Table 2. Average annual waterfowl population by species 1969-78 

 Fish and Wildlife Service 1982). 



(modified from 



Species 



Point Aux 



Chenes-Grand Bay 

 (31,649 acres) 



Swamp Unit Lower Mobile Delta Unit 

 (21,507 acres) 



Mallard 



American Black Duck 

 Mottled Duck 

 Gadwal 1 



American Wigeon 

 Green-winged Teal 

 Bl ue-winged Teal 

 Northern Shovel er 

 Northern Pintail 

 Wood Duck 

 Redhead 

 Canvasback 

 Lesser Scaup 

 Ring-necked Duck 

 Common Goldeneye 

 Bufflehead 

 Ruddy Duck 

 American Coot 



TOTAL 



100 



25 

 50 

 100 

 25 

 10 



25 



50 

 300 



250 



100 



1,035 



24,471 



species nesting in coastal Alabama. Mottled duck ( Anas fulvigula ) are also 

 known to breed on Dauphin Island (Imhof 1976). American coot ( Fulica 

 americana ) , although not a duck, is the most numerous waterfowl specfes fn 

 the Mobile Delta area, composing almost 68% of total waterfowl population. 

 Other areas in which large populations of certain waterfowl species are 

 sometimes found during the winter are upper Perdido Bay, around Dauphin 

 Island and in Bon Secour Bay. For example on Bon Secour Bay, over 100,000 

 scamp were observed during the winter of 1983-84 (D. Cooley, pers. comm. 

 1984). 



Harvest figures for ducks and coots over the years 1972 to 1983 in the 



Mobile Delta are presented in Table 3. In general, more coots than ducks 



were harvested over the 12-year period, but the relative numbers varied by 

 season. 



SEA TURTLES 



Turtle nesting is extremely rare in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. The 

 Atlantic small loggerhead ( Caretta caretta ) is reported to occur and occa- 

 sionally nest in the area (Mount 1975; Boschung 1976; McDiarmid 1978). The 



8 



