# Salt marsh duck hunting - food sources



## FASTnSPEEDY (Dec 19, 2011)

I have been duck hunting for a few seasons now, and understand the freshwater environment fairly well, but now that I'm taking a swing at the salt marsh I'm a little confused as to what I should be looking for.

When in a salt marsh, what type of food sources will ducks be looking for to feed on?

I've seen a few ring necks and teal, but lots more mergansers. I understand the mergansers because they feed on different things then ducks, but I don't understand what a typical duck would be looking to feed on in the marsh.


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## webfootwidowmaker (Dec 20, 2011)

saltwater aquatic. Plants and Small snails


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## GABASSMAN (Dec 20, 2011)

Grass beds.. Its an entire ecosystem in these areas and the birds make use of them.


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## cmk07c (Dec 20, 2011)

Real simple answer, look for ponds/bays/coves that have "grass" in them. If you find grass beds in salt marsh that hold grass in the fall and winter months you find birds. Becuase like Bassman said they use the entire ecosystem. They'll eat the clams, mussels, small fish, bugs, widgeon grass, cordgrass, sedges, seeds and other aquatic grasses. Next time I'm out I'll pull out some of the grass from the ponds i'm hunting and post them in here. I'm hunting brackish to almost 100% salt water.


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## FASTnSPEEDY (Dec 20, 2011)

cmk07c said:


> Real simple answer, look for ponds/bays/coves that have "grass" in them. If you find grass beds in salt marsh that hold grass in the fall and winter months you find birds. Becuase like Bassman said they use the entire ecosystem. They'll eat the clams, mussels, small fish, bugs, widgeon grass, cordgrass, sedges, seeds and other aquatic grasses. Next time I'm out I'll pull out some of the grass from the ponds i'm hunting and post them in here. I'm hunting brackish to almost 100% salt water.



When you say grass, I assume you don't mean the spread out spartania grass that reds like to tail in on high tide?


I see everyone mentions grass beds, does anyone have a picture of the type of grass beds? Most everything I'm used to seeing is the mud or sandy bottom with oyster bars mixed in.


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## cmk07c (Dec 21, 2011)

*Fast*



FASTnSPEEDY said:


> When you say grass, I assume you don't mean the spread out spartania grass that reds like to tail in on high tide?
> 
> 
> I see everyone mentions grass beds, does anyone have a picture of the type of grass beds? Most everything I'm used to seeing is the mud or sandy bottom with oyster bars mixed in.



Fast what is your email, I'll email you some pics, got some on my phone. Just can't upload from computer to GON because of work firewalls. Fell free to PM it. I always take pictures of my ponds. Can practically see the grass growing out the water.


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