Wetland-dependent bird populations may be limited by habitat in regions where wetland loss and degradation are pervasive, such as the midwestern United States. However, available spatial datasets, such as the National Wetlands Inventory (NWI), may overestimate habitat availability if total wetland area includes wetlands unsuitable for wetland-dependent species. During 2016–2017, we assessed proportional coverages of wetland vegetation and inundation depth typically associated with suitable waterbird habitat relative to the NWI. We also modeled these data as a function of local and landscape characteristics during spring, summer, and autumn for three guilds of wetland-dependent, migratory birds. Suitable waterbird habitat conditions based on actual wetland characteristics measured comprised a small portion of the NWI. Shallowly inundated (<45 cm) emergent, aquatic bed, and forested wetlands suitable for foraging dabbling ducks comprised 29% of NWI area in Illinois during spring migration. Inundated emergent vegetation (Typha spp.) for migrating and breeding secretive marsh birds comprised 5% of NWI polygons during summer. Mudflats for migrating shorebirds comprised 6% and 4% of NWI polygons in summer and autumn, respectively. Wetlands with greater vegetation complexity and connectivity to other wetland types had the greatest suitable area across bird guilds and periods. These findings will inform conservation planners estimating waterbird habitat area and generating model-based habitat objectives using the NWI.

依赖湿地的鸟类数量可能会受到湿地丧失和退化普遍存在的地区（例如美国中西部）的栖息地的限制。但是，如果总湿地面积包括不适合依赖湿地物种的湿地，则可用的空间数据集（例如国家湿地清单（NWI））可能会高估栖息地的可用性。在2016–2017年期间，我们评估了相对于NWI的湿地植被和淹没深度的比例覆盖率，通常与合适的水鸟栖息地相关。我们还对依赖于湿地的候鸟的三个行会在春季，夏季和秋季将这些数据建模为局部和景观特征的函数。基于实际湿地特征测得的合适水鸟栖息地条件仅占NWI的一小部分。浅水淹没（< 在春季迁徙期间，适合于觅食野鸭的45厘米（厘米）的突生水生床和森林湿地占伊利诺伊州NWI面积的29％。淹没的紧急植被（香蒲属（Typha spp。），用于在夏季移徙和繁殖隐秘的沼泽鸟类，其中5％的NWI多边形。在夏季和秋季，用于迁徙水鸟的泥滩占NWI多边形的6％和4％。植被复杂度较高且与其他湿地类型具有连通性的湿地在鸟类协会和鸟类时期最合适。这些发现将为保护规划人员提供信息，以估计水鸟栖息地面积并使用NWI生成基于模型的栖息地目标。