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As the name suggests, population surveys are used primarily to track the status of waterfowl populations—the number of individuals of a certain species in a certain place at a certain time; however, habitat and other data may also be collected. Because population surveys focus on the number of birds, they tend to be of great interest to hunters preparing for the upcoming seasons.

The Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey is the most extensive and most important of North America's waterfowl population surveys. This survey is a cooperative effort of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Canadian Wildlife Service, and state, provincial, and tribal agencies. It currently covers more than 2.1 million square miles of the northern United States and Canada, and includes most of the primary duck nesting areas in North America.

The 2008 Status of Waterfowl report shows that the total duck population was 37.3 million birds, 9 percent lower than the 2007 estimate but 11 percent above the 1955-2007 average.

The Midwinter Ground Surveys and the Mexican Waterfowl Survey provide population indices for most species of ducks and geese on wintering areas throughout the United States and Mexico.

Some population surveys – the Migratory Surveys -- are conducted during the spring and autumn migrations, where a pilot-biologist and observer count birds along established transect lines.