DNR expects good duck hunting when season opens Saturday

Retrieving ducks
Hunters row across the lake to retrieve a duck that landed too far away for their dog to swim to.
Stephanie Hemphill for MPR News

Duck hunting should be good when Minnesota's main waterfowl season opens Saturday morning, wildlife managers said Monday.

"The number of breeding ducks in Minnesota and North America has remained fairly high in recent years, so hopefully that will result in a good duck season," Steve Cordts, waterfowl specialist with the Department of Natural Resources, said in a statement.

He added that reports on the number of duck families over the summer have been favorable.

Minnesota's duck season structure and regulations remain similar to recent years. The season will be open for 60 days, with closures in early to mid-October in the central and southern zones.

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"There seems to be fairly good support for our current zones and split seasons, so we've maintained that season structure," Cordts said. "But weather and other variables play a large role in how the season goes."

The daily bag limit remains six ducks per day. The mallard limit remains four per day, including no more than two hens. The daily limits are three for wood ducks and scaup, and two for redheads, canvasbacks, pintails and black ducks.

The DNR will continue to post a weekly waterfowl migration report each week during the duck season, typically posted on Thursday afternoons.

Minnesota's goose season reopens Saturday. Cordts said Canada goose hunters had low success in the early season that ended Sunday, partly due to a poor hatch this spring, but goose hunting should improve as the regular season goes on.