through grass/sedge meadows interspersed with sections with 

 narrow canyons and steep gradients. Suitable habitat did appear 

 to occur but probably is limited in extent. The lower section of 

 Beaver Creek appeared to provide all the features of suitable 

 habitat but the upper half had wide gravel/rock banks which 

 provided no cover along the stream. 



The Gallatin River and West Rosebud Creek appeared to offer 

 suitable habitat throughout much of their length but both 

 suffered from heavy human use, particularly fishermen. This may 

 have discouraged harlequins from using these area. Squaw 

 Creek also provided good habitat but may have been on the small 

 side and also may have suffered some from high levels of human 

 activity. 



The East Boulder River was the best candidate for harlequin 

 duck observations of all streams surveyed. It had all the habitat 

 features identified by Wallen (1987) and was the only stream 

 surveyed that did not have a road or trail running along its 

 length. Grayling Creek also appeared to meet all the 

 qualifications except possibly that of size. 



CONCLUSION 



Because of their size, color (especially hens and young) , 

 and habitat preference, harlequin ducks are difficult to spot in 

 the wild. The possibility of overlooking individuals during 

 surveys must be considered to be quite high. Although I believe 



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