Wildfowl, Issue 74

About this book

Wildfowl is an international scientific journal, published annually by Wildfowl Press, and previously published by the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (from 1948–2020). It disseminates original material on the ecology, biology and conservation of wildfowl (Anseriformes) and ecologically associated birds (such as waders, rails and flamingos), and on their wetland habitats.

Issue 74 of Wildfowl again contains a fascinating set of papers on a wide range of issues and species. These include two review papers – one on Whooper Swans Cygnus cygnus nesting (or historically not nesting!) on offshore islands; the other on changes in Eastern Taiga Bean Goose Anser fabalis middendorffii breeding distribution in eastern Russia – both based on careful compilation and assessment of early publications by the authors.

Standard papers cover several conservation initiatives and important outcomes of monitoring programmes, including one on the Madagascar Pochard Aythya innotata (one of the most endangered of the world’s wildfowl) which was thought to be extinct until 2006 when c. 20 individuals were found on one lake and a major collaborative conservation programme was initiated to save the species. Factors affecting the pochard’s breeding success remain poorly understood, and a paper in this volume describes the generally low duckling survival from 2010 onwards, but with three years of unusually high survival (in 2017–2019) resulting in numbers increasing to 60 birds. Several variables thought to be affecting survival rates therefore are reconsidered and discussed in light of these findings. New information was also obtained on another globally threatened species – the Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus – with counts made on the breeding grounds increasing population size estimates for the Eastern Population to potentially c. 26,000–27,000 geese. Monitoring of Lesser Snow Geese Anser caerulescens caerulescens in Japan, where the species was almost extinct by the end of the 19th century, found a steady population growth following implementation of the “Restoration of Lesser Snow Goose to East Asia Project” from 1993 onwards, although in the absence of information on the precise location of the breeding grounds and migration routes, the extent to which the increase was attributable to the restoration efforts remain unclear.

For other species and flyways, the news is more concerning. Severe declines have been recorded in the number of male American Common Eiders Somateria mollissima dresseri counted in spring on the Bay of Fundy, Canada since 1991, thought to be a consequence of recent, rapid hydroclimatic changes in the Gulf of Maine (including the Bay of Fundy) affecting all trophic levels in the ecosystem, which could influence the abundance and distribution not only of eiders but other species in the food chain. The Atlantic Brant Geese Branta bernicla hrota population which breeds in the Canadian arctic is also in long-term decline, in contrast to other migratory geese (e.g. the Lesser Snow Geese and Cackling Geese Branta hutchinsii) nesting in the same area. The decline of the Brant has been attributed to various forms of competition with other sympatrically-nesting species including apparent competition – i.e. when the presence of one species leads to a reduced densities of another through differential predation by a predator of both species. In this issue of Wildfowl, one can read about an artificial nest experiment developed to assess apparent competition among geese nesting on Southampton Island, Nunavut, Canada. Such information again highlights the importance of analysing the various reasons underlying changes in abundance and distribution, for informing conservation, harvest and habitat management decisions.

Contents

Editorial   1

Review Papers
- Whooper Swans Cygnus cygnus nesting on offshore islands – a new occurrence or a well-forgotten old phenomenon? / S.A. Kouzov, A.V. Kravchuk, E.V. Abakumov & D.M. Afanaseva   3
- Distribution, trends and threats to Eastern Taiga Bean Goose Anser fabalis middendorffii in the River Lena basin, East Siberia / V.G. Degtyarev   23

Standard Papers
- Anthropogenically-induced population increases in sympatric breeding arctic geese / C. Nissley, C.K. Williams, K.F. Abraham & K. Russo-Petrick   40
- Estimated size of the Eastern population of the Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus revealed from aerial surveys of key moulting sites / D. Solovyeva, S. Rozenfeld, D. Barykina, G. Kirtaev, V. Danilova, F. Meng, L. Cao, G. Lei & Q. Zeng   53
- Population trends and distribution of the Lesser Snow Goose Anser caerulescens caerulescens in Japan, based on 50 years of monitoring / Y. Sabano, Y. Sawa, S. Uemura & M. Kurechi   69
- First observations in 20 years of Brent Geese Branta bernicla wintering on the Shandong coast, China / X. Lv, Q. Zhao, M. Fei, Y. Sawa, T. Ikeuchi, G. Yu, J. Zhang, F. Meng, J. Zhang, Y. Zhang, Y. Xie, L. Cao & A.D. Fox   84
- Home range and migration of the Red-breasted Goose Branta ruficollis mapped by satellite telemetry: implications for conservation / E. Todorov, G.B. Chis ̧amera, V.D. Gavril, O.C. Vasiliu, D. Murariu & I. Cobzaru   99
- An alternative approach to evaluating the energetic carrying capacity of the landscape for Mallard Anas platyrhynchos wintering in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley, USA / M.R. Boudreau, J.D. Lancaster, D.F. Adjaye, J.E. Dentinger, L.A. Dolan Todt, G.N. Ripa, C. Ramirez-Reyes, C.A. Sklarczyk, B.S. Thornton, H.M. Todaro, R.M. Kaminski & J.B. Davis   113
- Diet, body condition and seasonal stress in American Black Duck Anas rubripes and Mallard A. platyrhynchos on Long Island, New York, during winter / A.J. Flores & M.L. Schummer   132
- A decade of monitoring the Critically Endangered Madagascar Pochard Aythya innotata: population trends and duckling survival / L.A. Rasoamihaingo, F. Razafindrajao, L.-A. René de Roland & A.J. Bamford   153
- Severe declines in numbers of male American Common Eiders Somateria mollissima dresseri during spring counts over the past two decades in the southwestern Bay of Fundy, Canada / S.E. Gutowsky, M.L. Mallory, N.R. McLellan, G.J. Robertson, K. Connor & S.G. Gilliland   165
- Nesting behaviour and factors affecting reproductive success of Velvet Scoter Melanitta fusca breeding at Lake Tabatskuri, Georgia / S. Kiknavelidze, N. Kopaliani, N. Budagashvili, N. Melikishvili, Z. Javakhishvili, A. Gavashelishvili & N. Paposhvili   179

Short Communication
- Urban geese discriminate between predators of different sizes / F. Woog & K. Schwarz   193

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