Habitat Use and Feeding Ecology of Postbreeding Redheads

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Abstract
Habitat use and feeding ecology of postbreeding redheads (A. americana) were studied at Long Island Bay and Spence Lake, Manitoba, during 1974-1977. A large variety of items was eaten, but few were important in the diet of 98 male and 25 female redheads. Plant material composed 92 and 98% of the dry aggregate weight of food consumed by males and females, respectively. Muskgrass (Chara spp.) and fennelleaf pondweed (Potamogeton pectinatus) were the most important food items. Females fed extensively on the tubers and rootstalks of pondweed during the breeding season, and muskgrass was an important food of all redheads in autumn. Habitat use by postbreeding redheads was related to the abundance of plant food resources. Drought influenced the distribution of postbreeding redheads by reducing the abundance of submergent vegetation. Lake Winnipegosis is probably the most important continental postbreeding habitat for this species because it is a large, centrally located water body on the redhead migration route that is shallow and supports dense stands of aquatic vegetation.

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