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Publication Date

6-1-2003

Abstract

Estuarine environments in the Texas Coastal Bend provide wintering habitat for many wintering waterbirds including Common Loon (Gavia immer), Eared Grebe (Podiceps nigricollis), Pied‑billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps), Double‑crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritis), Neotropic Cormorant (Phalacrocorax brasilianus), and Red‑breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator). These species comprise a loose guild of birds that dive for food and spend a majority of their time on the water. Understanding the population levels and habitat associations is key to making sound management decisions within the estuarine environment. The study area includes four main aquatic habitat types: deep unvegetated associated with the ship channel, medium depth unvegetated, shallow patchy vegetated, and shallow continuous vegetated. The vegetated habitats are primarily vegetated with sea grasses. The unvegetated substrate is primarily clay and sand. A Geographic Information Systems layer was developed to provide spatial analyses with various existing information layers for this area. Preliminary results will be presented showing spatial distributions of species within the habitat types and associated geographic features.

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