Meeting facilitators Barry Wilson (left) of the Gulf Coast Joint and Bill Uihlein, III (right) of the Lower Mississippi Valley Joint Venture take part in the Wintering Waterfowl Habitat Workshop. USFWS photo by Greg Soulliere.

Scientists from primary waterfowl wintering areas recently met in Davis, California, to discuss performance measures for habitat conservation.  One might ask why “Upper Miss” Joint Venture staff would join biologists from the Lower Mississippi River Valley, Gulf Coast, and Central Valley of California to discuss non-breeding waterfowl habitat.  Well, during development of the Upper Miss JV Waterfowl Habitat Strategy, the north half of the Mississippi Flyway was recognized for its importance to wintering waterfowl.  Species of concern like scaup, mallard, and canvasback increasingly winter in Region 3, with 9 percent, 16 percent, and 30 percent of the population, respectively, counted here during recent Mid-winter Inventories.  The MWI, conducted annually across the United States each January, also recorded in Region 3 over 20 percent of the common goldeneyes and long-tailed ducks, and nearly 30 percent of the mergansers during 2006 and 2007.  With significantly less ice cover on Midwestern lakes and rivers, the regional population trend for many wintering species is upward over the last 30 years.

During the process of completing the 2007 Upper Miss JV Implementation Plan, many information gaps and uncertainties in bird conservation were uncovered.  One of these was how to measure JV partner performance during the non-breeding period.  This has been a challenge for all wintering JVs, and after much discussion a workshop was proposed.  To better prepare for the meeting, participants identified a clear goal:  Explore evaluation options needed to determine whether habitat conservation on wintering areas is working – are ducks surviving the winter and returning to breeding areas in good condition.  The small collection of folks who tackled this question consisted largely of JV staff members from the south and west.  Professors from two universities plus one retired USGS scientist were also instrumental in the discussion.  All participants had some expertise in waterfowl habitat needs, behavior of non-breeding waterfowl, scientific research design, or the social and ecological challenges associated with key wintering habitats.