Jeff Bergman 2007

1) Document migration corridors and affiliations to breeding and wintering areas of female lesser scaup captured during spring stop-over on Pool 19.

2) Document chronology and estimate rates of movement (km/day) and flight distances (km) of individual females and test for relationships among these flight parameters and female body mass at capture.

3) Identify specific lakes and large wetlands used by migrating females and estimate the proportion of time spent in various regions (upper-Midwest, prairie Canada) of North America during migration.

4) Band a large sample (>2000) of lesser scaup at Pool 19 to support and encourage subsequent annual operational bandings there that would provide opportunity for direct estimates of harvest rate and survival using new band analysis techniques.

Study Area

Bre Bergman 2007

We will capture lesser scaup at Pool 19 of the Mississippi River, between Hamilton and Dallas City, IL and between Keokuk and Fort Madison, IA. Pool 19 is an important middle latitude migration area for lesser scaup, where large numbers stopover prior to migrating through the upper-Midwest in spring (Thompson 1973, Havera 1999, Anteau 2006). Pool 19 has been described in detail by Thompson (1973) and Havera (1999).