Ducks fail to make annual stop at refuge

Ron Sukenik spent part of his fall duck hunting at Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge.

There was one problem however.

No ducks.

“I don’t believe the migration has (occurred) because the weather has been so mild,” Sukenik said prior to the Dec. 12 snowfall that blanketed Boundary County.

Waterfowl and geese normally begin showing up at the 2,774-acre refuge by mid-September and stay through November, said refuge manager Dianna Ellis.

“Typically what they will do is come down from Canada through the river valley and they stop at the refuge to rest and feed,” Ellis said. “We do grown grain and there’s also native plant food.”

Grain crops, including winter wheat, barley and millet, are planted on about 200 acres at the refuge, she said.

“This year has been really strange,” Ellis noted. “I think it’s because we have had such a wonderful, warm fall and it’s been warm in Canada. What happens with waterfowl is if there’s food and open water, they will stay put and will not come through.”

Even after two major snowfalls accompanied by arctic air hit the county, the story didn’t really change.

Tammi Koon, administrative support assistant at the refuge, told The Herald on Friday she had heard the weather remained warm and dry in Alberta so the ducks stayed there.

“It’s not that cold,” Koon said.

Even after the Dec. 12 snowfall, Ellis saw some birds. They included flocks of blackbirds, crows and ravens.

“I haven’t seen any ducks,” she said.

The migration coincides with the waterfowl season, which normally runs from early October until mid-January.

“If we are frozen up, there’s still opportunity to hunt goose,” Ellis said.