Project Information

Title: Assessment of Injury to Sea Ducks from Hydrocarbon Uptake in PWS and the Kodiak Archipelago following EVOS B11

Project Year and Number: 1989: B11

Other Fiscal Years and Numbers for this Project: 1994: 94066, 1993: 93033, 1993: 93033-2, 1992: B11, 1991: B11, 1990: B11

Principal Investigator (PI): Samuel Patten (Alaska Department of Fish & Game)

Managing Agency: USFWS

Assisting Personnel: Thomas Crowe, Richard Gustin, Charles Hastings, Robert Hunter, Paul Twait

Research Location: Prince William Sound

Restoration Category: Damage Assessment

Injured Resources Addressed: Barrow's Goldeneye, Harlequin Ducks

Abstract: Prince William Sound is the wintering area for over 125,000 sea ducks, primarily Barrow's goldeneyes, three species of scoters, harlequins, and oldsquaws. More than 160,000 sea ducks, consisting mainly of these same species, winter in the nearshore waters of Kodiak and neighboring islands. In the spring, the Sound is a major migration area for sea ducks. In the summer in both areas, the numbers of some species are low, while remaining high to moderate for others. Sea ducks are heavily dependent on intertidal and subtidal marine invertebrates. Oldsquaws take a wide variety of foods and use invertebrates in the water column as well as bottom-dwelling animals. Scoters and goldeneyes utilize blue mussels and, like harlequins, consume a wide variety of clams, snails, and limpets. Bivalves, particularly blue mussels, are well-known for their ability to concentrate pollutants at high levels. The crude oil spilled from the Exxon Valdez may cause severe damage to marine invertebrates that support sea ducks year round, and bioaccumulation of pollutants in this food chain may result in uptake of hydrocarbons by sea ducks over a long period of time. Through integration with other studies, this study will determine the levels of hydrocarbons taken in by sea ducks, and will predict resultant physiological and life-history effects.


Proposal: View (17 KB)

Reports:
Final Report: See Project B11

Publications from this Project: None Available

Datasets:
EVOSTC Data Archive: Project data are recorded on paper (notebooks and forms), maps, and electronic compilations. Principal data sets include: (1) necropsy and collection forms with organ and food notations, (2) laboratory reports with toxicology and histopathology results, (3) boat survey data by date and location, (4) stream mist-netting logs and banding schedules, ( 5 ) original and compiled records of oiling conditions and bird observations by numbered beach segmentktream and date, (6) compiled records of chemical oil remediation treatments by numbered beach segmentktream and date, and (7) a library of literature related to oil impacts on water birds. All data and materials are supervised and located with the Waterfowl Coordinator, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, 333 Raspberry Road, Anchorage, Alaska 99518. Contact the Coordinator by mail, telephone (907) 267-2206, or facsimile (907) 267-2433. All records not protected for litigation purposes are in the public domain and available under standard access procedures. Copies of many records also are found in the Alaska State Archives, Juneau and the Alaska Resources Library and Information Services, Anchorage.