Abstract
Effectiveness of rehabilitating wildlife following oil spills has been controversial. Impacts include mortality or changes in behavior affecting health or reproduction. Immediately following a bunker fuel oil spill on San Francisco Bay, California, USA, a unique experiment was conducted to examine the movement and foraging behavior of Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) that had been oiled, captured, cleaned, rehabilitated, and radio-marked. Unoiled Surf Scoters were similarly cleaned, rehabilitated, and radio-marked while other unoiled Surf Scoters were radio-marked as controls. Surf Scoters in the control group had larger home-ranges (46.29 ± 3.23 km 2 ) than either the oiled/rehabilitated (32.58 ± 5.48 km 2 ) or rehabilitated only groups (31.06 ± 3.05 km 2 ); the control group also was more likely to use unsheltered, shallow areas of the bay (66.9 ± 4.3% of locations) than either the oiled/rehabilitated (50.3 ± 5.2%) or rehabilitated only groups (58.2 ± 6.5%). The oiled/rehabilitated group was closer to shore (986 ± 149 m) than rehabilitated (1,894 ± 295 m) or control groups (2,113 ± 227 m). Differences in habitat use, movement patterns, and home range sizes indicated that Surf Scoters held in captivity were more restricted in their movements; therefore, captivity and rehabilitation practices may also influence success of the rehabilitation.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 39-50 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Waterbirds |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2019 |
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Keywords
- California
- Melanitta perspicillata
- oil exposure
- radio telemetry
- San Francisco Bay
- Surf Scoter
- wildlife rehabilitation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Animal Science and Zoology
Cite this
Post-Release Behavior of Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) Following an Oil Spill : An Experimental Approach to Evaluating Rehabilitation Success. / Golightly, Richard T.; Gabriel, Pia O.; Lockerby, Courtney L.; Cruz, Susan E.W.De La; Takekawa, John Y.; Henkel, Laird A.; Massey, J. Gregory; Ziccardi, Michael H.
In: Waterbirds, Vol. 42, No. 1, 01.01.2019, p. 39-50.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Post-Release Behavior of Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) Following an Oil Spill
T2 - An Experimental Approach to Evaluating Rehabilitation Success
AU - Golightly, Richard T.
AU - Gabriel, Pia O.
AU - Lockerby, Courtney L.
AU - Cruz, Susan E.W.De La
AU - Takekawa, John Y.
AU - Henkel, Laird A.
AU - Massey, J. Gregory
AU - Ziccardi, Michael H
PY - 2019/1/1
Y1 - 2019/1/1
N2 - Effectiveness of rehabilitating wildlife following oil spills has been controversial. Impacts include mortality or changes in behavior affecting health or reproduction. Immediately following a bunker fuel oil spill on San Francisco Bay, California, USA, a unique experiment was conducted to examine the movement and foraging behavior of Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) that had been oiled, captured, cleaned, rehabilitated, and radio-marked. Unoiled Surf Scoters were similarly cleaned, rehabilitated, and radio-marked while other unoiled Surf Scoters were radio-marked as controls. Surf Scoters in the control group had larger home-ranges (46.29 ± 3.23 km 2 ) than either the oiled/rehabilitated (32.58 ± 5.48 km 2 ) or rehabilitated only groups (31.06 ± 3.05 km 2 ); the control group also was more likely to use unsheltered, shallow areas of the bay (66.9 ± 4.3% of locations) than either the oiled/rehabilitated (50.3 ± 5.2%) or rehabilitated only groups (58.2 ± 6.5%). The oiled/rehabilitated group was closer to shore (986 ± 149 m) than rehabilitated (1,894 ± 295 m) or control groups (2,113 ± 227 m). Differences in habitat use, movement patterns, and home range sizes indicated that Surf Scoters held in captivity were more restricted in their movements; therefore, captivity and rehabilitation practices may also influence success of the rehabilitation.
AB - Effectiveness of rehabilitating wildlife following oil spills has been controversial. Impacts include mortality or changes in behavior affecting health or reproduction. Immediately following a bunker fuel oil spill on San Francisco Bay, California, USA, a unique experiment was conducted to examine the movement and foraging behavior of Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) that had been oiled, captured, cleaned, rehabilitated, and radio-marked. Unoiled Surf Scoters were similarly cleaned, rehabilitated, and radio-marked while other unoiled Surf Scoters were radio-marked as controls. Surf Scoters in the control group had larger home-ranges (46.29 ± 3.23 km 2 ) than either the oiled/rehabilitated (32.58 ± 5.48 km 2 ) or rehabilitated only groups (31.06 ± 3.05 km 2 ); the control group also was more likely to use unsheltered, shallow areas of the bay (66.9 ± 4.3% of locations) than either the oiled/rehabilitated (50.3 ± 5.2%) or rehabilitated only groups (58.2 ± 6.5%). The oiled/rehabilitated group was closer to shore (986 ± 149 m) than rehabilitated (1,894 ± 295 m) or control groups (2,113 ± 227 m). Differences in habitat use, movement patterns, and home range sizes indicated that Surf Scoters held in captivity were more restricted in their movements; therefore, captivity and rehabilitation practices may also influence success of the rehabilitation.
KW - California
KW - Melanitta perspicillata
KW - oil exposure
KW - radio telemetry
KW - San Francisco Bay
KW - Surf Scoter
KW - wildlife rehabilitation
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85063605437&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85063605437&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1675/063.042.0105
DO - 10.1675/063.042.0105
M3 - Article
VL - 42
SP - 39
EP - 50
JO - Colonial Waterbirds
JF - Colonial Waterbirds
SN - 0738-6028
IS - 1
ER -