DU private lands programs on migration and winter areas occur only in high priority regions that historically were known to have provided significant habitat to migrating and wintering waterfowl. Without exception, these landscapes have had their ability to support desired NAWMP population levels dramatically reduced by land use changes and/or alterations to hydrology. Examples of wetland loss and alterations are provided above.

Consequently, DU has developed private lands conservation programs that do the following: (1) provide technical assistance to landowners in regard to managing habitat for migrating and wintering waterfowl; (2) provide water control structures to landowners that they must transport, install, and manage per the terms of a 10 or 15-year management agreement; (3) in coastal Texas, where the climate is more arid and flooded habitat can be very scarce, DU and its partners will reimburse landowners a portion of restoration costs, IF and ONLY IF, the landowner agrees to pump water on at least 50% of the project area annually at his expense.

These programs occur in the MAV as it is described above, the Red River Valley of Louisiana and Arkansas, in eastern Texas, and in South Louisiana and coastal Texas (Gulf Coast). Presently, no other landscape scale programs are being delivered that would be considered migration and winter habitat. Many private lands efforts geared toward conservation of breeding habitat occur in areas of Canada and the U.S. prairie and Great Lakes regions of the U.S. that are not discussed herein. During the winter of 2001-2002, these areas of breeding habitat wintered substantial numbers of birds due to historically mild weather conditions.