U.S. Fish & Wildlife ServiceThis geodataset describes 85 sites throughout North America that constitute important sea duck habitats. It is intended to heighten awareness of valuable sea duck habitats, aid in prioritizing habitat conservation and protection efforts, and help in evaluating environmental assessments. Criteria for inclusion in this atlas were strict, relative to criteria used for other bird habitat designations, to highlight those habitats most critical to sea ducks during at least one season. To be included in this atlas, sites had to meet the following minimum criteria: (1a) The area supports at least 5% of the continental population of a sea duck species, or (1b) The area supports, or has recently supported, a total of 20,000 sea ducks (any species) during any season, and (2) The density of sea ducks within the area is at least 10 birds per square kilometer. It is important to note that abundance was estimated or calculated using a variety of methods and sources. Each site description includes an explanation of how abundance estimates were treated, whether indices were adjusted by estimates of detection, and how they should be interpreted. Due to the paucity of survey-based abundance estimates for sea ducks in many areas and in various seasons, expert opinion was often used as a basis for abundance estimates. Key habitat site descriptions include a synopsis of sea duck abundance and temporal importance of the site to sea ducks, as well as sensitivities or potential conflicts that may impact sea ducks or their habitats. Full metadata and data asset available on USGS ScienceBase: https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/646ea436d34e4e58932cf63a https://doi.org/10.7944/P9KHRJKW Point of Contact: Kate Martin (kate_martin@fws.gov) Curator: Tammy Patterson (tamatha_patterson@fws.gov)ArcGIS FeatureLayerhttps://hub.arcgis.com/datasets/fcf58ace838e434cadaf766c8ff0540b_0engU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Open DataPublicUSFWS Joint Venture Sea Duck Key Habitat Sites Atlas v1 feature layer [United States]Web servicesUnited StatesLast Modified: 2023-10-27