Winter weather affects abundance of ducks in Mississippi
The El Nino year producing a cold and wet winter had hunters and watchers optimistic for the coming season.
MISSISSIPPI (WCBI) – “Where are all the ducks?” That’s a question James Callicutt deals with from hunters and birders in Mississippi by the year.
Callicutt is a Mississippi State University Extension Service instructor specializing in waterfowl and wetlands ecology.
He says data shows duck abundance in the southeastern U.S. is well below average.
The El Nino year producing a cold and wet winter had hunters and watchers optimistic for the coming season.
Up to early January, he says this has been a heartbreaking year to be a duck hunter in Mississippi.
Weather patterns and habitat availability play pivotal roles in determining whether ducks arrive in big numbers and The drought-like conditions may have stalled early migrant ducks
Colder weather events in the northern U.S. had also been lacking until mid-January which drove aquatic birds’ abundance down more.
A single, large-scale weather event like the winter storm that brought ice to Mississippi in mid-January can also push more southbound waterfowl into the state.
