Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Wildlife Management Duck Marsh

Anybody ever built a duck marsh. I could probably fit 2-3 acres in my south field. Problem is I don't know if my pond would have enough water to use as a reservoir (unless my math is wrong which is a possibility). Likely would require a well. I have contacted NRCS about wetland programs but haven't heard much.

I have a buddy that has a duck marsh at a lower elevation than his main 2-acre pond.

He gets his duck grains started and then floods the marsh at the optimum time. (I can't remember the date.) Sometimes it pulls his main pond down for most of the fall if there are no rains, but his fish population doesn't seem to mind.

In your situation, I would build a "patch quilt" of duck marshes. Scrape up dirt to build a berm about 10' wide and install a large pipe and gate valve. Make each one a 1/4-1/3 acre in size. (Whatever size you think would pull ducks.)

Flood one from your main pond. If you get more rain, then open that valve to the next marsh and flood #2 and #3. Some years you will have a massive duck marsh, some years a small one.

If you make the bottoms of your marshes perfectly flat, then you can flood them deep enough for ducks with a surprisingly low volume of water.

Well my wife's high-school class does and Xmas party every year. One of her classmates is the wetlands guy for NRCS for Southeast KS. He was previously the habitat coordinator for the state. He is going to put me in touch with some people.

In arid West Texas, our ponds often become marshes.

New guy: "I want to put in a duck marsh on my property."

kswaterfowler: "I know a guy." (Spoken quietly in an Italian accent.)


I can't think of a single DIY project that I have undertaken, where the expert guy I knew did not manage to help me save time, money, stress or all three - plus help the project achieve its actual design goals.

Several yrs ago I built a 7 acre duck marsh for a customer, it was some really flat river bottom ground, we just built a berm on the lower three sides, and put a water level control structure from agri drain in the lower side, he drains it down in the spring and grows corn and milo in it then in the fall has some wells and floods it out with water up to the point that the lowest ears of corn are just reachable for ducks while sitting on the water, then raises the level as the yr goes on and the food source needs it.
He rents it out to Larry Potterfield and he brings a bunch of clients in during the fall from a good ways around to wine and dine them and hunt ducks every yr.
Larry being the owner of Midway Arms that I am sure quite a few of you have heard of before.

Well I have seen the initial concept. They propose a 1 acre marsh. Average 12" deep with 24" near the water control structure. Also put a pipe with a valve into my pond upstream to use as a supplemental water source.

DU estimate is $72k for a 1.5 acre marsh. They charge $25k for engineering it. Dirt work is about what I figured.

It is a 12" deep marsh. I am pretty sure you could engineer it AND build it yourself!

Even if you royally screwed up something on the first effort, it is a 12" deep body of water - I don't think you could harm anything.

I gotta kind of agree with FishingRod, shouldn't take a boat load of engineering, doesn't even have to be drum tight for holding water, a decent leak isn't going to hurt anything, just wanting to hold water for a couple months.
We didn't do much engineering, just pushed up a berm on three sides. don't think we had 15k in the whole thing. cant remember tho.

I am being told to pull the permit in a flood zone it will have to be engineered as the dike is over 12". An engineer license number is required for the permit. That is from the NRCS wetland biologist.