Sandpipers go with the flow: Correlations between estuarine conditions and shorebird abundance at an important stopover on the Pacific Flyway

Estuaries of major rivers provide important stopover habitat for migratory birds throughout the world. These estuaries experience large amounts of freshwater inputs from spring runoff. Understanding how freshwater inputs affect food supply for migrating birds, and how birds respond to these changes will be essential for effective conservation of critical estuarine habitats. We estimated trends over time in counts of Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri) and Pacific Dunlin (Calidris alpina pacifica) during northward migration on the Fraser River estuary, British Columbia, Canada, where shorebirds feed extensively on intertidal biofilm and invertebrates. We also examined whether counts were correlated with a suite of environmental variables related to local conditions (precipitation, temperature, wind speed and direction, solar radiation, tidal amplitude, and discharge rates from the Fraser River) during a total of 540 surveys from 1991 to 2019. Counts of Western Sandpiper declined ~54% (−2.0% per annum) over the entire study period, and 23% from 2009 to 2019 (−0.9% per annum). Counts of Pacific Dunlin did not show a statistically significant change over the study period. Counts of shorebirds were lower when discharge from the Fraser River was high, which we propose results from a complex interaction between the abrupt changes in salinity and the estuarine food web related to the quantity or quality of intertidal biofilm. Counts were also higher when tidal amplitude was lower (neap tides), potentially related to longer exposure times of the mudflats than during spring tides. Effects of wind are likely related to birds delaying departure from the stopover site during unfavorable wind conditions. The negative trend in migrating Western Sandpipers is consistent with declines in nonbreeding areas as observed in Christmas Bird Counts. Understanding causes of population change in migratory shorebirds highlights the need for research on mechanistic pathways in which freshwater inputs affect food resources at estuarine stopovers.     

Trophic niches and feeding relationships of shorebirds in southern Brazil

Niche theory predicts that sympatric species should differ in some ecological characteristic, to allow co-existence and reduce competition for key resources. Food is critical on wintering grounds and stopover areas for migratory species that need to accumulate reserves in order to complete their migration. Wetlands of the Rio Grande do Sul coastal plain, in southern Brazil, host several species of shorebirds with similar morphology, foraging methods and diet. When these species are in sympatry, some trophic niche overlap is expected. Diets and trophic niches of migratory and resident shorebirds were investigated during the austral summer on Torotama Island, Lagoa dos Patos Estuary, Brazil. Complementary methods were used to determine the trophic ecology of three shorebird species; diet was determined through analysis of feces and food samples, using stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen. The local invertebrate community was sampled to determine potential prey and ascertain feeding preferences of birds. Coleoptera was the most abundant taxon in the feces of all shorebirds. Trophic niche overlap in the diets was high, with the widest trophic niche found for the buff-breasted sandpiper Calidris subruficollis. Isotopic mixing models indicated differences in the main food sources of shorebirds. The isotopic niche breadth was widest for the American golden-plover Pluvialis dominica. These species, as well as the resident southern lapwing Vanellus chilensis, consumed some prey in higher proportions over others, although they had generalist diets. Migratory species with generalist habits benefit from heterogeneous environments such as floodplains during the non-breeding season.     

Extensive Use of Intertidal Habitat by Shorebirds Outside Protected Nesting Areas

Conservation of shorebirds throughout their breeding and migratory ranges has become a priority as shorebird populations decline globally. Along the North Atlantic Coast, management efforts have particularly focused on preserving nesting habitat for piping plovers (Charadrius melodus), which are protected under the Endangered Species Act. It is unclear whether these conservation measures suffice to protect foraging habitat for piping plovers and other shorebirds on stopover during migration along the Atlantic Flyway. To evaluate the extent to which conservation of piping plover nesting areas extends to all habitats used by plovers, and to determine whether these protections also benefited non-breeding migratory shorebirds in the region, we conducted weekly shorebird surveys, recording the number and locations of piping plovers and other species, during northward and southward migration on Fire Island and Westhampton Island, New York, USA, from 2014–2016. We used canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) to assess the degree of spatiotemporal overlap between breeding plovers, foraging plovers, and other migratory shorebirds that temporarily stage at the site. The spatiotemporal distribution of migratory shorebirds matched more closely with piping plovers seen during foraging than piping plovers observed tending nests and engaging in other breeding activities. Migratory shorebirds and foraging piping plovers were more abundant and frequent in wet intertidal zones outside of fenced-off nesting areas, which were not protected under current management regimes. Therefore, additional protection of piping plover foraging habitat could benefit plovers and migratory shorebirds that use similar feeding grounds during stopover on northward and southward migration. © 2020 The Wildlife Society.     

