Resources related to Nutrient Reserves

To fly or not to fly: high flight costs in a large sea duck do not imply an expensive lifestyle

A perennial question in ornithology is whether flight has evolved mostly to facilitate access to food or as an anti-predator strategy. However, flight is an expensive mode of locomotion and species using flight regularly are associated with an expensive lifestyle. Using heart rate (HR) data loggers implanted in 13 female common eiders (Somateria mollissima), our objective was to test the hypothesis that a high level of flight activity increases their energy budget.

To fly or not to fly: high flight costs in a large sea duck do not imply an expensive lifestyle

Implications of Demographic Uncertainty for Harvest Management of North American Sea Ducks

In 2010, the Sea Duck Joint Venture (SDJV) identified the need for improved science support for harvest and habitat management of North American sea ducks.
In order to prioritize monitoring and research needs in support of harvest management, we applied a Prescribed Take Level (PTL) framework to assess the influence of uncertainty about sea duck demographic
parameters on comparisons of observed and allowable harvest estimates. We focused on 7 populations of North American sea ducks: the American subspecies of common eider (Somateria mollissima dresseri

Implications of Demographic Uncertainty for Harvest Management of North American Sea Ducks

Body Composition Dynamics of Common Eider During Winter: An Application of the Deuterium Dilution Method

The nearshore and offshore waters of southern New England provide some of the most
important wintering habitat for sea ducks in North America. Understanding changes in sea duck body
composition during winter could provide insights into current habitat quality and potential effects of
anthropogenic disturbances on the body condition of sea ducks. We used the deuterium dilution method, a
nonlethal approach, to investigate intraseasonal variation and differences between genders in body

Body Composition Dynamics of Common Eider During Winter: An Application of the Deuterium Dilution Method

Sea Duck Joint Venture Strategic Communications Plan 2015-2019

The mission of the Sea Duck Joint Venture(SDJV)is to promote the conservation of North American sea ducks through partnerships by providing greater knowledge
and understanding for effective management. SDJV focuses on the 15 species of North American sea ducks on their coastal water habitat for migration and wintering as well as boreal forest and tundra habitat for nesting. Since the JV’s founding in 1998, the four pillars of its work have included science, communications, funding, and conservation.

Sea Duck Joint Venture Strategic Communications Plan 2015-2019

Influence of annual variation in food supply on abundance of wintering common eiders Somateria mollissima

We investigated how the annual variation in the abundance of wintering common eiders
Somateria mollissima was related to the abundance of benthos over 4 yr. The study was conducted at
2 sites, Tunø Knob and Ringebjerg Sand, Denmark, from 1994 to 1998. Benthos was sampled along
permanent transects in November, and common eiders counted and localized from observation
towers during the winter. The benthic community was dominated by the blue mussel Mytilus edulis,

Influence of annual variation in food supply on abundance of wintering common eiders Somateria mollissima

Relative roles of eelgrass vs. hard-mixed substrates as habitatfor scoters (Melanitta spp.) in Puget Sound

Scoters ( Melanitta spp. ) are sea ducks that breed in freshwater wetlands of Canada and Alaska and winter in estuaries and bays on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts (Fig. 1). As with most sea ducks, scoter populations have declined in many parts of their Pacific Coast ranges. Three species of scoter can be found in wintering in Puget Sound, the common scoter ( Melanitta nigra ), the white-winged scoter ( Melanitta deglandi ) and the surf scoter ( Melanitta perspicillata ). The combined population of all three scoters declined by 57% between 1978-79 and 1992-99.

Relative roles of eelgrass vs. hard-mixed substrates as habitatfor scoters (Melanitta spp.) in Puget Sound

Pages