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Diurnal migration patterns in willow warblers differ between the western and eastern flyways

Sokolovskis, Kristaps LU orcid ; Caballero-Lopez, Violeta LU orcid ; Åkesson, Susanne LU ; Lundberg, Max LU ; Willemoes, Mikkel LU ; Zhao, Tianhao and Bensch, Staffan LU (2023) In Movement Ecology 11.
Abstract

It is a long-standing view that the main mechanism maintaining narrow migratory divides in passerines is the selection against intermediate and suboptimal migratory direction, but empirical proof of this is still lacking. We present novel results from a willow warbler migratory divide in central Sweden from where birds take the typical SW and SE as well as intermediate routes to winter quarters in Africa. We hypothesized that individuals that take the intermediate route are forced to migrate in daytime more often when crossing wide ecological barriers than birds that follow the typical western or eastern flyways. Analyses of geolocator tracks of willow warblers breeding across the entire Sweden, including the migratory divide, provided... (More)

It is a long-standing view that the main mechanism maintaining narrow migratory divides in passerines is the selection against intermediate and suboptimal migratory direction, but empirical proof of this is still lacking. We present novel results from a willow warbler migratory divide in central Sweden from where birds take the typical SW and SE as well as intermediate routes to winter quarters in Africa. We hypothesized that individuals that take the intermediate route are forced to migrate in daytime more often when crossing wide ecological barriers than birds that follow the typical western or eastern flyways. Analyses of geolocator tracks of willow warblers breeding across the entire Sweden, including the migratory divide, provided no support for our hypothesis. Instead, birds that migrated along the western flyway were the most likely to undertake full day flights. The probability of migrating for a full day when crossing major barriers declined linearly from west to east. We speculate that this difference is possibly caused by more challenging conditions in the western part of the Sahara Desert, such as the lack of suitable day-time roost sites. However, it may equally likely be that willow warblers benefit from migrating in daytime if favorable tailwinds offer assistance.

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author
; ; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Barrier crossing, Geolocation, Migration, Passerine, Phylloscopus trochilus, Plasticity
in
Movement Ecology
volume
11
article number
58
publisher
BioMed Central (BMC)
external identifiers
  • pmid:37735665
  • scopus:85171893091
ISSN
2051-3933
DOI
10.1186/s40462-023-00425-x
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
be060631-cfd7-4afb-b482-bce6301e05fc
date added to LUP
2023-12-05 14:58:45
date last changed
2024-04-18 11:00:50
@article{be060631-cfd7-4afb-b482-bce6301e05fc,
  abstract     = {{<p>It is a long-standing view that the main mechanism maintaining narrow migratory divides in passerines is the selection against intermediate and suboptimal migratory direction, but empirical proof of this is still lacking. We present novel results from a willow warbler migratory divide in central Sweden from where birds take the typical SW and SE as well as intermediate routes to winter quarters in Africa. We hypothesized that individuals that take the intermediate route are forced to migrate in daytime more often when crossing wide ecological barriers than birds that follow the typical western or eastern flyways. Analyses of geolocator tracks of willow warblers breeding across the entire Sweden, including the migratory divide, provided no support for our hypothesis. Instead, birds that migrated along the western flyway were the most likely to undertake full day flights. The probability of migrating for a full day when crossing major barriers declined linearly from west to east. We speculate that this difference is possibly caused by more challenging conditions in the western part of the Sahara Desert, such as the lack of suitable day-time roost sites. However, it may equally likely be that willow warblers benefit from migrating in daytime if favorable tailwinds offer assistance.</p>}},
  author       = {{Sokolovskis, Kristaps and Caballero-Lopez, Violeta and Åkesson, Susanne and Lundberg, Max and Willemoes, Mikkel and Zhao, Tianhao and Bensch, Staffan}},
  issn         = {{2051-3933}},
  keywords     = {{Barrier crossing; Geolocation; Migration; Passerine; Phylloscopus trochilus; Plasticity}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{BioMed Central (BMC)}},
  series       = {{Movement Ecology}},
  title        = {{Diurnal migration patterns in willow warblers differ between the western and eastern flyways}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40462-023-00425-x}},
  doi          = {{10.1186/s40462-023-00425-x}},
  volume       = {{11}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}