Check-station records from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife count hunters checked out of each Sauvie Island hunt unit each day. Sauvie Island's Johnson unit ranked first at 2.67 ducks per hunter-day over 32 seasons, 3.5 times Oak Island's 0.76. Johnson topped the island-wide rate in 30 of those seasons and topped Oak Island in 31.
ICheck Station Choice
Johnson Topped the Island-Wide Rate in 30 of 32 Seasons
ODFW publishes the wildlife area's unit-day file as the Sauvie Island harvest master, which contains the Sauvie Island harvest records for 1990 to 2022. A hunter-day means one hunter checked out of one unit on one day, and each rate divides total ducks by total hunter-days. For all 21 units over the 32 seasons used (1990 to 2021) the file contains about 277,000 hunter-days and about 484,000 ducks, giving an island-wide rate of 1.75 ducks per hunter-day. Mallards were 40% of those ducks.
Johnson had 15,445 hunter-days over the 32 seasons. In the last ten seasons in the file (2012 through 2021) it averaged 3.11 ducks per hunter-day, higher than its 32-season average of 2.67. Oak Island saw light hunting in most years. It met our season-rank minimum of 100 hunter-days in only 14 of the 32.
IISeventeen Hunt Units
Malarky Reached the Top Three in 29 of 32 Seasons
Our rankings cover the 17 units hunted in all 32 seasons with at least 3,000 hunter-days.
Swipe table to see every column
| Rank | Unit | Side | Seasons hunted | Hunter-days | Ducks | Ducks per hunter-day | Ducks per hunter-day 2012-2021 | Seasons in top 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johnson | Eastside | 32 | 15,445 | 41,227 | 2.67 | 3.11 | 22 of 32 |
| 2 | Malarky | Eastside | 32 | 8,236 | 20,070 | 2.44 | 2.52 | 29 of 32 |
| 3 | Racetrack | Eastside | 32 | 17,557 | 37,146 | 2.12 | 2.46 | 14 of 32 |
| 4 | Mud Lake | Westside | 32 | 41,735 | 81,400 | 1.95 | 1.9 | 8 of 32 |
| 5 | Aaron | Eastside | 32 | 11,767 | 22,101 | 1.88 | 2.07 | 4 of 32 |
| 6 | Rentenaar | Eastside | 32 | 15,849 | 29,490 | 1.86 | 2.07 | 6 of 32 |
| 7 | Crane | Westside | 32 | 7,126 | 13,056 | 1.83 | 1.92 | 5 of 32 |
| 8 | Deadwillow | Eastside | 32 | 16,059 | 29,284 | 1.82 | 1.96 | 2 of 32 |
| 9 | Hunt | Eastside | 32 | 26,510 | 47,028 | 1.77 | 1.82 | 4 of 32 |
| 10 | Seal | Westside | 32 | 15,460 | 24,538 | 1.59 | 1.55 | 0 of 32 |
| 11 | Mudhen | Eastside | 32 | 38,324 | 59,845 | 1.56 | 1.42 | 1 of 32 |
| 12 | Footbridge | Eastside | 32 | 10,337 | 15,432 | 1.49 | 1.39 | 1 of 32 |
| 13 | McNary | Eastside | 32 | 14,739 | 20,980 | 1.42 | 1.64 | 0 of 32 |
| 14 | Holman Point | Westside | 32 | 9,690 | 12,313 | 1.27 | 1.45 | 0 of 32 |
| 15 | Steelman | Westside | 32 | 13,912 | 16,271 | 1.17 | 1.23 | 0 of 32 |
| 16 | Pope Lake | Eastside | 32 | 6,139 | 4,765 | 0.78 | 0.77 | 0 of 31 |
| 17 | Oak Island | Oak Island | 32 | 3,000 | 2,272 | 0.76 | 0.73 | 0 of 14 |
Malarky sits second at 2.44 ducks per hunter-day and is the island's steadiest unit. It reached the top three in 29 of 32 seasons, more than any other unit. Johnson reached that mark in 22. Racetrack sits third and has improved lately, averaging 2.46 over the last ten seasons compared with 2.12 over 32.
Rates bunch together in the middle of the list. Aaron, Rentenaar, Crane, Deadwillow and Hunt all fall between 1.77 and 1.88 ducks per hunter-day. The units with the most hunting also land in the middle. Mud Lake had the most hunter-days of any unit at 41,735 and sits fourth at 1.95. Mudhen had the second-most hunter-days at 38,324 and sits 11th at 1.56.
