Monitoring Waterfowl in the Midwest during the Non-breeding Period: Challenges, Priorities, and Recommendations

Soulliere, Gregory J.; Loges, Brian W.; Dunton, E. M.; Luukkonen, David R.; Eichholz, Michael W.; Koch, Michael E.

doi:10.3996/062012-jfwm-054

Cited by 14 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 4 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is the most numerous species among ducks migrating through the Mississippi Flyway and considered a priority in the development of wetland management plans and hunting regulations [34,35], with an average of 2.8 million individuals each year wintering in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley alone [36]. Consequently, the timing and drivers of mallards' migratory movements into and through the flyway are of great interest for the development of accurate population models for conservation planning in the region [16,37,38]. In this study we investigated the autumn migration movements of satellite-tagged mallards within the Mississippi Flyway.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental drivers of autumn migration departure decisions in midcontinental mallards

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background The timing of autumn migration in ducks is influenced by a range of environmental conditions that may elicit individual experiences and responses from individual birds, yet most studies have investigated relationships at the population level. We used data from individual satellite-tracked mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) to model the timing and environmental drivers of autumn migration movements at a continental scale. Methods We combined two sets of location records (2004–2007 and 2010–2011) from satellite-tracked mallards during autumn migration in the Mississippi Flyway, and identified records that indicated the start of long-range (≥ 30 km) southward movements during the migration period. We modeled selection of departure date by individual mallards using a discrete choice model accounting for heterogeneity in individual preferences. We developed candidate models to predict the departure date, conditional on daily mean environmental covariates (i.e. temperature, snow and ice cover, wind conditions, precipitation, cloud cover, and pressure) at a 32 × 32 km resolution. We ranked model performance with the Bayesian Information Criterion. Results Departure was best predicted (60% accuracy) by a “winter conditions” model containing temperature, and depth and duration of snow cover. Models conditional on wind speed, precipitation, pressure variation, and cloud cover received lower support. Number of days of snow cover, recently experienced snow cover (snow days) and current snow cover had the strongest positive effect on departure likelihood, followed by number of experienced days of freezing temperature (frost days) and current low temperature. Distributions of dominant drivers and of correct vs incorrect prediction along the movement tracks indicate that these responses applied throughout the latitudinal range of migration. Among recorded departures, most were driven by snow days (65%) followed by current temperature (30%). Conclusions Our results indicate that among the tested environmental parameters, the dominant environmental driver of departure decision in autumn-migrating mallards was the onset of snow conditions, and secondarily the onset of temperatures close to, or below, the freezing point. Mallards are likely to relocate southwards quickly when faced with snowy conditions, and could use declining temperatures as a more graduated early cue for departure. Our findings provide further insights into the functional response of mallards to weather factors during the migration period that ultimately determine seasonal distributions.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental drivers of autumn migration departure decisions in midcontinental mallards

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…We implemented a grid‐based, stratified‐sampling approach within the Wabash River region of southeastern Illinois and southwestern Indiana, USA. Robust estimates of waterfowl abundance during the nonbreeding season were lacking in this region, but considered a priority by natural resource managers (Illinois Department of Natural Resources , Soulliere et al ). We used both aerial and ground‐based surveys multiple times per week to estimate waterfowl abundance and compare our grid‐based approach with the traditional aerial inventory method.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

