Predators Take Ducks Waterfowl Conservation

Scientists at Delta Waterfowl Foundation think they have proved that the proliferation of small predators throughout duck nesting ranges is a primary cause of declining waterfowl.

Near Cando, N.D., Delta researchers isolated two blocks of mostly private pothole lands of 16 square miles apiece. Approximately 300 predators removed - mostly fox, raccoon and skunk - were removed from one block of land, bringing it closer to predator population levels that existed before numbers exploded with changed farming practices.

The other’s predator population was left intact.

Ducks nesting in upland cover within the predator-controlled block had a 71 percent nesting success. Those in the untouched block had only 14 percent nest success.

Delta spokesman Lloyd Jones said low fur prices and reductions of larger predators such as wolves and coyotes have allowed small predators to move unscathed into areas where they never existed before.

“We have an imbalance of predators that are decimating both waterfowl and other bird populations in many areas of the prairies,” Jones said. “By reducing predator numbers during this critical nesting time, these results demonstrate the benefit to nesting birds.”