A Different Tack on Buffies: does anyone know...

L

Larry Eckart

Well-known member
Guys,
My thread below had to do with my decision to not hunt this last week in SC and give the buffies some peace till next year.

I got to thinking that I have never seen any surveys of the Bufflehead population. It seems like there are lots of buffies. It seems like there will always be lots of buffies.

But we said the same thing about bluebills in the 70's. John Cartier said in "Modern Waterfowling," "He (bluebills) always holds his own because his breeding grounds are in the permanent water areas of northern Canada and Alaska. There will always be plenty of bluebill to bag.." (p. 149)

Now we know Cartier was wrong.

Where are we in the trends of the Bufflehead population? How many are there? Is the current population more or less than twenty years ago? Is the current population trending up, remaining steady or trending down?

Does anyone have a clue?

It matters not only because buffies are a significant part of the bag in many areas.

It matters because they are just plain cool, small birds. Not especially smart, but but then neither are we, truth be told.

Anyone know of any research?

Larry
 
Don't know anything science-based about bufflehead, but here in Rhode Island, they seemed to me to be the only abundant waterfowl this season.
 
Seaduckjv.org indicates a population estimate of 1.5 million and the overall population has steadily increased since the 1950s.
 
From the Canadian Waterfowl Websites:
http://www.ec.gc.ca/rcom-mbhr/default.asp?lang=En&n=4BC9CF8D-1#_fig22

Sea Duck Joint Venture Buffy Fact Sheet:

http://seaduckjv.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/buff_sppfactsheet.pdf


Population Size and Status[font=Century Schoolbook,Century Schoolbook][font=Century Schoolbook,Century Schoolbook][font=Century Schoolbook,Century Schoolbook]
The continental population of bufflehead is roughly estimated at about 1.4 million. Most survey data show that their numbers have increased markedly since the mid-1950s. Little is known about trends for the large population that breeds in British Columbia and winters along the Pacific coast. [/font][/font][/font]

Another neat link:
http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/112/overview/Bufflehead.aspx
 
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