Missouri Managed Areas Logged an Eightfold Rise in Snow Geese as Early December Shifted Most

ITen Seasons

Reported snow goose take climbed from 147 to 1,210

That increase came with setbacks. During 2017-2018 the tally reached 548 and held the season record through 2021-2022 even as take dropped to a low of 108 during 2020-2021. In 2022-2023 take reached 613. Each later season exceeded the earlier record with counts of 827, 846 and 1,210.

Hunter totals did not follow that upward course. Each season listed between 24,761 and 40,879 hunters. Combining those first six seasons gives a rate of 6.8 snow geese for every 1,000 hunters across these areas. The combined rate for the last four reached 24.3. Over those same years seasonal Canada goose totals ranged from 130 to 229 while white-fronted goose totals ranged from 55 to 300.

IISeason Timing

December's first half saw the largest shift

Looking at half-month blocks within each season shows when the larger reported totals landed. For those first six seasons December's first half supplied 354 snow geese. The last four seasons supplied 1,871 in that half-month. Its rate rose from 6.1 up to 51.1 for every 1,000 hunters. November's closing half also increased with 141 birds becoming 498.

December and January accounted for most snow geese during the recent period. For all reported snow geese across the latest four seasons 85 percent fell between December 1 and January 31. January's second half had the highest rate for each period at 58.4 followed by 93.9 for every 1,000 hunters. Yet each period's tally there amounted to just a few hundred birds.

IIILeading Areas

Ten Mile Pond, Grand Pass and Otter Slough accounted for most of the snow geese reported shot

Three areas supplied 78 percent of the snow goose tally in the area table over the latest four seasons. Grand Pass recorded 187 snow geese during those first six seasons and 1,229 during the later four. Its rate climbed from 7.4 to 58.9 for every 1,000 hunters. Otter Slough's count increased from 542 to 958. For rate Ten Mile Pond topped all areas listed in both periods with 35.8 followed by 74.0.

Among areas with smaller totals Four Rivers deserves attention. Its reported snow goose tally rose from 33 to 359 and its rate increased from 2.8 to 41.8 for every 1,000 hunters. Bob Brown's recent four seasons produced fewer snow geese than its first six. The counts were 107 versus 154. Yet a much smaller hunter total brought its rate up from 19.2 to 63.2. Rates increased in the recent period for all areas listed.

Leadership in reported snow goose take moved between areas. In 2022-2023 Otter Slough finished first at 281. Grand Pass led during 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 at 493 and 446. Ten Mile Pond topped 2025-2026 at 335.

IVState Estimate

USFWS harvest figures vary more than managed-area tallies

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service harvest and hunting activity reports estimate goose harvest across Missouri hunting as a whole. Its combined snow, blue and Ross goose category recorded 6,732 for 2016-2017 and 36,101 for 2023-2024 before dropping to 11,457 for 2024-2025. That category also recorded 15,062 for 2017-2018 and 4,214 for 2020-2021.

In the CV column the coefficient of variation applies to the estimate for all geese combined. Values span 23 percent to a high of 65 percent. That means individual statewide season estimates have wide error. Managed-area totals include only the hunters and sites covered by MDC's data service. We show both series together without treating either as evidence for or against the other. State figures for 2025-2026 have yet to be published.

VData Boundaries

Reported take excludes two groups of faulty records

All goose totals in this article refer to birds reported as shot. A rise means hunters bagged more snow geese at the managed areas covered here. These records cannot establish whether snow goose use of Missouri increased or explain why the reports shifted. During this span there were changes to bag limits, the spring conservation order and season dates. We did not test the effects of any of those changes. A rate for every 1,000 hunters averages the group across trips rather than giving an individual hunter's odds.

Two data fixes apply here. Six reports for Ted Shanks dated December 21 through 27, 2018 show 3,000 snow geese alongside 7,000 white-fronted geese each day for 62 to 111 hunters. The largest daily goose tally recorded elsewhere over ten seasons was 68. Those six reports therefore put bird counts into harvest fields and were excluded. Retaining them would give Ted Shanks 145 geese for every 100 hunters. Four reports for Schell-Osage show Canada goose totals of 22 to 31 with hunter totals of 4 to 7. Across ten seasons no other retained report for an area on a given day exceeds three Canada geese for each hunter. We excluded those four reports too. None of those four records contains snow geese. As a result 2018-2019 is the only season with a changed snow goose total.

VIField Takeaway

Start with the major areas for early December snow geese

In our view the run of four seasons exceeding the former peak of 548 shows these areas have reached a new level of reported snow goose take. A drop has happened before with 548 in 2017-2018 falling to 108 in 2020-2021. A single poor year would therefore be no surprise to us.

Our approach for a snow goose hunt on Missouri's managed areas starts with Ten Mile Pond, Grand Pass and Otter Slough during December's first half. November's latter half has improved too. Check the daily report for the area you plan to hunt before making the call because three different sites have led over the latest four seasons.