Wintering sea duck distribution along the Atlantic coast of the United States

Although monitoring data for sea ducks (Tribe Mergini) are limited, current evidence suggests that four of the most common species wintering along the eastern coast of the United States—long-tailed duck Clangula hyemalis, white-winged scoter Melanitta fusca, surf scoter Melanitta perspicillata, and black scoter Melanitta americana—may be declining, while the status of American common eider Somateria mollissima dresseri is uncertain. The apparent negative trends, combined with the fact that sea duck life histories are among the most poorly documented of North American waterfowl, have led to concerns for these species and questions about the impacts of human activities, such as hunting, as well as catastrophic events and environmental change. During winter, thousands of sea ducks are found along the U.S. Atlantic coast, where they may be affected by proposed wind-power development, changes to marine traffic, aquaculture practices, sand mining, and other coastal development. Possible impac...