Editing Greater scaup (section)

==Conservation==
Greater scaup are rated as a species of least concern by the IUCN Redlist.<ref name="iucn status 11 November 2021" /> During aerial population surveys greater and lesser scaup are counted together, because they look almost identical from the air. It was estimated that the greater scaup made up about 11% of the continental scaup population. Since the 1980s, scaup populations have been steadily decreasing. Some of the primary factors contributing to this decline are [[habitat loss]], contaminants, changes in breeding habitat, and a lower female survival rate. The 2010 American scaup population survey was 4.2&nbsp;million scaup,<ref name=USFWS/> however, the worldwide greater scaup population survey estimated 1,200,000 to 1,400,000 mature greater scaup.<ref name=Birdlife/> Along with the aerial population surveys, there is a [[bird ringing|ringing programme]] for the greater scaup. Metal leg bands are placed on them, so that if the scaup is killed by a hunter or if it is captured by another ringing group, the number on the band can be reported to biologists and wildlife organisations. These ringing programmes yield valuable data about migration patterns, harvest rates, and survival rates.<ref name=FlywaysUS/>

[[File:Greater scaup decoys.jpg|thumb|Greater scaup decoys, male on the left and female on the right. Each is attached to a lead weight.]]