Oak Island's 0.76 ducks per hunter-day and Pope Lake's 0.78 put them last among ranked units. Neither reached the top three in any season and Oak Island topped the island-wide rate in only 2 of the 32. Steelman's 1.17 and Holman Point's 1.27 also put them near the bottom.
IIIWeekdays and Months
Weekday Hunters Averaged 1.89 Ducks per Hunter-Day Versus 1.53 on Weekends
Every unit-day in the file has a date, which also lets the records show when hunting paid best. Hunters checked out Monday through Friday averaged 1.89 ducks per hunter-day compared with 1.53 on weekends. Weekdays led in 30 of the 32 seasons and kept that lead over the last ten at 1.97 against 1.65. Weekends still had 40% of the hunter-days. Johnson's weekday rate beat its weekend rate in 23 of 32 seasons.
Pooling the 32 seasons puts November first at 1.87 ducks per hunter-day ahead of January at 1.76, October at 1.69 and December at 1.65. The monthly lead varied more from season to season, with November first in 12 of 32 seasons and January first in 10. December had the most hunter-days and the lowest ducks per hunter-day. November topped December in 21 of the 32 seasons and Johnson averaged 3.28 in November. November weekdays led every month's weekday or weekend rate at 2.03 on 50,169 hunter-days.
Swipe table to see every column
| When | Hunter-days | Ducks | Ducks per hunter-day | Ducks per hunter-day 2012-2021 | Johnson ducks per hunter-day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | 38,689 | 65,568 | 1.69 | 1.88 | 2.35 |
| November | 81,510 | 152,124 | 1.87 | 2.05 | 3.28 |
| December | 94,910 | 157,038 | 1.65 | 1.68 | 2.51 |
| January | 62,346 | 109,665 | 1.76 | 1.79 | 2.44 |
| Weekdays, Monday to Friday | 166,077 | 314,525 | 1.89 | 1.97 | 2.82 |
| Weekends, Saturday and Sunday | 111,378 | 169,870 | 1.53 | 1.65 | 2.42 |
| November weekdays | 50,169 | 101,819 | 2.03 | 2.18 | 3.37 |
Oak Island's January results look stronger than they are. Its pooled rate was 1.96 ducks per hunter-day on 578 hunter-days over 27 seasons (about 21 per season) compared with 0.47 from October through December. Three Januaries supplied 42% of those ducks and Oak Island topped the island-wide January rate in only 12 of the 27. The records give no reason for the differences between months or days.
IVEastside Gains
Eastside and Johnson Rates Rose While the Westside Stayed Flat
The island-wide rate climbed from 1.65 ducks per hunter-day in the 1990s to 1.84 from 2012 through 2021. The file's best season was 2021 at 2.34 and its worst were 1993 and 1999 at 1.33. ODFW sorts the units by their side of the island. The Eastside includes 13 of the 21 units and climbed from 1.72 in 1990 through 2011 to 1.93 over the last ten seasons. The Westside stayed at 1.68 in both stretches. The top three units are all on the Eastside. Not every Eastside unit rose, and Mudhen and Footbridge fell to 1.42 and 1.39 over the last ten seasons.
Swipe table to see every column
| Side | Units | Hunter-days | Ducks | Ducks per hunter-day | Ducks per hunter-day 2012-2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastside | 13 | 185,446 | 332,849 | 1.79 | 1.93 |
| Oak Island | 1 | 3,000 | 2,272 | 0.76 | 0.73 |
| Westside | 7 | 89,009 | 149,274 | 1.68 | 1.68 |
Johnson's rate climbed faster than the island-wide rate. Its average rose from 2.12 ducks per hunter-day in the 1990s to 3.11 over the last ten seasons, widening its lead over the island-wide rate.
