Time for ducks

Flock of ducks (photo by Brian Herman)
November is prime time for duck migration so despite the fact that the weather has been too nice for them I’m going to go look for ducks today.

Too good for ducks?  Yes, it’s been gorgeous.  Warm days, sunny skies and a south wind.  Ducks are forced to migrate when the lakes freeze (no chance of that this week!) and like all fall migrants they prefer a tail wind from the north. 

So I’m not expecting much but I still want to know…  Are the ducks here yet? 

(photo by Brian Herman)

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…Later… after visiting Yellow Creek State Park:  As I suspected it was not great for ducks but I found American coots, ruddy ducks, and pied-billed grebes, plus two mallards, one female ring-necked duck and four gadwall.  It was a better day for hiking than for ducks – but warm!

4 thoughts on “Time for ducks

  1. Kate, for a couple of mornings now I would have sworn I heard Robins outside. This morning I finally saw them and am surprised they are still around, even tho there seems to be only a few. Shouldn’t they be gone by now, or is the nice weather keeping them around?

  2. The ducks better watch out on the Allegheny river! I was out rowing in this beautiful weather on Saturday. I was coming past Pine Creek down river from the dam when I saw two hunters in camafloge suits on the spit of land that juts out from the where the creek meets the river. They had decoys floating there. I didn’t know you could hunt right on the river that near the city. Anybody know about that? Diane

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