More ducks!

Utah's waterfowl hunt begins during the first week of October.

— Related story: Duck hunting areas might temporarily close

This fall's duck hunt could be one of the best Utah's hunters have seen in years. The number of ducks is way up from last year. And the marsh conditions are great at many of Utah's hunting areas.

Now, if the weather will just cooperate!

Utah's waterfowl hunt starts Oct. 3.

More ducks

"The number of ducks that nested on Utah's marshes this past spring was close to a record," says Tom Aldrich, migratory game bird coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources.

For the first time in 11 years, you can have two pintails in your daily bag limit.

Photo by Phil Douglass

"Nesting conditions were also excellent in most of the Intermountain West. That's where most of the ducks that migrate through Utah come from," Aldrich says. "Couple the locally produced birds with birds that will migrate through Utah, and plenty of ducks should be in the state's marshes this fall."

Aldrich says more water is the reason for more ducks. "Lots of rain fell in Utah clear into June," he says. "That rain provided ducks with excellent nesting conditions."

Aldrich says Western Canada, especially Southern Alberta, also provide ducks to Utah. "Southern Alberta has been in a drought that's lasted for decades," he says. "It was still dry this past spring, but areas farther north were very wet. Plenty of ducks should migrate through Utah this fall from Canada and states north of us."

Holding birds longer

The rain that fell into June also kept marsh conditions good through the summer.

"Two large freshwater areas on the north end of the Great Salt Lake — the Willard Spur and West Bear River Bay — were covered with water through the summer," Aldrich says. "Plants grew really well in these areas this summer, and there should be plenty of food for ducks in these areas this fall. All of that food should help keep ducks in Utah through much of the season."

Long, lazy fall

There is one factor that could push birds out of the state — the weather.

"I know waterfowl hunters love to hunt in storms, but every storm front we receive pushes more birds out of the state than it brings into the state," Aldrich says. "So when we get these big storms, the net effect is we lose more birds than we gain. And those birds won't come back until spring."

Aldrich says a long, lazy fall, with cool temperatures and a few small storms, is the prefect recipe for a good waterfowl hunt. "That type of fall will keep more birds here than if we have some real severe cold fronts move through," he says. "If severe cold fronts move through, you'll see a lot of our birds move out of the state."

WMA conditions

The marsh conditions at Utah's waterfowl management areas will vary depending on where you hunt.

The best conditions are found at WMAs along the Wasatch Front, such as Ogden Bay, Farmington Bay and Harold Crane. "The Farmington Bay and Ogden Bay WMAs are fed by major rivers," Aldrich says. "They receive good amounts of water every year, and they'll be in great shape again this season."

Conditions aren't as good at three WMAs that are fed by springs or irrigation water — Locomotive Springs, Clear Lake and Deseret Lake. "Some of the units on these WMAs won't have water in them until later in the season," Aldrich says.

Learn more

Rules, season dates and bag limits for the upcoming season are available in the 2009 – 2010 Utah Waterfowl Guidebook. The free guidebook is available at www.wildlife.utah.gov/guidebooks.

If you have questions about the hunt, please call the nearest Division of Wildlife Resources office or the DWR's Salt Lake City office at (801) 538-4700.