up with a bang before the New Year, with ducks galore on the Finger Lakes. A cold snap froze ducks out of the backwaters, and led to some of the best gunning the deep lakes have seen in many seasons. The Western Zone has a few days remaining, but the cold has locked up the smaller holes, so those who want to cash in on the remaining days should look to the big water. 

Long Island has been producing good numbers of puddle ducks and divers for those braving the winds and playing the tides. Last weekend, I struggled to find water after a few days of strong west winds. But I found plenty of black ducks, broadbills, and even a few canvasbacks on the salt. When it has been cold enough to freeze the inland ponds, all manner of puddle ducks have made their way out into the brine. Hit it right, and you can expect to encounter gadwalls, wigeons, shovelers, and even pintails. Reports indicate there’s still a few teal kicking around, but it's anyone’s guess if they stick around as this freeze continues. 

“Solid gunning is happening now in the marshes for divers, brant, and puddle ducks. Recent extreme cold far north has pushed good numbers of migrators into Western Long Island; notably wigeon and gadwalls in the mix with high numbers of black ducks. The only downside being the cold gale force winds and blowout low tides have limited hunting opportunities,” says local waterman Lawrence Seaman III. He has also seen good numbers of ducks, geese, and brant make a showing this season. “Brant numbers are very high; a very good sign that the recent cuts made in limits and huntable days are helping. Seeing high numbers of juvenile brant is encouraging as well.”

The big-water ducks made it down as well, according to Seaman, “On the sea duck front, the usual suspects are all here, scoters, mainly white wings and surfs can be found in good numbers outside our South Shore inlets as well as solid numbers of long tails inside and outside the bays and inlets. Though weather has made hunting them tough with high winds. Hopefully, we stay cold the remaining 20 days and everyone finishes strong.”

Further East, things have been going swimmingly as well.

“We have had upwards of 2,000 ducks in my fields, mostly black ducks,” says Duane Arnister of Deerfield Guide Service in Water Mill. Arnister has been enjoying good hunts throughout the season, including the 21st annual “Hunt the Hamptons” event, the longest standing Major Donor hunt in the U.S. By all accounts, the event was a great success, with excellent gunning.

Arnister has been seeing lots of movement on the new moons, each one pushing new ducks down. He explains that the season started out strong, then slowed a bit as some ducks pushed out, but is steadily picking up steam again. Geese are another high point, with plenty of migrators as well as displaced resident birds. Arnister typically shoots smaller, arctic-nesting Canadas. But the recent blanket of snow covering the upstate area pushed waves of geese south.

“The first part of the season was a little disappointing,” says Capt. Phil Gay of East End Waterfowling. “But that all changed a few days before the second opener. Cold temperatures pushed a good number of ducks to us, and the amount of ducks feeding on our farms tripled. In the first week of the second split, we killed 100 ducks.”

Gay’s fields are holding mostly mallards, though black ducks and some pintails are in the mix. He says there are a few thousand geese around, and the ducks are starting to filter in again. With a little more cold, he thinks duck numbers will continue to increase. 

Speaking of cold weather, DrMike of The FowlWeather Podcast, the only science-based duck migration forecast available, says hunters should be in for a treat. 

“The weather models right now are indicating long and sustained cold throughout January with little opportunity for a warm-up. All good indicators of a quality duck migration,” says DrMike. “The rest of season is expected to be cold, cold, cold....especially enough to really move early ducks like pintails, wigeon, gadwall, shovelers, and green-winged teal farther south than the past few years and mallards at least into the mid-south in the Mississippi Flyway and mid-Atlantic in the Atlantic flyway.”