Hunting is probably one of the most exciting sports ever played by man. You go out with your friends out into the wild or beside a lake and use all of your shooting skills to hunt down birds and sometimes wild animals. In the world of hunting, one of the most common targets are ducks. Although it may seem a simple target for you, in reality hunting down ducks is not that simple. They can easily understand when their lives are in danger from a distance and can easily fly away. However, there is a simple way to attract ducks into a trap. This is with the help of duck decoys.
What Are Duck Decoys?
A duck decoy is basically a mad-made object that looks exactly like a real duck. These are mainly used for hunting in order to attract real ducks and sometimes to practice shooting. In the good old days, duck decoys were mainly carved out wood or cork. The most common wood used for this purpose was the Atlantic white cedar wood, which was used on the east cost of the US from Maine to South Carolina. However, in this modern era, duck decoys are mainly made of plastic and canvas. These decoys are painted in an accurate and elaborate manner so that it looks exactly like different types of waterfowl.
Crucial Things to Consider While Shopping for Duck Decoys for the First Time
Choosing duck decoys without thinking twice is not a good idea. Especially when you wish to use it for your hunting sessions. There are several varieties of duck decoys and these come with different factors. In order to choose the right one for your next hunting trip, here are some crucial factors you need to consider before you go out to buy some decoys.
- Types or Species: It is needless to say that duck decoys are available in different species or types. Most of these decoys look so realistic that from a distance you will fail to make out whether it is a fake or a real bird. If you intend on hunting puddle ducks such as teal, mallards, pintails, and wigeons, it will be a good idea to opt for mallard decoys in order to get the job well done. It will not be a bad idea if you wish to mix different types of puddle duck decoys on the lake. On the other hand, there are diver decoys that can prove to be useful if you wish to hunt down diving ducks.
- Size: Most of the duck decoys are of similar size to the species of ducks the decoy has been designed to resemble. During the past, these happened to be the go-to decoys for regular duck hunters. However, in these modern times, magnum decoys have become more popular due to their larger that standard decoy sizes. The sole reason for the growing popularity of these magnum decoys is their ability to sit higher in the water, due to which they are easily visible for ducks flying at a great distance. However, you will not be able to carry as many of the magnum decoys in the same sized bag due to their bigger size.
- Decoy Bags: Are you really serious about hunting ducks? In that case, you will require a minimum of around 24 decoys to start your hunting mission. Anything above this number is always better, since waterfowl consider a higher number to be safer for them. If you intend on carrying these decoys in a bag, you will certainly require a good quality decoy bag in order to carry all these decoys properly. When it comes to decoy bags, these are available in different sizes and are made of different materials. Normally, the larger ones made of mesh are always better. These help you carry your decoys safely and also allow proper drainage of the wet decoys after use. You will also find some that come with separate compartments for decoys. Whichever you choose, you will certainly need more than one bag to carry all your decoys together. It is a good habit to leave one decoy in the bag all the time. If you do not do so, you will end up wasting a lot of time searching for the decoy bag, which may sink after the last decoy is taken out of it. Thus, take your time and choose the right type of decoy bag based on the size and number of decoys you wish to carry to your hunting place.