Consistent habitat preference underpins the geographically divergent autumn migration of individual Mongolian common shelducks

Abstract While many avian populations follow narrow, well-defined “migratory corridors,” individuals from other populations undertake highly divergent individual migration routes, using widely dispersed stopover sites en route between breeding and wintering areas, although the reasons for these differences are rarely investigated. We combined individual GPS-tracked migration data from Mongolian-breeding common shelduck Tadorna tadorna and remote sensing datasets, to investigate habitat selection at inland stopover sites used by these birds during dispersed autumn migration, to explain their divergent migration patterns. We used generalized linear mixed models to investigate population-level resource selection, and generalized linear models to investigate stopover-site-level resource selection. The population-level model showed that water recurrence had the strongest positive effect on determining birds’ occupancy at staging sites, while cultivated land and grassland land cover type had strongest negative effects; effects of other land cover types were negative but weaker, particularly effects of water seasonality and presence of a human footprint, which were positive but weak or non-significant, respectively. Although stopover-site-level models showed variable resource selection patterns, the variance partitioning and cross-prediction AUC scores corroborated high inter-individual consistency in habitat selection at inland stopover sites during the dispersed autumn migration. These results suggest that the geographically widespread distribution (and generally rarity) of suitable habitats explained the spatially divergent autumn migrations of Mongolian breeding common shelduck, rather than the species showing flexible autumn staging habitat occupancy.

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Increased Stopover Duration and Low Body Condition of the Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca) at an Autumn Stopover Site

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani10122208 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. 2208

Author(s):

Bernice Goffin ◽

Marcial Felgueiras ◽

Anouschka R. Hof

Keyword(s):

Environmental Change ◽

Body Condition ◽

Environmental Conditions ◽

Ficedula Hypoleuca ◽

Autumn Migration ◽

Long Distance ◽

Stopover Site ◽

Stopover Duration ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Over Time

Many long-distance migratory bird species are in decline, of which environmental changes, such as climate change and land-use changes, are thought to be important drivers. The effects of environmental change on the migration of these birds have often been studied during spring migration. Fewer studies have explored the impacts of environmental change on autumn migration, especially at stopover sites. However, stopover sites are important, as the quality of these sites is expected to change over time. We investigated impacts of local environmental conditions on the migration strategy and body condition of the Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca) at an autumn migration stopover site using long-term ringing data (1996–2018) and local environmental conditions. We found that although the arrival and departure dates of birds at the stopover site remained unchanged, the body condition (fat score) of the individuals caught decreased, and the stopover duration increased. This suggests that conditions at the stopover site during the autumn migration period have deteriorated over time. This study emphasizes the importance of suitable stopover sites for migratory birds and stresses that changes in environmental conditions during the autumn migration period may be contributing to the current decline in long-distance migratory passerines.

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Migratory status determines resource selection by American Woodcock at an important fall stopover, Cape May, New Jersey

The Condor ◽

10.1093/condor/duaa046 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Brian B Allen ◽

Daniel G McAuley ◽

Erik J Blomberg

Keyword(s):

