Cold Front Brings More Ducks to the Delta during the Second Split

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Jackson, MS – The second segment of the 2009-10 waterfowl season opened to some frigid temperatures.  The November aerial survey reported that duck numbers in the Delta were similar to last year with fewer mallards.  After the survey was completed, a cold front reached the state with even some snow reported in South Mississippi.  Perhaps more importantly, the northeast region of the Delta experienced some natural flooding from releases in the major Corps of Engineers reservoirs.  These flood events can provide large amounts of new habitat which waterfowl begin to exploit, almost overnight.  As a result of these weather and habitat changes, waterfowl numbers have likely increased throughout the Delta.

WMA managers in the South Delta observed a migration of northern pintails during the latter part of the week.  However, these birds were only stopping over to refuel on their way to other regions, likely the Gulf Coast.  Pintails are capable of long migrations and are constantly searching for shallowly flooded fields and wetlands.  Waterfowl researchers have observed that when large amounts of rainfall occur in the Delta, pintails migrate northward from Louisiana overnight to feed in newly flooded fields.

Since waterfowl numbers are relatively low throughout the Delta on both WMAs and private lands, harvest continues to be fair at best.  Green-winged teal are the predominant bird being reported at Howard Miller and Mahannah WMAs, and gadwalls are the most common bird in many other parts of the Delta on private lands.  Some mallards are being harvested in areas of the Delta with intensively managed habitat and low disturbance.

The final segment of the 2009-10 waterfowl season begins on December 9 and continues until January 31, 2010.  As in most years, hunters can expect waterfowl numbers to build through December with each cold front that reaches the state.  The mid-December aerial waterfowl survey will occur during the week of December 14, and results will be posted on MDWFP’s website upon completion.  Hunters are also encouraged to track the mallard migration throughout the Mississippi Flyway through the MDWFP Waterfowl Program website: http://www.mdwfp.com/waterfowl.   The Waterfowl Program website also reports water levels and habitat information for specific WMAs throughout the state.

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