ABSTRACT
Abstract. Sea ducks present unique challenges to waterfowl harvest management because the species have relatively low intrinsic population growth rates and varied population structure and harvest occurs under a diversity of rangewide hunting traditions. Sea duck harvest occurs throughout North America, ranging from inland harvest of widely distributed species, such as goldeneyes and mergansers, to specialized harvest of eiders and scoters in coastal and northern regions. Harvest of widely distributed species is well represented in continental waterfowl harvest monitoring programs. More localized harvests, such as those in coastal and remote areas, have proven challenging to monitor, and some special surveys have been implemented. Sea duck harvest regulations have evolved over the decades according to changes in population levels, management philosophies, and improvements in harvest information. Hunting of goldeneyes and Bufeheads has usually been regulated within general bag limits for ducks. Regulations for large mergansers have been liberal, but limits for Hooded Mergansers have remained conservative. Harvest regulations for eiders, scoters, Longtailed Ducks, and Harlequin Ducks have recently become more restrictive, subject to special seasons
and bag limits in primary coastal hunting areas. With a few exceptions, harvest of widely distributed species and most species along the Pacic Coast is considered sustainable. Common Eider harvest in the Atlantic Flyway is a management concern given uctuations in eider populations, high harvest pressure, and the presence of two subspecies. Sea ducks are important subsistence resources in the North; eiders are harvested by coastal communities and scoters by inland communities. Harvest estimates are now available for most northern jurisdictions, and management is undertaken in cooperation with First Nations and Inuit organizations in Canada and subsistence management bodies in Alaska. Additional information on the delineation and demography of sea duck populations is essential, along with improved harvest estimation techniques, to inform collaborative harvest management and to ensure sustainable harvest.
