Ecology

Effects of large-scale releases of farmed mallards for hunting purposes

Hundreds of thousands farmed mallards are released in Sweden each year for hunting purposes. The effects on the wild mallard population have been studied with documented effects on behavior, morphology, and genetics. Effects on wetland biodiversity and water quality have also been documented.

Researchers: Pär söderquist, Johan Elmberg, Gunnar Gunnarsson
Contact: par.soderquist@hkr.se

Managing goose populations in the agricultural landscape

Increasing goose populations in Europe and Sweden are leading to conflicts with humans and agriculture that are very costly for society. In a six-year project the objectives are to understand how geese utilize the agricultural landscape, and how we can manage and prevent damage caused by geese and the conflicts that arises between different social interests.

Researchers: Johan Elmberg, Camilla Olsson
Contact: camilla.olsson@hkr.se

Geese and ducks on the menu–a delicious and sustainable food source

Geese and ducks are common targets for hunters in Sweden, with about 100.000 mallards and 100.000 geese (including greylag, barnacle, canada, and bean geese) shot each year. To increase the hunting bag, several hundred thousand of mallards are also hand-reared and released every year. In a joint collaboration of bird ecologists and food scientists (from MEAL) we will evaluate food qualityin terms of nutrient content, levels of heavy metals, as well as sensory attributes of the meat in these shot birds. Differences between geese species as well as between wild and farmed mallards will also be studied.

Researchers: Pär Söderquist, Camilla Olsson
Contacts: par.soderquist@hkr.se, camilla.olsson@hkr.se

Biodiversity of tardigrades in the biosphere reserve Kristianstads Vattenrike

The Swedish tardigrade fauna is poorly investigated, and the potential to find new species both for the country and for science is high. Together with Italian tardigrade taxonomists (Roberto Guidetti, Edoardo Massa, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia) we study the occurrence of tardigrades in the biosphere reserve Kristianstads Vattenrike. Samples are collected from both terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Researcher: Ingemar Jönsson
Contact: ingemar.jonsson@hkr.se

Large avian herbivores as drivers of change in wetland ecosystems

This project focuses on the potential effects of geese and swans on aquatic ecosystems. This is warranted due to the facts that several of such waterfowl have increased dramatically in northern Europe in the last decades, and also that many wetlands have undergone concurrent and drastic changes (including brownification, eutrophication, decreasing abundances or changed compositions among aquatic vegetation, fish and waterbirds

Researcher: Gunnar Gunnarsson
Contact: gunnar.gunnarsson@hkr.se