Missouri’s duck hunting seasons will start in a couple of months with the overall numbers of waterfowl down. Conservation officials, though, say the success of the hunt might be more dependent on whether the ducks have any place to land in the state. Duck populations in the U-S and Canada are reported to be down 11% from a year ago. The State Conservation Department’s David Graber says that’s not an overly concerning decline. But Graber admits numbers are so far down this year that the Conservation Department has shortened the September teal hunting season from 16 days a year ago to just nine days this year. He says, however, that doesn’t mean the hunting will be worse. Graber says that’s more a function of habitat, whether the ducks find enough food and water to make them want to stay in Missouri. Graber says while it is early, so far, the fall duck hunting habitat appears to be in good shape.
