2%

Decline since last year in breeding duck populations in the traditional survey areas of Canada and the U.S. Released in September, the 2026 Waterfowl Population Status Report recorded 33.44 million ducks, which also represents a six per cent drop below the long-term average.

4.5 million

Hectares burned by wildfires across Canada this year as of September, the first time more than 4 million hectares have burned in four straight years. While far below the record 17.6million hectares burned in 2023, 2026 is on track to rank as the fourth worst wildfire season in Canadian history.

2,072

Alberta’s estimated wild horse population on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, according to the province’s latest aerial survey, released in April. While government biologists contend the population is “not ecologically sustainable,” horse advocates argue the numbers are actually far lower and of no threat to the environment.

2,473,661

Holders of Possession and Acquisition Licences in Canada last year, according to the latest Commissioner of Firearms Report, released in June. That’s up 48,034 over 2024, a jump attributed to several factors, including

growing interest in the shooting sports, a newly streamlined application process, and the fear of tighter gun controls to come.

20%

Decline over last year in Lake Erie’s yellow perch numbers, a drop the Ontario Commercial Fisheries Association largely attributes to predation by the lake’s burgeoning walleye population. Cormorants may also be driving down the numbers, association officials contend.