Wind conditions affect stopover decisions and fuel stores of shorebirds migrating through the south Yellow Sea

We assessed the effects of wind conditions on stopover decisions and fuel stores of migratory shorebirds at Chongming Dongtan in the south Yellow Sea along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway. In spring and autumn, wind directions differed among altitudes and wind speed generally increased with altitude. Numbers of shorebirds were related to wind effects at low altitudes (on the ground and at 300 and 800 m above the ground), wind effects at 300 m being the best predictor of shorebird numbers. In spring, total number of shorebirds and numbers of the four most abundant shorebird species were negatively related to wind assistance at low altitudes, more birds departing when tailwinds prevailed and more arriving when headwinds prevailed. In autumn, however, total number of shorebirds and numbers of the four most abundant species were positively related to wind assistance at low altitudes, more birds departing and more arriving with tailwinds than with headwinds. When tailwinds prevailed, the number of arriving birds was higher than the number of departing birds. The fuel stores of captured shorebirds, represented by their body mass, was related to wind effects and change in wind conditions between two consecutive days in both spring and autumn, captured birds being heavier when headwinds prevailed than in tailwind conditions, and when the wind conditions became less favourable for flight between two consecutive days. Our results suggest that wind conditions affect stopover decisions and fuel stores, and thus the optimal migration and fuel deposition strategies of migratory shorebirds.     

Use of wetlands at the mouth of the Yangtze River by shorebirds during spring and fall migration

ABSTRACT.   The mouth of the Yangtze River is an important stopover site for migratory shorebirds using the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. From 1984 to 2004, we censused and banded shorebirds and monitored hunting activities at the mouth of the Yangtze River to understand how shorebirds used the study area. Counts and banding data revealed greater numbers of shorebirds at the mouth of the Yangtze River during northward migration (spring) than during southward migration (fall), with ratios varying from 1.5:1 to 7.2:1 at different sites from 1984 to 2005. The most common species observed during spring (northward) migration were Great Knots ( Calidris tenuirostris ), Red Knots ( Calidris canutus ), Bar-tailed Godwits ( Limosa lapponica ), Sharp-tailed Sandpipers ( Calidris acuminata ), and Red-necked Stints ( Calidris ruficollis ). During spring 2003–2004, 96.98% of the shorebirds observed were adults (ASY or older) and 3% were after hatching-year and second-year birds (AHY or SY). In contrast, almost all (94.73%) birds counted during the fall were hatching-year (HY) birds. These results indicate that adult shorebirds either use a different migration route during fall migration or use the same route, but do not stop at the mouth of the Yangtze River. HY birds, however, may depend on the coastal stopover sites for feeding during their first southward passage.     

Oiling rates and condition indices of shorebirds on the northern Gulf of Mexico following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill

The coastline of the Gulf of Mexico in the United States is an important wintering and stopover region for migratory shorebirds. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (April–August 2010) impacted more than 1700 km of this coastline and could potentially affect shorebirds through long‐term exposure to toxins, degraded habitats, and altered food chains. We investigated the exposure to Deepwater Horizon oil of seven species of shorebirds that winter or stopover along the northern Gulf of Mexico. From October 2010 to May 2012, we captured and banded 691 shorebirds at six sites that experienced varying levels of oil contamination. Of birds sampled, 22 were lightly oiled, with species that forage on the coast having higher rates of oiling than those that forage in more estuarine habitats. Although only 8.6% of birds captured from October 2010 to May 2011 and 0.6% of the birds captured from August 2011 to June 2012 showed signs of oiling, an unknown, but potentially larger, number of shorebirds were likely exposed to indirect effects of the spill, such as decreased foraging time due to oiling of sites or disturbance from cleanup activities. Fuel stores and fattening rates of Dunlins (Calidris alpina) during spring migration, as measured using plasma metabolites, were not influenced by site oiling level. However, the level of disturbance at study sites was a significant predictor of both fuel stores and glycerol levels, suggesting that Dunlins stopping over during spring migration may have had difficulty reaching necessary fuel stores in spring 2011 due to disturbance from cleanup activity on oiled beaches. These effects from disturbance were only observed at sites with high cleanup activity, suggesting that the impact of oil‐spill cleanup on shorebirds may be minimized by limiting cleanup activities to specific areas and times of day.     

鸭绿江口湿地鸻鹬类停歇地的生物生态研究

鸭绿江口湿地是鸻鹬类在东亚一澳大利亚北迁路线上的最重要停歇地,潮间带上的双壳类、腹足类、多毛类等底栖动物为鸻鹬类提供了能量保障.2010年3月-2011年6月对鸭绿江口潮间带的生物生态进行了调查研究.研究结果表明,生物群落结构相对简单,主要以双壳类、腹足类和多毛类为主,优势种演替明显,系统具有低多样性低密度的特点.鸻鹬类能量补充来源相对匮乏,饵料生物量的更新速度较慢,所提供的能值也相对较低,江户明樱蛤、青蛤(幼体)和长吻沙蚕是鸻鹬类的主要食物来源.鸻鹬类主要集中在低潮带下区觅食,在北迁高峰期对低潮带下区饵料生物影响较显著,尤其对江户明樱蛤丰度影响最明显.泥螺作为优势种,生态位最宽,分布于整个调查断面和潮带,但因体表分泌一种毒性粘液而不被鸻鹬类取食.饵料生物的种群补充能力较强,在鸻鹬类迁徙高峰期之后,饵料丰度和生物量又会恢复到正常水平.虽然目前人类对鸻鹬类的威胁显现较小,但使人类一生态系统一滨鸟之间持续和谐统一,必须综合考量鸭绿江口湿地包括人类在内的生态系统各关键组分之间的生态关联,兼顾生态系统的完整性和人类社会经济发展的可持续性.     

The costs of migration: Injuries in migratory waterbirds along the west coast of India

The long distant, transcontinental migration of shorebirds entails many well identified costs in terms of time, energy, and direct mortality risk. Injuries from debris or from human structures and activities were observed as the major reasons for the direct mortality of shorebirds during migration worldwide. We recorded injured birds in major coastal wetlands of Kerala, for a period of 15 years from 2005 to 2019. The injured birds were observed in 9 different sites in various districts of Kerala. The highest instances of injuries were observed in Kadalundi-Vallikunnu Community Reserve, the major wintering and stop over site of migrant shorebirds in the west coast of India. During the study period, fifty-eight individuals of shorebirds belonging to four families were found to be injured. The highest proportion of injuries was recorded among the families Scolopacidae and Charadriidae comprising long distance migrant shorebird species and the lowest among Laridae and Ardeidae. We recommend that environmental authorities pay special attention to minimize anthropogenic debris along the flyways used by migratory birds thereby reducing the risk of injuries to some of these species. Proactive measures such as removal of discarded fishing gear or plastic debris from wintering areas as well as stopover areas could greatly reduce injuries in migratory birds arising from anthropogenic sources.     

Food-web structure of seagrass communities across different spatial scales and human impacts

Seagrass beds provide important habitat for a wide range of marine species but are threatened by multiple human impacts in coastal waters. Although seagrass communities have been well-studied in the field, a quantification of their food-web structure and functioning, and how these change across space and human impacts has been lacking. Motivated by extensive field surveys and literature information, we analyzed the structural features of food webs associated with Zostera marina across 16 study sites in 3 provinces in Atlantic Canada. Our goals were to (i) quantify differences in food-web structure across local and regional scales and human impacts, (ii) assess the robustness of seagrass webs to simulated species loss, and (iii) compare food-web structure in temperate Atlantic seagrass beds with those of other aquatic ecosystems. We constructed individual food webs for each study site and cumulative webs for each province and the entire region based on presence/absence of species, and calculated 16 structural properties for each web. Our results indicate that food-web structure was similar among low impact sites across regions. With increasing human impacts associated with eutrophication, however, food-web structure show evidence of degradation as indicated by fewer trophic groups, lower maximum trophic level of the highest top predator, fewer trophic links connecting top to basal species, higher fractions of herbivores and intermediate consumers, and higher number of prey per species. These structural changes translate into functional changes with impacted sites being less robust to simulated species loss. Temperate Atlantic seagrass webs are similar to a tropical seagrass web, yet differed from other aquatic webs, suggesting consistent food-web characteristics across seagrass ecosystems in different regions. Our study illustrates that food-web structure and functioning of seagrass habitats change with human impacts and that the spatial scale of food-web analysis is critical for determining results.     