New Jersey ◽

Land Cover ◽

Classification Accuracy ◽

Resource Selection ◽

Radio Telemetry ◽

Stopover Site ◽

Land Cover Types ◽

American Woodcock ◽

Landscape Characteristics ◽

Wetland Forest

Abstract Migration is a period of high activity and exposure during which risks and energetic demand on individuals may be greater than during nonmigratory periods. Stopover locations can help mitigate these threats by providing supplemental energy en route to the animal’s end destination. Effective conservation of migratory species therefore requires an understanding of use of space that provides resources to migratory animals at stopover sites. We conducted a radio-telemetry study of a short-distance migrant, the American Woodcock (Scolopax minor), at an important stopover site, the Cape May Peninsula, New Jersey. Our objectives were to describe land-cover types used by American Woodcock and evaluate home range habitat selection for individuals that stopover during fall migration and those that choose to overwinter. We radio-marked 271 individuals and collected 1,949 locations from these birds (0–21 points individual–1) over 4 yr (2010 to 2013) to inform resource selection functions of land-cover types and other landscape characteristics by this species. We evaluated these relationships at multiple spatial extents for (1) birds known to have ultimately left the peninsula (presumed migrants), and (2) birds known to have remained on the peninsula into the winter (presumed winter residents). We found that migrants selected deciduous wetland forest, agriculture, mixed shrub, coniferous wetland forest, and coniferous shrub, while wintering residents selected deciduous wetland forest, coniferous shrub, and deciduous shrub. We used these results to develop predictive models of potential habitat: 7.80% of the peninsula was predicted to be potential stopover habitat for American Woodcock (95% classification accuracy) and 4.96% of the peninsula was predicted to be potential wintering habitat (85% classification accuracy). Our study is the first to report habitat relationships for migratory American Woodcock in the coastal U.S. and provides important spatial tools for local and regional managers to support migratory and winter resident woodcock populations into the future.

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Tracking the Autumn Migration of the Bar-Headed Goose (Anser indicus) with Satellite Telemetry and Relationship to Environmental Conditions

International Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1155/2011/323847 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2011 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Yaonan Zhang ◽

Meiyu Hao ◽

John Y. Takekawa ◽

Fumin Lei ◽

Baoping Yan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Environmental Conditions ◽

Vegetation Index ◽

Normalized Difference Vegetation Index ◽

Habitat Type ◽

Autumn Migration ◽

Qinghai Lake ◽

Vegetation Coverage ◽

Migration Routes ◽

Mountainous Regions ◽

Stopover Sites

The autumn migration routes of bar-headed geese captured before the 2008 breeding season at Qinghai Lake, China, were documented using satellite tracking data. To assess how the migration strategies of bar-headed geese are influenced by environmental conditions, the relationship between migratory routes, temperatures, and vegetation coverage at stopovers sites estimated with the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) were analyzed. Our results showed that there were four typical migration routes in autumn with variation in timing among individuals in start and end times and in total migration and stopover duration. The observed variation may be related to habitat type and other environmental conditions along the routes. On average, these birds traveled about 1300 to 1500 km, refueled at three to six stopover sites and migrated for 73 to 83 days. The majority of the habitat types at stopover sites were lake, marsh, and shoal wetlands, with use of some mountainous regions, and farmland areas.

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Spatial distribution and habitat use of reed warblers Acrocephalus scirpaceus during the autumn migration

Behaviour ◽

10.1163/1568539x-00003172 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 151 (6) ◽

pp. 799-817 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Miren Andueza ◽

Juan Arizaga ◽

Emilio Barba ◽

Ibon Tamayo-Uria

Keyword(s):

Spatial Distribution ◽

Habitat Use ◽

Breeding Site ◽

Autumn Migration ◽

First Year ◽

Home Ranges ◽

Spatial Behaviour ◽

Stopover Site ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Acrocephalus Scirpaceus

Spatial behaviour and habitat selection at stopover sites have a strong influence on the foraging and fuelling performance of migrating birds and hence are important aspects of stopover ecology. The aim of this study was to analyse the spatial behaviour and habitat use of reed warblers Acrocephalus scirpaceus during the autumn migration. We used radio tracking data from reed warblers surveyed at a stopover site in northern Iberia and assigned to three different groups: (1) local adult birds which were still at their breeding site, (2) migrating first-year birds (originating from beyond Iberian peninsula) and (3) migrating adult birds. Overall, migrating first-year birds tended to have larger home ranges than both local and migrating adults and to move more widely in the study area. They also showed lower fat deposition rates than adults. The proportion of habitats in home ranges (reed-beds and tidal flats being the most abundant habitats) was similar amongst groups. The spatial distribution and habitat use of organisms have been theorised to follow an ideal-free or ideal-despotic distribution. However, according to our results, other complex underlying mechanisms may play an important role in shaping the spatial behaviour of birds at stopover sites.

