Drought Hits US Duck Populations - Down 11% From 2003

[hatrack]

WASHINGTON - "The duck population in the United States and Canada dropped 11 percent from a year ago as drought dried up breeding grounds, said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Canadian Wildlife Service yesterday.

This year's duck population of 32.2 million birds was 11 percent less than the 36.2 million birds tallied a year ago.
While more rain has fallen since duck populations were measured in May, a shortage of winter precipitation and limited runoff into ponds and basins dried up areas commonly used for breeding. "This is a definite plus for the fall flight but, unfortunately, not as beneficial for ducks as moisture that arrives earlier in the year," said Bruce Batt, chief biologist with Ducks Unlimited.

The survey found breeding had dropped by 7 percent in Montana and the western Dakotas while breeding rose 3 percent in the eastern Dakotas."

EDIT

[treepig]

1. more politically motivated pseudo-science from a gov't agency

think every one knows that the decline in duck populations is really entirely due to the cheney-scalia hunting trips.