Wood Duck and Mallard Winter Microhabitats in Mississippi Hardwood Bottomlands

Abstract

Wood ducks (Aix sponsa) and mallards (Arras platyrhyrrchos) use southern hardwood bottomlands and greentree reservoirs extensively during winter, but possible differential microhabitat use by these species in forested wetlands has not been investigated. Consequently, we quantified aspects of forest structure, relative availability of potential foods (e.g,, acorns and invertebrates), and water depth at microhabitats of wood ducks and mallards in S greentree reservoirs in Mississippi during winters 1988-90 to test the null hypothesis that species'microhabitats did not differ. Species' microhabitats differed (P≤ 0.03) in 1 or both winters. Compared with wood ducks, mallards used microhabitats with greater «openness» (i.e., less canopy closure, tree density, and understory cover), lower tree species diversity, and shallower water