ORIGINAL: CAelknuts
Nobody would mistake a woodie drake for a hen. Other than size and body shape, they don't look alike at all if you can see the coloring. We shoot a lot of woodies on my club in California, and that green head, speckled golden chest and colorful body can't be mistaken for anything else. One tip on ID'ing woodies on the wing, is they look almost like a wigeon, but havea squared tail rathen than pointed tail. Another is that they often fly like teal, but are the size of wigeon.
It is very easy to mistake woodie drakes from hens in the eclipse plumage in flight. Up close is a different story. It is almost impossible to mistake a woodie hen from drake in the breeding plumage however... either that or you just don't know your waterfowl.
Wood ducks are some of the easiest to identify where I'm from... their flight is swift and direct, and their various squeals are unmistakable. If you aren't in the flight path of where they are going, it is very hard to get them to change their direction.
I can't wait for my season opener either! November 24. Such a long way away.