Continental duck numbers are similar to 2024 but down from long-term averages since 1955, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday, Sept. 2, in reporting results from its 2025 Waterfowl Population Status Report. The report includes results from surveys and population estimates conducted in May by the FWS, Canadian Wildlife Service and numerous state and provincial partners.

The estimate for total breeding ducks in the traditional survey area was 34 million, unchanged from last year, but 4% below the long-term average since 1955, the FWS said in the report. Mallards, at 6.6 million, were similar to 2024 and 17% below the long-term average.

“Waterfowl again demonstrated their adaptability to changing water conditions despite overall dry conditions in 2024, as late-nesting species capitalized on spring rains in the prairies and those that settled in the Boreal (forest) held their own,” Steve Adair, Ducks Unlimited chief scientist, said in a statement. “These flexible breeding strategies and use of continental habitat resources in 2024 appear to have contributed to decent production last year, which carried over to a similar breeding population this spring.”

Pintails were estimated at 2.2 million, 13% above 2024, but 41% below the long-term average. As a result of a change in federal harvest models, hunters in all four flyways — Pacific, Central, Mississippi and Atlantic — are expected to have a three-pintail daily bag limit option for next year’s 2026-2027 season, based on this year’s breeding population results.

Cause for concern

The survey results released Sept. 2 also reflected generally dry spring breeding conditions. According to the FWS, the 2025 May pond estimate was 4.2 million, a 19% decrease from the 2024 estimate of 5.2 million and 20% below the long-term average.

That’s cause for concern, Delta Waterfowl said in a news release.

“Duck production is not likely to be good this year,” Frank Rohwer, president and chief scientist of Delta Waterfowl, said in a statement. “When you look at the wetland conditions maps from May, they show it was very dry everywhere across the Prairie Pothole Region except eastern South Dakota. The best hunting seasons occur in wet years when the fall flight has more young ducks in the migration.”

Spring wetland conditions in North Dakota also were poor before “nourishing rains” in May, the Game and Fish Department reported in June. That likely caused early migrating species such as mallards and pintails to pass through North Dakota in search of better water conditions farther north. North Dakota’s breeding duck index, at about 2.66 million, was down from 2.9 million in 2024 and 3.4 million in 2023, Game and Fish said.

In Minnesota, the Department of Natural Resources in August reported that total breeding ducks (excluding scaup), at 417,000, were up 8% from 2024 but 32% below the long-term average. The DNR estimated blue-winged teal numbers at 64,000, down 60% from 2024 and 69% below the long-term average. The decline likely results from dry conditions and fewer of the small, temporary wetlands that blue-winged teal prefer for breeding, the DNR said.

Duck production across the prairies is likely to be fair to poor, despite May rains, Delta Waterfowl predicts.

“The May rains likely helped support a moderate number of nesting ducks,” Mike Buxton, waterfowl programs director for Delta Waterfowl, said in a statement. “However, much of the precipitation in North Dakota and Saskatchewan arrived too late, and the gains were short-lived as heat, wind and a lack of more rain dried up wetlands in June. Localized areas of Alberta received rain in June, and they stood out as rare bright spots.”

The prairies now have faced several consecutive years of drought, among the longest stretches in recent memory, Ducks Unlimited said.

“Although May rains provided some relief to extremely dry winter conditions, the cumulative effects of widespread and long-term drought in the prairies are apparent, as parched soils soak up available moisture and more and more wetlands continue to dry out,” DU’s Adair said. “There are long-term benefits of recycling nutrients and exposure of seed banks, but droughts are painful when they’re happening.”

Other highlights

Ducks Unlimited also highlighted several key takeaways from the survey:

— According to the companion Adaptive Harvest Management (AHM) report, the FWS is expected to recommend liberal frameworks for the 2026-2027 duck season across all four flyways.

— Blue-winged teal estimates in the traditional survey area were 4.4 million, a 4% decrease from 2024, which is expected to keep hunters in the Central, Mississippi and Atlantic flyways at a nine-day early teal season for 2026–2027.

— The Boreal Forest and other northern survey areas saw generally drier, but variable, habitat conditions. An early spring coupled with prairie drought resulted in another year of an above-average number of breeding ducks settling in the Boreal.

