The North American approach to waterfowl management: synergy of hunting and habitat conservation

Abstract

Hunters have been central to waterfowl management in North America over the past century. Numerous partnerships among government agencies, non-government organizations and private individuals form the core of conservation endeavours for migratory ducks, geese and swans and their diverse habitats. As a consequence of these efforts and the resilience of waterfowl populations, these species have fared better than most guilds of migratory birds. Threats to remaining habitats and the waning connections of people to wild things and wild places comprise the most serious challenges to sustaining this system.

Keywords:

• North American Waterfowl Management
• Hunting
• Conservation

Acknowledgements

We thank Shane Mahoney for the invitation to contribute to this monograph and Pat Kehoe for early work in outlining the article. Jim Dubovsky, Bob Blohm, Kathy Dickson, Jim Leafloor, Pat Kehoe, Jackie Weir and Seth Mott provided helpful reviews of parts or all of the manuscript. Mark Petrie and Dale Humburg allowed us to reference unpublished data, and Mike Johnson, Bill Jensen, Kammie Kruse and the US FWS granted permission to use unpublished graphical materials from websites.