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Assessing site-safeguard effectiveness and habitat preferences of Bar-headed Geese (Anser indicus) at their stopover sites within the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau using GPS/GSM telemetry

Avian Research ◽

10.1186/s40657-020-00230-9 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Junjian Zhang ◽

Yanbo Xie ◽

Laixing Li ◽

Nyambayar Batbayar ◽

Xueqin Deng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Habitat Type ◽

Nature Reserves ◽

Tibet Plateau ◽

Autumn Migration ◽

High Plains ◽

Migration Routes ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Anser Indicus ◽

Qinghai Tibet Plateau ◽

National Nature Reserves

Abstract Background The Bar-headed Goose (Anser indicus) breeds across the high plains and plateau of Central Asia and winters in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP), the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau and the Indian sub-continent. Of the two recognized discrete flyways of the Bar-headed Goose, the Eastern Tibetan Flyway (ETF) is the larger, comprising at least six migration routes. However, we remain ignorant about their migratory connectivity, habitat use and effectiveness of site-safeguard mechanisms set in place for the species. Methods We tracked 30 ETF Bar-headed Geese from Chinese and Mongolian breeding areas to their wintering grounds using GPS/GSM transmitters, to determine their migration routes and stopover staging patterns within the QTP, overlaying these upon GIS layers of protected area status and habitat type, to model their habitat selection. Results In total, 14 tagged Bar-headed Geese provided information on their entire autumn migration and 4 geese on their entire spring migration. Qinghai Lake marked birds overwintered in the QTP (n = 2), geese tagged in Mongolia wintered either in the QTP (n = 3) or in India/Bangladesh (n = 9), representing three of the migration routes within the ETF. In total, tagged birds staged at 79 different stopover sites within QTP in autumn and 23 in spring, of which 65% (autumn) and 59% (spring) of all fixes fell within the boundaries of either National Nature Reserves (NNRs) or Important Birds Areas (IBAs) in the QTP. Bar-headed Geese predominantly occurred on four land-cover types: grassland (mostly by day), water bodies (at night), wetlands and bare substrates (salt flats, dry lake/river substrates and plough) with little change in proportion. Generalized linear mixed models comparing presence with pseudo-absence data suggested geese strongly selected for wetlands as staging habitat, avoiding bare substrates in spring. Conclusions Based on our limited observations of these tagged geese, this study is the first to show that the current designated National Nature Reserves in place in the staging areas within the QTP appear adequate to protect this increasing population. In addition, Hala Lake in Qinghai Province and adjacent areas used as initial QTP staging during autumn migration (currently outside of designated as NNRs/IBAs) are recommended for protection, based on their use by tagged birds from this study. Habitat modelling confirmed the importance of natural wetlands as feeding areas and safe areas of open water as roosting places.

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Evidence for sexual partitioning of foraging mode in Western Sandpipers (Calidris mauri) during migration

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z04-080 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 82 (7) ◽

pp. 1035-1042 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Kimberley J Mathot ◽

Robert W Elner

Keyword(s):

Population Level ◽

Distribution Patterns ◽

Differential Distribution ◽

Foraging Mode ◽

Stopover Site ◽

Calidris Mauri ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Prey Resources ◽

Western Sandpipers ◽

Induced Changes

Migrating Western Sandpipers, Calidris mauri (Cabanis, 1857), observed feeding at an intertidal stopover site on the Fraser River delta, British Columbia, shifted their foraging mode from surface-pecking to probing over a 3-week period in April and May. We tested possible mechanisms to account for the field observations. Using control and shorebird exclusion plots over a 3-month period bracketing the migration, we determined that neither seasonal nor shorebird-induced changes in the relative availability of epifaunal compared with infaunal prey accounted for the decline in the prevalence of epifaunal feeding behaviour. However, strong peaks in both epi- and in-faunal prey densities coincided with the migration period, suggesting that migratory timing may be linked with the productivity schedule of major stopover sites. Males, which precede females in the migration and have relatively shorter bills, were observed to engage in epifaunal feeding more frequently than females. Thus, while foraging behaviour of the Western Sandpiper at a population level appears "plastic", the feeding repertoire of individuals is more specialized and results in sexual partitioning of prey resources. The implications of our findings for differential distribution patterns over the nonbreeding range and sex-related differences in contaminant profiles are discussed.

