My first duck hunts were floating rivers after everything froze up. That being said, we still did not shoot them on the water, you let them get up and shot them.
That was just how I was taught, maybe it was because the same guys I started duck hunting with were the same guys that took me quail hunting. You did not shoot a covey of quail on the ground either.
I guess it all boils down to the way you were taught when you started hunting


I may not be smart but I can lift heavy objects

I have a shotgun so I have no need for a 30-06.....