A baseline study of the population and behavior of common eiders (Somateria mollissima) in the Cape Cod Canal, Massachusetts.
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Authors
Enchelmaier, Alison.
Issue Date
2013-09-13
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Undergraduate research. , Undergraduate thesis.
Alternative Title
Baseline of population & behavior of common eiders in Cape Cod Canal.
Abstract
"The Common Eider is a migratory duck that winters in coastal waters of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, including the Cape Cod Canal. The goal for this study was to estimate the Cape Cod Canal population and evaluate wintering behaviors to gain basic knowledge about the demographics of the population. Similar sex ratios and inverse relationships in the abundance of eiders between the Mashnee, Railroad Bridge, and Bourne sites suggest that there is one population moving among these sites. A different sex ratio recorded at the Scusset Beach site as well as direct relationships between Scusset and two other sites suggests that another population is using the Scusset Beach site, resulting in two populations of Common Eiders in the canal. Site use along the canal was uniform with no segregation of sites by behavior. The proportion of foraging behaviors observed was an average of 10%, which may be a result of the uniformity, shallow depth, and abundance of mussels within the canal."
Description
60 leaves : illustrations.
Thesis--Departmental honors in Biology.
Bibliography: leaves 56-60.
Thesis--Departmental honors in Biology.
Bibliography: leaves 56-60.
Citation
Publisher
Wheaton College (Norton, Mass.)