North and South Dakota
Terry Liddick, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Jeff Drahota, Wildlife Biologist
The Dakotas were extremely dry this year and we expect to see poor waterfowl production overall from the region. The summer of 2024 saw below average precipitation throughout the region and snowfall was below average during the winter of 2024-2025. March and April are typically high precipitation months in the area; however, these early spring months were also very dry. Heavy rains improved wetland conditions across the western Dakotas in mid-May but it was generally too late to benefit nesting waterfowl. Some areas received 2-5� of rain, and we observed some improvement in seasonal and temporary wetlands, however, many were still dry as the moisture was quickly absorbed by the parched ground. At this time of this survey, many of the basins recharged by rain were unoccupied by waterfowl.
The coteau regions were the only bright spot across the Dakotas as conditions there were more normal and could support good waterfowl production. That said, we did not observe typical numbers of waterfowl in coteau during the survey. In particular, scaup, ring-necked ducks, redheads and canvasbacks were notably depressed as were mallards and northern pintails. Overall, we expect the Dakotas to have below average waterfowl production in 2025.
Southern Montana
Phil Thorpe, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Stephen Chandler, Wildlife Biologist
Southern Montana is large and diverse spanning about 350 miles by 300 miles. Much of this area is used for grazing with vast expanses of grasslands, sagebrush sagebrush
The western United States� sagebrush country encompasses over 175 million acres of public and private lands. The sagebrush landscape provides many benefits to our rural economies and communities, and it serves as crucial habitat for a diversity of wildlife, including the iconic greater sage-grouse and over 350 other species.
Learn more about sagebrush , and badlands. It’s low-density waterfowl habitat and the primary water bodies are stock ponds that are created by damming creeks to catch runoff for livestock. Ducks take advantage of the artificial ponds, especially in years like this when most natural water bodies are dry.
Eastern and southeastern Montana experienced a dry and warm winter and spring in 2024�2025, with precipitation levels well-below average and snowpack deficits contributing to ongoing moderate to severe drought conditions, especially the eastern quarter of this area. Above-normal temperatures during this period exacerbated the situation by increasing water loss and causing early snowmelt, further reducing soil moisture levels.
Given the dry conditions and lack of natural wetlands, we expect waterfowl production to be poor over the eastern parts of the area. In western portions of this area, we anticipate fair production given slightly improved wetland conditions.
Northern Montana and Southern Alberta
Rob Spangler, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Joe Sands, Wildlife Biologist
Conditions in northeastern Montana were much drier than the past couple of years, and many of the semi-permanent wetlands were recessional or dry. Permanent wetlands and stock ponds held water but were at approximately 50- 60% of capacity and even drier in western and eastern extremes of the northern Montana.
Continuing the survey into the grasslands of southern Alberta the dry conditions continued. Although southern Alberta had received some recent rain, most of the precipitation had been absorbed by the dry soil and had little beneficial effect on wetland habitat. Some water was available for birds in the larger, more permanent wetlands, reservoirs, and stock ponds; however, many of the ponds that had water were overcrowded with birds and there was little shoreline vegetation to offer nesting cover. Once we passed north of Calgary and Red Deer, habitat improved considerably as did waterfowl densities. It made for enjoyable and busy flights as we struggled to count all the birds. North of Whitecourt and Lac la Biche, habitat conditions and bird densities declined again so we expect below normal production from those areas.
Southern Saskatchewan
Phil Thorpe, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Stephen Chandler, Wildlife Biologist
We arrived in the southern Saskatchewan grasslands to bleak conditions if you are a duck.Although the area was not formally designated by the North American Drought Monitor as having drought conditions, it was quickly apparent to us that conditions were not great for waterfowl.Overall, the southern grasslands experienced below average precipitation during the early spring months that did little to improve conditions for waterfowl. Even after three days of rain in some areas, farmers were in the fields seeding and wetland water levels remained unchanged as the soil quickly absorbed the moisture. Some large wetlands that we observed to be completely dry this year, have not been observed to be dry since 2008.
The Missouri Coteau can have very good waterfowl production in wet years because of the high density of wetlands (exceeding 100 wetlands per square mile in areas). This supports high breeding waterfowl densities in a region that is mostly grazed grasslands because the hilly terrain makes farming difficult. This year, wetlands in the Coteau were mostly dry with only 10-25% of basins holding any water. Dry conditions extended north of Regina into the heavily farmed areas around Kindersley and up to Saskatoon. A bright spot was in the Allan Hills to the southeast of Saskatoon. This area, another glacially influenced region with a high density of wetlands, although more heavily farmed than the Missouri Coteau, had 60-70% of wetlands with water and higher numbers of ducks than anywhere else in the survey area. We expect this area to have good production potential. The Aspen Parklands were also very dry this year, and both the northwest and northeast Parklands likely will have poor to fair production.
