"Geese don't care if the decoy is still up off the ground on a pole, but they won't finish if the wings are spinning," Jones says. Another option is to turn spinning-wing decoys on and off with a remote control. When he sees geese, he simply reaches up and flicks the switch to the off position.
That's why Jones keeps his spinner within arm's reach of his layout blind when he is hunting a dry field. For reasons known only to the birds, though, geese often don't like duck spinners. Spinning-wing decoys can be deadly on ducks, and they are a common tool in dry fields and water setups. That's often enough to get the attention of passing ducks, and one spinner is all it takes to get them to finish." Practice Spin Control "The goose decoys are darker and stand out better. "There are times when I hunt with nothing but full-body Canada goose decoys and maybe one spinning-wing duck decoy," he says. Under certain conditions, Jones subscribes to a similar philosophy, relying mostly on goose decoys when duck and goose seasons overlap. "Geese just stand out more, and it seems like they always draw ducks, but duck decoys by themselves hardly ever draw geese." "A lot of times, I use almost nothing but goose decoys," he says. In some situations, Cade employs a simplified decoy strategy. "If I'm hunting a farm pond, I might put some full-body goose decoys on the shore like they are walking up out of the water to feed in the field behind me," Gray says. He sets the duck decoys in smaller groups closer to shore and inside his preferred shooting range. "Ducks need to feed in shallower water than geese do, so I'll take that into consideration when I'm putting out decoys."Ĭhestertown, Maryland, resident Kenny Gray also places his goose decoys in deeper water, creating a landing hole 10 to 15 yards wide. "I might also put a few geese near the ducks in the calmer water for realism," he notes. When he's hunting a point or an island, veteran waterfowler Ben Cade says he puts his duck decoys in a shallower protected area and then strings the geese out in front of the blind. They do tend to land close to other ducks, but they aren't afraid to land in the middle of the goose decoys." "Ducks will sit down almost anywhere within the spread. Geese are much more choosy about where they will land, and they often sit down outside duck decoys instead of passing over them," Jones explains. "Geese will cross low over other geese, but for some reason they don't like to finish directly over ducks. Geese don't like to fly low over ducks, Jones says, so he makes sure to keep the duck decoys upwind of the landing hole. That not only brings the ducks closer to him, it prevents geese from landing short. When setting a combination spread, Dive Bomb Industries Marketing Specialist Kile Jones creates a traditional J-hook with his goose decoys and then clusters the duck decoys into a small area fairly close to his blind. Setting a couple of loose clusters of mallard decoys within the goose decoys or even off to the side of the geese looks more natural than sprinkling single duck decoys among the geese. Though live birds will mingle, ducks in particular tend to stick together even when they are sharing an area with geese.
Set Spreads Strategicallyīy mixing duck and goose decoys, you can create an incredibly realistic spread, but don't do it randomly. Follow their advice to improve your chances for a memorable mixed-bag hunt. We talked to four experts who have mastered this specialized pursuit. Hunting both ducks and geese at the same time is not the same as hunting them separately, however. Also, these birds spend much of the year in close proximity, feeding and loafing side by side in a variety of habitats. Seasons overlap throughout much of the fall and winter, giving you an opportunity to hunt geese and ducks concurrently. The good news is that you don't always have to choose between duck hunting and goose hunting. Are you a duck hunter or are you a goose hunter? If you are like most waterfowlers, the answer is "yes." You get just as much thrill from watching a dozen honkers cup their wings and teeter into the decoys as you do from a flock of mallards dropping feet-down into your spread.
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