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Satellite tracking reveals a new migration route of black-necked cranes (Grus nigricollis) in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.9715 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

pp. e9715

Author(s):

Ye Wang ◽

Chunrong Mi ◽

Yumin Guo

Keyword(s):

Spring Migration ◽

Tibet Plateau ◽

Autumn Migration ◽

Migration Route ◽

Vulnerable Species ◽

Migration Routes ◽

Migration Patterns ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Grus Nigricollis ◽

Spatio Temporal

Background The black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis) is a vulnerable species and the only species that lives in the plateau. Five migration routes of different populations have been identified, but for cranes wintering in Nyingchi Prefecture, Tibet, the migration route and breeding/summering area are still unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the spatio-temporal migration patterns of black-necked cranes in this area and to identify important areas for conservation. Methods In 2016, we fitted seven black-necked cranes in Nyingchi with GPS-GSM satellite transmitters to record their migration routes. We used ArcGIS 10.2 to visualize important stopover sites and the ‘ggplot’ function in R to analyze the migration patterns. Results From March 2016 to May 2019, we recorded nine spring migration and four autumn migration tracks from five individuals. Four individuals spent the breeding/summering season in Qinghai Lake, while the other spent the breeding/summering season in the Jinzihai Wetland of Dulan County, Qinghai Province. Detailed spatio-temporal information showed that the spring migration lasted 8.7 ± 4.6 days and covered 1,182.5 ± 90.4 km, while the autumn migration lasted 30 ± 10.6 days and covered 1,455.7 ± 138 km. Basom Lake and the Shazhuyu River were the most important stopover sites during the spring and autumn migrations, respectively. The cranes spent 4.4 ± 3.7 days in Basom Lake and 26.3 ± 10.7 days in the Shazhuyu River. The black-necked cranes mainly migrated during the daytime (>85 % of the fly points), and 81 % (17/21) of all stopover and roosting sites were in the valley or at lakeside swamps. Only 17.7% (516 / 2,914) of the data points for stopover and roosting sites were in protected areas. Main conclusions Our study revealed the breeding/summering areas and migration routes of the black-necked cranes wintering in Nyingchi. These results contribute to a better understanding of the annual spatio-temporal migration patterns and the development of conservation plans for this vulnerable species.

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Bird Satellite Tracking Revealed Critical Protection Gaps in East Asian–Australasian Flyway

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph16071147 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (7) ◽

pp. 1147 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Jialin Lei ◽

Yifei Jia ◽

Aojie Zuo ◽

Qing Zeng ◽

Linlu Shi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

East Asian ◽

Satellite Tracking ◽

Conservation Strategy ◽

Conservation Strategies ◽

Migration Routes ◽

Knowledge Gaps ◽

Stopover Site ◽

Migratory Waterfowl ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Natural Grasslands

Most migratory birds depend on stopover sites, which are essential for refueling during migration and affect their population dynamics. In the East Asian–Australasian Flyway (EAAF), however, the stopover ecology of migratory waterfowl is severely under-studied. The knowledge gaps regarding the timing, intensity and duration of stopover site usages prevent the development of effective and full annual cycle conservation strategies for migratory waterfowl in EAAF. In this study, we obtained a total of 33,493 relocations and visualized 33 completed spring migratory paths of five geese species using satellite tracking devices. We delineated 2,192,823 ha as the key stopover sites along the migration routes and found that croplands were the largest land use type within the stopover sites, followed by wetlands and natural grasslands (62.94%, 17.86% and 15.48% respectively). We further identified the conservation gaps by overlapping the stopover sites with the World Database on Protected Areas (PA). The results showed that only 15.63% (or 342,757 ha) of the stopover sites are covered by the current PA network. Our findings fulfil some key knowledge gaps for the conservation of the migratory waterbirds along the EAAF, thus enabling an integrative conservation strategy for migratory water birds in the flyway.

