By Jeff Kurrus

Much like Nebraska and Colorado, Missouri and Kansas are also waiting for their big pushes of waterfowl. However, Andrew Raedeke, waterfowl biologist from the Missouri Department of Conservation, does give good news when describing the last few days in Missouri. "We were very low in numbers a couple of weeks ago, but a good portion of the state received between two and five inches of rain last week, which considerably helped things here."
 
But the mild temperatures north of the state are still keeping many birds away. "We're starting to get some mallards, but geese numbers are not significant yet. Squaw Creek, in the northwestern part of the state, recently reported only having 10,000 snow geese in the area." Which means it's a start, but definitely not the pinnacle.
 
To make sure you know when that pinnacle is, visit the Missouri Department of Conservation website at mdc.mo.gov and search Waterfowl Hunting Information. There you'll find twice-monthly migration updates from biologists throughout the state (next one is due Monday, November 21) and twice-weekly recounts of hunting pressure and harvest numbers from various hunting locales across Missouri.
 
Next door in Kansas, the hunting report is no different. With Nebraska still not receiving a significant drop in temperatures, most Kansas hunters are also still waiting. Plus there's one other problem. "We're dry as can be," said Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks waterfowl biologist Faye McNew. "While a couple of minor fronts have pushed some birds in, we're average to late with our migration."
 
For additional information regarding Kansas waterfowl numbers, visit the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks's web site at http://kdwpt.state.ks.us/  and search for Waterfowl Reports. Area managers on public waters throughout the state update their numbers, hunting pressure, and harvest results weekly.


DU Migration Map Reports

Manhattan, Kansas