Although 12 species of waterfowl nest and breed in the New York Bight watershed, of which mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), American black duck (Anas rubripes), and Canada goose (Branta canadensis) are the most prevalent, the primary use of the New York Bight region by waterfowl is for resting and feeding during fall migration (peaking in November) and as a wintering area. In transit from the major breeding grounds in the Midwest, Canadian prairies, and Arctic to their wintering grounds along the Atlantic coast, several species of waterfowl migrate in fairly substantial numbers down the Hudson and/or along the Atlantic coast, stopping to rest and feed in the New York Bight watershed. For several species of waterfowl, the mid-winter populations occurring in the New York Bight account for a major part of their total Atlantic flyway population. Four of these species are discussed in more detail below.

The destruction of essential wetland habitats needed for breeding, migrating, and wintering has been identified as the principal reason for the drastic decline of waterfowl in the 20th century; to a lesser extent, over harvest has contributed to the decline of several species in North America. Contaminants, oil and chemical spills, lead poisoning, predation, and disease are other factors affecting the survival of waterfowl populations in this area. In the New York Bight, continued efforts to protect and enhance marshes, shallow bays, and adjacent upland areas will be critical for stabilizing and increasing waterfowl populations. Improving water quality in coastal bays will increase the availability of both plant and animal food items, and reducing contaminants will increase reproductive and survival rates.

In 1986, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan was signed by the United States and Canada; the plan was updated in 1989 to add Mexico as a full partner. This plan was created to reverse the decline in certain populations of ducks and geese. The plan establishes specific objectives to restore duck populations to the levels of the 1970s and targets critical waterfowl breeding, staging, and wintering areas in all three countries. The goal of the Atlantic Coast Joint Venture, one of nine joint venture areas in the United States, is to "protect and manage priority wetland habitats for migration, wintering, and production of waterfowl, with special consideration to black ducks, and to benefit other wildlife in the joint venture area." The specific objectives are to protect, manage, and enhance 355,787 hectares (879,138 acres) of wetland and upland buffer areas, and to improve and enhance an additional 67,171 hectares (165,977 acres) of federal and state wetland habitats currently managed for waterfowl within the Atlantic Coast Joint Venture Area, to maximize carrying capacity for waterfowl and other wildlife. The joint venture calls for the protection of 27,278 hectares (67,405 acres) in the Hudson River and New Jersey coastal marshes and the enhancement of 4,856 hectares (12,000 acres) along the Hudson River and south shore of Long Island.

Brant (Branta bernicla)

Brant, perhaps the northernmost-breeding bird in the world, nest on the coastal tundra in the far northern regions of North America, migrate south during the fall to a staging area in James Bay, Ontario, and proceed overland to New York Harbor where they disperse to their major wintering grounds along the coastal bays of Long Island and New Jersey. The wintering range of brant extends from Massachusetts south to South Carolina, but the majority (about 80%) of the wintering population occurs in the backbarrier lagoons of New Jersey and Long Island (Figure 5). The most important wintering sites appear to be the salt marsh-dominated bays from Great Bay south to Cape May in New Jersey and the Hempstead Bays on Long Island. Historically, wintering brant fed mainly on eelgrass (Zostera marina), but with a decline in eelgrass due to wasting disease and eutrophication of coastal bays, sea lettuce (Ulva lactuca) has become the primary food item, along with lesser amounts of eelgrass, widgeon grass (Ruppia maritima), and cordgrasses (Spartina spp.).

