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Wisconsin Waterfowl Association

By Matt Porter, Education Committee

This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s October, 2022 Newsletter edition.

Have you ever walked into your hotspot only to find a mud flat where there had been three feet of water the year before? Undisputedly, drought has the largest influence to disrupt, or even cancel, a waterfowler’s hunting season. It directly impacts waterfowl recruitment, retention and migration. Many states in 2021 pushed and even broke drought records. Waterfowlers across the nation couldn’t rely on their typical honey holes to produce like years past. Some hunters even had to leave their waders hung up for the season. If you’re curious about the condition of your local hunting spots, but haven’t had the time to get out and scout this summer, we’ll break down 2021 vs 2022 drought conditions for Wisconsin in the paragraphs below to help you out this season.

With the help of data made available online through U.S. Drought Monitor, hunters can select down to their state’s county level to view the current drought conditions. This data is collected through a partnership between the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

LAST YEAR: DROUGHT CONDITIONS DOMINATED. For 2021, 38 % of Wisconsin was experiencing some level of drought during the last week of September. The levels of drought range from abnormally dry, to moderate drought, to severe drought, to extreme drought, and lastly, exceptional drought. Counties below will be listed by the greatest level of drought they were experiencing during that time.

  • Northwest Counties
    • Abnormally Dry: Washburn, Barron, Saint Croix
    • Moderate Drought: Douglas, Burnett, Polk, Pierce
    • Severe Drought: Bayfield, Ashland, Iron
  • Northeast Counties
    • No impact in 2021
  • Southwest Counties
    • Abnormally Dry: Richland, Sauk, Iowa
    • Moderate Drought: Columbia, Dane
    • Severe Drought: Grant, Lafayette, Green
  • Southeast Counties
    • Moderate Drought: Dodge, Washington, Milwaukee
    • Severe Drought: Waukesha, Jefferson, Rock
    • Extreme Drought: Racine, Kenosha, Walworth

THIS YEAR: DROUGHT CONDITIONS EASE. For 2022, currently 28 % of Wisconsin counties are experiencing some level of drought. Even with this being only a 10% difference, the severity of the drought across the state this year is less significant. Counties below will be listed by the greatest level of drought they were experiencing as of September 6th, 2022.

  • Northwest Counties
    • Abnormally Dry: Iron, Price, Sawyer, Barron, Chippewa, Eau Claire, Trempealeau, Jackson
    • Moderate Drought: Douglas, Bayfield, Ashland, Polk, Saint Croix, Pierce, Dunn, Pepin, Buffalo
  • Northeast Counties
    • No impact in 2022
  • Southwest Counties
    • No impact in 2022
  • Southeast Counties
    • Abnormally Dry: Jefferson, Waukesha, Rock, Walworth, Racine

Hunters this year in the Northwest and Northeast will see similar conditions to last year. The largest changes in drought condition for the 2022 season will be felt by hunters in the Southwest and Southeast portions of the state. Hunting conditions this year should be greatly improved compared to 2021. Stay safe and happy hunting this season from the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s Education Committee!