Document Type
Article
Publication Date
3-2023
Abstract
As migratory species move through the stages of their annual cycle, individuals often display variation in the degree to which they remain in proximity to one another, a phenomenon called migratory connectivity. We show scale dependence in the strength of migratory connectivity in Painted Buntings (Passerina ciris), a North American passerine with disjunct eastern and interior breeding populations. Based on light-level geolocator data from 112 individuals at 11 breeding sites, migratory connectivity between breeding and wintering grounds was strong at the range-wide scale, with interior and eastern Painted Buntings remaining separated throughout the annual cycle. Conversely, migratory connectivity within the eastern and interior populations was weak, with individuals from different breeding areas mixing extensively on winter quarters. We found weak migratory connectivity within populations as birds moved from the breeding grounds to the wintering grounds (breeding-to-winter), with individuals from different regions of each population mixing extensively on the wintering grounds. The interior population, however, displayed strong migratory connectivity as birds moved from the breeding grounds to the intermediate molting grounds (breeding-to-molting), with birds from different breeding sites showing contrasting migratory strategies during the molting period. Our results suggest that spatial scale dependence of migratory connectivity is likely to be a pervasive phenomenon, given that migratory routes and the likelihood of molt migration often differ among populations. When possible, researchers should be deliberate about the spatial design of tracking studies to reduce potential biases that can result from spatial scale-dependent migratory connectivity.
Recommended Citation
Sharp, A. J., A. Contina, V. Ruiz-Gutiérrez, T. Scott Sillett, E. Bridge, E. Besozzi, J. Muller, J. Kelly, A. Given, and C. S. Rushing. 2023. The strength of migratory connectivity in Painted Buntings is spatial scale dependent and shaped by molting behavior. Journal of Field Ornithology 94(1):7. https://doi.org/10.5751/JFO-00233-940107
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Publication Title
Journal of Field Ornithology
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5751/JFO-00233-940107
Comments
Copyright © 2023 by the author(s). Published here under license by The Resilience Alliance. This article is under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You may share and adapt the work provided the original author and source are credited, you indicate whether any changes were made, and you include a link to the license.