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Migration routes and stopover sites of the Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) between the Carpathian Basin and wintering areas

Ornis Hungarica ◽

10.1515/orhu-2016-0008 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. 128-149 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Csaba Pigniczki ◽

Jelena Kralj ◽

Stefano Volponi ◽

Antun Žuljević ◽

Mohamed-Ali Dakhli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Statistical Significance ◽

River Mouth ◽

Balkan Peninsula ◽

Spring Migration ◽

Carpathian Basin ◽

Autumn Migration ◽

Western Coast ◽

Migration Routes ◽

Stopover Sites ◽

Wintering Areas

Abstract Understanding the migration routes of the Central European Spoonbill population is important for their conservation. Here we analysed movements of 3186 individuals of Eurasian Spoonbills marked with colour rings in the Carpathian Basin (Hungary, Croatia and Serbia) between 2003 and 2015, and a satellite tagged individual, which was equipped in Italy in 2013, and later moved to the Carpathian Basin. Migration routes of these Spoonbills predominantly followed the Adriatic Flyway, however, some birds were also found to both east and west from this flyway. We identified 59 stopover sites, 55 of which were located along the Adriatic Flyway. Colourringed juveniles (1cy), on average, spent 4.0±0.9 (SE) days on the stopover sites along the Adriatic Flyway during autumn migration, while non-juveniles (> 1cy) spent 2.6±1.0 (SE) days during autumn and 2.1±0.4 (SE) days during spring migration there. These durations were not significantly different. Duration of stops of the satellite tracked individual was between 7 and 15 days during autumn and between 1 and 12 days during spring migration. Our results indicate the existence of two alternative routes of the Adriatic Flyway between the Carpathian Basin and the wintering areas in southern Italy and the central part of coastal North-Africa. The North-Adriatic Flyway includes stopover sites in north-eastern Italy at the river mouth of River Isonzo, Lagunes of Venice and wetlands around River Po. The South Adriatic Flyway leads through the Balkan Peninsula, with stopover sites at the karst lakes of Bosnia and Herzegovina, mouth of the river Neretva (Croatia), Ulcinj Salinas (Montenegro) and wetlands in Gulf of Manfredonia (Italy). This hypothesis was also supported by the migration of the satellite tagged individual, the paths of which was described here in detail. The average coordinates of spring and autumn stopover sites were located at different parts of the flyway: it was in south-western Italy during autumn migration, while it was close to the western coast of the Balkan Peninsula during spring migration. We found examples for Spoonbills using the same migration paths along the same route year by year on both spring and autumn migration, but also noticed shifts between routes. Some observations indicate that individuals may show site fidelity to stopover sites between years, although the sample size was low for statistical significance.

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Individual Differences in Habitat Selection Mediate Landscape Level Predictions of a Functional Response

10.21203/rs.3.rs-427313/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Levi Newediuk ◽

Christina M. Prokopenko ◽

Eric Vander Wal

Keyword(s):

Individual Differences ◽

Habitat Selection ◽

Functional Response ◽

Random Effects ◽

Resource Selection ◽

Mixed Forest ◽

Population Level ◽

Habitat Availability ◽

Selection For ◽

Predictive Approaches

Abstract Context Conserving and managing habitat for animals requires robust models to predict their space use. The functional response in habitat selection posits that animals adjust their habitat selection according to availability. Objectives Habitat availability can change over short time periods and small spatial distances, and thus failing to account for changes in habitat availability while modelling may not produce reliable predictions in the near–term or future. However, because individuals may respond to habitat availability differently, the functional response is also limited for predicting habitat selection by individuals. Methods Using a functional response in elk (Cervus canadensis) selection for mixed forest in response to road proximity, we compared habitat selection predictions made by population-level resource selection functions (RSFs) with random effects to incorporate individual differences in selection, to generalized functional response (GFR) RSFs. Results We found that since not all individuals followed the road-dependent functional response, the random effects model both predicted the distributions of individuals more accurately (R2 = 0.62 vs. R2 = 0.51) and produced coefficient estimates that matched their selection for mixed forest and distance from roads better than the GFR model (RMSE = 0.25 vs. RMSE = 0.29 and 0.37 vs. 0.46). Conclusions Individual habitat selection often varies within populations, and revealing those differences shows how individuals help populations respond to environmental change. We suggest that evaluating individual differences using multiple predictive approaches is necessary to forecast long–term habitat selection.

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