Identifying the diets and breeding areas of harvested juvenile sea ducks: A continued stable isotope investigation

Project Number: 171

Year Funded: 2023

Lead Institution(s): University of Maryland

Project Lead: David Nelson

Email:

Collaborator(s): Hannah Vander Zanden (U Florida), Todd Katzner (USGS), Sarah Endyke (University of Maryland), Sarah Endyke

Location: North America

Focal Species: Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis), Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)

Project Description: In 2020 the Sea Duck Joint Venture funded a pilot study (Project 158) to evaluate the ability of feather stable hydrogen isotope (δ 2H) data to delineate the most probable fledgling locations of juvenile long-tailed ducks and surf scoters harvested in North America. That study indicated that stable isotopes show promise for identifying the fledging locations of juvenile long-tailed ducks and surf scoters harvested in North America. However, that study had relatively small samples sizes and it also raised additional questions related to the potential of coastal/marine habitat as fledging areas and variation in the location of breeding habitats among flyways for birds provisioned in terrestrial/freshwater habitats. The present project aims to address these issues by describing the broad-scale dispersal patterns of juvenile sea ducks and delineating the breeding grounds of long-tailed ducks and surf scoters.

Project Reports: