Spring migration dynamics and sex-specific patterns in stopover strategy in the Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola

Due to being a virtually monomorphic wader species, migration dynamics and sex-related migration patterns in the Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola) have rarely been investigated. We captured spring migrants at an important stopover site in northeastern Austria. Birds were individually color-marked, and sex was determined by an analysis of DNA from tail feather material. Among temporary residents (birds seen again after day of capture), males migrated on average 3 days earlier than females. However, since sexes did not differ in fat score, the length of stay and the proportion of transients (birds not seen again after day of capture) and temporary residents, we suggest that males and females adopt similar migration strategies in the spring. The large number of transients captured as well as shorter stopover durations in later temporary residents indicate that Wood Sandpipers minimize time at this stage of their northbound migration. Temporary residents earlier in the season exhibited lower fat stores than later ones. Nevertheless, since the fat stores of transients and temporary residents were similar even after the progress of the season had been accounted for, we assume that Wood Sandpipers may afford to exhibit individual flexibility in migration strategy and the use of stopover sites, especially early in the season. This variability may be a necessary adaptation to cope with possible varying environmental conditions at dynamic and unpredictable inland stopover sites. After having reached North Mediterranean regions, mean body mass of spring migrants gradually increases during successive stopovers, indicating that Wood Sandpipers follow a ‘hopping’ migration strategy. This emphasizes the high conservation value of even small artificial mudflat pools as important stepping stones in order to maintain a continuous network of wetland habitats for this continental migrant.     

A classification scheme for scoring subcutaneous fat depots of shorebirds

ABSTRACT.   Different scoring systems have been developed for assessing fat stores in birds. Most have been used with passerines, and there is no widely used standard for studies of shorebirds. I developed a new fat-scoring classification scheme for shorebirds that was tested in Poland with juvenile Dunlins ( Calidris alpina ) during autumn and Wood Sandpipers ( Tringa glareola ) during spring migration. My proposed fatness scale is based on a qualitative assessment of the amount of fat in the axillary region and, if necessary, the furcular region. The resulting fat scores do not predict the actual amount of fat carried by a bird, but can be used to assign birds to a particular state of fatness and allow comparison of birds with different scores. Analysis revealed that the relationship between fat scores and predicted fat mass was approximately linear for both Dunlins and Wood Sandpipers. Although the scale I propose was tested with 20 species of shorebirds, sample sizes for larger species were small and consisted exclusively of lean and moderately fat birds. As a result, my proposed fat-scoring system should be evaluated using larger and fatter shorebirds because it has only been validated for one small and one medium-sized species.     

基于形态特征判定五种鹬类性别的可靠性

快速准确地鉴定两性同型鸟类个体性别在鸟类生态学研究中具有重要意义。本文选择2008年春季迁徙期在崇明东滩停歇的大滨鹬(Calidris tenuirostris)、红腹滨鹬(C.canutus)、红颈滨鹬(C.ruficollis)、尖尾滨鹬(C.acuminata)及翘嘴鹬(Xenus cinereus)5种两性同型的鹬类,用分子生物学方法进行性别鉴定,并基于个体的形态特征(体重、翅长、喙长、头喙长及跗跖长)采用判别分析方法对性别进行判定。结果表明,尖尾滨鹬雄性各形态特征均显著大于雌性,其他4种鹬类则相反。5种鹬类形态特征的性别差异指数在0.5%~25.3%之间,重叠度在29.4%~98.6%之间。5种鹬类判别分析判定性别的准确率在(0.69±0.06)~(0.96±0.01)之间,其中,尖尾滨鹬判别准确率(0.96)最高,翘嘴鹬判别准确率(0.69)最低。形态特征在两性间的差异程度影响性别的判别准确率。另外,两性性比对性别判别的准确率也有影响:性比偏雄性鸟类的雄性判别准确率高于雌性,而性比偏雌性鸟类的雌性判别准确率高于雄性。采用判别分析估测的性比与分子生物学鉴定结果相似,表明判别分析在判定种群的性比方面具有较高的可靠性。     

Bill length: a reliable method for sexing Purple Sandpipers

ABSTRACT.   Purple Sandpipers ( Calidris maritima ) are sexually dimorphic, with females larger than males. We tested the reliability of using bill length to sex individuals and estimate the sex ratio at a stopover site in Iceland in May 2003 and 2005. Feather samples from 65 of 324 captured birds were used for molecular sexing, and generalized linear models (GLMs) were used to discriminate the sexes from body measurements of the molecularly sexed birds. About 3% of the 324 individuals were misclassified by the Harding-Cassie method, and the proportion of males was 0.657 compared to 0.656 according to the best GLM. Our results showed that the reliability of determining the sex and sex ratio of Purple Sandpipers using a Harding-Cassie plot of bill length measurements was high, but that reliability was improved by including other variables in a GLM. The estimate of an uneven sex ratio in the population we studied was not due to a systematic error, and supports the conclusion of earlier studies that Purple Sandpipers exhibit an uneven sex ratio in favor of males.     

