Harlequin Duck Closed in Washington State for the 2022-2023 Duck Hunting Season

The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife (WDFW) recently published the 2022-2023 Washington Game Bird and Small Game Hunting Regulations, and with it came a few changes. The Harlequin duck has been closed to harvest statewide for the 2022-2023 duck hunting season. This change is due to decreasing populations, which have dipped below the three-year average for harvest rates above the annual 5 percent adult population threshold.

WDFW has been closely monitoring and improving survey methods for sea duck populations since the early 1990s. Since then, long-term declines and limited numbers of Harlequins has been observed, along with the adoption of more conservative hunting regulations, including a bag limit of one Harlequin per season since 2004. This continued population decline is due to several contributing factors including human disturbance, loss of habitat, pollution, and reduced food source availability.

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