Scientific Reports (Dec 2019)
Desert crossing strategies of migrant songbirds vary between and within species
- Frédéric Jiguet,
- Malcolm Burgess,
- Kasper Thorup,
- Greg Conway,
- José Luis Arroyo Matos,
- Lee Barber,
- John Black,
- Niall Burton,
- Joan Castelló,
- Gary Clewley,
- José Luis Copete,
- Michel Alexandre Czajkowski,
- Svein Dale,
- Tony Davis,
- Valery Dombrovski,
- Mike Drew,
- Jaanus Elts,
- Vicky Gilson,
- Emilienne Grzegorczyk,
- Ian Henderson,
- Michael Holdsworth,
- Rob Husbands,
- Romain Lorrilliere,
- Riho Marja,
- Simonas Minkevicius,
- Caroline Moussy,
- Peter Olsson,
- Alejandro Onrubia,
- Marc Pérez,
- Joseph Piacentini,
- Markus Piha,
- Jean-Marc Pons,
- Petr Procházka,
- Marko Raković,
- Harriet Robins,
- Tuomas Seimola,
- Gunnar Selstam,
- Michał Skierczyński,
- Jan Sondell,
- Jean-Claude Thibault,
- Anders P. Tøttrup,
- Justin Walker,
- Chris Hewson
Affiliations
- Frédéric Jiguet
- CESCO, UMR7204 MNHN-CNRS-Sorbonne Université, CP135, 43 Rue Buffon
- Malcolm Burgess
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, The Lodge
- Kasper Thorup
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15
- Greg Conway
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- José Luis Arroyo Matos
- Grupo Ibérico de Anillamiento (GIA), C/Daoiz y Velarde, 49
- Lee Barber
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- John Black
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Niall Burton
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Joan Castelló
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, The Lodge
- Gary Clewley
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- José Luis Copete
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive, Lynx Edicions
- Michel Alexandre Czajkowski
- OMPO, 59 rue Ampère
- Svein Dale
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences
- Tony Davis
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Valery Dombrovski
- Institute of Zoology, National Academy of Sciences
- Mike Drew
- Biodiversity & Catchment, Anglian Water Services Limited, Lancaster House, Lancaster Way, Ermine Business Park
- Jaanus Elts
- Estonian Ornithological Society, Veski 4, 51005 Tartu, Estonia & Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu
- Vicky Gilson
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Emilienne Grzegorczyk
- CESCO, UMR7204 MNHN-CNRS-Sorbonne Université, CP135, 43 Rue Buffon
- Ian Henderson
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Michael Holdsworth
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Rob Husbands
- 3 Oakhill Road, Mitcheldean
- Romain Lorrilliere
- CESCO, UMR7204 MNHN-CNRS-Sorbonne Université, CP135, 43 Rue Buffon
- Riho Marja
- MTA Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of ecology and Botany, “Lendület” Landscape and Conservation Ecology, Alkotmány u. 2-4
- Simonas Minkevicius
- Pajautos st. 11-40, LT
- Caroline Moussy
- CESCO, UMR7204 MNHN-CNRS-Sorbonne Université, CP135, 43 Rue Buffon
- Peter Olsson
- Centre for Environmental and Climate Research (CEC), Ekologihuset
- Alejandro Onrubia
- Migres Foundation, International Bird Migration Center (CIMA), N-340, Km 85, P.O. Box 152
- Marc Pérez
- Nostra Senyora de Montserrat 19
- Joseph Piacentini
- Piedalbuccio
- Markus Piha
- Finnish Museum of Natural History LUOMUS, P.O. Box 17 (Pohjoinen Rautatiekatu 13), FI-00014 University of Helsinki
- Jean-Marc Pons
- Institut Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB, UMR7205), MNHN-CNRS-SU-EPHE, 57 Rue Cuvier, CP50
- Petr Procházka
- The Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Květná 8, CZ-603 65
- Marko Raković
- Natural History Museum of Belgrade
- Harriet Robins
- New buildings, Howle Hill, Ross on Wye
- Tuomas Seimola
- Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Natural Resources
- Gunnar Selstam
- Department of Agricultural Research in Northern Sweden, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Department of Molecular Biology, University of Umeå
- Michał Skierczyński
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
- Jan Sondell
- Kvismare Bird Observatory, Rulleuddsvägen 10
- Jean-Claude Thibault
- Institut Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB, UMR7205), MNHN-CNRS-SU-EPHE, 57 Rue Cuvier, CP50
- Anders P. Tøttrup
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15
- Justin Walker
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- Chris Hewson
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-56677-4
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 9,
no. 1
pp. 1 – 12
Abstract
Abstract Each year, billions of songbirds cross large ecological barriers during their migration. Understanding how they perform this incredible task is crucial to predict how global change may threaten the safety of such journeys. Earlier studies based on radar suggested that most songbirds cross deserts in intermittent flights at high altitude, stopping in the desert during the day, while recent tracking with light loggers suggested diurnal prolongation of nocturnal flights and common non-stop flights for some species. We analyzed light intensity and temperature data obtained from geolocation loggers deployed on 130 individuals of ten migratory songbird species, and show that a large variety of strategies for crossing deserts exists between, but also sometimes within species. Diurnal stopover in the desert is a common strategy in autumn, while most species prolonged some nocturnal flights into the day. Non-stop flights over the desert occurred more frequently in spring than in autumn, and more frequently in foliage gleaners. Temperature recordings suggest that songbirds crossed deserts with flight bouts performed at various altitudes according to species and season, along a gradient ranging from low above ground in autumn to probably >2000 m above ground level, and possibly at higher altitude in spring. High-altitude flights are therefore not the general rule for crossing deserts in migrant songbirds. We conclude that a diversity of migration strategies exists for desert crossing among songbirds, with variations between but also within species.