Oil and Natural Gas Development InfluenceNest-site Selection and Nest Survival ofUpland-nesting Waterfowl and Shorebirds

摘要

Native grasslands provide important breeding habitat for many upland-nesting waterfowland shorebirds. However, recent increases in oil and gas development in native grassland may alter thequantity and quality of this globally threatened habitat. Oil and natural gas development involvesconstruction of roads, trails, and wells; often facilitating invasion by exotic vegetation. Our objectiveswere to determine 1) whether nest placement by upland-nesting waterfowl and shorebirds varied withproximity to oil and gas infrastructure; and 2) the extent to which nest survival was influenced byproximity to wells, roads, and trails, as well as percent cover of the exotic crested wheatgrass insoutheastern Alberta, Canada, 2010–2011. Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) and blue-winged teal (Spatuladiscors) nests were located within 100 m of wells more than expected by chance, and northern shoveler(Spatula clypeata) and northern pintail (Anas acuta) tended to nest more frequently within 200 m of wells.In contrast, more shorebird nests were located farther from wells than expected. Mallards and bluewingedteal were also more likely to place their nests near roads. Shorebirds tended to place their nestseither close to roads or far from these structures more often than expected by chance. The proportion ofmallard nests located in close proximity to trails was greater than expected, but fewer blue-winged tealnests were located near trails than expected by chance. The top-ranked models explaining variation indaily nest survival rates of northern shoveler, mallard, and shorebirds included distance to infrastructurevariables, although these relationships were weak. Northern shovelers appear to benefit from placing nestscloser to trails; daily nest survival rate increased with proximity to trails. However, trails may act as anecological sink for shorebirds; they were more likely to place nests near trails but daily survival rates werelower near trails.