An aerial grid‐based sampling method to estimate nonbreeding duck abundance

et al. 2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Probability-based sampling designs for aerial surveys are useful for estimating wintering waterfowl abundances in large areas with contiguous habitat (e.g., Mississippi Alluvial Valley). The effectiveness of these approaches for estimating abundance of nonbreeding waterfowl in small areas with discontinuous habitat has rarely been assessed. Surveys conducted within riverine areas introduce sampling design difficulties because of discontinuous bottomland habitat and irregularity of flooding events. Therefore, we implemented and evaluated a generalizable grid-based, stratified random sampling design to estimate weekly duck abundance within the Wabash River floodplain in southeastern Illinois and southwestern Indiana, USA, during midwinter and early spring 2012 and 2013. We used aerial and ground-based counts to generate abundance estimates and evaluate within-week variation of counts. Peak duck abundance totaled 279,717 (SE ¼ 69,101) in 2012 and 742,027 (SE ¼ 296,563) in 2013. Dabbling ducks were the most abundant duck guild detected and abundance estimates for this group met our precision goal (CV 0.25) in 4 of 18 surveys ( x ¼ 0.33, range ¼ 0.20-0.51). We compared the grid-based approach with a traditional aerial inventory and found that estimates from the grid-based approach were on average 75,175 (SE ¼ 46,768) greater than inventory counts. Desired levels of precision were often not met, yet design improvements in 2013 notably increased precision, suggesting that further modifications may allow this method to be useful in riverine areas with discontinuous and ephemeral habitat. Ó 2017 The Wildlife Society.

show abstract

“…Finally, by linking the results from our study (and similar geolocator studies) with commonly collected waterfowl survey data (collected visually from aircraft), or even citizen scientist data such as eBird (Soulliere et al 2013), researchers should be able to refine estimates of waterfowl population abundance estimates and estimates of population-level movements around the state and region (Laughlin et al 2013;Fleming et al 2019). For example, our study indicated that canvasbacks remained at Nevada stopover sites no longer than 1.5 d (our minimum threshold for designating a ''stationary period'').…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Inferring Movements and Staging Locations for Canvasbacks Using Light-Level Geolocators

Cook

Nicolai

Shoemaker

2021

Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Understanding the geographic extent and timing of wildlife movements enables resource managers to inform habitat needs of target species efficiently and effectively. We use light-level geolocators—which enable researchers to estimate individual locations from light-level data—to build a more complete understanding of the geography and timing of migratory movements for canvasback Aythya valisineria in the Pacific Flyway. During the springs of 2015–2017, we placed 151 geolocators on canvasbacks using two alternative attachment methods (leg-band vs. nasal-saddle mounts) during spring migration (February–March) near Reno, Nevada. Eight of these geolocators (five males and three females) were successfully retrieved, representing 10 near-complete annual migration cycles (two geolocators contained data for two migration years). Eight of the 10 estimated spring canvasback migrations (five male and three female) ended at breeding sites in the Prairie Pothole Region of southern Canada and northern United States (often via stopover sites in Utah and Montana), whereas one male and one female migrated to breeding sites in Alaska. Notably, one female settled on nesting grounds in southern Saskatchewan and then in central Alaska in successive years. During spring migration, canvasbacks made an average of 3.3 ± 0.5 stopovers, with an average duration of 14.8 ± 2.2 d. Three canvasbacks made a distinct molt migration after breeding. For fall migration, canvasback made an average of 2.7 ± 0.3 stopovers, lasting an average of 12.3 ± 2.5 d, on their way to wintering sites in California's Central Valley and coastal regions near San Francisco Bay. Retrieval rate for nasal-saddle-mounted geolocators was significantly lower than leg band-mounted devices because of failure of nasal-saddle attachment. This study demonstrates the value of geolocators for assessing year-round habitat use for waterfowl species that have negative behavioral reactions to traditional backpack devices. This information complements standard band-recovery approaches and enables waterfowl managers to ensure that the spatial and temporal distributions of individuals are identified so that habitat conservation efforts can reflect the full annual habitat use cycle.

show abstract

Monitoring Waterfowl in the Midwest during the Non-breeding Period: Challenges, Priorities, and Recommendations

Cited by 14 publications

References 4 publications

Environmental drivers of autumn migration departure decisions in midcontinental mallards

Environmental drivers of autumn migration departure decisions in midcontinental mallards

An aerial grid‐based sampling method to estimate nonbreeding duck abundance

Inferring Movements and Staging Locations for Canvasbacks Using Light-Level Geolocators

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About