Owl Decoys

Number of Decoys to use

• Decoy size is not as important as the amount of decoys used.  owl feel safer in numbers, therefore the more decoys the safer they feel.
• One to four dozen decoys are sufficient if you are hunting owl that have not been hunted hard.  Hard hunted owl you may need to use a hundred decoys or more to make them feel safe enough to land. 
• Snow or white owl require even more decoys to draw in.  In staging for white owl you may need to use up to 300 decoys but this can be a difficult task in transporting full size decoys.  In this situation, you may want to use a large amount of shell decoys as well as flags with your standard owl decoys. 
• If only staging a few decoys it is best to use bigger ones for visibility.

Size

• owl have wide range vision but poor binocular and depth perception vision, which is why large decoys work well in drawing the owl attention from further distance due to them being more visible. 

Color

• Place darker decoys on lighter grounds and lighter decoys such as snow owl decoys on darker ground for contrast that aids in visibility.
• Enlarge the white patch on the rear of your Canadian owl decoys or paint bold black tips on your snow owl decoys to add extra contrast

Movement

• Ways to make your staging area more visible is by utilizing owl flags and kites, and electric decoys that mock natural owl movements.  Moving decoys and objects are more visible from afar then even large owl decoys.   
• The more natural you can make the environment appear the more likely you will draw in the waterfowl,  Flying/landing owl decoys work well placed on post to mimic owl coming in to roost.
• owl kites and flags only work well on windy days so make sure you have other options available for staging when there is low to no wind. 

By utilizing these tips, you are sure to make your next owl hunting trip a success.