Where does most snow goose hunting take place in Iowa?
 A few snow geese may be seen near any of the larger public wetlands and natural lakes in Iowa but the majority of snow geese can be found in the western part of the state, along the Missouri River.  The largest concentrations are usually found at DeSoto NWR near Missouri Valley.  Large numbers (30,000 – 100,000) often concentrate at the Riverton and Forney Lake Areas in Fremont County.  Snow geese can also be found at the Snyder-Winnebago Bend Wildlife Area (10,000 – 20,000) in Woodbury County.

When do the geese arrive?
 The snow goose migration usually begins during the first 10 days of November.  They have come as late as November 21.

When do the geese leave?
 The geese usually leave following snowfall of 3 inches or more or when temperatures drop into the single digits. 

How do you hunt snow geese in the fall?
 There are three basic hunting techniques.  Pass shooting is generally the least successful hunting method because snow geese seldom fly low enough the make clean killing shots.  The exception would be on overcast days with very strong wind.  The geese feed out from the refuges in large groups and hunters can be successful by following the birds, obtaining permission from landowners where the birds feed, and then trying to sneak close.  Snow geese often feed into the wind so hunters can also be successful by sneaking in, upwind of the flock, and waiting for the birds to move closer.  Decoy hunting can also be successful.  Geese usually feed off the refuges in large flocks each morning and late afternoon.  Due to the size of the flocks large decoy spreads with some movement such as windsocks or kites can aid success.

LATE WINTER SEASONS

When do snow geese begin to arrive in SW Iowa?
 The geese start to move into SW Iowa when the ground is snow free and they have open water to roost at night.  That may be as early as mid February or as late as mid March.  Snow geese migrate during warm fronts with a south wind.  If the ground is snow free but water areas are still frozen some birds may move into Iowa during the daytime but fly back south at night to roost in open water.

When do the geese leave?
 If there are snow free conditions and open water to the north the geese do not stay for extended periods of time.  In fact, many of the birds move right on through.  Large concentrations seldom occur in SW Iowa unless we have open conditions and snow or ice is preventing the birds from moving farther north.  Snow geese push the ice and snow lines very hard.  If that line moves north rapidly due to long stretches of warm weather we see migrations nearly every day with south wind but very low bird concentrations.  If 2-4 day cold fronts (north wind) with limited or no migration follows short warm fronts the local concentrations are larger.  Some years the migration is essentially over by early to mid March. 

What are the best ways to hunt snow geese during the late winter season?
 As in the fall, hunters shoot geese by pass shooting, following feeding flocks and by decoying.  Decoying is by far the most consistent producer.  The best days are usually during warm fronts (south wind) when birds are migrating.  On those days hunters can be successful in nearly any harvested cornfield on the Missouri River flood plain or within a few miles of the East and West Nishnabotna Rivers.  Many flocks pass through on those warm front days so hunters have many opportunities to try to call birds to within shooting range.

During cold fronts (north wind) very few birds will be migrating.  On those days it is more important to be hunting closer to the Riverton or Forney Lake refuges.  Shooting activity will most likely be limited to trying the work the refuge oriented birds when they fly out to feed each morning and afternoon.  Success is usually lessened during cold fronts because hunters have fewer opportunities to work flocks of geese and the size of the flocks is usually much larger.  As a rule, it is usually easier to work small flocks.  Some hunters feel that decoy spreads during the late winter season do not have to be as large as during the fall.  That is probably because there are many more small flocks during late winter.  Motion in the decoys is normally a good thing, but during the late winter there are many extremely windy days.  In strong wind, windsocks have a tendency to whip around and make a popping noise.  Both those things tend to spook snow geese.  Hunters seem to have better luck using shell decoys and silhouettes.

Are there any special regulations?
 During the 1999 and 2000 late winter goose seasons electronic calls and unplugged shotguns were permitted.  Beginning March 11 of each season evening shooting hours were extended to ½ hour after sunset and some waterfowl refuges in the State (including Riverton and Forney Lake) were opened to public hunting.  These regulations may change from year to year so be sure to check current regulations before going afield.  Check with the Wildlife Biologist or Conservation Officer in the area you intend to hunt to find out whether that waterfowl refuge will be open.

 The late winter snow goose season is intended to add additional harvest of snow geese.  However, this harvest cannot be at the expense of other waterfowl species.  Non-toxic shot is required and hunters must be careful to avoid shooting ducks, swans, White-fronted and Canada geese.

If you have other questions concerning the hunting of Light geese in Iowa, you may contact Carl Priebe at the Riverton Wildlife Management Unit.

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