Ducks Staying In Canada

W

Worth Mathewson

Active member
I am interested to learn what is known from members of this site about ducks staying in Canada for the winter, or most of it. Marge and I are back from two weeks in Alberta and an outfitter told me he thought at least 40,000 mallards stayed in the Lethbridge region all last winter. And while we had our house in Lucky Lake, Sask., a farmer told me several times that the best mallard shooting took place in December.
I am really starting to wonder if ducks are starting to winter over in Canada to a large degree. Birds that we never see, in other words. I am sure many have heard that black brant are starting to winter at Izembek. The first number I heard about was 2,000. While the last number I heard might or might not be true, I was told the wintering brant had increased to 20,000. If that is fact, it amounts to a large number of the total population.
I mentioned this possible trend to a fellow with DELTA. He is now planning to contact individuals in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba this coming December/January about ducks still there. What he finds out should prove interesting. At least here in western Oregon, in the years with high breeding counts (like this year) we sure don't see the numbers. They have got to be somewhere. Anyone have more on this subject? Thanks, Worth Mathewson
 
Worth,

Yours is an interesting post and the question is a good one.

I live in Calgary and I will comment that last winter was exceptionally mild. While the lakes were frozen the bigger rivers always have some open water and they are full of ducks. There were several large flocks of mallards and thousands of geese that stayed in the Calgary area all winter. Lethbridge is warmer still and I wouldn't be surprised to hear about large numbers wintering there, however, I don't think this is new.

The following quote is taken from the IBA website. http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/sitefactsheet.php?id=11029

"Also, globally significant are the 50,000 waterfowl (ducks) that stage regularly in fall at the three main lakes. Two of the lakes (Eagle and Namaka) often stay ice-free longer than other lakes in the area due to their depths, and occasionally harbour large numbers of waterfowl through late fall and early winter. An amazing 300,000 or more Mallards were seen on Eagle Lake until January, 1970; the lake froze up around January 8, forcing the ducks to migrate south. In the atypical winter of 1987/88, 50,000 Mallards did manage to over-winter on Lake Namaka, and were attended by 40 or so Bald Eagles."
 
Worth,

Yours is an interesting post and the question is a good one.

I live in Calgary and I will comment that last winter was exceptionally mild. While the lakes were frozen the bigger rivers always have some open water and they are full of ducks. There were several large flocks of mallards and thousands of geese that stayed in the Calgary area all winter. Lethbridge is warmer still and I wouldn't be surprised to hear about large numbers wintering there, however, I don't think this is new.

The following quote is taken from the IBA website. http://www.birdlife.org/...ctsheet.php?id=11029

"Also, globally significant are the 50,000 waterfowl (ducks) that stage regularly in fall at the three main lakes. Two of the lakes (Eagle and Namaka) often stay ice-free longer than other lakes in the area due to their depths, and occasionally harbour large numbers of waterfowl through late fall and early winter. An amazing 300,000 or more Mallards were seen on Eagle Lake until January, 1970; the lake froze up around January 8, forcing the ducks to migrate south. In the atypical winter of 1987/88, 50,000 Mallards did manage to over-winter on Lake Namaka, and were attended by 40 or so Bald Eagles."
Click to expand...
I'm not quite in Canada, but there are always buttloads of mallards and divers on every opening on any given river or hotspring, especially the mighty miss.


PW
 
Worth,
I was doing some scouting for an outfitter in mid latitude alberta and he had another guy that was an outfitter from Calgary. The guy from Calgary was spotting because he said he starts hunting in November. He told me that once the snow hits he has 10k bird feeds throughout the winter near the rivers.
 
Mild winter and open water I would think they would stay. Once it freezes I don't see how they can subsist.


Joe
 
I just got back from a week in North Dakota last night. While I shot limits easily, I am sure they were all local ducks, as the skies were virtually empty. Rich
 
Similarly in northern Montana, if enough water remains open below the many dams on the Missouri and its tribs, and snow cover on the grain stubble is shallow in depth or absent, we will have pretty sizable mallard and honker populations thru the winter. But that's about it, very little else sticks around aside from those two and goldeneyes.
 
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