Trophic interactions in the Zoige Alpine wetland on the eastern edge of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau inferred by stable isotopes

The Zoige wetland ecosystem of the eastern edge of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau is the largest plateau peat bog worldwide and an important biodiversity conservation centre in China. Nevertheless, limited information is available about this Alpine wetland aquatic ecosystem, including its food-web structure and complexity. In this study, we analysed the trophic interactions among dominant organisms in the food web of this Alpine wetland aquatic ecosystem and assessed the importance of allochthonous and autochthonous carbon sources during the wet season using δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N analysis. The results supported the hypothesis that the food web of the Zoige Alpine wetland is largely maintained by allochthonous carbon sources rather than autochthonous food sources during the wet season when the allochthonous resource availability is relatively high. The food web contains approximately three trophic levels, and Schizopygopsis pylzovi (a genus of cyprinid fish) is the top predator. Intermediate trophic positions, including zooplankton and macroinvertebrates, represent the primary animal community in the food web. The allochthonous carbon sources are transferred to the food web via these macroinvertebrates (e.g., Ecdyonurus sp. and Sigara substriata). Although our findings show a low biodiversity in the Zoige wetland during the wet season, the trophic redundancy in the food-web structure could support the stability of the Zoige Alpine wetland aquatic ecosystem.     

盐地碱蓬盐沼与相邻泥质滩涂湿地迁徙期鸻鹬类的群落组成及行为差异

盐地碱蓬(Suaeda salsa)盐沼湿地是黄渤海地区河口区域的重要湿地类型, 是水鸟迁徙停歇期的重要栖息地。本研究以辽河口国家级自然保护区为研究地点, 通过对盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地和相邻泥质滩涂两个固定样区连续三年的水鸟组成调查和行为观察, 分析盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地在鸻鹬类多样性维持和栖息地利用中的作用。共记录到鸻鹬类水鸟28种6,348只次, 其中盐地碱蓬湿地记录到4科13种, 泥质滩涂记录到4科27种, 泥质滩涂的物种多样性显著高于盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地。此外, 盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地与相邻的泥质滩涂的鸻鹬类鸟类群落组成存在较大差异, 盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地的鸟类群落组成以体型较大的大杓鹬(Numenius madagascariensis)、白腰杓鹬(N. arquata)、灰鸻(Pluvialis squatarola)等为主, 而泥质滩涂以环颈鸻(Charadrius alexandrinus)、黑腹滨鹬(Calidris alpina)等小型鸻鹬类为主, 这说明两种生境在鸟类多样性维持中具有不同的功能。行为分析发现, 泥质滩涂中栖息鸟类的主要行为为取食(58.71%-93.26%), 而盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地鸟类的行为既包括较大比例的取食, 也包括休息, 特别是在春季迁徙期。这进一步说明, 两种生境在水鸟的栖息地利用中具有一定的生态功能差异。尽管盐地碱蓬盐沼湿地记录到的鸟类物种数和数量均低于泥质滩涂, 但是, 两种生境中存在较大比例的共同分布物种, 这说明其生态功能具有较强的生态互补性, 二者作为一种独特的湿地景观组合, 在鸻鹬类迁徙停歇期的栖息地利用和物种多样性维持中发挥着不可替代的作用。     

Range-Wide Piping Plover Survival: Correlated Patterns and Temporal Declines

ABSTRACT Geographically isolated breeding populations of migratory shorebirds may be demographically connected through shared nonbreeding habitats. We used long-term (1998–2008) mark-recapture data on piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) collected from 7 separate studies located throughout North America to conduct a range-wide analysis of after hatch year apparent survival (φ_AHY). Our objectives were to compare concurrent survival estimates from disparate breeding sites and determine whether estimates followed similar trends or were correlated among breeding populations with shared wintering grounds. Average survival estimates were higher for Great Plains populations (range = 0.69–0.81) than for Great Lakes and Atlantic Coast populations (range = 0.56–0.71). Linear trend models indicated that apparent survival declined in 4 out of 7 populations, was unchanged in 3, and was generally highest among Great Plains populations. Based on a post hoc analysis, we found evidence of correlated year-to-year fluctuations in annual survival among populations wintering primarily along the southeastern United States Atlantic Coast and Gulf Coast. Our results indicate shared overwintering or stopover sites may influence annual variation in survival among geographically disparate breeding populations. Declines in piping plover survival are a cause for concern, and our results highlight the need for conservation efforts to include habitat used during the migratory and wintering periods.     