辽宁鸟类分布新记录4种：小滨鹬、 长嘴半蹼鹬、斑胸滨鹬、流苏鹬

2010年至2019年间,鸟类研究者和观鸟爱好者在辽宁鸭绿江口和辽河口湿地累计记录到鸻形目（Charadriiformes）水鸟48种,其中小滨鹬（Calidris minuta）、长嘴半蹼鹬（Limnodromus scolopaceus）、斑胸滨鹬（C. melanotos）、流苏鹬（C. pugnax）等4种是辽宁省鸟类分布新记录种。     

Use of Willapa Bay, Washington, by shorebirds and waterfowl after Spartina control efforts

ABSTRACT Over the past 15 yr, an invasive cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora, has covered more than 5000 ha of tidal mudflats in Willapa Bay, Washington, threatening key shorebird habitat on the Pacific Flyway. Although chemical and mechanical control methods have been used to manage Spartina in Willapa Bay, little is known about how these methods affect subsequent use by shorebirds and waterfowl. During 2003–2004, four sites were monitored for 10‐min periods for use by shorebirds [Dunlin (Calidris alpina), Western Sandpiper (C. mauri), Least Sandpiper (C. minutilla), Black‐bellied Plovers (Pluvialis squatarola) and Long‐billed and Short‐billed dowitchers (Limnodromus sp.)] and waterfowl [Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), Gadwall (A. strepera), American Wigeon (A. americana), Green‐winged Teal (A. crecca), and Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)]. The four sites were bare mudflat (never infested with Spartina), tilled Spartina meadow (free of live Spartina and dead stubble), herbicide‐sprayed Spartina meadow (10% living Spartina and 30% dead stubble), and an untreated Spartina meadow. Untreated Spartina meadow was rarely used by birds, with a mean of seven small Calidris sandpipers (peeps) and 0.8 waterfowl ha^?1. Mean numbers of peeps and waterfowl observed using the herbicide‐treated Spartina meadow were 62 and 16 ha^?1, and the tilled Spartina meadow were 700 and 27 ha^?1, respectively. Mean use of the adjacent bare mud site by peeps and waterfowl was 450 and 11 ha^?1, respectively. The untreated Spartina meadow, sprayed meadow, tilled meadow and the bare mud site had mean densities of Black‐bellied Plovers and dowitchers of 26, 24, 6, and 0 ha^?1, and 0.8, 6, 0.3, and 0 ha^?1, respectively. Our results demonstrate that, within several years of removal of invasive Spartina from mudflats in a large Washington estuary by either mechanical or chemical means, use by shorebirds and waterfowl will increase dramatically.     

俄罗斯远东地区勺嘴鹬繁殖地夏季水鸟调查

俄罗斯远东地区是全球鸟类重要的繁殖地之一,特别是楚科奇半岛的阿纳德尔地区是全球极危鸟种勺嘴鹬(Calidris pygmeus)已知的重要繁殖地。为了履行中俄候鸟及其栖息地保护双边协定,掌握俄罗斯远东的阿纳德尔地区夏季水鸟的资源状况,2017年6月25日至7月20日,中俄双方对阿纳德尔南部地区进行了夏季水鸟资源调查。调查区域主要包括阿纳德尔、从阿纳德尔至白令戈夫斯基的海域、白令戈夫斯基、梅内皮尔吉诺周边苔原区域以及附近海域四个部分。共记录35种水鸟,隶属于6目10科,其中14种有繁殖活动。分析中俄环志回收数据表明,在我国长江流域和东部沿海地区越冬的雁鸭类和鸻鹬类水鸟,夏季迁徙到俄罗斯的哈巴罗夫斯克、萨哈林岛、勘察加半岛、雅库特、楚科奇等远东地区繁殖。此外,勺嘴鹬的主要繁殖繁殖地梅内皮尔吉诺周边苔原地区存在着巢址被洪水淹没、卵和雏鸟遭天敌捕食等风险;在勺嘴鹬迁徙路线上的重要迁徙停歇地和越冬地的退化、环境污染和人为活动是导致勺嘴鹬种群数量下降的重要因素。研究结果表明,需要进一步加强中俄双方勺嘴鹬保护的合作与交流,共同保护鸟类的栖息地。     

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.     

Latitudinal clines in sex ratio, bill, and wing length in Least Sandpipers

ABSTRACT.   Differential distribution of nonbreeding Least Sandpipers ( Calidris minutilla ) according to sex, bill, and wing length was documented using capture data from six locations between California and Ecuador. The distribution of age classes did not vary with latitude. Females, which are slightly larger than males, migrated further south. Wing length increased toward the south for both males and females, which is consistent with the notion that longer wings are adaptive for longer migrations. Bill length also increased in both sexes from north to south. A latitudinal cline in prey burying depth may underlie the clines in bill length as well as in sex ratio.