Greater scaup (Aythya marila)

Greater scaup breed in the Arctic and sub-Arctic from Hudson Bay west to Alaska, and migrate from northwestern Canada and Alaska across the continent to their wintering grounds along the Atlantic coast between Cape Cod and Chesapeake Bay. Greater and lesser scaup are not readily differentiated on aerial surveys, although ground counts, band recovery data, and hunters' bags reveal both that the majority of scaup in the New York Bight are greater scaup and that these birds represent a significant proportion, probably about 25%, of the total flyway population. Within the study area, the most important wintering area is the Raritan Bay - Sandy Hook Bay area (Figure 5). The adjacent waters of Long Island Sound are also an important wintering area. Greater scaup feed primarily on benthic invertebrates such as clams, mussels, and snails. These food preferences may make scaup more susceptible to bioaccumulation of contaminants in polluted areas. Analyses of scaup kidneys and livers from Long Island Sound have revealed that tissue levels of chlorinated hydrocarbons and heavy metals increased during the winter, and that levels of cadmium, selenium, and PCBs were at levels known to adversely affect reproduction in ducks. Midwinter inventory data show significant long-term declines in scaup, and the declines in greater scaup may be even more pronounced.

American black duck (Anas rubripes)

American black duck are restricted geographically to eastern North America, with the highest breeding densities occurring in coastal marshes, especially those of the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay. Black ducks move south as northern marshes freeze over, and the most important migration corridor is along the Atlantic coast. The Virginian Province (Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina) contains the majority of black duck wintering habitat, and the New York Bight watershed is at the center of both the breeding and wintering ranges for black duck. About one-third of the total Atlantic flyway population winters in the New York Bight. Wintering black ducks are found, along with mallards, distributed in bays, marshes, and flats along the Hudson River, New York Harbor, and in the backbarrier lagoons of Long Island and New Jersey. The highest numbers are found in the Brigantine Unit of the Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey and in the Atlantic coast and Delaware Bay marshes of Cape May (Figure 5). Black ducks feed on a variety of plant and animal food items; in the winter, animal foods, including snails and mussels, become increasingly important. American black duck populations have declined dramatically over the past 40 years due to a combination of factors including habitat loss, over harvest, and competition and hybridization with mallards. The black duck was identified by the North American Waterfowl Management plan as a species of immediate international concern.

Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)

Bufflehead breed primarily in northwestern North America and winter on both coasts. On the Atlantic coast they winter from Newfoundland to Florida, with concentrations in Maine and between Cape Cod and North Carolina. The New York Bight accounts for about one-quarter of the Atlantic flyway wintering population. Bufflehead feed on a variety of food items, and in northern estuaries the primary winter foods are crustaceans such as isopods, amphipods, and shrimp, mollusks, some fish, pondweeds, and widgeon grass. Bufflehead are distributed in small flocks throughout the backbarrier lagoons of the New York Bight along the New Jersey and Long Island coasts, with significant concentration areas in Barnegat Bay and the Cape May Atlantic coast marshes (Figure 5).

The Atlantic Flyway hosts two distinct populations of Canada goose, resident and migratory, during the winter. During the 1960s and 1970s, non-migrating Canada geese were relocated from the Midwest to many areas throughout the eastern United States where non-migrating populations had once existed but were extirpated by human development. These non-migrating birds settled onto golf courses, urban parks, and other protected areas and this resident population has exploded to the point that the birds are a nuisance in many areas. At the same time, the migratory populations of Canada goose which nest on the Ungava Peninsula in northern Quebec have declined dramatically (about 75%) since 1988. The large numbers of resident birds mask the decline in the migrant population. Until the migratory populations increase, hunting seasons have been and should continue to be limited to September before the migratory geese arrive and late January and February after they leave.

References:

Bellrose, F.C. 1980. Ducks, geese, and swans of North America, third edition. A Wildlife Management Institute book sponsored jointly with the Illinois Natural History Survey. Stackpole Books, Harrisburg, PA.

Kramer, G. 1994. Sea goose elusive. Birder's World, June 1994.

North American Waterfowl Management Plan. 1994. 1994 update to the North American waterfowl management plan: expanding the commitment.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1973-1995. Mid-winter waterfowl survey - Atlantic Flyway data. Office of Migratory Bird Management, Laurel, MD.

U.S. Department of the Interior and Environment Canada. 1986. North American waterfowl management plan. A strategy for cooperation.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Undated. North American waterfowl management plan Atlantic coast joint venture.

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