Integrating Fixed-Wing and Helicopter Survey Platforms to Improve Detection and Species Identification of North American Breeding Scoters

Project Number: 154

Year Funded: 2017

Lead Institution(s): Canadian Wildlife Service

Project Lead: Eric Reed

Email:

Collaborator(s): Scott Gilliland (CWS), Christine Lepage (CWS), Christian Roy (CWS), Cindy Wood (CWS), Mark Koneff (USFWS), Walt Rhodes (USFWS), Emily Silverman (USFWS)

Location: Canada

Focal Species: Black Scoter (Melanitta americana), Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), White-winged Scoter (Melanitta delgandi)

Project Description: Populations of North American breeding scoters appear to be declining although a large degree of uncertainty remains around estimates of population size and overall trends. We conducted experimental fixed wing and helicopter integrated breeding surveys over portions of the core breeding range, in Québec-Labrador, northern Manitoba, and the Barrenlands of the Northwest Territories of all three North American scoter species. The overarching objective of the project is to produce recommendations for the development of breeding surveys for scoters and other Boreal/Arctic waterfowl.

Project Reports:

Interim Report FY18
Interim Report FY19
Interim Report FY20
Interim Report FY21
Interim Report FY22
SDJV154 Interim Report FY23
SDJV154 Final Report

Related Publications:

Bianchini, K. S.G. Gilliland, A.M. Berlin, T.D. Bowman, W.S. Boyd, S.E.W. De La Cruz, D. Esler, J.R. Evenson, P.L. Flint, C. Lepage, S.R. McWilliams, D.E. Meattey, J.E. Osenkowski, M.C. Perry, J-F. Poulin, E.T. Reed, C. Roy, J-P. L. Savard, L. Savoy, J.L. Schamber, C.S. Spiegel, J. Takekawa, D.H. Ward, and M.L. Mallory. 2023. Evaluation of breeding distribution and chronology of North American scoters. Wildlife Biology e01099. https://doi.org/10.1002/wlb3.01099

Bowman, T.D., S.G. Gilliland, J.L. Schamber, P.L. Flint, D. Esler, W.S. Boyd, D.H. Rosenberg, J.-P. Savard, M.C. Perry, and J.E. Osenkowski. 2021. Strong evidence for two disjunct populations of Black Scoters in North America. Wildfowl 71:179-192. https://doi.org/10.1002/jwmg.22125

Cox, A. R., S.G. Gilliland, E.T. Reed, and C. Roy. 2022. Comparing waterfowl densities detected through helicopter and airplane sea duck surveys in Labrador, Canada. Avian Conservation and Ecology 17:24. https://doi.org/10.5751/ACE-02260-170224

Lamb, J., C. Cooper-Mullin, S. Gilliland, A. Berlin, T. Bowman, W. Boyd, S. De La Cruz, D. Esler, j. Evenson, P. Flint, C. Lepage, D. Meattey, J. Osenkowski, P. Paton, M. Perry, D. Rosenberg, J.P. Savard, L. Savoy, J. Schamber, S. McWilliams, 2024. Evaluating conservation units using network analysis: a sea duck case study. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 22: e2648. https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2648

Roy, C., S. G. Gilliland, and E. Reed. 2022. A hierarchical dependent double observer method for estimating waterfowl breeding pairs abundance from helicopters. Wildlife Biology 1: e01003. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/wlb3.01003

Integrating Fixed-Wing and Helicopter Survey Platforms to Improve Detection and Species Identification of North American Breeding Scoters