Migration Alert: Indiana and Illinois Hunters Prepare for Arctic Conditions

While duck seasons in the northern half of the Great Lakes Region have closed, the southern portions of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio have seasons that run as late as mid- to late January, depending on location. In addition, Indiana and Ohio North Zones have late duck splits which run through this weekend.

The timing for a late split in the northern counties couldn’t have been better for Hoosier hunters who were working with relatively low bird numbers at the end of the first split in December. While many birds are migrating past northern tier counties, mallards and black ducks holding out to the north, for the most part, did not migrate in time for the two-week break. Luckily, for anxious waterfowl hunters, just prior to last weekend’s opener, south winds and ridiculously warm temperatures throughout most of the Midwest triggered an impressive reverse migration in some areas.

Saturday, many northern Indiana hunters reported outstanding hunting for “new” birds as mallards migrated in from the south in good numbers. In addition, northwest Indiana had an impressive number of white-fronted geese arrive last week.

Also of note, large flocks of pintails were seen pushing north, and while some stopped in Indiana, it’s likely most of them continued further north into Michigan where Mike Richardson of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources reports numerous hunters in the southwest corner of Michigan added relatively rare late-season pintails to their bags during the two-day late split last weekend.

Ohio hunters had some outstanding hunts during primetime in November running into December. Apparently, numbers have dwindled.

“We had pretty good bird numbers in mid-December, but they have been decreasing ever since. With this cold weather I expect them to continue to decrease in northwest Ohio as water bodies freeze over again,” explains Scott Butterworth with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife. “There are still good numbers of Canada geese around and I expect them to stay in the few open water areas that remain.”

Mother Nature continues to stay on task by taking haymaker swings with weather that ranges from early fall conditions to Arctic blasts. No surprise, this weekend a significant Polar Vortex will descend through the Great Lakes Region well into the south, bringing extreme cold and lots of snow, including areas well south of traditional snow belts closer to the big lakes. This turn of events will certainly push migrating mallards, black ducks, and of course those wayward pintails, well southward and quite possibly into southern states. Given the most recent reports from Friday morning, the push has already began.

“Our birds already flew the coop,” says Mike Schoof, who manages Willough Slough FWA located in northwest Indiana on the Illinois state line. “We had decent duck and goose flights over the weekend, but now we have lots of ice.”

This will likely be the theme in the coming days as legitimate ice forms over a significant portion of the Great Lakes, leaving winter stronghold refuges the only place for hardy ducks and Canada geese to stay put.

“Last week, we saw an increase in ducks and geese and had a great shoot, but we have lost a bunch of birds since then,” Larry Gauer, who hunts near Terre Haute reports. “We are expecting to see another push of ducks coming out of Michigan and northern Indiana as this winter weather sets in, so we are optimistic.”

While still providing decent opportunities, Canada goose numbers remain below normal levels for much of Indiana, and downright terrible in the southern half of the state. In some areas, specks and snows may offset the lack of honkers to some degree. Given the incoming Arctic conditions and the specter of heavy lake effect snow, it’s very likely abundant Canada geese that remain in Michigan, will finally jump south into Indiana and Ohio in the coming days.

As frigid cold and heavy snow is forecasted for much of central Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, look for waterfowl to be on the move.