Carrying capacity for shorebirds during migratory seasons at the Jiuduansha Wetland, Yangtze River Estuary, China

The carrying capacity of food resources for migrating shorebirds was estimated at a stopover site in the Yangtze River Estuary during the two migratory sea-sons (spring and autumn). From March to May and September to November 2005, the macrobenthos resources of the Jiuduansha Wetland were investigated, and most of the macrobenthos species in the newly-formed shoal were found to be appropriate food for shorebirds. Biomass measurements showed that the total food resource was about 4541.20 kg AFDW (Ash-Free Dry Weight) in spring and about 2279.64 kg AFDW in autumn. Calculations were also done in the available habi-tats (intertidal bare mudflat and Scirpus x mariqueter/ Scirpus triqueter zones) for the shorebirds. The food resources in the available areas were about 3429.03 kg AFDW in spring and about 1700.92 kg AFDW in autumn. Based on the classification (by lean weight, basic metabolic rate and body length) of the shorebird community, and using the energy depletion model, it was theorized that all of the food resources in the Jiuduansha Wetland could support about 3.5 million shorebirds during spring season and 1.75 million shorebirds during autumn season. The shorebird carrying capacities in terms of the available food were about 2.6 million and 1.3 million birds during the two respective migration seasons. Considering the effect of intake rate, the potential carrying capacity was about 0.13-0.26 million shorebirds in the study area. The main factor restricting use of the area by shorebirds was the scarcity of available habitats for roosting at high tide rather than availability of food supply. We recommend restoring some wading pools in the dense Phragmites australis and Spartina alterniflora zones for shorebirds to roost in, to improve shorebirds' utilization efficiency of the resources in the Jiuduansha Wetland.     

A place to land: spatiotemporal drivers of stopover habitat use by migrating birds

Migrating birds require en route habitats to rest and refuel. Yet, habitat use has never been integrated with passage to understand the factors that determine where and when birds stopover during spring and autumn migration. Here, we introduce the stopover‐to‐passage ratio (SPR), the percentage of passage migrants that stop in an area, and use 8 years of data from 12 weather surveillance radars to estimate over 50% SPR during spring and autumn through the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coasts of the south‐eastern US, the most prominent corridor for North America’s migratory birds. During stopovers, birds concentrated close to the coast during spring and inland in forested landscapes during autumn, suggesting seasonal differences in habitat function and highlighting the vital role of stopover habitats in sustaining migratory communities. Beyond advancing understanding of migration ecology, SPR will facilitate conservation through identification of sites that are disproportionally selected for stopover by migrating birds.     

九段沙湿地鸻形目鸟类迁徙季节环境容纳量

根据对九段沙湿地2005年春、秋季食物资源调查来计算迁徙期鸻形目鸟类的环境容纳量。结果表明，九段沙湿地春季食物总量为4541．20kgAFDW（去灰分干重），秋季为2279．64kgAFDW，按鸻形目鸟类有效栖息生境计算，春季鸟类可利用食物资源量为3429．03kgAFDW，秋季为1700．92kgAFDW。通过鸟类体型类群分类（根据去脂净重、基础代谢率和体长）和能量消耗模型可以得出，九段沙湿地迁徙季节总食物量理论上可维持的鸻形目鸟类最大数量约为春季350万只，秋季175万只。按有效生境计算，春季约为260万只，秋季约为130万只。考虑到食物取入率的影响，九段沙湿地实际可容纳约13～26万只鸟类。根据地理信息分析可知，高潮位期有效栖息地的缺乏可能是限制鸟类数量达到估计上限的主要原因，建议在不危害保护区生态安全的前提下，开辟一些隐蔽性强的裸地和浅水塘，以提高鸻形目鸟类对九段沙湿地资源的利用率。     

