Champion duck callers gathered in Stuttgart this weekend to compete for the title of best in the world. It was the 83rd year of the World Duck Calling Championships in the Arkansas town with a population of under 10,000.
Many practice all year for the 90 second duck call. In the field, hunters adopt a softer and less aggressive call to lure the ducks to their hunting grounds. But on the stage, the calls must be louder and executed in perfect detail.
Contestants blow into a small, woodwind-type instrument for the call, but many said duck calling is far more comparable to sport than to music.
"You could easily go from first to last, just like a NASCAR race," said contestant Seth Fields from Jackson, Tennessee.
"Very calm and patient," said contestant Chase Wall from Four Oaks, North Carolina of the mental state that's required for the high-stakes competition.
55 contestants qualified for the final world championships. There was also a women's competition, a state championship and a junior's event.
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