- All units
- Johnson
Swipe table to see every column
| Season | Hunter-days | Ducks | Ducks per hunter-day |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,990 | 5,360 | 8,944 | 1.67 |
| 1,991 | 5,660 | 7,908 | 1.4 |
| 1,992 | 5,774 | 9,245 | 1.6 |
| 1,993 | 6,172 | 8,188 | 1.33 |
| 1,994 | 7,626 | 12,347 | 1.62 |
| 1,995 | 8,671 | 16,141 | 1.86 |
| 1,996 | 8,234 | 13,152 | 1.6 |
| 1,997 | 10,332 | 18,981 | 1.84 |
| 1,998 | 10,202 | 19,469 | 1.91 |
| 1,999 | 7,627 | 10,142 | 1.33 |
| 2,000 | 9,559 | 13,495 | 1.41 |
| 2,001 | 8,442 | 12,100 | 1.43 |
| 2,002 | 8,370 | 12,108 | 1.45 |
| 2,003 | 8,154 | 11,417 | 1.4 |
| 2,004 | 8,977 | 14,699 | 1.64 |
| 2,005 | 9,119 | 19,689 | 2.16 |
| 2,006 | 9,435 | 19,203 | 2.04 |
| 2,007 | 9,376 | 17,326 | 1.85 |
| 2,008 | 8,878 | 15,256 | 1.72 |
| 2,009 | 9,056 | 14,783 | 1.63 |
| 2,010 | 8,451 | 15,113 | 1.79 |
| 2,011 | 9,907 | 21,426 | 2.16 |
| 2,012 | 9,437 | 17,219 | 1.82 |
| 2,013 | 9,559 | 15,369 | 1.61 |
| 2,014 | 9,895 | 17,807 | 1.8 |
| 2,015 | 9,006 | 17,323 | 1.92 |
| 2,016 | 8,269 | 14,838 | 1.79 |
| 2,017 | 9,227 | 18,719 | 2.03 |
| 2,018 | 9,325 | 16,690 | 1.79 |
| 2,019 | 9,051 | 15,016 | 1.66 |
| 2,020 | 10,536 | 17,448 | 1.66 |
| 2,021 | 9,768 | 22,834 | 2.34 |
VReading the Records
The Records Show Unit Results and Guarantee No Hunter a Bag
These check records come from ODFW itself and cover one wildlife area. Ducks per hunter-day is a group average covering every party on a unit, so it gives no certainty about your day. Units vary in blinds, water, access and the number of hunters they take. The public file extends into the 2022 season but we left that season out because it has only 460 hunter-days. The file contains no seasons after 2022. We removed 479 unit-days with duck fields marked not entered and none had any hunters. One unit-date showed up twice with different values, so we removed both records. One record failed our screen for ducks without hunters or more than seven ducks per hunter on a unit-day and was dropped. ODFW also logs walkers on each unit-day. The file does not explain how walkers relate to hunters, so we did not count them. We list units separately if they were not hunted every season or had fewer than 3,000 hunter-days. Flights End averaged 1.59 but appears in just nine seasons in the file and Stutzer averaged 1.25 over 24.
Swipe table to see every column
| Unit | Side | Seasons hunted | First season | Last season | Hunter-days | Ducks | Ducks per hunter-day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stutzer | Eastside | 24 | 1,998 | 2,021 | 4,064 | 5,092 | 1.25 |
| Flights End | Westside | 9 | 2,013 | 2,021 | 632 | 1,003 | 1.59 |
| North Crane | Westside | 27 | 1,995 | 2,021 | 454 | 693 | 1.53 |
| Reeder Tract | Eastside | 24 | 1,998 | 2,021 | 420 | 389 | 0.93 |
VIChoosing Your Unit
Hunt Johnson or Malarky on a Weekday in November
Our read is that a hunter with a choice should put Johnson first and Malarky second. Johnson leads over 32 seasons at 2.67 ducks per hunter-day and leads the 17 ranked units from 2012 through 2021 at 3.11. Malarky has been the steadiest unit by finishing in the top three in 29 of 32 seasons, though that history guarantees no single season. Choose a November weekday when you can and skip Pope Lake and Oak Island.
NOTES AND SOURCES
- Source: Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Sauvie Island Wildlife Area harvest master 1990 to 2022 (public feature service).
- Scope: 32327 unit-day check records from the Sauvie Island Wildlife Area, 21 hunt units, seasons 1990 through 2022. ranked results use the 1990 through 2021 seasons.
- Method: Ducks per hunter-day = the ODFW Ducks field divided by the Hunters field, summed over unit-days (DERIVED). The Ducks field is ODFW's own all-duck total. species columns are not summed. Season top-three ranks use units with 100 or more hunter-days that season.
- Limits: These are check-station records for one wildlife area. A hunter-day is one hunter checked out of one unit on one day.
- Limits: Units differ in blinds, water, access and how many hunters they take. A higher rate does not mean any one hunter will shoot more ducks there.
- Limits: The 2022 season in the public file is incomplete and is left out. Seasons after 2022 are not in this file.
- Limits: ODFW also records Walkers on each unit-day. We do not know from the file how walkers relate to hunters, so they are not counted.
Fully Drawn Research is an independent data analysis desk, not affiliated with any state wildlife agency, transportation agency, mapping provider or outfitter. Fully Drawn Research is an independent data and analysis desk. This paper reports FDR's own analysis of public agency and survey data. Harvest, catch and survey figures describe what hunters and anglers reported or what agencies counted or estimated, not how many animals or fish are present, and they reflect regulations and hunter or angler choices as well as wildlife numbers.
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