Question:

My question is that since you primarly see diver ducks such as Bluebills and Redheads on big lakes why did I shoot one in a small 25 acre that i usually only see Mallards, Gadwalls, Wigeon, Teal, And Canadian geese. Also, should I use diver duck decoys in my puddle duck spread.

-Ross Keller-

Answer:

Ross,

While most divers frequent larger waters, on occasion they will wander over smaller waters, especially when there is an abundance of food.  I have had many fantastic diver shoots on water that most dire hard diver hunters wouldn’t look twice at, and in each and every case the sloughs or ponds were chock full of food (in the case of most of these ponds, they were a virtual slurry of invertebrates).  If you see divers working your smaller water, go ahead and supplement your puddle duck spread with a few scaup, can or redhead blocks.  Nothing is better than getting a rare trophy on your small water hunts.

Best wishes and good luck!

John Devney

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