Minnesota's breeding mallard numbers, blue-winged teal numbers and total duck population are all up from last year, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Much of the overall increase was attributed to a late spring and the presence of migrating ring-necked ducks, the department said in a news release.
The breeding mallard population, estimated at 298,000, was up 23 percent over last year and was on par with the recent 10-year average, according to the news release. Blue-winged teal numbers (152,000) were up23 percent from last year but are still 32 percent below the long-term average.
The state's total breeding duck population was estimated at 740,000 this year, 51 percent higher than last year and 19 percent above the long-term average.
The combined populations of wood ducks, gadwalls, redheads and ring-necked ducks increased to 290,000, about65 percent above the long-term average. This was the third-highest total recorded for their combined populations. Much of the rise was because of the record high counts of ring-necked ducks, a common but very late-nesting species in northern Minnesota. Ring-necked duck numbers were up by more than 100,000 ducks from last year.
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Despite the increases, Minnesota remains well below the goal of an average breeding population of 1 million ducks, which is outlined in the state duck recovery plan.
This year's estimate of nesting Canada geese in the state is 277,000, similar to last year's estimate of 262,000. Canada goose numbers have averaged slightly more than 300,000 since the survey began.