Southern Manitoba and Southeastern Saskatchewan
Sarah Yates, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Stacy Salvevold, Wildlife Biologist
Southern Manitoba and southeastern Saskatchewan were the driest I’ve seen them since I started flying this area over a decade ago. Southeastern Manitoba has poorer baseline conditions because of intensive agricultural activities and a general lack of habitat and is often rated as poor for waterfowl production. Extremely dry conditions in this region made this year no exception. Southwestern Manitoba was also rated poor and was extremely dry with a majority of seasonal wetlands, streams, and ditches completely dried up. A few of the larger wetlands were holding water although water levels were very low. We observed high densities and crowding of waterfowl on what little wetland habitat remained. In southeastern Saskatchewan, we saw a slight improvement in conditions, however, many seasonals remained dry and birds were again fairly crowded on wetlands holding water. This area did receive some early-May precipitation during the course of survey, which resulted in the addition of some seasonals and sheet water, however, much of the moisture was quickly absorbed and it didn’t improve conditions overall. Where late precipitation improved wetland conditions, we observed a lot of unoccupied habitat.
Moving north in eastern Saskatchewan through the Yorkton area conditions did improve some and were rated fair in some areas. This area is dense with seasonal and semi-permanent wetland and, in general, retains water better, most likely due to more topography and less intensive agricultural activities. Areas immediately around Yorkton looked similar to, or improved, from last year and were considered fair for waterfowl production. Areas closer to Regina continued to be poor and had overall dry conditions.Finally, the northern most portion of the crew area in Manitoba continued to be very dry again this year. Recent precipitation missed this area and below-average precipitation over the last five years has left even the large lakes, including Lake Manitoba and Winnipegosis, the lowest we’ve observed them in over ten years flying this crew area. Besides the larger lakes, the smaller streams, ditches, and seasonal wetlands were completely dry. The only water that remained in this area was in beaver impoundments and artificial dugouts, and even some of those looked quite low. Forest fires were prevalent across the northern portion of this crew area, starting earlier than normal throughout southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
Northern Saskatchewan and Manitoba
Walt Rhodes, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Chris Cain, Wildlife Biologist
The sound of the airport grass crunching under your feet was all of the information one needed to know the habitat conditions. Arriving in Saskatchewan during the third week of May there were two large wildfire fires burning, both just east and slightly north of Prince Albert. By the time we left, there were dozens burning across Saskatchewan and Manitoba, thousands upon thousands of acres had burned and were still burning, and tens of thousands of people had been evacuated from numerous communities. Even the famed Robertsons Trading Company in La Ronge, SK, home to hundreds of pieces of indigenous art and cultural pieces and written about in 2023 blog post, was lost to a wildfire.
An active and early fire season is an indication of the waterfowl breeding habitat conditions.Even though the boreal forest has a lot of water, many lakes in the region are not readily recharged.When precipitation is below average for extended periods of time, as it has been in recent years, things can get really dry. Habitat conditions were very dry across most of the southern boreal forest of Saskatchewan but trended slightly better in the north and towards the Manitoba border.Conditions were also dry in Manitoba, starting south around The Pas, with general improvement once north and east of Thompson.The boreal will still produce waterfowl but continued dry conditions will chip away at its potential.
Northern Alberta, Northeastern British Columbia, and Northwest Territories
Garrett Wilkerson, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Barret Fortier, Wildlife Biologist
The boreal plains of northern Alberta and northeastern British Columbia continue to experience long-term precipitation deficits. Most bogs and fens in the surveyed area were dry, and marshes, swamps, and lakes were severely recessional. It is evident that groundwater flow has been impacted by the long-term drought, thus compounding drought effects to wetland availability. Breeding habitat availability was greatly diminished in this region, and production is expected to be poor.
The Peace-Athabasca River delta in northeastern Alberta had much lower water levels and fewer inundated basins compared to normal years. However, this region did represent the best available waterfowl breeding habitat we encountered in Alberta. Wetlands were primarily located far from woodland edges and had significant grassland margins for nesting cover.
