TY - JOUR
T1 - Disturbance Caused by Aerial Waterfowl Surveys During the Nonbreeding Season
AU - Gilbert, Andrew D.
AU - Jacques, Christopher N.
AU - Lancaster, Joseph D.
AU - Yetter, Aaron P
AU - Hagy, Heath
N1 - Funding Information:
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service or other agencies and organizations. We thank The Nature Conservancy, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) for allowing access to their properties for ground surveys. We thank M. M. Horath, C. S. Hine, J. M. Osborn, D. R. McClain, S. E. McClain, J. A. VonBank, S. T. Klimas, A. G. Blake-Bradshaw, T. M. Bradshaw, and M. C. Gross for assistance with conducting ground surveys. We acknowledge M. A. Cruce, Cruce Aviation, for piloting aerial surveys. We thank the Associate Editor and 2 reviewers for providing insightful comments that improved the quality of this manuscript. Funding for this project was administered by the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act in cooperation with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, IDNR, and the INHS at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Funding Information:
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service or other agencies and organizations. We thank The Nature Conservancy, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) for allowing access to their properties for ground surveys. We thank M. M. Horath, C. S. Hine, J. M. Osborn, D. R. McClain, S. E. McClain, J. A. VonBank, S. T. Klimas, A. G. Blake‐Bradshaw, T. M. Bradshaw, and M. C. Gross for assistance with conducting ground surveys. We acknowledge M. A. Cruce, Cruce Aviation, for piloting aerial surveys. We thank the Associate Editor and 2 reviewers for providing insightful comments that improved the quality of this manuscript. Funding for this project was administered by the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act in cooperation with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, IDNR, and the INHS at the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 The Wildlife Society
PY - 2020/8/1
Y1 - 2020/8/1
N2 - Aerial surveys flown at low altitudes allow detection, identification, and enumeration of waterfowl and other waterbirds, but few studies have assessed disturbance to these guilds during the nonbreeding period. Excessive disturbance can potentially increase energy expenditure and exposure to hunting mortality contrary to objectives of many waterfowl sanctuaries where surveys are conducted. We used concurrent ground and aerial surveys to estimate the proportion of waterfowl and other waterbirds that exhibited a noticeable reaction (i.e., disturbance) or left the survey area entirely (i.e., abandonment) during low-altitude (i.e., 60–90 m above ground level) aerial surveys during September through January 2014–2017 in Illinois, USA. Overall, disturbance and abandonment probabilities of waterfowl (x̄ = 14 ± 2% [SE] and x̄ = 3 ± 1%, respectively) during aerial surveys were low. However, disturbance and abandonment probabilities varied considerably among taxa (e.g., American coot [Fulica americana] x̄ = 2 ± 1% and x̄ = 0 ± 0%, respectively; killdeer [Charadrius vociferus] x̄ = 92 ± 8% and x̄ = 17 ± 17%, respectively). Additionally, disturbance and abandonment probabilities of light geese (i.e., snow goose [Chen caerulescens] and Ross's goose [C. rossii]) and greater white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons) were relatively high, and nearly all light geese abandoned a survey location as a result of the aerial survey. Among waterfowl taxa, the odds of disturbance from the survey aircraft were 2.2–6.2 times greater at locations closed to waterfowl hunting than locations open to waterfowl hunting. Temperature, wind speed, and cloud cover were not important predictors of disturbance for most guilds, except for a negative influence of temperature on disturbance of geese. Low-altitude aerial surveys were not a significant source of disturbance for many taxa and abandonment events were rare, except events involving light geese. Periodic low-altitude aerial surveys appear to be compatible with objectives of providing sanctuary conditions for most waterfowl and other waterbirds.
AB - Aerial surveys flown at low altitudes allow detection, identification, and enumeration of waterfowl and other waterbirds, but few studies have assessed disturbance to these guilds during the nonbreeding period. Excessive disturbance can potentially increase energy expenditure and exposure to hunting mortality contrary to objectives of many waterfowl sanctuaries where surveys are conducted. We used concurrent ground and aerial surveys to estimate the proportion of waterfowl and other waterbirds that exhibited a noticeable reaction (i.e., disturbance) or left the survey area entirely (i.e., abandonment) during low-altitude (i.e., 60–90 m above ground level) aerial surveys during September through January 2014–2017 in Illinois, USA. Overall, disturbance and abandonment probabilities of waterfowl (x̄ = 14 ± 2% [SE] and x̄ = 3 ± 1%, respectively) during aerial surveys were low. However, disturbance and abandonment probabilities varied considerably among taxa (e.g., American coot [Fulica americana] x̄ = 2 ± 1% and x̄ = 0 ± 0%, respectively; killdeer [Charadrius vociferus] x̄ = 92 ± 8% and x̄ = 17 ± 17%, respectively). Additionally, disturbance and abandonment probabilities of light geese (i.e., snow goose [Chen caerulescens] and Ross's goose [C. rossii]) and greater white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons) were relatively high, and nearly all light geese abandoned a survey location as a result of the aerial survey. Among waterfowl taxa, the odds of disturbance from the survey aircraft were 2.2–6.2 times greater at locations closed to waterfowl hunting than locations open to waterfowl hunting. Temperature, wind speed, and cloud cover were not important predictors of disturbance for most guilds, except for a negative influence of temperature on disturbance of geese. Low-altitude aerial surveys were not a significant source of disturbance for many taxa and abandonment events were rare, except events involving light geese. Periodic low-altitude aerial surveys appear to be compatible with objectives of providing sanctuary conditions for most waterfowl and other waterbirds.
KW - Illinois River Valley
KW - aerial survey
KW - disturbance probability
KW - duck
KW - migration
KW - waterbird
KW - waterfowl
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U2 - 10.1002/jwmg.21874
DO - 10.1002/jwmg.21874
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85083453390
SN - 0022-541X
VL - 84
SP - 1063
EP - 1071
JO - Journal of Wildlife Management
JF - Journal of Wildlife Management
IS - 6
ER -