La Tour du Valat

Institut de recherche pour la conservation des zones humides méditerranéennes

Titre :	Activity budget of an increasing wintering population of Greylag Geese Anser anser in southern France
Auteurs :	L. Desnouhes, Auteur ; M. Pichaud, Auteur ; N. Le Clainche, Auteur ; François Mesléard, Auteur ; J.-F. Giroux, Auteur
Type de document :	Article
Dans :	Wildfowl (54 2003)
Article en page(s) :	39-49
Langues:	Anglais
Résumé :	The wintering of Greylag Geese Anser anser in the Camargue, southern France, is a relatively recent phenomenon. Weekly counts carried out since 1980 on the St Seren Marsh, one of the most important sites in the Rhone delta for Anatidae, showed an exponential increase of the number of wintering geese (32% per year). More than 1,200 Greylags were recorded at St Seren during the winter of 2001-2002, representing nearly 75,000 goose-days throughout the season. The main daily activities of the geese were resting and feeding, which occupied nearly eight hours of the 10-hour daylight period. During the day, geese fed preferentially in the morning and rested in the afternoon. Time allocated to resting was significantly higher at the end of the season (December to February) than at the beginning (October and November). Attention should be paid to the dynamics of wintering geese in the Camargue because potential outcomes of the increase in goose numbers could be a a significant impact on the marsh vegetation and intrusion into cultivated areas with concomitant depredation problems.

Lundi , mardi et jeudi de 9h à 12h et de 13h à 17h00 : ouverture au public ...