Fulfilling duck wishes

BE STILL: Veteran hunters have come to realize there are more and more hunters to the north, which means migrating waterfowl have seen more and more blinds. Most ducks are smart and learn what blinds look like and what is in those blinds. Add movement inside the blind and you decrease the chance that birds will alight in your decoys.

COVER FACES AND HANDS: Especially important on sunny mornings. Faces glow in sunlight. So do hands. Camo face nets and gloves are a must if you hunt in open marshes and rice fields.

LEARN CALLING PATTERNS: Champion duck callers like Fred Parnell — God rest his soul — and Mike Smith insist the most difficult part of calling is learning when to call and when not to call. If you can blow a duck call effectively, the first two or three flights of ducks should tell you if the ducks are “call shy” that particular day. Learn to blow a call whistle along with the usual mallard calls.

REMOVE DECOYS: With a 13-day break between the first and second splits, removing decoys spreads between the splits will make your hunting location more inviting to ducks for the second split.