Seventy-five blue-winged teal plopped into the hole in my modest decoy spread. A quick glance at my watch revealed my fears. Waiting long minutes until official shooting hours at sunrise would give the birds the advantage. The early September season rules aide positive identification, while teal are the only legal waterfowl. As if on cue, the massive flock of birds lifted off three minutes before shooting time. However, the rules change for the regular waterfowl season, and alarms need to be set earlier. Shooting hours begin 30 minutes before daylight swinging the advantage to the hunter.
Predictable flights of blue-winged teal migrate through Missouri every September giving waterfowl hunters a warm up season for what is to come a month later. Most gunners turn their fancy to more romantic duck species like mallards and pintails during the regular waterfowl season. Blue-winged teal should not be forgotten, however. The tiny rockets continue to migrate well into November and may be the ducks that save the day, so don’t count them out.
Teal numbers were up dramatically last season and, if rainfall is adequate, hunters can hope for more of the same this year.
Teal can be found all over the state as the regular waterfowl season begins. It doesn’t take a huge body of water to attract teal, but they don’t avoid the large reservoirs either. From the smallest of farm ponds to the biggest bodies of water in the state, all are potential teal hotspots.
For the small ponds and pockets of water on small streams and creeks, pack a half dozen decoys of any kind into a small backpack and you are in business. Picking a hiding spot is important. Makeshift blinds can be constructed of a little natural vegetation and one piece of camo material. Take along a full box of 2-3/4-inch magnum steel shot. The birds are fast and difficult to hit. On the other hand, according to Dale Humburg, a biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, “teal are one of the easiest duck species to hunt.”
Humburg continued, “Teal do not usually provide the number of flybys associated with other duck species. They decoy readily and drop in as soon as they see the decoys.”
Hunting larger bodies of water from boats requires a bit more preparation. A dozen decoys tossed out on a point or in the back of a cove often turn the trick. However, larger decoy spreads are easier for passing birds to see and tend to pull teal in with less calling. Regardless of the number of decoys deployed, hunters need rig sets so that ducks can approach into the wind. Leaving a 20 foot wide hole in the spread at a strategic shooting angle will help put teal in your face. A good trick to utilize if young hunters are along is to allow the birds to land in the hole and then flush them. This tactic gives beginning waterfowlers the opportunity for some straight away shots rather than shots at birds buzzing across the decoys at 60 mile-per-hour.
Small lakes are scattered across Missouri offering some of the finest teal shooting available. Knocking on a few doors well in advance of the season can put you into some fantastic waterfowling. Landowners are often agreeable to waterfowl hunting, because they don’t get many requests as they do for deer hunting privileges.
Missouri’s Conservation Atlas should be the waterfowler’s Bible. The book is broken down by counties and lists every body of water owned by the MDC and MDC access points on other public waters. It also gives directions how to get to each area.
Arguing about the best places to hunt blue-winged teal could be time consuming and fruitless. Everyone in Missouri is relatively close to teal hunting opportunities. Where one chooses to hunt is largely controlled by the style of hunting preferred. Opportunities abound to jump shoot on small lakes, streams and potholes, wade and shoot in flooded timber areas, or to boat into areas on the large reservoirs and rivers.
First time teal hunters would do well to begin with the MDC areas nearest their location. Scouting ahead of time will help with getting acquainted to the pluses and minuses of hunting a particular area. Working out the problems with logistics and getting into the desired hunting spot can be resolved well before the hunt.
Predictable flights of blue-winged teal migrate through Missouri every September giving waterfowl hunters a warm up season for what is to come a month later. Most gunners turn their fancy to more romantic duck species like mallards and pintails during the regular waterfowl season. Blue-winged teal should not be forgotten, however. The tiny rockets continue to migrate well into November and may be the ducks that save the day, so don’t count them out.
Teal numbers were up dramatically last season and, if rainfall is adequate, hunters can hope for more of the same this year.
Teal can be found all over the state as the regular waterfowl season begins. It doesn’t take a huge body of water to attract teal, but they don’t avoid the large reservoirs either. From the smallest of farm ponds to the biggest bodies of water in the state, all are potential teal hotspots.
For the small ponds and pockets of water on small streams and creeks, pack a half dozen decoys of any kind into a small backpack and you are in business. Picking a hiding spot is important. Makeshift blinds can be constructed of a little natural vegetation and one piece of camo material. Take along a full box of 2-3/4-inch magnum steel shot. The birds are fast and difficult to hit. On the other hand, according to Dale Humburg, a biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, “teal are one of the easiest duck species to hunt.”
Humburg continued, “Teal do not usually provide the number of flybys associated with other duck species. They decoy readily and drop in as soon as they see the decoys.”
Hunting larger bodies of water from boats requires a bit more preparation. A dozen decoys tossed out on a point or in the back of a cove often turn the trick. However, larger decoy spreads are easier for passing birds to see and tend to pull teal in with less calling. Regardless of the number of decoys deployed, hunters need rig sets so that ducks can approach into the wind. Leaving a 20 foot wide hole in the spread at a strategic shooting angle will help put teal in your face. A good trick to utilize if young hunters are along is to allow the birds to land in the hole and then flush them. This tactic gives beginning waterfowlers the opportunity for some straight away shots rather than shots at birds buzzing across the decoys at 60 mile-per-hour.
Small lakes are scattered across Missouri offering some of the finest teal shooting available. Knocking on a few doors well in advance of the season can put you into some fantastic waterfowling. Landowners are often agreeable to waterfowl hunting, because they don’t get many requests as they do for deer hunting privileges.
Missouri’s Conservation Atlas should be the waterfowler’s Bible. The book is broken down by counties and lists every body of water owned by the MDC and MDC access points on other public waters. It also gives directions how to get to each area.
Arguing about the best places to hunt blue-winged teal could be time consuming and fruitless. Everyone in Missouri is relatively close to teal hunting opportunities. Where one chooses to hunt is largely controlled by the style of hunting preferred. Opportunities abound to jump shoot on small lakes, streams and potholes, wade and shoot in flooded timber areas, or to boat into areas on the large reservoirs and rivers.
First time teal hunters would do well to begin with the MDC areas nearest their location. Scouting ahead of time will help with getting acquainted to the pluses and minuses of hunting a particular area. Working out the problems with logistics and getting into the desired hunting spot can be resolved well before the hunt.
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