Behavior of Buff-Breasted Sandpipers (Tryngites subruficollis) during Migratory Stopover in Agricultural Fields

Background

Understanding the behavior of birds in agricultural habitats can be the first step in evaluating the conservation implications of birds'' use of landscapes shaped by modern agriculture. The existence and magnitude of risk from agricultural practices and the quality of resources agricultural lands provide will be determined largely by how birds use these habitats. Buff-breasted Sandpipers (Tryngites subruficollis) are a species of conservation concern. During spring migration large numbers of Buff-breasted Sandpipers stopover in row crop fields in the Rainwater Basin region of Nebraska. We used behavioral observations as a first step in evaluating how Buff-breasted Sandpipers use crop fields during migratory stopover.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We measured behavior during migratory stopover using scan and focal individual sampling to determine how birds were using crop fields. Foraging was the most frequent behavior observed, but the intensity of foraging changed over the course of the day with a distinct mid-day low point. Relative to other migrating shorebirds, Buff-breasted Sandpipers spent a significant proportion of their time in social interactions including courtship displays.

Conclusions/Significance

Our results show that the primary use of upland agricultural fields by migrating Buff-breasted Sandpipers is foraging while wetlands are used for maintenance and resting. The importance of foraging in row crop fields suggests that both the quality of food resources available in fields and the possible risks from dietary exposure to agricultural chemicals will be important to consider when developing conservation plans for Buff-breasted Sandpipers migrating through the Great Plains.     

Foraging Ecology of Fall-Migrating Shorebirds in the Illinois River Valley

Populations of many shorebird species appear to be declining in North America, and food resources at stopover habitats may limit migratory bird populations. We investigated body condition of, and foraging habitat and diet selection by 4 species of shorebirds in the central Illinois River valley during fall migrations 2007 and 2008 (Killdeer [Charadrius vociferus], Least Sandpiper [Calidris minutilla], Pectoral Sandpiper [Calidris melanotos], and Lesser Yellowlegs [Tringa flavipes]). All species except Killdeer were in good to excellent condition, based on size-corrected body mass and fat scores. Shorebird diets were dominated by invertebrate taxa from Orders Diptera and Coleoptera. Additionally, Isopoda, Hemiptera, Hirudinea, Nematoda, and Cyprinodontiformes contribution to diets varied by shorebird species and year. We evaluated diet and foraging habitat selection by comparing aggregate percent dry mass of food items in shorebird diets and core samples from foraging substrates. Invertebrate abundances at shorebird collection sites and random sites were generally similar, indicating that birds did not select foraging patches within wetlands based on invertebrate abundance. Conversely, we found considerable evidence for selection of some diet items within particular foraging sites, and consistent avoidance of Oligochaeta. We suspect the diet selectivity we observed was a function of overall invertebrate biomass (51.2±4.4 [SE] kg/ha; dry mass) at our study sites, which was greater than estimates reported in most other food selection studies. Diet selectivity in shorebirds may follow tenants of optimal foraging theory; that is, at low food abundances shorebirds forage opportunistically, with the likelihood of selectivity increasing as food availability increases. Nonetheless, relationships between the abundance, availability, and consumption of Oligochaetes for and by waterbirds should be the focus of future research, because estimates of foraging carrying capacity would need to be revised downward if Oligochaetes are truly avoided or unavailable for consumption.     

Carrying capacity for shorebirds during migratory seasons at the Jiuduansha Wetland, Yangtze River Estuary, China