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— Canvasbacks (up 22%) and redheads (up 17%) saw notable increases from 2024.

— Duck populations in the eastern survey area remained healthy, reflecting overall stable wetland conditions. Atlantic Flyway hunters are expected to have another four-mallard daily bag limit for the 2026-2027 season.

The Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey and the Waterfowl Status Report are the result of a collaborative effort conducted annually by the FWS, Canadian Wildlife Service and the Atlantic, Mississippi, Central and Pacific flyway councils.

Twin Cities Walk for Water will hold its 10th annual event Sept. 20 at Upper Landing Park in St. Paul, rallying community members to raise awareness and funds for clean water around the world.

Water Mission, the Christian nonprofit organization behind the event, builds sustainable safe water and sanitation solutions for people in developing countries and disaster areas. Since 2001, the organization has served more than 8 million people across 60 countries, according to Water Mission. Approximately 2.2 billion people are impacted by the worldwide water crisis, according to global health data. Many rely on contaminated sources and face barriers to maintaining sustainable water systems due to limited infrastructure and technical support.

Participants in the Twin Cities Walk for Water will trek 1.5 miles with an empty bucket, fill it with untreated water from the Mississippi River and then carry it back, completing a three-mile walk to represent the daily journey millions make to collect unsafe water, according to organizers.

“It’s relatively a small thing to do but has such a huge impact in bringing clean water to people. So we ask everyone to do their small part to really help in this bigger cause,” said Aubrey Mozer, community relations manager for GF Building Flow Solutions, which partners with Water Mission to supply water system components through its Uponor subsidiary.

Mozer said the walk helps raise awareness while allowing GF to contribute directly to Water Mission’s efforts to bring clean water to communities in need.

“Water is a resource that connects us all globally, and we want to make sure here in the ‘Land of 10,000 Lakes’ that we are being some of the best water stewards that we have and not taking that for granted,” Mozer said.

Mozer encourages people to join with teams or family members and engage in friendly competition to support efforts to address the global water crisis. This year’s event aims to raise $200,000 to fund Water Mission’s clean water projects in Kenya.

Presenting sponsors for the event include GF, PaceLabs and the Vanderboom family.

Mozer said those unable to attend in person can participate virtually by walking in their own neighborhoods and donating online.

Twin Cities Walk for Water

When: 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 20. Kickoff begins at 9 a.m. and check-in begins at 8 a.m.

Where: Upper Landing Park, 226 Spring St., St. Paul

Info/registration: Walkers are encouraged to preregister at walkforwater.rallybound.org.

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Today is Saturday, Sept. 6, the 249th day of 2025. There are 116 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Sept. 6, 1901, President William McKinley was shot and mortally wounded by anarchist Leon Czolgosz (CHAWL’-gawsh) at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. (McKinley died eight days later and was succeeded by his vice president, Theodore Roosevelt.)

Also on this date:

In 1949, Howard Unruh, a resident of Camden, New Jersey, shot and killed 13 of his neighbors. (Unruh, who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, was incarcerated for 60 years until his death in 2009.)

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In 1972, the Summer Olympics resumed in Munich, West Germany, a day after the deadly hostage crisis that left eleven Israelis, five Arab abductors and a West German police officer dead.

In 1975, 18-year-old tennis star Martina Navratilova of Czechoslovakia, in New York for the U.S. Open, requested political asylum in the United States.

In 1995, Baltimore Oriole Cal Ripken Jr. played in his 2,131st consecutive game, breaking Lou Gehrig’s 56 year-old MLB record; Ripken’s streak would ultimately reach a still-record 2,632 games.

In 1997, a public funeral was held for Princess Diana at Westminster Abbey in London, six days after her death in a car crash in Paris.

In 2006, President George W. Bush acknowledged for the first time that the CIA was running secret prisons overseas and said “tough” interrogation techniques had forced terrorist leaders to reveal plots to attack the United States and its allies.

In 2018, the Supreme Court of India decriminalized consensual sex between adults, legalizing homosexuality in the country.

