To be a successful waterfowl hunter you must cover 6 main points. These are location, camouflage, decoy spreads, calling, shooting skills and bird retrieval. Each and every point above is equal in importance. I would like to cover calling in this article.
I anticipated duck hunting at an early age and began using a call years before I ever fired a shot at a duck. I wasn't good at calling but I had some good basics down.
Despite any type of call that you choose you must "master" the basic dusk quack. It may sound ridiculous but the mere quacking is often miss-represented in the marsh... believe me I've heard hundreds of different callers in Rondeau marsh.
The basic quack is just what it sounds like. You must blow into the call from your gut... or more appropriately your diaphragm. The basic quack must end softly and linger a bit. I have heard many, many hunters end the basic quack abruptly. If you have spent the amount of time around the marsh that I have, you would know that an abruptly ended quack call is the mallards call of distress and flight away from danger.
The hen hail or highball is the best of the best call for attracting birds to your decoy set. It is also the hardest one to master. Screw it up in the marsh and you can kiss that flight of birds goodbye.
The feeding chuckle is the call you will use for the close up work... bringing in those birds that working your set but are just out of shooting range.
I use a Yentzen Shur Shot model 500 and 600 call. I have used many other types but these are the ones that work best for me. The 500 is a normal double reeded cal while the 600 is a bit wider in construction and can be blown harder and louder for more distant birds or on windy days.
To do the simple quack, blow softly into the call... from your gut while simulating the word kaaaaa. Let the kaaaaa die off easily as your wind expires. Three of four quacks of 3 seconds in duration spaced about 5 seconds apart will suffice on approaching birds.
The highball is done by blowing much harder into the call from your gut again. I simulate or mouth the word yaaaa and put 3 to 5 in a row. The highballs can and should end abruptly. Use this call to attract birds that have flown over your dekes or are nowhere near your set. I choose the simple quack if the birds are close enough to hear it.
I have never mastered the feeding chuckle. It sounds like "cluck a cluck a cluck a" real fast and fairly quiet. It should last several seconds but I can only manage about three good seconds then I get screwed up. I do the feeding chuckle by placing the call against my top teeth and use my tongue to allow bits of air to blast through the call while simulating the sound "luck-a". This call can be used in place of the simple quack after the birds have locked up on your decoy set.
There is one other call that has been very rewarding to me. I refer to it as the come-back call. The come-back call is very similar to the Hail or Highball but very more pleading. Trail the kaaaaa off similar to how you end blowing the simple quack.
Knowing when to blow that call is an art all in itself. The simple quack will never, ever spook a bird. Yet there are some ducks, even small flocks in every marsh that have been educated and will shy from even a good call. When I say educated I mean that they have been shot at before.
If you have ducks locked up on and coming into your decoy set, don't use any call. If they decide to swerve away or loose their track, attempt a couple simple quacks or a feeding chuckle.
Here is a typical round of call and possible actions during one of my hunts in the marsh.
The birds are coming in high and have not seen my dekes. They are within a couple hundred yards. I call three to five simple quacks. If they are away out and up to about a half mile I will blow the Highball.
If the birds turn and lock up, I will stay with the simple quack call until the birds are inside the 40 yard line. I believe that you could probably quit calling after they lock up and resume only if they wander.
If the birds have not responded to the incoming quack call, I let them pass over head. When they are slightly beyond the blind I open up with the come-back call. You may have to repeat the come-back three or four times. If the birds turn, I wait until they are within a couple hundred yards and give them a feeding chuckle or simple quack call.
I do not use the highball on incoming birds nor do I call birds that are already locked up and obviously coming into the set.
25 years of practice has helped me as well as knowing a few good native hunting guides. If you cannot call ducks, get a good call and learn the simple quack call. Practice the rest in your privacy.