Habitat conditions in taiga plains in the Northwest Territories varied: habitat along transects south of Yellowknife latitude were dry but conditions gradually improved as we moved north. In the northern extent of the taiga plains, ice-out was slightly delayed due to average daily temperatures approximately 2° C below normal. However, snowmelt and early spring precipitation resulted in good wetland availability for breeding waterfowl.The taiga shield region in the vicinity of Great Slave Lake also experienced a slightly cooler and wetter spring. Water levels in most wetland basins were slightly below normal, exposing vegetation that waterfowl could potentially use for nesting and brood cover.
The southern arctic tundra experienced a late ice-out after persistent below-average spring temperatures. Snowfall also persisted until early to mid-June, leading to fully inundated wetlands. Late-breeding waterfowl likely have ample nesting habitat availability in this region.
Alaska-Yukon
Tamara Zeller, Wildlife Biologist, Brett Nigus, Pilot, Heather Wilson, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot, and Wade Schock, Wildlife Biologist
Spring arrived early across Alaska in 2025. Unusually warm fall and winter weather led to an early thaw, drying wetlands faster than usual in many areas and possibly impacting nesting conditions. While swans, loons, and grebes were quick to nest, taking advantage of the early melt, some northern regions like the Yukon Flats and Old Crow Flats remained mostly ice-covered—something not seen in five years. Thousands of ducks and geese clustered in the few available open waters, with species like scaup and scoters especially common in marshy areas. Despite low precipitation in some areas, survey crews rated the waterfowl production outlook as generally good to excellent across most of the region.
Southern Ontario and Quebec
Steve Earsom, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Cole Bleke, Wildlife Biologist
The start of our survey this year was delayed by about a week due to an airport closure in Bangor, Maine (where the aircraft was based) and persistent rainy weather.When we finally got started, we flew six consecutive days in southeastern Ontario and southwestern Quebec before being grounded again by weather.After that we were able to survey seven of the next nine days.Because of the early delays, there was significant leaf-out on the trees in southern areas, but not so much that it precluded our ability to see waterfowl. Habitat conditions were fair around Muskoka and in the St. Lawrence River valley between Montreal and Quebec City, good in the vast majority of the crew area, and excellent in a narrow strip of mountains in Quebec bordering Maine.Our survey timing was generally good, as we often observed single drakes or pairs of birds, rather than larger groups passing through or post-breeding flocked drakes.We saw no broods during the survey.In summary, I expect good waterfowl production overall from the region.
Western Ontario and Northern Quebec
John Rayfield, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Stephanie Catino, Wildlife Biologist
Timing for this year’s survey was good - a few days earlier than last year but spring, once sprung advanced quickly in the north. The northwestern portion of Ontario was drier compared to the excellent habitat conditions throughout the rest of western Ontario. We were able to finish surveying Ontario just before several wildfires sparked and smoke blanketed the area. Northern Quebec provided excellent weather for surveying, and generally good habitat conditions with lots of water available on the landscape and a normal spring phenology.
Maine and Atlantic Canada
Mark Koneff, Wildlife Biologist-Pilot and Josh Dooley, Wildlife Biologist
Ice-out and spring phenology were normal to somewhat advanced in southern and coastal Maine, but ice lingered in northern and western Maine in early May. We had hoped for an early May start in southern Maine, however, persistent rain and inclement weather delayed start of the survey until the end of the first week of the month. Conditions in southern and coastal Maine during the survey were excellent and in northern Maine and much of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia were rated good as these areas are recovering from persistent abnormally dry conditions the past couple of years.
We arrived in western Newfoundland, “the rock,� to unusually pleasant flying weather.Newfoundland, in general, experienced an advanced spring phenology and ice-out (the thawing of ice from a body of water) was somewhat advanced. Newfoundland received substantial precipitation in April that improved wetland conditions across the island by the time of the survey.While wetlands and lakes were generally in good condition many rivers and streams were still running at low flows.In late May we crossed the Strait of Belle Isle that separates Newfoundland and Labrador, from the stark, rocky, tundra of the coastal barrens to the endless expanse of spruce and fir trees and lichen mats of interior Labrador, the views are inspiring to say the least. Spring was also normal to somewhat advanced in Labrador.Wetland conditions were excellent in central and eastern Labrador, and most were ice-free at the time of the survey with the exception of larger lakes and lakes at higher elevations some of which we still covered in patchy “black� (i.e., thin) ice. Western Labrador was drier but wetlands we still overall in good condition. Smoke from several wildfires that sprung up in western Labrador during the survey, combined with extensive smoke from fires farther west in Canada, restricted visibility for several days but did not delay the survey. Overall, we expect normal to above normal waterfowl production across most of the crew area given the combination of a normal to early spring phenology, generally good wetland conditions, and lack of severe spring weather.
