Catawba and Broad Rivers Duck Migration Forecast

Where Catawba and Broad Rivers is

Catawba and Broad Rivers is drawn from 5 counties in South Carolina: Chester, Fairfield, Kershaw, Lancaster and York. Those are the counties its shape on the DuckCast map is built from, so a hunter in any of them reads this region’s score.

Public ground with waterfowl hunting

• Broad River WMA (Fairfield County): SCDNR Category I area, hunted by lottery permit.
• Monticello Reservoir (Fairfield County): SCDNR Category II area, open on the days and times SCDNR sets.
• Parr Reservoir (Fairfield County): SCDNR Category II area, open on the days and times SCDNR sets.
• Lancaster Reservoir (Lancaster County): SCDNR Category II area, open on the days and times SCDNR sets.
• 40-Acre Rock (Lancaster County): SCDNR Category II area, open on the days and times SCDNR sets.

Seasons, permits, draws and open days change from year to year, so check the state wildlife agency’s rules, linked below, before you go.

When Catawba and Broad Rivers peaks

DuckCast’s season model puts the wood duck peak here around mid December. The timing follows the statewide curve; what differs here is how many birds the model expects, below. That is a modelled typical curve, not a prediction for any single year. The actual push depends on cold fronts and freeze-up upstream, which is what the daily score tracks. Always confirm season dates with the state wildlife agency, linked below.

Which birds the model expects in Catawba and Broad Rivers

In DuckCast’s season model, the species that can score highest in Catawba and Broad Rivers are wood ducks, green-winged teal and mallards. Against the state as a whole, it expects fewer scoters, pintails, snow geese, green-winged teal, gadwall, wigeon, blue-winged teal and black ducks in Catawba and Broad Rivers.

Those weights come from harvest records, survey counts and the kind of water, not from a count taken here each season. They cap how high each species’ score can climb; the weather still has to bring the birds.

What DuckCast watches upstream of Catawba and Broad Rivers

5 upstream stations feed this region's freeze line, nearest first: Lake Norman, NC, about 75 miles north, Asheville, NC, about 115 miles northwest, Jordan Lake, NC, about 135 miles northeast, Knoxville, TN, about 190 miles northwest and Kerr Lake, NC, about 195 miles northeast. When those stations ice over, the score here starts climbing before anything changes in the local sky.

Radar over Catawba and Broad Rivers

Each morning DuckCast reads the night’s NEXRAD data from KCAE, the National Weather Service radar at Columbia, about 45 miles south of the region’s weather point. That puts the radar just outside the region, near enough to see birds lifting off and passing close by. Radar sees every bird in the air, not only ducks, so it confirms or questions the score rather than moving it.

Locations stay generalized

Hunter reports for Catawba and Broad Rivers are always shown at the region level. DuckCast never collects or displays exact coordinates, so filing a report here never burns a spot.