Winter philopatry of harlequin ducks in Prince William Sound, Alaska

The Condor
By: , and 

Links

Abstract

We used capture-mark-recapture data to assess winter philopatry by Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus) in Prince William Sound, Alaska, during winters 1995–1997 and 2000–2001. Philopatry was quantified using homing rates, which were estimated as the proportion of birds recaptured at their original site out of all recaptured birds. Between-year homing rates of 0.95 (95% CI: 0.87–1.00) and 1.00 (0.92–1.00) were estimated for females and males, respectively, at three locations on Montague Island. Similar homing rates were measured in western Prince William Sound, where estimates were 0.92 (0.80–0.98) for females and 0.96 (0.79–1.00) for males, with a scale of detected movements for all recapture birds ranging from 3–52 km. Our results indicate that wintering aggregations may be demographically independent at a much finer spatial scale than genetic data indicate, and that conservation efforts should recognize this degree of demographic separation among population segments.

Study Area

Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Winter philopatry of harlequin ducks in Prince William Sound, Alaska
Series title The Condor
DOI 10.1650/7504
Volume 106
Issue 3
Year Published 2004
Language English
Publisher Cooper Ornithological Society
Contributing office(s) Alaska Science Center, Alaska Science Center Biology MFEB, Alaska Science Center Biology WTEB
Description 5 p.
First page 711
Last page 715
Country United States
State Alaska
Other Geospatial Prince William Sound
Google Analytic Metrics Metrics page
Additional publication details