Migratory Pathways and Connectivity in Asian Houbara Bustards: Evidence from 15 Years of Satellite Tracking

Combreau, Olivier; Riou, Samuel; Judas, Jacky; Lawrence, Mark; Launay, Frédéric

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0020570

Cited by 38 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…An additional consideration under this scenario is that, as some of the wild birds hunted in Uzbekistan during October are migrants from beyond the Kyzylkum (Combreau et al . ) and surviving captive‐bred birds show release site fidelity, releases achieving zero net deficit may enhance local breeding numbers in compensation for the depletion of other flyway populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Survival rates of captive‐bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii in a hunted migratory population

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Scotland³

et al. 2016

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Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii numbers are declining as a result of unsustainable levels of hunting and poaching, with the main conservation response being population reinforcement through the release of captive-bred birds. We assessed the contribution of captive breeding to the species' conservation by examining the fates of 65 captive-bred birds fitted with satellite transmitters and released during spring (March-May) and autumn (August) into breeding habitat in Uzbekistan. Of the released birds, 58.5% survived to October, the month favoured by Emirati hunters in Uzbekistan, but only 10.8% of those released survived the winter to return as subadults next spring. To mitigate and compensate for the loss of wild adults to hunting, the number of released birds needs to be an order of magnitude higher than hunting quotas (with a release of between 1640 and 1920 required for a hypothetical quota of 200), indicating that releases may be costly and do not remove the need for a biologically determined sustainable hunting quota.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Survival rates of captive‐bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii in a hunted migratory population

Burnside

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Scotland³

et al. 2016

Ibis

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“…Wild juveniles (from broods of satellite‐tracked wild females) were caught by hand at around 35 days old when still only capable of short flights, following the methods of Combreau et al . (). As all mothers of tracked wild juveniles were satellite‐tagged, we were able to confirm that juveniles separated from their mothers at c. 50 days and were therefore no longer in a maternal family party at their first migration.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…We investigated whether released captive‐bred birds subsequently demonstrate wild migration behaviour in the Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii , a large‐bodied bustard for which migration is probably genetically determined (Combreau et al . ). The Asian Houbara is classified by IUCN as Vulnerable, owing chiefly to widespread unregulated hunting and poaching (Combreau et al .…”

Section: Metrics Characterizing Migration Movements Of Wild and Captimentioning

confidence: 97%

Comparative migration strategies of wild and captive‐bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii

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Dolman

2017

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For migratory species, the success of population reintroduction or reinforcement through captive-bred released individuals depends on survivors undertaking appropriate migrations. We assess whether captive-bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii from a breeding programme established with locally sourced individuals and released into suitable habitat during spring or summer undertake similar migrations to those of wild birds. Using satellite telemetry, we compare the migrations of 29 captive-bred juveniles, 10 wild juveniles and 39 wild adults (including three birds first tracked as juveniles), examining migratory propensity (proportion migrating), timing, direction, stopover duration and frequency, efficiency (route deviation), and wintering and breeding season locations. Captive-bred birds initiated autumn migration an average of 20.6 (AE4.6 se) days later and wintered 470.8 km (AE76.4) closer to the breeding grounds, mainly in Turkmenistan, northern Iran and Afghanistan, than wild birds, which migrated 1217.8 km (AE76.4), predominantly wintering in southern Iran and Pakistan (juveniles and adults were similar). Wintering locations of four surviving captive-bred birds were similar in subsequent years (median distance to first wintering site = 70.8 km, range 6.56-221.6 km), suggesting that individual captive-bred birds (but not necessarily their progeny) remain faithful to their first wintering latitude. The migratory performance of captive-bred birds was otherwise similar to that of wild juveniles. Although the long-term fitness consequences for captivebred birds establishing wintering sites at the northern edge of those occupied by wild birds remain to be quantified, it is clear that the pattern of wild migrations established by long-term selection is not replicated. If the shorter migration distance of young captivebred birds has a physiological rather than a genetic basis, then their progeny may still exhibit wild-type migration. However, as there is a considerable genetic component to migration, captive breeding management must respect migratory population structure as well as natal and release-site fidelity.

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“…Species differ remarkably in the strength of migratory connectivity. Several examples of patterns of strong connectivity exist, and recent examples include the Asian houbara bustard Chlamydotis macqueenii [40] and Swainson's thrush [39,41]. Equally abundant seem examples of no or very weak connectivity, as found in for example, bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus [42] and purple martin Progne subis [43].…”

Section: (C) Migratory Performance and Stopoversmentioning

confidence: 99%

Migratory connectivity and population-specific migration routes in a long-distance migratory bird

et al. 2014

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Knowledge about migratory connectivity, the degree to which individuals from the same breeding site migrate to the same wintering site, is essential to understand processes affecting populations of migrants throughout the annual cycle. Here, we study the migration system of a long-distance migratory bird, the Montagu's harrier Circus pygargus, by tracking individuals from different breeding populations throughout northern Europe. We identified three main migration routes towards wintering areas in subSaharan Africa. Wintering areas and migration routes of different breeding populations overlapped, a pattern best described by 'weak (diffuse) connectivity'. Migratory performance, i.e. timing, duration, distance and speed of migration, was surprisingly similar for the three routes despite differences in habitat characteristics. This study provides, to our knowledge, a first comprehensive overview of the migration system of a Palaearctic-African long-distance migrant. We emphasize the importance of spatial scale (e.g. distances between breeding populations) in defining patterns of connectivity and suggest that knowledge about fundamental aspects determining distribution patterns, such as the among-individual variation in mean migration directions, is required to ultimately understand migratory connectivity. Furthermore, we stress that for conservation purposes it is pivotal to consider wintering areas as well as migration routes and in particular stopover sites.

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Migratory Pathways and Connectivity in Asian Houbara Bustards: Evidence from 15 Years of Satellite Tracking

Cited by 38 publications

References 41 publications

Survival rates of captive‐bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii in a hunted migratory population

Survival rates of captive‐bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii in a hunted migratory population

Comparative migration strategies of wild and captive‐bred Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii

Migratory connectivity and population-specific migration routes in a long-distance migratory bird

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