A. Status of the Spectacled Eider - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The final aspect ofSpectacled Eider recovery will involve the formulation and testing of
specific hypotheses about the cause(s) of the eiders’ decline and the importance of specific
obstacles to recovery. To date, several hypotheses have been suggested to account for the
decline of this species, and the Service’s prioritization of these preliminary hypotheses has
guided much of the ongoing exploratory data collection. At present, however, data are
inadequate for rigorously developing and quantitatively testing most of them. In addition, the
relatively few data pertaining to these hypotheses have yet to be comprehensively summarized
and evaluated.
To make substantial progress toward recovery, it is imperative that all research be designed
and implemented within a hypothesis-testing framework. The current lack ofdata, however,
should not be construed as an excuse for unfocused data collection during the exploratory
phase, nor should all hypothesis refinement be postponed until the end ofexploratory
investigation. As data become available incrementally, the hypotheses should be increasingly
fine-tuned. Whenever possible, the Service should evaluate hypotheses on the basis of existing
data and summarize these evaluations in the form of official position papers. These summaries
will be essential for prioritizing work plans to ensure that scarce dollars and human resources
are consistently applied to the most viable and/or most easily-tested hypotheses. Exploratory
data collection and hypothesis-testing are concurrent processes, with improvements,
refinements, and evaluations of the latter task ultimately being contingent upon successful
completion of the former one.
Over the next several years, recovery efforts should focus on the following topics:
a. Management Actions--Although limited in scope, a suite of management actions is
available that could reduce the rate of the Spectacled Eider’s population decline and pave
the way for recovery once the obstacles have been identified. Most specific tasks fall into
four broad categories: (1) reduction of eider mortality; (2) development of ownership in
recovery through increased dialogue and Memoranda of Agreement; (3) Section 7
consultations and permitting; and (4) development of captive flocks.
Confirmed sources of eider mortality include lead poisoning, predation, human harvest,
injury, and researcher impact. Since these sources of Spectacled Eider mortality operate
on the breeding grounds, the people who share the land with the eiders must be intimately
involved in the recovery process. Current dialogue must be expanded to develop a
common understanding and cooperation essential to effect recovery. Through Memoranda
of Agreement, the Service involves in the decision making process local governments,
Native organizations and villages, the ADF&G, and the National Biological Service in
developing the most effective strategies to achieve reductions in eider mortality. If
appropriate, the Memoranda ofAgreement for managing marine mammals and the Yukon-
Kuskokwim Delta Goose Management Plan could serve as models for eider agreements.
40