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Can intensively farmed arable land be favourable for birds during migration? The case of the Eurasian golden plover Pluvialis apricaria

Lindström, Åke LU orcid ; Dänhardt, Juliana LU ; Green, Martin LU ; Klaassen, Raymond LU and Olsson, Peter LU orcid (2010) In Journal of Avian Biology 41(2). p.154-162
Abstract
Today's intensive farming practices are known to have affected farmland biodiversity negatively in many different ways. As far as birds are concerned, they are known to have suffered during both summer and winter. Relatively little is known about the effects on birds during migration. We studied the stopover ecology of the Eurasian golden plover Pluvialis apricaria, a species listed in EU Birds Directive, in intensively farmed arable land in southernmost Sweden in the autumns of 2003-2007. We used key ecological variables (length of stay, fat deposition and moult) as fitness proxies to evaluate how the birds manage in this habitat. Eurasian golden plovers were present in large numbers mainly on arable fields from early August to November... (More)
Today's intensive farming practices are known to have affected farmland biodiversity negatively in many different ways. As far as birds are concerned, they are known to have suffered during both summer and winter. Relatively little is known about the effects on birds during migration. We studied the stopover ecology of the Eurasian golden plover Pluvialis apricaria, a species listed in EU Birds Directive, in intensively farmed arable land in southernmost Sweden in the autumns of 2003-2007. We used key ecological variables (length of stay, fat deposition and moult) as fitness proxies to evaluate how the birds manage in this habitat. Eurasian golden plovers were present in large numbers mainly on arable fields from early August to November and radio-tagged birds were found to stay in the area for up to three months. Adult birds carried out a substantial part of their flight feather moult during their stay. Body mass increased only somewhat during moult, but from the last stages of moult and onwards fuel loads corresponding to 24% above lean body mass (LBM) were accumulated at a rate of 0.5% of LBM per day, before the birds departed. Juveniles arrived later, from mid Sep., and had a similar pattern of fuel deposition. The fact that the birds choose to stay for long periods, moult in the area, and manage to store substantial fuel loads strongly suggests that Eurasian golden plovers do well in this intensively farmed arable land. (Less)
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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Journal of Avian Biology
volume
41
issue
2
pages
154 - 162
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • wos:000276934600007
  • scopus:77953339426
ISSN
0908-8857
DOI
10.1111/j.1600-048X.2009.04810.x
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
dc491a50-a964-4328-bc9f-f3be84d2cee4 (old id 1601648)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 10:14:57
date last changed
2022-05-17 21:16:05
@article{dc491a50-a964-4328-bc9f-f3be84d2cee4,
  abstract     = {{Today's intensive farming practices are known to have affected farmland biodiversity negatively in many different ways. As far as birds are concerned, they are known to have suffered during both summer and winter. Relatively little is known about the effects on birds during migration. We studied the stopover ecology of the Eurasian golden plover Pluvialis apricaria, a species listed in EU Birds Directive, in intensively farmed arable land in southernmost Sweden in the autumns of 2003-2007. We used key ecological variables (length of stay, fat deposition and moult) as fitness proxies to evaluate how the birds manage in this habitat. Eurasian golden plovers were present in large numbers mainly on arable fields from early August to November and radio-tagged birds were found to stay in the area for up to three months. Adult birds carried out a substantial part of their flight feather moult during their stay. Body mass increased only somewhat during moult, but from the last stages of moult and onwards fuel loads corresponding to 24% above lean body mass (LBM) were accumulated at a rate of 0.5% of LBM per day, before the birds departed. Juveniles arrived later, from mid Sep., and had a similar pattern of fuel deposition. The fact that the birds choose to stay for long periods, moult in the area, and manage to store substantial fuel loads strongly suggests that Eurasian golden plovers do well in this intensively farmed arable land.}},
  author       = {{Lindström, Åke and Dänhardt, Juliana and Green, Martin and Klaassen, Raymond and Olsson, Peter}},
  issn         = {{0908-8857}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{154--162}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Journal of Avian Biology}},
  title        = {{Can intensively farmed arable land be favourable for birds during migration? The case of the Eurasian golden plover Pluvialis apricaria}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-048X.2009.04810.x}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/j.1600-048X.2009.04810.x}},
  volume       = {{41}},
  year         = {{2010}},
}