Body condition explains migratory performance of a long-distance migrant

Duijns, Sjoerd; Niles, Lawrence J.; Dey, Amanda; Aubry, Yves; Friis, Christian; Koch, Stephanie; Anderson, Alexandra M.; Smith, Paul A.

doi:10.1098/rspb.2017.1374

Cited by 78 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…Red knot refueling was slower in years with greater prey abundance and ruddy turnstone maintained a consistent rate of mass gain, suggesting that a slower mass gain is preferable and there may be a physiological cost of rapid refueling. Other studies have shown that individual mass predicts timing of departure from the stopover site and possibly breeding success, with heavier birds choosing more advantageous tailwinds and having a greater probability of being observed during the following autumn (Duijns et al 2017). We found no evidence for population-level delays or lack of mass gain in mismatch years, but carry-over effects from mismatches may potentially be acting on individuals to reduce survival probability or breeding success.…”

Section: Notescontrasting

confidence: 45%

“…Other studies have shown that individual mass predicts timing of departure from the stopover site and possibly breeding success, with heavier birds choosing more advantageous tailwinds and having a greater probability of being observed during the following autumn (Duijns et al. ). We found no evidence for population‐level delays or lack of mass gain in mismatch years, but carry‐over effects from mismatches may potentially be acting on individuals to reduce survival probability or breeding success.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Foraging ecology mediates response to ecological mismatch during migratory stopover

et al. 2019

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Impacts of ecological mismatches should be most pronounced at points of the annual cycle when populations depend on a predictable, abundant, and aggregated food resource that changes in timing or distribution. The degree to which species specialize on a key prey item, therefore, should determine their sensitivity to mismatches. We evaluated the hypothesis that the effects of ecological mismatch during migratory stopover are mediated by a species’ foraging ecology by comparing two similar long‐distance migratory species that differ in their foraging strategies during stopover. We predicted that a specialist foraging strategy would make species more sensitive to effects of mismatch with a historically abundant prey, while an active, generalist foraging strategy should help buffer against changing local conditions. We estimated arrival times, start of mass gain, and rate of mass gain during spring stopover in Delaware Bay, USA. At this site, shorebirds feed on a temporally aggregated food resource (horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus eggs), the timing of which is linked to water temperature; red knot (Calidris canutus rufa) specializes on these while the ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres) feeds more generally. We used a hierarchical nonlinear model to estimate the effect of mismatch between shorebird arrivals and timing of crab spawning on the timing and rate of mass gain over 22 yr. In years with cooler water temperature, crabs spawned later, which was associated with later and faster mass gain for the knots. Turnstones exhibited less inter‐annual variation in the timing and rate of mass gain than knots, and we found no relationship between mass gain dynamics and the availability of horseshoe crab eggs for this generalist species. Long‐distance migrants rely on predictable resources en route and even when these linkages are simple and predictable, populations can be vulnerable to change; these results suggest that generalist foraging strategies may buffer migratory species against phenological mismatch. We provide a framework to evaluate population responses to changes in prey phenology at sites vulnerable to climatic change.

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Section: Notescontrasting

confidence: 45%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Foraging ecology mediates response to ecological mismatch during migratory stopover

et al. 2019

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“…For example, body condition is known to influence the timing of the onset of migration (Fox and Walsh , Duijns et al. ). We have observed significant differences in the body condition of tortoises both within individuals over multiple years and between individuals (Blake et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Migration triggers in a large herbivore: Galápagos giant tortoises navigating resource gradients on volcanoes

Bastille‐Rousseau

Yackulic

Gibbs

et al. 2019

Ecology

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To understand how migratory behavior evolved and to predict how migratory species will respond to global environmental change it is important to quantify the fitness consequences of intra‐ and inter‐individual variation in migratory behavior. Intra‐individual variation includes behavioral responses to changing environmental conditions and hence behavioral plasticity in the context of novel or variable conditions. Inter‐individual variation determines the degree of variation on which selection can act and the rate of evolutionary responses to changes in average and extreme environmental conditions. Here we focus on variation in the partial migratory behavior of giant Galápagos tortoises (Chelonoidis spp.) and its energetic consequences. We evaluate the extent and mechanisms by which tortoises adjust migration timing in response to varying annual environmental conditions, and integrate movement data within a bioenergetic model of tortoise migration to quantify the fitness consequences of migration timing. We find strong inter‐individual variation in the timing of migration, which was not affected by environmental conditions prevailing at the time of migration but rather by average expectations estimated from multi‐annual averaged conditions. This variation is associated with an average annual loss in efficiency of ~15% relative to optimal timing based on year‐specific conditions. These results point towards a limited ability of tortoises to adjust the timing of their migrations based on prevailing (and, by extension, future) conditions, suggesting that the adaptability of tortoise migratory behavior to changing conditions is predicated more by past “normal” conditions than responses to prevailing, changing conditions. Our work offers insights into the level of environmental‐tuning in migratory behavior and a general framework for future research across taxa.

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“…As energy demands are high to cross these long distances, time spent for stopover activities is higher for individuals in lower body condition [59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71], and hence leads to increased foraging of to allow refuelling [59,65]. Integrated over the entire migration trajectory, individuals that start migration in better body condition will therefore migrate faster, more directionally and arrive earlier at breeding sites [72][73][74][75][76]. In two anadromous fish species, migration is also negatively related to body condition, [77,78], but here this correlation is determined by local adaptation to freshwater and hence the upstream breeding grounds.…”

Section: Migrations and Stop-over Eventsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The physiology of movement

et al. 2020

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Movement, from foraging to migration, is known to be under the influence of the environment. The translation of environmental cues to individual movement decision making is determined by an individual's internal state and anticipated to balance costs and benefits. General body condition, metabolic and hormonal physiology mechanistically underpin this internal state. These physiological determinants are tightly, and often genetically linked with each other and hence central to a mechanistic understanding of movement. We here synthesise the available evidence of the physiological drivers and signatures of movement and review (1) how physiological state as measured in its most coarse way by body condition correlates with movement decisions during foraging, migration and dispersal, (2) how hormonal changes underlie changes in these movement strategies and (3) how these can be linked to molecular pathways. We reveale that a high body condition facilitates the efficiency of routine foraging, dispersal and migration. Dispersal decision making is, however, in some cases stimulated by a decreased individual condition. Many of the biotic and abiotic stressors that induce movement initiate a physiological cascade in vertebrates through the production of stress hormones. Movement is therefore associated with hormone levels in vertebrates but also insects, often in interaction with factors related to body or social condition. The underlying molecular and physiological mechanisms are currently studied in few model species, and show-in congruence with our insights on the role of body condition-a central role of energy metabolism during glycolysis, and the coupling with timing processes during migration. Molecular insights into the physiological basis of movement remain, however, highly refractory. We finalise this review with a critical reflection on the importance of these physiological feedbacks for a better mechanistic understanding of movement and its effects on ecological dynamics at all levels of biological organization.

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Body condition explains migratory performance of a long-distance migrant

Cited by 78 publications

References 63 publications

Foraging ecology mediates response to ecological mismatch during migratory stopover

Foraging ecology mediates response to ecological mismatch during migratory stopover

Migration triggers in a large herbivore: Galápagos giant tortoises navigating resource gradients on volcanoes

The physiology of movement

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