More good news.

Excellent wetland conditions have set the stage for above-average waterfowl production

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - June 30, 2011 - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released its preliminary report today on breeding ducks and habitats, based on surveys conducted in May and early June. Total duck populations were estimated at 45.6 million breeding ducks on the surveyed area. This estimate represents an 11 percent increase over last year’s estimate of 40.9 million birds and is 35 percent above the 1955-2010 long-term average. This was only the fifth time in the survey’s history that the total duck population exceeded 40 million.

“The FWS has reported nearly unprecedented waterfowl habitat conditions and breeding duck population levels for 2011—the best in several years for some areas,” said Ducks Unlimited’s Chief Scientist Dale Humburg. “Full wetlands and good upland cover will likely support a strong breeding effort, particularly in the prairies this year.”

Habitat conditions across the U.S. and Canadian prairies and parklands were considered excellent. Further north, wetland conditions in most boreal regions of Alaska and northern Canada were good to very good at the time of the survey. During the survey and into early summer, many regions important to breeding ducks continued to receive significant snow melt and further precipitation, which could increase later breeding efforts and ensure brood survival. If these wet conditions continue, prospects going into the winter and possibly into spring 2012 will be favorable as well.

In addition to extensive grassland cover, one of the most important elements in duck breeding success is the amount of water present in portions of prairie and parkland Canada and the north-central United States. Total pond counts for the United States and Canada combined showed 8.1 million ponds, a 22 percent increase from last year’s estimate and 62 percent above the long-term average. This was the second time in the survey’s history that ponds exceeded 8 million.