Yikes!!
Either you have corn and birds or you are left wanting right now. The Golden Kernel is ruling the day and any areas that are not loaded with harvested corn are basically devoid of fowl.
Access to the worked wheat next to the JAMMIN” corn field only produced these juvies!
With not many options left we went to the firing line without decoys and pass shot, 2 giants and a Goldeneye were all we could muster on Sunday!
The Power of the GOLDEN KERNEL
A pre-requisite of late season hunting here on the Northern Tier of North Dakota is to have access to Corn fields. Once the corn harvest hits, a number of factors contribute to corn being the food of choice for our Ducks, Canadas, and especially our Snows and Blues.
A. Most Barley, Wheat, and Soybean fields have been worked black at least once and some now even twice covering up any residual grain in the field.
B. Usually, colder temps push the birds towards a food source that has a little more oomph, a little more gusto, and corn provides this.
C. For a lot of the birds these are the first corn fields that they run into coming our of the boreal forests and tundra of Northern Canada and after feasting on mainly field peas and wheat and barley through the provinces, they sure seem to gravitate to the Golden Kernel.
Corn Fields Can Get Crowded, and Not Just With Fowl
Last week I witnessed one of the first corn fields that was harvested in our area loaded with snows and ducks. It was posted by a neighbor, but it was also surrounded by 10 vehicles at last count scoping it out and I imagine frantically dialing the number on the hunting sign.
As more corn comes off, more birds get drawn to it and fewer birds will be seen in the wheat and soybeans that haven’t been worked black. Corn fields can be a joy to hunt as they really draw the fowl. They are also highly coveted by fellow waterfowls so securing a place to hunt can be difficult.
No Matter What, Be a Sportsman!
If you are out here on the prairie pursuing the last flocks of ducks and geese of the season, please respect our landowners, their land, their signs, and their property. Without them, we have nothing.
And remember……….
Don’t shoot the short-neck!!
