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1 September 2021 Migratory Connectivity and Nesting Behavior in Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus) Based on Light-Level Geolocator Data
Beth MacCallum, Alice Paquet, Lisa Bate, Chris Hammond, Kristina Smucker, Lucas Savoy, Susan Patla, W. Sean Boyd
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

The Harlequin Duck (Histrionicus histrionicus) is a species of conservation priority in western North America. Harlequin Ducks breed in small, isolated populations and have specific nesting requirements. Archival, light-level geolocators are increasingly being used as a low-cost, non-invasive tracking technology to explore migratory connectivity. From 2015-2019, geolocators were deployed on 70 Harlequin Ducks in breeding streams of the Rocky Mountains, Canada and USA, to obtain information on connectivity (breeding to non-breeding), molt-winter sites, dispersal, and breeding phenology. Twenty-two of the 70 geolocators were retrieved from locations in the Rocky Mountains (Alberta, Canada; Montana and Wyoming, USA) and analyzed using the TwGeos and FLightR R packages. Harlequin Ducks from the warmer climate of northwest Montana migrated in spring and started incubation one to two weeks earlier than ducks in west-central Alberta and the greater Yellowstone area. During the non-breeding period, individuals dispersed along the Pacific coast, from Oregon to the Alaskan Panhandle, independent of breeding site. Females that incubated successfully spent 32-34 days incubating, which is several days longer than what is in the literature. Use of geolocators provided detailed information about migration connectivity and breeding behavior in a cost effective and relatively non-invasive manner.

Beth MacCallum, Alice Paquet, Lisa Bate, Chris Hammond, Kristina Smucker, Lucas Savoy, Susan Patla, and W. Sean Boyd "Migratory Connectivity and Nesting Behavior in Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus) Based on Light-Level Geolocator Data," Waterbirds 44(3), 330-342, (1 September 2021). https://doi.org/10.1675/063.044.0308
Received: 10 December 2020; Accepted: 15 August 2021; Published: 1 September 2021
KEYWORDS
Alberta
FLightR
geolocator
Harlequin Duck
Histrionicus histrionicus
incubation
migration
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