Early goose, teal anyone?

[Springer22]

Is Early goose season still pretty popular? Haven’t been out since high school, lots of late mornings to class. Don’t really know anyone who does lots of primary goose hunting anymore, guess I was wondering if it’s still pretty popular or am I just super removed from it. Or Any one do the new teal season?

I’m still very much in summer mode. And as much as I love fall and hunting season, I don’t want it yet. I still want me some summer right now.

Probably a pretty unpopular opinion considering this is a hunting forum. Haha.

 

[gimruis]

I used to hunt geese during the early September season pretty hard core. It was easy to get permission to hunt them on a cut hayfield. The key was scouting those fields and selecting the one they were actively using. Haven't done it now in at least 15 years though. Waterfowl hunter participation has fallen off a cliff in MN the past 20 years.

Like you stated, September is definitely more a "summer" type weather month than fall. It looks quite warm for the foreseeable future. The DNR needs to pull their heads out of the sand on season start dates. General waterfowl opening on Sept 21 and pheasant season opening on Oct 12 are both gonna be way too early too.

Think I'll keep fishing.

 

[BRITTMAN]

Teal season is different in mid states and Southern states because other ducks are not there yet. You can shoot teal and not risk pushing other ducks out of your area. Waterfowl (one type or another) are hunted in some states from August - May ... It may be causing landowner fatigue and creating waterfowl populations that are a bit more educated. Juvy birds make up the vast majority of the kill in most waterfowl populations.

Long ago I hunted teal along the Gulf Coast during the first teal season after it had been closed for years (drought). Mid-September and lots of teal in big flocks. I believe many of those flocks were most male birds ... male birds often the first to migrate and many often were just stopping on their way to Mexico or even further south.