DECLINE OF SPECTACLED EIDERS NESTING IN WESTERN ALASKA

Spectacled eider (Somateria fischeri) populations in western Alaska ar e now less than 4% of the numbers estimated in the early 1970s. In 199 2, an estimated 1721 nesting pairs remained on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Del ta. Causes of this rapid and continuing decline of -14% per year are u ndocumented. Many aspects of spectacled eider biology remain unknown, including their marine foraging habitats, food items, migratory moveme nts, and population ecology. A review of some biological characteristi cs and possible threats to the species suggests the importance of quan tifying potential impacts from parasites and disease, subsistence harv est, predation during brood rearing, and alteration of Bering Sea food resources. Factors causing the population decline of spectacled eider s must be determined and appropriate actions taken to reverse the tren d.