Storm wigeon?

Cody Williams

Cody Williams

Well-known member
Had a great morning this AM, and managed to get into the wigeon pretty good. It's interesting to see how much color variation ducks can have within a species-would you guys say that the wigeon on the bottom qualifies as a storm wigeon? I can't remember shooting one with such a light-colored head before!
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Close-up
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I'm always awed at how beautiful these birds are, it's such a gift to be able to hunt them!
 
Good morning, Cody~

Spectacular! Wigeon are surely one of our most elegant birds. What a treat to encounter a bunch.

BTW: I am unfamiliar with the term "storm wigeon".

All the best,

SJS
 
Cody,

Yes that has the light head variation that some folks, especially n the Pacifif Flyway, call a storm wigeon. There is no official recognition of that color variation. But nice looking bunch of birds you got there.
 
What a great hunt, Cody! Congratulations. Storm widgeon is the name given to them by most of the hunters down here. Even those two juvenile drake widgeons are different looking.

Makes me excited knowing that ducks from your area just might show up down here. The widgeon is my favorite bird.

Continued success this season.
Al
 
Thanks guys! I've been looking some stuff up on the web and apparently the "storm" coloration is somewhat rare, on the order of 1 out of every 150 birds or so in the wild. I'm still kind of in awe that I managed to get one, it was pure dumb luck! There is one spot in particular that I hunt that the wigeon really seem to like, if you go there after shooting hours the sounds are incredible-if you've hunted many wigeon you know that they whistle, and the sound of several hundred whistling all at once is pretty unique.

Al-I would think that some Utah ducks will start showing up down your way pretty soon-there seems to be a pretty good back-and-forth migration between the area around the Great Salt Lake and the Rio where you are. A guy I know shot a pintail on the GSL that was banded down on the Bosque del Apache refuge, and I know that you have shot some bands from the GSL area.
 
Speaking of unique wigeon, here is one from a few years ago that I still kind of regret not getting mounted-it was the biggest wigeon I've ever seen, the size of a big drake mallard-
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It also had the longest pin that I've ever seen on a wigeon-it was a unique bird for sure!
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In PNW, if you see a flock of 100 plus widgeon, there's usually a eurasian widgeon in the mix. Nice job on the "Storm".


Another for us out here in PNW if you see a raft of bluebill, it's always possible there's a tufted duck in mix. They are super hard to see in the flocks.-Seth
 
Dang, look at all that gorgeous fly tying material! I think I've seen one drake widgeon from among all my duck hunting cronies out here.
 
Nice bird Cody... I'm afraid it's not a full blown storm widgeon though.

There is so much variety in widgeon... And u have a mature bird with very light head coloring... It's beautiful.

A true Storm widgeon will have a more yellow/gold coloring and no speckles down the neck. This is a picture of the nicest I have ever shot. It's about 95 percent. I have quite a few other that come close.

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Yes PNW.. We sift through piles of widgeon here. Love how they make u feel like a stud duck hunter even on the tough days!! Lol
 
Those are some outstanding looking cotton tops. I've been fortunate enough to harvest a few every season here on the NJ coast and they are by far one of my favorite birds to hunt.
 
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