In 2022, Liz Truss began her tenure as U.K. prime minister; she would resign just 49 days later.

Today’s Birthdays:

Comedian JoAnne Worley is 88.
Cartoonist Sergio Aragonés is 88.
Country singer-songwriter David Allan Coe is 86.
Rock singer-musician Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) is 82.
Comedian-actor Jane Curtin is 78.
Actor-comedian Jeff Foxworthy is 67.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is 63.
Television journalist Elizabeth Vargas is 63.
Country singer-songwriter Mark Chesnutt is 62.
Actor Rosie Perez is 61.
R&B singer Macy Gray is 58.
Actor Idris Elba is 53.
Actor Justina Machado is 53.
Actor Anika Noni Rose is 53.
Actor Naomie Harris is 49.
Rapper Foxy Brown is 47.
Actor/singer Deborah Joy Winans is 42.
Actor-comedian Lauren Lapkus is 40.
Actor Asher Angel is 23.

Authorities say a man was fatally stabbed Thursday night when he tried to rescue his girlfriend’s mother, who police believe was being held captive by her estranged husband in a Maplewood apartment. The man allegedly had strangled his wife, repeatedly punched her in the head and forced her to walk around naked.

The woman’s husband, Lloyd Matthew McKenzie, 52, has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder and one count of second-degree assault, according to the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office.

The Friday criminal complaint gave the following details:

On Thursday night, a woman went to check on her mother after not hearing from her for a few days. Shortly before 6 p.m., she arrived at her mother’s apartment in the 1900 block of East County Road D in Maplewood with her 33-year-old boyfriend and a cousin.

Her father answered the door. When he did, her mother said, “Thank you, God.”

The father tried to close the door but the cousin had jammed a foot in the doorway to prevent the door from closing. Then the father allegedly stabbed his daughter’s boyfriend with a serrated steak knife and allegedly tried to stab the cousin.

The complaint said the mother yelled for help and asked the three to not let her husband lock her in the apartment again. However, he was still able to close the door.

Police arrived and kicked in the door, arresting McKenzie when he came out of a bedroom. The mother thanked officers and ran from the apartment, distraught and inconsolable.

Officers found the daughter’s boyfriend in the fetal position on the floor across from the apartment with stab wounds to his chest and abdomen. He died in surgery early Friday at Regions Hospital in St. Paul.

The mother told investigators that she and McKenzie were not together as a couple and that he had come from out of state and broken into her apartment and was living there. He held her inside for three days while he was allegedly using crack cocaine, she said.

She was allowed to leave to go to the store, but McKenzie had taken her car keys and cellphones. He followed her around the apartment, she said, and forced her to remain naked. At times he would punch her in the head or threaten her with a screwdriver, she alleged.

On Tuesday, he strangled her, she told police. She said she tried to appease him and show him affection to keep him from hurting her further.

When her daughter and the others arrived on Thursday night, McKenzie ordered her to put clothes on and then opened the door and stabbed her daughter’s boyfriend, she said. She ran and hid in a bedroom and tried to block the door with a chest freezer, but he forced his way in and stood over her with a knife, she said.

She agreed to tell police that the boyfriend had a gun and that McKenzie had only acted in self-defense when he stabbed the man. The mother told police she only said this so he wouldn’t hurt her further. She told investigators the knife was under the mattress in her bedroom.

After he was read his Miranda rights, McKenzie agreed to speak with police. He said he and his wife had been on a marijuana and crack binge for a few days and that he had wanted to stop but she hadn’t. Then he said that his daughter, her boyfriend and her cousin came and demanded the mother leave with them.

He told police that he told them, “She’s not going with you.”

He said that the boyfriend pointed a gun at him and pulled the trigger, but the gun didn’t fire. He said he tried to defend himself and that the boyfriend was injured in the scuffle. When asked to elaborate on the scuffle, he did not answer.

When asked if he stabbed the boyfriend, McKenzie said he wouldn’t answer without a lawyer.

After obtaining a search warrant, officers retrieved the knife with blood on it under the mattress.

The criminal complaint said that McKenzie has 14 prior felony convictions, including assault, burglary and robbery.

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