Photo by Joe Evenson
Over-harvest & scoter populations
Over the last 25 years, scoter populations have dropped by 50%, representing the largest loss of marine birds in Puget Sound. In 2006, we funded a study to see if continued hunting was impacting the population. This study showed that in at least four Washington counties, hunting was not sustainable.
Knowing this, scoter hunting limits were cut in half and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife developed a safety net that says if populations drop below 55,000 birds, all hunting will cease. This scientifically-based decision leaves birds to hunt, (remember that hunting generates about 6,800 jobs in Washington annually), while protecting the long-term health of the population by keeping people from taking too many birds.