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Outdoors Report: Poor duck hunting continues
By AL KALIN, Outdoors Writer IVP
Monday, December 15, 2003 4:14 PM PST
Duck hunting at the south end of the Salton Sea continues to be poor with some ducks, mainly shovelers and wigeon, missing from the area.
Hunting on Dec. 3, 6 and 7, 409 hunters at Wister bagged 20 mallards, 15 gadwall, 33 American wigeon, 63 pintail, 89 green wing teal, 52 cinnamon teal, 18 shovelers, two red head, a ring-neck duck, three bufflehead, a ruddy duck, a merganser, two Ross geese and 111 snow geese for a poor 1.01 bird average per hunter. Last year, during the same time, 370 hunters bagged 678 ducks and 30 geese.
The big difference in numbers is in the take of American wigeon and shovelers. Last year at this time 128 wigeon were taken, as well as 272 shovelers. It is interesting to note the numbers of snow and Ross geese are way up this year. Last year at the same time only 26 white geese were bagged compared to 113 this week.
Hunting at the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge was a bit better than Wister as 48 hunters shot 26 ducks and 36 white geese for a 1.21 bird average.
West of Westmorland, near Unit 1 of the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, goose hunters on private lands had excellent shooting as more new birds moved into the area. Ducks were non-existent. The stands of rye grass and barley still are holding up fine and providing plenty of feed for the white geese.
You don't have to be a hunter to enjoy the refuge. It is open to all at no charge. Unit 1, at the end of Vendel Road seven miles northwest of Westmorland on the extreme south end of the Salton Sea, is my favorite, perhaps because it's almost in my back yard and easy to get to. Many days I'll take a sandwich and go watch and listen to the wildlife while eating lunch.
More than 20 sandhill cranes are staying at Unit 1 this year. Additionally, there are two rare Ross geese (blue phase) feeding at Unit 1.
Pheasants are becoming too smart to get close to.
By AL KALIN, Outdoors Writer IVP
Monday, December 15, 2003 4:14 PM PST
Duck hunting at the south end of the Salton Sea continues to be poor with some ducks, mainly shovelers and wigeon, missing from the area.
Hunting on Dec. 3, 6 and 7, 409 hunters at Wister bagged 20 mallards, 15 gadwall, 33 American wigeon, 63 pintail, 89 green wing teal, 52 cinnamon teal, 18 shovelers, two red head, a ring-neck duck, three bufflehead, a ruddy duck, a merganser, two Ross geese and 111 snow geese for a poor 1.01 bird average per hunter. Last year, during the same time, 370 hunters bagged 678 ducks and 30 geese.
The big difference in numbers is in the take of American wigeon and shovelers. Last year at this time 128 wigeon were taken, as well as 272 shovelers. It is interesting to note the numbers of snow and Ross geese are way up this year. Last year at the same time only 26 white geese were bagged compared to 113 this week.
Hunting at the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge was a bit better than Wister as 48 hunters shot 26 ducks and 36 white geese for a 1.21 bird average.
West of Westmorland, near Unit 1 of the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, goose hunters on private lands had excellent shooting as more new birds moved into the area. Ducks were non-existent. The stands of rye grass and barley still are holding up fine and providing plenty of feed for the white geese.
You don't have to be a hunter to enjoy the refuge. It is open to all at no charge. Unit 1, at the end of Vendel Road seven miles northwest of Westmorland on the extreme south end of the Salton Sea, is my favorite, perhaps because it's almost in my back yard and easy to get to. Many days I'll take a sandwich and go watch and listen to the wildlife while eating lunch.
More than 20 sandhill cranes are staying at Unit 1 this year. Additionally, there are two rare Ross geese (blue phase) feeding at Unit 1.
Pheasants are becoming too smart to get close to.
