Californiadoctor

This morning while duck hunting I heard a sound that I instantly recognized as a hunter using a duck call and notthe vocalization of areal duck. I did not see the hunter but still had no trouble telling it was a human and not a duck. This hunter was not unskilled at calling; I have never heard someone call a duckwhere I didn't immediately know it was not a real duck.

This got me to wondering that if I can easily tell the difference between a real duck and a hunter using a duck call, is it possible that a duck can not? and itwill respond to a human calling ducks the same way it wouldto what it believes are other ducks?However, itis hard to believe that a duck can not tell the difference between an artificial call and the real thing. It maybe just as likely that ducks that fly into shotgun range would have done so whether they had been called or not.Another possibility is that ducks realize that the sound they are hearing is not being made by another duck but do not recognizethat it is a predator trying to mimic the call of a duck to drawducks into range.

Is there any real evidence that using a duck call results in taking more ducks than just waiting for a duck to come into range through pure chance?

Caldoc

SwampTHING

My theory,, you were standing still and not making any noise...A duck or goose in flight with several others is hearing many things. Its hearing the wind, its hearing wing beats, its hearing the birds its flying with making calls.. It only hears a part of the sounds you make,, doesnt have to be perfect,, it tries and locates those sounds..

Does calling verses no calling make a difference.. sure does! I hunted a very heavily hunted public area this year. I got there at 10am.. There are 4 blinds within eyesight all had hunters in them. I got there and heard the other guys calling and sat down with my buddies. No one out there could call worth a poop,, and a couple blinds werent callingat all. I got there and from 10am till 2 pm I called in limits for everyone in that blind! Not one quality shot was fired out of those other blinds. The difference,, someone that could call ducks a little better than the 3-4 time a year duckhunter!

TN Deer Hunter

Yes calling works. Let me say this though. If the ducks do not want in there you or the best caller in the world will not make them sit down in the dekes. I have hunted days when all you had to do was give them a quack and they would lock up and never think twice. Other days you had to blow your'e head of to make them come within shooting range. There has been times when I never had to blow the call the ducks just wanted in the hole. I have also seen the situation change from one to the other during the day. You just have to watch the birds and see what they want.

bigcountry

I have to agree to this. If a duck is coming in to take a look, then he's already interested. All the call does is gives comfort to him IMO.A duck far off that didn't have an interest anyway, its doubtful you are going to pull him in.

Canadians, now thats a different story. I have seen skilled callers, pull in canadian geese in from a far distance.

Simp

Yep. This morning for instance hunting Branta canadensis*. We were set up with probably 80 to 100 decoys and first thing we had birds working us and we were calling like we thought we should. Nothing. They'd look at us and circle but wouldn't commit. Finally, we just said, "F@^* it", and didn't call when they'd come our way. We ended up killing 26 geese in about an hour. They didn't want to hear a bunch of calling. We didn't call and they came in like they were on a string.

*= Edited to satisfy our sensitive friends to the north.

cjwink

Yes it doest help.. But I will sit still and see if they come in on thier own.. If they bug out or they don't show any interest in the hole I will call to them. I figure if they are are thier way out, calling won't hurt at that point.. .What have you got to loose.

duckmann01

iv noticed that we never call and they still come in to us plus we have mojo decoys both hens

EODLT

Calling is communication. Sometimes you are in the mood to talk and sometimes you are not, same with ducks. I have had wood ducks circle back around after I squeal at them, they might come to take another look, give a water whine, and they sometimes drop in the timber, sometimes you are calling on deaf ears. Ducks can be moody. Mallards will sometimes come back around for a closer look at whos doing the talking...sometimes not.

Does calling Work? You bet your arse it does. Can too much or too little calling mess your hunt up? You bet your arse. Every hunt is a little different, different ducks, different styles of calling makes a big difference.

Allseasonhunter7

yes it works, but dont try to have a conversation with the ducks. just let them know your there. "quack quack quacck quack quack" you dont sit near a body of water(were ducks are landed)and hear quacking constantly sure some feeding sounds but i hear people over using the feeder call as well as people think they are at the worlds duck calling competition

Crowkilla

Yes it works, some. I think that most of the time the ducks have a pretty good idea of where they want to go. I don't call as much to get the ducks attention as much as I do to add an element of realism to the decoys. Like Allseason said, ducks aren't just quacking their heads off all day. They sit around and quack a little and feeder a little, but that's about all. That's about what we keep it to in my blind, quacking and feeders/clucking - but not competition feeder calling. I'm talking about a cook-cook-cook, tic-tic-tic type call. I think people also underestimate the mallard drake whistle. They eat that up when they are close range because it is so subtle. It has been a good closer call for us this season.