Hydrological processes are crucial factors affecting the suitability and areas of waterbird habitats in floodplain wetlands. Currently, extreme hydrological events triggered by global warming have become more frequent. For example, Lake Poyang experienced extreme flooding in 2020 and extreme drought in 2022, and a winter flood in 2015. So far impacts of extreme hydrological events on wintering habitat area of waterbirds in Lake Poyang remain unclear. This study extracted data on the wintering waterbird habitats in Lake Poyang from satellite imagery between 2013 and 2023 for the period from September to February of the following year. By comparing the spatial and temporal changes in waterbird wintering habitats between extreme hydrological event years with normal hydrological years, the study explores the impact of extreme hydrological events on wintering waterbird habitats area at Lake Poyang. The findings are: 1) The area loss of wintering habitats for waterbirds in Lake Poyang caused by extreme flooding in summer (EFS), extreme drought in late summer and autumn (EDSA), and winter flooding (WF) reached as high as 67.62%, 29.83% and 18.18%, respectively; 2) EFS and EDSA led to a significant reduction in the area of waterbird wintering habitats from September to November, but they did not reduce the habitat area during the critical wintering period (winter). Although the intensity of WF was not as severe as that of EFS and EDSA, WF resulted in an average habitat area loss of 14.31% during the critical wintering period; 3) There were significant spatiotemporal differences in the impact of extreme hydrological events on the waterbirds' wintering habitats in Lake Poyang, which were related to the extreme hydrological process and the lake's elevation. The study is valuable for the management and waterbird conservation of Lake Poyang and similar floodplain wetlands.