SUMMER FOOD HABITS OF HARLEQUIN DUCKS IN EASTERN NORTH AMERICA

Abstract

We collected feces of breeding Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus) from interior rivers of Northern Québec, Labrador and Newfoundland to document their summer food habits. We obtained 42 samples from 50 ducks. All samples contained recognizable food items, and the mean number of taxa identified per sample was 3.6 (SD = 1.6, range = 1–7). Overall, a total of 10,222 organisms from 25 taxa were identified. Nearly all (99.7%) food items were insects; the rest were mollusks and mites. Among insects, Simuliidae larvae were the most common food item, representing 87.2% of all prey counted. Other insects had low relative frequencies, the highest being Trichoptera with only 8.0%. However, in terms of frequency of occurrence, many insects were well represented: Trichoptera (83.3%), Ephemeroptera (64.3%), Diptera (61.9%), Plecoptera (33.3%), Coleoptera (11.9%), and Heteroptera (9.5%). Although Simuliidae larvae may represent the most important food taken in terms of absolute numbers, the relative importance of Trichoptera may be much higher in terms dry weight. These results are consistent with observations that Harlequin Ducks usually feed on the bed of fast stretches of rivers, and occasionally in slow-moving waters.