Human Disturbances to Waterfowl
Annotated Bibliography
In 1948 one blue-winged teal nest was destroyed by bluegrass seed-stripping machinery. Another blue-winged teal nest was deserted by the female after curious workmen visited the nest several times in a day. A teal nest in Whitford's Slough in 1949 apparently was deserted by the female after being flushed by the investigator. This was unusual, for most of the females generally returned to their nests within a few hours. At Barringer's Slough in 1949, an incubating female was unintentionally stepped on by the investigator while searching dense nesting cover. Two of her eggs were broken. The female flew about 30 yd (28.2 meters) and landed in dense vegetation. Damaged eggs were carefully removed from the nest and the cover returned to its original appearance. A recheck on the nest a week later revealed that the female had successfully brought off a brood of ducklings. It is doubtful if flushing the ducks from nests had a detrimental effect on success. Often successful nests found in Dewey's Pasture in 1949, nine were located by flushing the female. At Whitford's Slough, two of the three successful nests were found by flushing the female.
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