Vanishing Cripples

[SnowDog]

Was out yesterday evening and winged a drake mallard hard. It went down about 100 yards away with a big slash and I could see exactly where it hit. My dog marked it on the shot and was half way to the bird before it hit. Another 5 seconds and he was at the exact spot it went down, but no bird. I let him search for about 5 minutes with no luck and figured I'd give it a rest and came back 30 minutes later. Still no bird. The place it hit was close to a brushline, but not that extensive and the dog covered every inch of it.

Other than "duck magic" any ideas where it may have gone or what I can do to improve my recovery efforts?

Cheers!
SD

[lokidog]

I've heard they dive down and grab stuff.  You'd be surprised how long they can stay and how quick they can move underwater.  I dropped a woodie into a small pond years ago, it dove before I could follow up.  I sat there watching for at least a half hour and saw nothing.  This pond had very little growth to the bank.  I ended up swatting that thing in the snow in February while I was there rabbit hunting.  The pond was frozen over and just a trickle of a stream was still open.

[singleshot12]

It seems to be just bred in some ducks to dive down and hold onto some grass and drown still holding on. Other ducks will immediately dive under and swim off into the cattails eluding the dog for good. Nothing you can really do but hope your dog see's the bubbles of the duck under water.

[Goldeneye]

How deep was the water?  Had ducks go under latch onto to a bottom plants and stay there.  My guess is that's what could have happened...

I'll usually walk through the area kicking my feet on the bottom to break them loose.  Usually works if that's what happened.

[huntingfool7]

Milfoil.  Some areas have a lot of underwater vegetation.  Duck dives and gets hung up in it or holds onto it, never to surface.

[gaddy]

on the fence as far as holding on to vegitation goes. would an air breathing creature intentionally drown itself? i do know that a crip can swim under water for great distances & with great speed. easily distancing a dog only pop up 50 yds down river with nothing but a head bump above water.
when i was dogless i found my self chasing a crip or two with my boat only to have them dive. most times if i just stood in the boat with my binos id see em if the water was calm enough.

[Goldeneye]

on the fence as far as holding on to vegitation goes. would an air breathing creature intentionally drown itself? i do know that a crip can swim under water for great distances & with great speed. easily distancing a dog only pop up 50 yds down river with nothing but a head bump above water.
when i was dogless i found my self chasing a crip or two with my boat only to have them dive. most times if i just stood in the boat with my binos id see em if the water was calm enough.

Yes, they will drown themselves.  Basically lock onto vegetation and die more from the shot than drowning I imagine.  Either way they are still locked onto the vegetation.  Sometimes when I kicked them up they are alive other times dead.

[WSU]

I'm not sure if they will drown themselves, but I have seen it happen.  One particular duck I could see under water.  It was still very alive when I reached underwater and grabbed it.

[NW-GSP]

I had the same thing happen last week, hen and drake mallard come into my setup and I dropped both, went after the drake and hen was no where to be found even though she hit the water thirty yards from me.

[gaddy]

i understand them tangleing in the vegitation, seen it my self & i know they will hold onto things underwater & die from wounds, but if not tangled, dead ducks float.
just saying its been my experience that they can & will pop up way away from where you think they will with no more showing than that of a turtle head & if you are not watching for it you will miss them.
iv'e had them dive on my dogs, blow right past them(underwater) & come up well behind & out of sight & smell of the dog & if i hadn't been watching for it i would have lost them.
geese do the same thing. i call it turtilling. i also take a small pair of bino's with me & watch the parimiter.

[elkaholic33]

I had a duck dive.  I walked out into the area and kicked at the grasses under the water for 15 minutes.  Nothing.  I turn around to walk out of the area, take a couple steps, buddy says something so I turn around to look at him and there is the duck.  Body floating at the top of the water, but head still underwater still gripping the grass.  I think the duck thought it was still underwater.  Grabbed the duck which was definitely still alive.

[Fishnclifff]

i understand them tangleing in the vegitation, seen it my self & i know they will hold onto things underwater & die from wounds, but if not tangled, dead ducks float.
just saying its been my experience that they can & will pop up way away from where you think they will with no more showing than that of a turtle head & if you are not watching for it you will miss them.
I've had them dive on my dogs, blow right past them(underwater) & come up well behind & out of sight & smell of the dog & if i hadn't been watching for it i would have lost them.
geese do the same thing. i call it turtilling. i also take a small pair of bino's with me & watch the perimeter.

Bingo.
 I've seen this a lot But I have lost a few.
Sat. at Ridge, I dropped a Gadwall/ Dog was half way to it and we never found it.

[Stilly bay]

if the bird's head is still up when it hits the water...double tap!

most of my hunting is on the river so a wounded duck can get away from a dog really fast and there is no catching up. my chocolate lab learned early on he can avoid a lot of messing around by just diving after the wounded duck.

[h2ofowlr]

The bird will dive as soon as the dog gets to it usually and then grab onto the bottom or submarine and make it to another location.  If the dog was out their for 5 minutes it could have made it out another 100 yards as well.  They are good at escaping at times.

[lokidog]

Lost my first canvasback when it dove after hitting the water, I'm sure, as a diver, it swam a looong ways away.  My lab would not quit looking and I had to actually go after him in the ice lined water to get him to give up.