The carrying capacity of food resources for migrating shorebirds was estimated at a stopover site in the Yangtze River Estuary during the two migratory seasons (spring and autumn). From March to May and September to November 2005, the macrobenthos resources of the Jiuduansha Wetland were investigated, and most of the macrobenthos species in the newly-formed shoal were found to be appropriate food for shorebirds. Biomass measurements showed that the total food resource was about 4541.20 kg AFDW (Ash-Free Dry Weight) in spring and about 2279.64 kg AFDW in autumn. Calculations were also done in the available habitats (intertidal bare mudflat and Scirpus × mariqueter/Scirpus triqueter zones) for the shorebirds. The food resources in the available areas were about 3429.03 kg AFDW in spring and about 1700.92 kg AFDW in autumn. Based on the classification (by lean weight, basic metabolic rate and body length) of the shorebird community, and using the energy depletion model, it was theorized that all of the food resources in the Jiuduansha Wetland could support about 3.5 million shorebirds during spring season and 1.75 million shorebirds during autumn season. The shorebird carrying capacities in terms of the available food were about 2.6 million and 1.3 million birds during the two respective migration seasons. Considering the effect of intake rate, the potential carrying capacity was about 0.13–0.26 million shorebirds in the study area. The main factor restricting use of the area by shorebirds was the scarcity of available habitats for roosting at high tide rather than availability of food supply. We recommend restoring some wading pools in the dense Phragmites australis and Spartina alterniflora zones for shorebirds to roost in, to improve shorebirds’ utilization efficiency of the resources in the Jiuduansha Wetland. __________ Translated from Acta Ecologica Sinica, 2007, 27 (1): 90–96 [译自:生态学报]     

During stopover, migrating blackcaps adjust behavior and intake of food depending on the content of protein in their diets

During migration, birds undergo alternating periods of fasting and re-feeding that are associated with dynamic changes in body mass (m(b)) and in organ size, including that of the digestive tract. After arrival at a migratory stopover site, following a long flight, a bird must restore the tissues of its digestive tract before it can refuel. In the present study we examined how the availability of dietary protein influences refueling of migrating blackcaps (Sylvia atricapilla) during a migratory stopover. We tested the following predictions in blackcaps deprived of food and water for 1-2 days to induce stopover behavior: (1) birds provided with a low-protein diet will gain m(b), lean mass and fat mass, and increase in pectoral muscle size slower than do birds fed a high-protein diet; (2) since stopover time is shorter in spring, birds will gain m(b) and build up fat tissue and lean tissue faster than in autumn; and (3) if low dietary protein limits a bird's ability to gain m(b) and fat reserves, then birds that do not obtain enough protein will initiate migratory restlessness (Zugunruhe) earlier than will birds with adequate dietary protein. These predictions were tested by providing captured migrating blackcaps with semisynthetic isocaloric diets differing only in their protein content. Each day, we measured m(b), and food intake; also lean mass and fat mass were measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. In addition, we monitored nocturnal activity with a video recording system. In both spring and autumn, birds fed diets containing either 3 or 20% protein increased in m(b), lean mass and fat mass at similar rates during the experiment. However, the group receiving 3% protein ate more than did the group receiving 20% protein. In support of our predictions, m(b), lean mass, fat mass, and intake of food all were higher in spring than in autumn. We also found that in spring all birds had higher levels of migratory restlessness, but birds fed 3% protein were less active at night than were birds fed 20% protein, possibly an adaptation conserving energy and protein. We conclude that protein requirements of migrating blackcaps during stopover are lower than expected, and that birds can compensate for low dietary protein by behavioral responses, i.e. hyperphagia and decreased migratory restlessness, that ensure rapid refueling.     

Landscape‐scale habitat availability,and not local geography,predicts migratory landbird stopover across the Gulf of Maine

While it is clear that many migratory behaviors are shared across taxa, generalizable models that predict the distribution and abundance of migrating taxa at the landscape scale are rare. In migratory landbirds, ephemeral concentrations of refueling birds indicate that individual behaviors sometimes produce large epiphenomena in particular geographic locations. Identifying landscape factors that predict the distribution and abundance of birds during migratory stopover will both improve our understanding of the migratory process and assist in broad, regionally relevant conservation. In this study we used autumnal passerine stopover data from a five‐year period and eleven stopover sites across coastal Maine, USA, to test four broad hypotheses of migrant distribution and abundance that have been supported in other regions: a) the community characteristics of the pool of potential migrants, b) a site's local geography, c) landscape composition and configuration measured at different spatial scales, and d) interactions between these factors. Our final model revealed that birds concentrate at ‘habitat islands’, sites that possess a disproportionate percentage of the vegetated habitat in the 4‐km surrounding landscape. The strength of this pattern, however, was inversely proportional to a species' remaining migratory distance. Our results corroborate several studies that emphasize the importance of land cover composition at finer spatial scales (< 80 km²) for predicting the stopover distribution and abundances of migratory birds. This suggests that different migrants likely assess stopover sites with similar mechanisms along their migratory route, and these commonalities may be broadly applied to identify stopover locations of conservation importance across the continent.