Mallard resource selection trade-offs in a heterogeneous environment during autumn and winter.

ABSTRACT: Animals select resources to maximize fitness but associated costs and benefits are spatially and temporally variable. Differences in wetland management influence resource availability for ducks and mortality risk from duck hunting. The local distribution of the Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is affected by this resource heterogeneity and variable risk from hunting. Regional conservation strategies primarily focus on how waterfowl distributions are affected by food resources during the nonbreeding season. To test if Mallard resource selection was related to the abundance of resources, risks, or a combination, we studied resource selection of adult female Mallards during autumn and winter. We developed a digital spatial layer for Lake St. Clair, Ontario, Canada, that classified resource

SUBMITTER: Palumbo MD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6392399 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature