Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 365 Canaan Valley & Environs 2015 Southeastern Naturalist 14(Special Issue 7):365–371 Waterfowl Surveys in Canaan Valley: 1979–1993 Edwin D. Michael1,* and Sandra L. Brown2 Abstract - From 1979 through 1993, we surveyed the waterfowl of Canaan Valley by using vantage-point, helicopter, and canoe surveys. We conducted monthly vantage-point surveys from April through November at four sites, we completed monthly canoe surveys during May–July along a 10-mi (16-km) segment of the Blackwater River, and we conducted helicopter surveys covering all of the Valley’s drainages in May, August, and November. The most abundant species of waterfowl were the Branta canadensis (Canada Goose), Anas platyrhynchos (Mallard), Aix sponsa (Wood Duck), and Anas rubripes (American Black Duck). Thirteen other duck species were sighted, most of which were recorded during the November helicopter surveys. Of the several species of wading birds observed, the most abundant were Ardea herodias (Great Blue Heron) and Butorides virescens (Green Heron). Introduction In compliance with Article 59 of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission License for the Davis Power Project, the Allegheny Power System (APS) commissioned a program of wildlife studies. After consulting with the US Fish and Wildlife Service and with the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources, the research program ran from 1978 through 1993. The study ended due to litigation that prevented completion of the Davis Power Project. This paper presents one part of the overall study: a report of waterfowl species present and their abundance. These data were collected during 1979–1993. As directed by Article 59, our overall approach was to collect pre- and postconstruction data. An evaluation of changes in the wildlife populations during and after construction was to be the scientific basis for mitigation: the replacement of any loss of natural resources related to the Davis Power Project. The objectives of this paper are to describe the: (1) species of waterfowl that nested in Canaan Valley (hereafter, the Valley), (2) waterfowl species that visited during migration, (3) numbers of waterfowl that occurred during various seasons, (4) changes in waterfowl numbers from 1979–1993, and (5) other wetland birds that occurred in the the Valley. Methods The Valley watershed, a discrete geographic unit, constituted the focus of our surveys. Our primary study area was the part of the Valley that would have been directly impacted by the construction of the Davis Power Project’s lower reservoir. 1Division of Forestry (retired), PO Box 6125, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506. 2PO Box 5, Beverly, WV 26253. *Corresponding author - edmichael@adelphia.net. Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 366 The Valley’s waterfowl habitat was comprised mainly of 54 mi (90 km) of streams and 100 beaver ponds (USFWS 1979). Our methods included surveying from vantage points, helicopters, and canoes. Vantage-point surveys were conducted from four locations chosen for their excellent views of the birds using the Valley’s major drainages during their evening exercise flights. Vantage points were located along Glade Run, the Little Blackwater, the North Branch of the Blackwater, and the Blackwater River in Canaan Valley State Park. We conducted vantage-point surveys from one hour prior to sunset to one-half hour after sunset. We recorded the number of each species seen and the time of the observation. Each vantage point was surveyed monthly from April through November, 1979–1993. Helicopter counts were conducted three times per year throughout all of the Valley’s drainages. In addition to the pilot, three people participated in each count. Field maps were used to note the numbers and locations of waterfowl. Where possible, we identified waterfowl to species. Helicopter surveys were typically conducted during May, August, and November. The purpose of the May surveys was to determine the abundance and distribution of waterfowl nesting in the Valley, while the August surveys estimated the numbers of young produced. November surveys assessed migrating waterfowl numbers in the Valley. Canoe float-surveys helped us determine waterfowl use of the Blackwater River. The main goal of the float surveys, which covered approximately 10 mi (16 km) of the River from the old Timberline Road (east of Beall's farm) to the site of the proposed Blackwater Dam (near the confluence of Yellow Creek), was to count waterfowl broods. Canoe float-surveys were typically conducted during May, June, and July. The majority of May and June surveys were conducted during daylight hours, but the July surveys were carried out at night with the aid of a battery-powered spotlight. We recorded the numbers and locations of all wildlife seen and/or heard. Results The following four waterfowl species nested in the Valley: Branta canadensis L. (Canada Goose), Anas platyrhynchos L. (Mallard), Anas rubripes Brewster (American Black Duck), and Aix sponsa L. (Wood Duck). Vantage-point surveys and helicopter surveys indicated that the Canada Goose was the most abundant waterfowl species, followed by the Mallard, Wood Duck, and American Black Duck (Tables 1, 2). Thirteen other species of waterfowl were recorded, primarily during helicopter surveys. Results from vantage-point surveys showed that there were more ducks in Canaan Valley State Park than in other areas of the Valley. No annual trends were apparent in the number of waterfowl recorded at the vantage points during 1979– 1993. Ten species of wetland birds, other than waterfowl, were identified during vantage-point surveys (Table 2). The most common were Ardea herodias L. (Great Blue Heron), Butorides virescens L. (Green Heron), Gallinago gallinago L. (Common Snipe), and Chordeiles minor J.R. Forster (Common Nighthawk). Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 367 Table 1. Mean numbers of ducks sighted per survey at all vantage points in Canaan Valley, 1979–1993. 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 Mean Mallard 28.7 13.3 19.3 8.7 8.0 13.3 7.4 9.9 14.3 23.5 11.2 5.9 10.9 11.9 23.5 14.0 Wood Duck 10.1 9.2 6.7 6.3 5.7 7.4 13.3 8.0 11.1 6.4 8.7 5.9 6.4 11.0 8.9 8.3 American Black Duck 3.2 0.7 2.6 2.1 1.8 0.7 0.8 1.7 1.7 0.2 2.6 0.7 3.7 2.0 4.5 1.9 Unidentified 1.0 0 0 4.4 6.9 0 1.3 4.7 5.1 0.9 2.1 0.7 4.0 2.0 4.5 2.5 Total 43.0 23.2 28.6 21.5 22.4 21.4 22.8 24.3 32.2 31.0 24.6 13.2 25.5 26.9 41.4 26.7 Table 2. Numbers of Canada Geese and common wetland birds sighted at four vantage points in Canaan Valley, 1979–1993. Maximum number sightedA 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 Mean Canada Goose 85 124 63 32 120 32 59 47 71 48 244 159 108 22 35 83.3 Other waterfowlB 26 0 2 4 16 3 20 1 12 6 13 13 1 2 0 7.9 Great Blue Heron 0 11 10 8 12 12 11 7 11 6 5 5 9 7 10 8.3 Green Heron 0 3 11 6 5 5 9 5 4 1 3 2 3 4 1 4.1 Common Snipe 6 5 1 8 8 0 5 1 3 3 4 9 2 4 6 4.3 Common Nighthawk 6 4 4 2 5 2 2 30 3 6 4 4 7 2 2 5.5 Other wetland birdsC 7 5 6 9 8 5 1 9 5 3 4 4 4 1 2 4.9 AMaximum number sighted during any one survey at each of the four vantage points, combined for all four vantage points for that year. BOther waterfowl includes 11 species. COther wetland birds include 7 species. Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 368 May helicopter surveys showed that number of Canada Geese increased from 1982–1993, with over 200 birds present during 1991–1993 (Table 3). Mallard numbers during May helicopter surveys were relatively constant, at 70–80 birds from 1982–1991, but then our count increased to 131 in 1992 and 1993. Wood Duck numbers increased from lows of nine in 1983 and five in 1984, to highs of 67 in 1992 and 57 in 1993. In contrast, counts of resident breeding American Black Ducks declined from 22 and 23 in 1983 and 1984, respectively, to 9 in both 1992 and 1993; however, 28 were sighted during 1991. We identified 12 species of wetland birds other than waterfowl during the May helicopter surveys. The most common were Great Blue Heron and Green Heron. August surveys, which should reflect annual production, showed an increase in the numbers of Canada Geese and Mallards during the course of the study, while the American Black Duck declined (Table 4). Wood Duck numbers fluctuated throughout the 15-year period, but we counted more Wood Ducks than Mallards in many years. Nine species of wetland birds were identified during the August helicopter surveys, the most common of which were the Great Blue Heron and Green Heron. Because timing of migration varied among years, the November helicopter survey counts showed considerable interannual differences (Table 5). Wood Ducks migrate out of the Valley before November, and many Canada Geese also had left prior to the helicopter surveys during most years. Ten species of wetland birds were identified during the November helicopter surveys (Table 5). The most common were Fulica americana Gmelin (American Coot), Common Snipe, and Great Blue Heron. We used canoe floats to document waterfowl use of the Blackwater River, especially the abundance of Wood Duck and Mallard broods. We encountered a total of 110 Wood Ducks and 72 Mallards, including 18 broods (86 young) of Wood Ducks and 3 broods (28 young) of Mallards. We also found one brood of Canada Geese; no American Black Duck broods were observed. We identified seven species of wetland birds during the canoe surveys (Table 6). The most common were the Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Megaceryl alcyon L. (Belted Kingfisher), and Actitis macularius L. (Spotted Sandpiper). Discussion We documented nine species of waterfowl and wetland birds: Canada Goose, Wood Duck, American Black Duck, Mallard, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Spotted Sandpiper, Common Snipe, and Belted Kingfisher as summer residents in the Valley. All of these are also known to nest in the Valley. Waterfowl numbers fluctuated throughout the 1979–1993 period. Canada Geese increased, but no trends were obvious for the other eight species of waterfowl and wetland birds. Canada Goose numbers steadily increased from fewer than 100 in 1982 to over 500 in 1991, then declined in 1992 and 1993 to fewer than 400 (Tables 3–5). Fluctuations in the numbers recorded during the Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 369 Table 4. Number of waterfowl sighted during August helicopter surveys in Canaan Valley, 1979–1993. Waterfowl 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 Mean Canada Goose A A A 91 94 107 54 160 180 282 370 372 508 396 358 247.7B Wood Duck 31 33 65 61 51 49 83 106 55 70 96 91 71 59 43 64.3 Mallard 41 41 37 77 29 66 28 49 51 16 17 63 50 40 66 44.7 American. Black Duck 22 10 22 33 17 4 3 5 3 18 3 13 1 1 0 10.3 Other ducks 17 12 6 3 1 2 2 4 1 6 1 0 0 7 1 4.2 Total 111 96 130 265 192 228 170 324 290 392 487 539 630 503 468 355.2 ANo intensive search for Canada Geese. BIncludes 1982–1993 only. Table 3. Number of waterfowl sighted during the May helicopter surveys in Canaan Valley, 1982–1993. 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 Mean Canada Goose 62 37 43 73 92 78 170 109 152 218 219 215 122.3 Broods 5 3 2 3 4 3 8 13 7 8 6 6 5.6 Mallard 85 77 70 58 82 83 52 79 70 70 131 131 79.4 Wood Duck 39 9 5 13 41 28 41 30 31 49 67 57 34.2 American Black Duck 19 22 23 4 7 2 9 4 4 28 9 9 12.0 Other ducks 5 0 26 1 22 1 0 15 10 0 12 1 7.7 Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 370 Table 6. Total numbers of miscellaneous waterfowl observed during the canoe float trips on the Blackwater River, 1979–1993. Numbers observed during night surveys are given in parentheses. 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 Number of days 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Number of nights 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Wood Duck 31 7 20 8 4 4 3 4(1) 3(2) 7(1) 1 16(3) 16 6 4 Mallard 1 1 2 0 0 0 2(1) 1 0 21 1(1) 13 6 7 16 American Black Duck 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Duck spp. 0 1 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Canada Goose 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 6 Green Heron 10 5 4 7 0 2 5 0 0 0 4 0 0 2 2 Great Blue Heron 3 3 4 3 3(2) 2 4(1) 1 2 2(1) 0 1 2 3 1 Spotted Sandpiper 0 3 3 2 0 1 2 10 0 4 0 0 0 0 4 Belted Kingfisher 8 10 6 6 0 0 1 0 1 2 2 2 9 6 5 Bald Eagle (immature), Haliaeetus leucocephalus L. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Common Nighthawk 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0(1) 0 0 1 1 0 Whip-poor-will, Caprimulgus vociferous Wilson 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Table 5. Numbers of waterfowl sighted during November helicopter surveys in Canaan Valley, 1979–1993. Waterfowl 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 Mean Canada Goose A 105 110 40 120 105 160 36 58 221 58 404 456 326 233 173.7B Mallard 77 49 144 147 196 196 188 94 131 283 250 162 118 149 212 159.7 American Black Duck 87 04 96 136 156 110 114 114 85 116 201 76 167 68 112 116.1 Wood Duck 0 0 6 0 2 0 5 2 4 1 0 15 0 15 5 3.6 Other ducks 38 1 27 12 4 93 41 24 38 22 55 77 57 74 116 45.2 Total 202 259 383 335 478 450 508 270 316 643 564 735 798 632 679 483.5 ANo intensive search for Canada Geese. BMean includes 1980–1993 only. Southeastern Naturalist E.D. Michael and S.L. Brown 2015 Vol. 14, Special Issue 7 371 November helicopter counts are due to variation in timing of goose migration. Canada Geese did not winter in the Valley. Counts of most species of waterfowl and wetland birds exhibited wide yearto- year fluctuations. The most pronounced annual fluctuations were recorded during the November helicopter surveys. Because these surveys were conducted during the fall migration, the numbers of most waterfowl and other wetland birds fluctuated more widely during these surveys than during our vantage-point and canoe surveys. In some years, the numbers of Anas discors L. (Blue-winged Teal), Bucephala albeola L. (Bufflehead), and Lophodytes cucullatus L. (Hooded Merganser) were much higher than usual because their flocks used the Valley as a resting area before continuing their southward flights. Literature Cited US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). 1979. Final environmental impact statement: Acquisition of lands for the Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge, West Virginia. US Department of the Interior, Washington, DC. 111 pp.