Virginia Duck Migration Report 2026

Duck observations in Virginia usually climb from the week of Nov 2 and reach their fall high around the week of Nov 9, and the share stays that high into January; they stay above the halfway mark between their July level and that high through the week of Apr 6. That is from ten years of research grade iNaturalist observations, 2016 to 2025, counted as a share of all bird observations so the growth of the app does not skew it.

The nearest published count on the Atlantic Flyway is the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge Ground Waterfowl Survey in Maryland, run by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, counted on March 19, 2026 (469 ducks, 62 mallards). In Virginia itself, this week's iNaturalist observations are the running record.

In Virginia, blue-winged teal climb first, from around the week of Aug 24, and greater scaup come last, from around the week of Dec 14. That is the week each species' share of bird observations first passes the halfway mark between its July level and its fall high; the species chart shows all of them week by week.

Virginia is in the Atlantic Flyway. The eastern seaboard corridor, Maine to Florida, inland to West Virginia. The freeze watch for Virginia reads forecast lows at the Atlantic Flyway's northern staging areas: Presque Isle, Lake Champlain at Burlington, Watertown.

The 2026 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service breeding survey estimated 33.4 ± 0.6 million birds, 6% below the long-term average of 35.4 ± 0.09 million. That is the fall flight's starting point for every state, Virginia included.

Season dates, zones and bag limits for Virginia are set by the state wildlife agency inside the federal frameworks and are listed on the Virginia waterfowl season page, linked below.