Water leve1 f luctuation is probably the most significant environmental factor influencing waterfowl production. The three basic tife processes of waterfowl in Canada, breeding, moulting and staging, are all affected by water level changes in the long and short term. The impact of water leve1 flucEuations on breeding success is the most. importanE way in which waterfowl production is influenced. ltabitat suitability for waterfowl tends to reflect long-term water level flucruations while habitat utilization can be affected in the short term by seasonal and annual changes in wat.er level. The importance of magnitude, direction, raEe and tirning of water leve1 fluctuations in determining waterfowl breeding success is discussed. Although waLerfowl have developed a number of adaptations to cope with water level fluctuations, Lhese responses are normally not completely effective and result in some degree of decreased production. Although having a number of negative impacts on waterfowl production, water level fluctuation is essential for the Iong-term maintenance of wetland productivity. RESUME: La fluctuation du niveau de lreau est probablernent 1e facteur 6cologique ayant ltinfluence la plus significative sur la production de 1a sauvagine. Les trois fonctions de base dans la vie des oiseaux aquatiques au Canada, la reproduction, 1a mue et la migration sont toutes affect6es par les changements de niveau de lreau d long et 5 court terme. Lrimpact des fluctuations de niveau de lreau sur 1a r6ussite de la reproduction est lthis Paper was Presented to the Canadian Water Resources AssociaLion Conference on Water-Based Recreation Issues, Conflicts, Strategies, June 1982

The Choiseul 1995 project spent 6 months studying the Chiroptera of Choiseul, one of the least disturbed and most poorly known islands in the Solomons. Among the results were: the rediscovery of a member of the Megachiropteran genus Pteralopex, which had been thought possibly extinct; a new record of another endemic pteropodid with a limited distribution; and evidence of a decline in the ‘commonest’ member of the family in the archipelago. The threats, present and future, to these animals and the forests of the island are discussed. An overview of the status of Pteralopex spp. in the Solomons provides an insight into the need for conservation action in the country as a whole.

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