Flight range, fuel load and the impact of climate change on the journeys of migrant birds
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Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Climate change is predicted to increase migration distances for many migratory species, but the physiological and temporal implications of longer migratory journeys have not been explored. Here, we combine information about species' flight range potential and migratory refuelling requirements to simulate the number of stopovers required and the duration of current migratory journeys for 77 bird species breeding in Europe. Using tracking data, we show that our estimates accord with recorded journey times and stopovers for most species. We then combine projections of altered migratory distances under climate change with models of avian flight to predict future migratory journeys. We find that 37% of migratory journeys undertaken by long-distance migrants will necessitate an additional stopover in future. These greater distances and the increased number of stops will substantially increase overall journey durations of many long-distance migratory species, a factor not currently considered in climate impact studies.
Date Issued
2018-02-28
Date Acceptance
2018-01-31
Citation
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, 2018, 285 (1873)
ISSN
0962-8452
Publisher
Royal Society
Journal / Book Title
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Volume
285
Issue
1873
Copyright Statement
© 2018 The Authors. Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.
Identifier
http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000426469300004&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=1ba7043ffcc86c417c072aa74d649202
Subjects
Science & Technology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Biology
Ecology
Evolutionary Biology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine - Other Topics
Environmental Sciences & Ecology
migration
climate change
Afro-Palaearctic migrants
distance
duration
stopovers
DISTANCE MIGRATORY BIRD
POPULATION DECLINES
POTENTIAL IMPACTS
ANNUAL CYCLE
CONNECTIVITY
AUTUMN
PASSERINES
STRATEGIES
SHIFTS
ROUTE
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN 20172329
Date Publish Online
2018-02-21