Duck Hunting Forum banner

Canvasback with yellow/orange eyes

4K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  WisconsinWaterfowler 
#1 ·
Went out yesterday to try and close the season out and shot a nice drake can out of the layout boat. I pulled up to get him and realized he had orange/yellow eyes to him. It's the first time i've seen/heard of it and this is a big, mature can. Anyone else seen this?


i had to post a picture because I know everyone was going to ask "are you sure it was a canvasback?"
 
See less See more
1
#4 ·
I think I've only killed one that I can remember with true red eyes in it. They all generally have an orangish red eye with a yellow ring around the pupil. Very normal around here.

Not sure about it but someone suggest one time that it was hormonal.

Nice bird :thumbsup:
 
#6 ·
WisconsinWaterfowler said:
I really have nothing to back this up but I just always went by first year drakes having yellowish to orange eyes and the seasoned drakes to having the deep red.
I don't know about the age thing. Did the wing survey thing for 3 years one time and other than about 5 of the 20-30 cans I sent in were immature 1st year birds. I don't remember a single one with red eyes. The eye thing sticks out in my mind beacuse it wasn't long after I had started carving so I was really looking at birds hard. I always assumed they had red eyes.

We've all blown it off as just a normal thing down here and never really persued "why" it's that way. Now I've got to find out...the curiousity is getting me. :biggrin:

This bird had some nice orange eyes with a yellow band and it was probably one the biggest bulls I've shot in a while. The decoy was 10% over lifesize if that gives you reference.

 
#8 ·
layoutchase said:
I think they actually get "red" as the breeding season lengthens...so it's mostly hormonal and genetic. Good looking bird, though!
So then they should be red by now, at least I would think so. When we get cans early in the season you can tell the first year drakes from this years cause of the plumage. Although, the drakes dont have a striking plumage as they do now as far as I could remember they had red eyes while the first years had the orangish yellow. I still would get that bird mounted in a heartbeat though. :thumbsup:
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top