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Research | Open Access

Effect of sex, temperature, time and flock size on the diving behavior of the wintering Scaly-sided Merganser (Mergus squamatus)

Mingqin Shao( ), Bin Chen
College of Life Science, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang 330022, China
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Abstract

Background

The foraging and diving behavior of waterfowl are affected by a number of important factors. Hence, learning more about these major factors is of great concern in order to protect endangered species. In this study, we verified the effect of sex, temperature, time and flock size on the diving behavior of the Scaly-sided Merganser (Mergus squamatus).

Methods

The study was conducted by means of focal animal sampling in the Wuyuan section of the Poyang Lake watershed in Jiangxi Province, China from December 2015 to March 2016. We used one-way ANOVA and LSD tests to investigate the differences among these factors. Pearson correlations were used to test the relation between pause duration and the previous or subsequent dive duration. The relations between these factors and dive/pause duration are illustrated using Spearman correlations.

Results

Mean dive duration and mean time on the pause of males were significantly higher than those of females. With an increase in temperature, dive duration significantly increased. Along with the passage of time of year and daytime, dive duration significantly increased, while dive duration decreased significantly with the increase in flock size.

Conclusions

Sex, temperature, time and flock size have an effect on the diving behavior of the wintering Scaly-sided Merganser. The difference of diving behavior between males and females is related to differences in body mass. The difference of diving behavior among various temperatures and time periods may be related to a low minimum rate of oxygen consumption, while the difference among various flock sizes may be caused by rising intraspecific competition.

Keywords

TemperatureFlock sizeDiving behaviorScaly-sided MerganserSexTime

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Avian Research
Volume 8 Issue 1,
January 2017
Article number: 9
DOI: 10.1186/s40657-017-0067-4
Cite this article:
Shao M, Chen B. Effect of sex, temperature, time and flock size on the diving behavior of the wintering Scaly-sided Merganser (Mergus squamatus). Avian Research, 2017, 8(1): 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40657-017-0067-4

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Received: 07 October 2016
Accepted: 17 March 2017
Published: 29 March 2017
© The Author(s) 2017.

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