Decoy - Duck Decoy

The term duck decoy may refer to two distinct devices, both used for hunting wildfowl. One is the a small pond with a long cone-shaped wickerwork tunnel, used to catch wild ducks. After the ducks settled on the pond, a small, trained dog would herd the birds into the tunnel. The catch was formerly sent to market for food, but now these are only used to catch ducks to be ringed and released: see ornithology. The word decoy derived from this by the mis–division of the Dutch compound word eende(n)kooi (duck cage). As the above meaning of a person or device supplanted the original meaning as the most common, the latter acquired the retronym "decoy pool".

The other form of duck decoy, otherwise known as a hunting decoy or wildfowl decoy, is a life–size model of the creature. The hunter places a number about the hunting area as they will encourage wild birds to land nearby, hopefully within the range of the concealed hunter's gun. Originally carved from wood, they are now made from plastic.

Wildfowl decoys (primarily ducks, geese, shorebirds, and crows, but including some other species) are considered a form of folk art. Collecting decoys has become a significant hobby both for folk art collectors and hunters. The world record was set in September 2007 when a pintail drake and Canada goose, both by A. Elmer Crowell sold for 1.13 million apiece.