Early teal season just kicked off here in Southeast Texas and no one really knows what conditions are in the marshes factoring in Harvey flooding.

Everyone has been focused on recovering homes and businesses but teal numbers overall are good (at national level) and areas with fresh water and vegetation should have birds.

But that situation could be completely different next year.

All it takes is a lack of rain.

If the prairie pothole region which includes North Dakota, South Dakota, parts of Montana and Prairie Canada were to have the type of drought that occurred throughout much of Texas in the 2000s, duck numbers could drop dramatically.

Various parts of that zone have stayed wet over the last decade and allowed us to have strong breeding duck numbers and the long season and liberal bag limits that come with it.

If we were to have just one year of little to no rain it would put things into question. If we had two years of it, then season and bag limits would need to be looked at for potential change. And if we had three years of drought then we will see the entire waterfowl hunting setting turned upside down.

That all centers on rain which we have had way more than enough of lately.

This of course is only on the production side of things. Waterfowl are migratory so they need healthy habitat all along their fall/winter travel corridor.

As previously mentioned we are not sure yet how the flooding will impact our local habitat. I’m working on a story for a couple of weeks down the line. On thing is for sure there will not be a lack of water.

The Middle Coast of Texas had lots thousands of acres of flooded fields over the last couple of years due to the drought and the Lower Colorado River Authority’s prohibition on pumping water for duck leases couple of years back.

But that dynamic has changed and radically so.

What if our next year area went into the same kind of intensive drought and we were to face a similar prohibition?

You could have a record fall flight of ducks and if there is no quality habitat, then they will not stick around for long.

Hunting pressure is another factor to consider.

The combination of habitat loss and increased pressure from hunters has sent a huge portion of Texas’ wintering snow geese elsewhere. Why fly to Jefferson County where you have relatively little food and are shot at in every field when you can stop in Arkansas where there is plenty of food (rice) and little goose hunting pressure?

There are other factors coming into play as well and the main one is the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) which sets aside agricultural acreage for wildlife habitat by paying farmers subsidies.

The unfortunate part for waterfowlers is CRP has been a major factor in keeping waterfowl populations solid even during decades of habitat loss. Without it, things will be vastly different.

I am not trying to bring doom and gloom to your hunting season but instead instill a little appreciation for what it takes to make a successful hunt. A whole lot goes into duck production and if any of these factors were to change one-way or the other the whole dynamic changes.

This is all part of what waterfowl hunting interesting.
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To contact Chester Moore, email him at chester@kingdomzoo.com. You can hear him on “Moore Outdoors” Fridays from 6-7 p.m. on Newstalk 560 KLVI or online at www.klvi.com.