López-Flores, M., B. D. Davis, F. J. Vilella, R. M. Kaminski, J. A. Cruz-Burgos, and J. D. Lancaster. 2014. Survival of female White-cheeked Pintails during brood rearing in Puerto Rico. Caribbean Naturalist 10:1-12.
Abstract
The White-cheeked Pintail (Anas bahamensis) is widely distributed across the Caribbean islands and South America. The species is classified as threatened in Puerto Rico and a species of Least Concern (LC) across most of its range. Despite some declining populations of White-cheeked Pintails, little demographic data exist for the species, particularly during the breeding season. We captured and radiomarked 31 incubating female White-cheeked Pintails during 2000–2002 at the Humacao Nature Reserve (Humacao) in southeastern Puerto Rico. We modeled daily and interval survival rates of females using the known-fate model in Program MARK. One 1 of 31 females died while brood rearing. Daily survival rate of pintails was 0.998 ± (95% CI: 0.989–0.999) for all years, and interval survival was 0.913 ± (95% CI: 0.527–0.987) for a 60-day brood rearing period. High survival of females suggests their mortality during brood rearing does not influence White-cheeked Pintail populations at Humacao and perhaps elsewhere in the region, but further studies of reproductive and annual ecology are needed.