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September 2025.
Temperatures were cool in early September for the teal season, before warming up significantly before the youth/veteran weekend. Temperatures have been in the upper 70s during the day and close to 50 at night to close out the month. We had some significant rain the week of the 22nd, but it has been dry outside of that.
Refuge numbers are slowly building. Our total refuge count is around 1,000–1,500 birds, but the diversity of species is interesting for being this early in the year. Pintails, wigeon, gadwall and shovelers are all being seen commonly in the refuge.
Crop conditions are overall good to very good across the area and we should have no difficulties flooding this year.
West side corn (1–18): Crops have done very well in most zones, except for 11, 13 and 18 (which was not planted this year). Zones 11 and 13 both took severe damage from sandhill cranes. Zone 11 is still huntable and has good corn on the western end. Zone 13 has functionally zero cover and has been eliminated for the season. It will be combined with 14 to create one large zone. Zone 18 was unplanted this year and managed for moist soil conditions, but has a permanent blind and buttonbush for cover.
East side corn (21–27): Conditions are very good, with very little damage from geese this year. Zone 25 took significant damage from cranes, but the replanted corn recovered very well and will provide good cover.
Bottom corn fields (28–30): Zone 30 took a lot of damage from geese and cranes and will have limited to poor cover, especially if hunters do not take care to preserve the corn cover. Zones 28 and 29 have pockets of damage from cranes but are overall average.
West marsh (60s and 70s): This marsh was drawn down winter 2024 through this summer and is shallower than it’s been recently. There has been a lot of plant growth, especially in shallower zones like 72. Overall conditions are very good in this marsh for the season.
East marsh (30s and 40s): This marsh will have similar conditions to the 2024 season, generally shallower and thicker than the west marsh is.
This was the first year we conducted draws for the early teal season, hosting draws Sept. 1–3 with self-registration available after that. We had 19 parties at the draw on Sept. 1, before hunting pressure tapered off dramatically. We had 59 hunter trips Sept. 1–3, and another 51 Sept. 4–9 for a total of 110 hunter trips during teal season. Participation in the youth/veterans weekend was down dramatically, with only 51 hunter trips total Sept. 20 and 21 and a high of only 8 parties in a draw.
For the early teal season, a total of 76 teal and 8 geese were harvested in 110 hunter trips Sept. 1–9, for an average of 0.69 ducks per trip. For the youth and veterans weekend, 39 ducks were harvested in 51 hunter trips, averaging 0.76 ducks per trip.
We have been adding water to all areas, back flooding ditches and preparing to flood fields. Water will be spilling into some of our lower fields by the weekend. We will begin flooding in earnest next week, targeting huntable conditions by 5–7 days before the season begins.
We will be open for archery deer draws Oct. 1–3 with draws at 6 a.m. each day. Our preseason open house will be Wednesday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m.
Reminder that opening weekend is our reserved waterfowl hunt. Check your application status in the app or online. Call the office or email darlingj@michigan.gov to double check your status for opening weekend. Open draws will begin on Monday, Oct. 20.
