In addition to hunting, I also took time to tour each of the refuges and the surrounding areas, and with this information, I will share my impressions with you. Please bear in mind that, as in all waterfowl hunting, weather is often the determining factor in your success or lack of it.

When you plan a trip, or better yet, trips, to Illinois' Southern Waterfowl Zone depends on which species you intend to concentrate. Do you want ducks or geese, and if geese, which of the three species of that bird? Maybe you want to try for all of the above, or perhaps you will be content to simply take your chances and hunt for whatever is flying. (You can be sure something will be active at any point in the season.)

Duck hunters will find a good supply of birds on hand when the season opens in mid-November. It looks as if the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service waterfowl managers will declare another liberal 60-day season, with daily bag limits the same as last year.

Southern Zone duck hunting has been closing around the 12th of January, but you will want to check the official regulations for the new season before making any plans. Migrating ducks won't stay in one place all season long, so the populations found in the various refuges will fluctuate as flights arrive and depart. At no time, barring some sort of horrendous weather event, will all of the ducks leave the area. The ideal situation is to be in a blind as soon as possible after a new batch of quackers moves in.

These ducks will be hungry, tired and easy to fool. Limit kills will be very common, sometimes coming a little too fast. On the other hand, a refuge can hold many thousands of ducks, but if these birds have been living there too long, they become accustomed to hunters' tricks, and so success rates diminish rapidly. The tantalizing aspect is you never can tell when the north wind will push a fresh set of targets into the refuges. This is the reason they call it hunting, not shooting.

While mallards are the primary species of duck found in southern Illinois, teal, wood duck, widgeons, pintails, ring-necks and gadwalls are not uncommon. Along with these most common ducks, you never know when any of the other species may buzz in to your decoy spread. This is a great place to get that duck you need to fill an empty space on your wall.

Snow geese are in the area when they are in the area. How's that for covering my tracks? Since these birds don't seem to spend the entire winter in southern Illinois, as the Canada geese once did, you have to time your hunt when they unpredictably show up. Your best bet is to ask the club operator of your choice to alert you when the birds come in, and then get on the road as soon as possible.

If you are interested in a late-season hunt for snow geese, the recently created "conservation season" begins immediately after the regular season closes, and runs well into March. This special hunt sets no bag limit, does not require guns to be plugged, and allows electronic calling, which has proved to be very effective.