Where Are The Birds?

[mohogtrapper]

Anybody been killing any. My usual places haven't seen the bird numbers. Don't know if they have been here and gone, not gotten here, or passed us right over. The floods didn't help the food situation out.

[troutchaser]

I usually hunt between Jefferson City and Lake of the Ozarks, and the numbers were WAY down this year.

[Kyle]

I say it depends on what kind of birds you are looking for. There are geese everywhere. I can't drive 5 miles with out seeing a flock flying or feeding in a field. I think that the ducks have passed through. With not much food because of the floods and now even the rivers frozen I think they just kept going.

[troutchaser]

Yep, I think you hit it on the head, Kyle. I know I can kill 20 light geese, but I won't eat 'em, so I won't shoot 'em. I'm sure I'm missing some real fun shooting, but a hunter has to have rules. Ya know?

[jdmidwest]

Our numbers have been spotty here. I have not put forth near the efforts I normally do as it has been dry here. This tends to keep them on refuges and not out in fields and bottoms. I have been blessed with some good hunts, but have been froze up lately. I passed a little pond today and saw 100 canadas around it, started to ask the owner if I could shoot them out.

Snows are better tasting than most ducks. You can breast them and grind the meat and make a summer sausage that tastes pretty good. We really need to kill all we can, most won't for fear of having to clean them.

[mo_bowhunter]

We hunted the mississippi river near foley - we saw pretty good numbers up until three weeks ago.