BREEDING DISPERSAL AND SURVIVAL OF ARCTIC TERNS (<i>STERNA PARADISAEA</i>) NESTING IN THE GULF OF MAINE

Devlin, Catherine M.; Diamond, Antony W.; Kress, Stephen W.; Hall, C. Scott; Welch, Linda J.

doi:10.1525/auk.2008.07060

Cited by 33 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…In one case (Iceland), the nest of an equipped bird was abandoned after being trampled by domestic sheep before the bird could be trapped. Although fidelity at the regional level is high in nesting Arctic terns (33), dispersal to neighboring breeding colonies occurs frequently (33)(34)(35)(36) and is likely driven by food availability, presence of predators, disturbance, or changing climatic conditions. The only study to apply modern capturemark-recapture techniques to adult Arctic terns showed a low reencounter probability, ranging from 0.12 to 0.74, depending on colony and year (33).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tracking of Arctic ternsSterna paradisaeareveals longest animal migration

Egevang

Stenhouse²,

Phillips

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

463

423

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The study of long-distance migration provides insights into the habits and performance of organisms at the limit of their physical abilities. The Arctic tern Sterna paradisaea is the epitome of such behavior; despite its small size (<125 g), banding recoveries and at-sea surveys suggest that its annual migration from boreal and high Arctic breeding grounds to the Southern Ocean may be the longest seasonal movement of any animal. Our tracking of 11 Arctic terns fitted with miniature (1.4-g) geolocators revealed that these birds do indeed travel huge distances (more than 80,000 km annually for some individuals). As well as confirming the location of the main wintering region, we also identified a previously unknown oceanic stopover area in the North Atlantic used by birds from at least two breeding populations (from Greenland and Iceland). Although birds from the same colony took one of two alternative southbound migration routes following the African or South American coast, all returned on a broadly similar, sigmoidal trajectory, crossing from east to west in the Atlantic in the region of the equatorial Intertropical Convergence Zone. Arctic terns clearly target regions of high marine productivity both as stopover and wintering areas, and exploit prevailing global wind systems to reduce flight costs on long-distance commutes.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tracking of Arctic ternsSterna paradisaeareveals longest animal migration

Egevang

Stenhouse²,

Phillips

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

463

423

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…The degree of specialization in habitat selection also contributes to differences among species, as species with more flexible habitat requirements can disperse to a wider pool of locations (Ledwón et al, 2014). Tern colonies are interconnected by dispersal, and a metapopulation approach is therefore needed for effective management (Burger and Gochfeld, 1991;Erwin et al, 1995;Spendelow et al, 1995;Devlin et al, 2008;Ratcliffe et al, 2008). Additionally, range expansion and local population increases often result from immigration, thus via dispersal from natal or breeding colonies (Ledwón et al, 2014).…”

Section: Philopatry and Dispersalmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of behavior in tern conservation

Palestis

2014

Current Zoology

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Behavioral research has long had an important role in the conservation of terns (Aves: Sternidae). Habitat management and restoration of breeding colony sites depends on knowledge of the cues used to select colony and nest sites. For example, conspecific attraction with playback and decoys is commonly used to bring terns to suitable colony sites and habitat modification is often used to increase the availability of suitable nest sites. Tern colonies are interconnected by dispersal, and a metapopulation approach is needed for effective management. Population dynamics are therefore affected by behaviors that influence the frequency of movement among colony sites: site fidelity, natal and breeding dispersal, and group adherence. The monogamous breeding system of terns should keep effective population size similar to census population size, but variation in sex ratios (likely resulting from sex differences in behavior) and in parental quality can result in a smaller than expected effective population size. In addition to the behavior of terns, knowledge of the behavior of predators on terns contributes to management plans, because predator behavior can sometimes be manipulated and predation is often performed by only a few specialized individuals. Other examples of links between tern behavior and conservation are also briefly reviewed, such as behavioral toxicology research and studies of behavioral responses to human disturbance and manmade structures. More work is needed on the behavior of migratory terns at staging sites, stopover sites and wintering grounds, and on the behavior of less well-studied species and species in less well-studied geographic regions [Current Zoology 60 (4): 500-514, 2014].

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“…In birds dispersal is predominantly done by young individuals (Greenwood and Harvey 1976;Forero et al 2002), with adult Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10980-016-0382-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. birds usually showing strong level of philopatry to breeding sites (Lavers et al 2007;Devlin et al 2008). On the contrary, young birds differ in dispersal pattern, with natal dispersal distances typically considerably exceeding breeding dispersal (Paradis et al 1998;Breton et al 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of young and adult birds to the same environmental variables and different spatial scales during post breeding period

2016

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Context How do young birds achieve spatial knowledge about the environment during the initial stages of their life? They may follow adults, so gaining social information and learning; alternatively, young birds may acquire knowledge of the environment themselves by experiencing habitat and landscape features. If learning is at least partially independent of adults then young birds should respond to landscape composition at finer spatial scale than adults, who possess knowledge over a larger area. Objectives We studied the responses of juvenile, immature and adult Caspian Gull Larus cachinnans to the same habitat and landscape variables, but at several spatial scales (ranging from 2.5 to 15 km), during post-breeding period. Methods We surveyed 61 fish ponds (foraging patches) in southern Poland and counted Caspian gulls.Results Juvenile birds responded at finer spatial scales to the factors than did adults. Immature birds showed complicated, intermediate responses to spatial scale. The abundance of juvenile birds was mostly correlated with the landscape composition (positively with the cover of corridors and negatively with barriers). Adult abundance was positively related to foraging patch quality (fish stock), which clearly required previous spatial experience of the environment. The abundance of all age classes were moderately correlated with each other indicating that social behaviour may also contribute to the learning of the environment. Conclusions This study shows that as birds mature, they respond differently to components of their environment at different spatial scales. This has considerable ecological consequences for their distribution across environments.

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BREEDING DISPERSAL AND SURVIVAL OF ARCTIC TERNS (STERNA PARADISAEA) NESTING IN THE GULF OF MAINE

Cited by 33 publications

References 43 publications

Tracking of Arctic ternsSterna paradisaeareveals longest animal migration

Tracking of Arctic ternsSterna paradisaeareveals longest animal migration

The role of behavior in tern conservation

Response of young and adult birds to the same environmental variables and different spatial scales during post breeding period

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