Québec Boréale Waterfowl Survey 1985-1989

The Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) Québec Boréale Waterfowl Survey used helicopters to annually survey breeding waterfowl over five years from 1985-1989 on 10x10 km (100 km²) plots located within the Chibougamau region of Québec, a boreal zone at the heart of the American Black Duck's breeding range. The goals of the QCBO100 were to assess the impact of new hunting restrictions for the American Black Duck and to act as a pilot survey to help establish a standardized helicopter-based breeding pair survey for the Black Duck Joint Venture (BDJV) across the American Black Duck’s range. Similar pilot surveys were carried out in Ontario, the Maritimes, and on the island of Newfoundland, using different survey protocols in terms of plot size, selection, and survey frequency, providing an opportunity to compare result quality and cost. For further details and comparisons among these pilot surveys, see Ross et al. (2017).

Complete bilingual metadata including detailed survey design, protocols and data dictionaries is available in downloadable files.

Ross, R.K., Bateman, M.C. and Bordage, D. 2017. Experimental Helicopter-based Waterfowl Breeding Pair Surveys in Eastern Canada,1985–1989. Pages 83 – 94 in Bordage, D., Bateman, M.C., Ross, R.K. and Lepage, C. (editors). Helicopter-based waterfowl breeding pair survey in eastern Canada and related studies. Black Duck Joint Venture Special Publication. 236 pp.