In 2008 and 2009,we made continuous and repeated breeding surveys of the Scaly-sided Merganser(Mergus squamatus)in the Changbai Mountain range(China side),using a combination of rubber-boat drifting and walking.Each s...In 2008 and 2009,we made continuous and repeated breeding surveys of the Scaly-sided Merganser(Mergus squamatus)in the Changbai Mountain range(China side),using a combination of rubber-boat drifting and walking.Each survey consisted of a census of breeding pairs in the spring and broods in the summer.A total of 1553 km in length of 17 river stretches were surveyed in four different river systems of the Yalujiang,Songhuajiang,Tumenjiang and Mudanjiang rivers.A total of 1354 individuals of the Scaly-sided Merganser were recorded during the both surveys.The breeding density for all the stretches surveyed over both years averaged 0.26 ± 0.30 pairs per km;the population density in the spring averaged 0.75 ± 0.88 individuals per km.According to our survey results,we estimated that the breeding population in the Changbai Mountain range was about 170 breeding pairs of the Scaly-sided Merganser.Three major breeding sites of this bird were found in the Changbai Mountain range in these surveys.展开更多
Background: The foraging and diving behavior of waterfowl are affected by a number of important factors. Hence, learning more about these major factors is of great concern in order to protect endangered species. In th...Background: The foraging and diving behavior of waterfowl are affected by a number of important factors. Hence, learning more about these major factors is of great concern in order to protect endangered species. In this study, we verified the effect of sex, temperature, time and flock size on the diving behavior of the Scaly-sided Merganser(Mergus squamatus).Methods: The study was conducted by means of focal animal sampling in the Wuyuan section of the Poyang Lake watershed in Jiangxi Province, China from December 2015 to March 2016. We used one-way ANOVA and LSD tests to investigate the differences among these factors. Pearson correlations were used to test the relation between pause duration and the previous or subsequent dive duration. The relations between these factors and dive/pause duration are illustrated using Spearman correlations.Results: Mean dive duration and mean time on the pause of males were significantly higher than those of females. With an increase in temperature, dive duration significantly increased. Along with the passage of time of year and daytime, dive duration significantly increased, while dive duration decreased significantly with the increase in flock size.Conclusions: Sex, temperature, time and flock size have an effect on the diving behavior of the wintering Scalysided Merganser. The difference of diving behavior between males and females is related to differences in body mass. The difference of diving behavior among various temperatures and time periods may be related to a low minimum rate of oxygen consumption, while the difference among various flock sizes may be caused by rising intraspecific competition.展开更多
基金sponsored by the Rufford Small Grant of the Rufford Foundation
文摘In 2008 and 2009,we made continuous and repeated breeding surveys of the Scaly-sided Merganser(Mergus squamatus)in the Changbai Mountain range(China side),using a combination of rubber-boat drifting and walking.Each survey consisted of a census of breeding pairs in the spring and broods in the summer.A total of 1553 km in length of 17 river stretches were surveyed in four different river systems of the Yalujiang,Songhuajiang,Tumenjiang and Mudanjiang rivers.A total of 1354 individuals of the Scaly-sided Merganser were recorded during the both surveys.The breeding density for all the stretches surveyed over both years averaged 0.26 ± 0.30 pairs per km;the population density in the spring averaged 0.75 ± 0.88 individuals per km.According to our survey results,we estimated that the breeding population in the Changbai Mountain range was about 170 breeding pairs of the Scaly-sided Merganser.Three major breeding sites of this bird were found in the Changbai Mountain range in these surveys.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.31560597)
文摘Background: The foraging and diving behavior of waterfowl are affected by a number of important factors. Hence, learning more about these major factors is of great concern in order to protect endangered species. In this study, we verified the effect of sex, temperature, time and flock size on the diving behavior of the Scaly-sided Merganser(Mergus squamatus).Methods: The study was conducted by means of focal animal sampling in the Wuyuan section of the Poyang Lake watershed in Jiangxi Province, China from December 2015 to March 2016. We used one-way ANOVA and LSD tests to investigate the differences among these factors. Pearson correlations were used to test the relation between pause duration and the previous or subsequent dive duration. The relations between these factors and dive/pause duration are illustrated using Spearman correlations.Results: Mean dive duration and mean time on the pause of males were significantly higher than those of females. With an increase in temperature, dive duration significantly increased. Along with the passage of time of year and daytime, dive duration significantly increased, while dive duration decreased significantly with the increase in flock size.Conclusions: Sex, temperature, time and flock size have an effect on the diving behavior of the wintering Scalysided Merganser. The difference of diving behavior between males and females is related to differences in body mass. The difference of diving behavior among various temperatures and time periods may be related to a low minimum rate of oxygen consumption, while the difference among various flock sizes may be caused by rising intraspecific competition.
