Exploring overlap of feather molting and migration in tundra swans using δ²H analysis
Wolf, Nathan; Smeltz, Scott; Welker, Jeffrey M.; Rogers, Matthew C.; Ely, Craig (2020-11-09)
Wolf, N., Smeltz, T. S., Welker, J. M., Rogers, M. C., & Ely, C. (2020). Exploring Overlap of Feather Molting and Migration in Tundra Swans Using δ2H Analysis. Animal Migration, 7(1), 58–66. https://doi.org/10.1515/ami-2020-0102
© 2020 Nathan Wolf et al., published by De Gruyter. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2021062940373
Tiivistelmä
Abstract
Determining the processes that shape the relative timing of energetically-costly events in the annual cycle of migrating birds is important to our understanding of avian phenology and ecology. We paired satellite tracking and hydrogen stable isotope analysis (δ²H) to examine the relative timing of two such events — migration and feather molting — in tundra swans from four breeding areas in Alaska, USA. Our results show a trend of increasing intra-individual variability in breast feather δ²H values with increasing migration distance, suggesting the overlap of breast feather molting and migration. However, when individual samples were pooled by breeding area, the δ²H values of breast and head feathers showed no trend with migration distance, presumably resulting from high levels of inter-individual variability in δ²H values within each breeding area. We explore potential reasons for this variability, propose potential mechanisms influencing feather δ²H values of tundra swans, and recommend further research into methods for exploring the temporal configuration of events in the annual cycle of migrating birds.
Kokoelmat
- Avoin saatavuus [31976]