Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus.
Long-distance migrants are suffering drastic declines in the last decades. Causes beneath this problem are complex due to the wide spatial and temporal scale involved. We aim to reveal migratory routes, stopover areas, wintering grounds, and migratory strategies for the most southwestern populations...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2014-01-01
|
| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC4281181?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1818539655404978176 |
|---|---|
| author | Juan Rodríguez-Ruiz Javier de la Puente Deseada Parejo Francisco Valera Miguel A Calero-Torralbo José M Reyes-González Zuzana Zajková Ana Bermejo Jesús M Avilés |
| author_facet | Juan Rodríguez-Ruiz Javier de la Puente Deseada Parejo Francisco Valera Miguel A Calero-Torralbo José M Reyes-González Zuzana Zajková Ana Bermejo Jesús M Avilés |
| author_sort | Juan Rodríguez-Ruiz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Long-distance migrants are suffering drastic declines in the last decades. Causes beneath this problem are complex due to the wide spatial and temporal scale involved. We aim to reveal migratory routes, stopover areas, wintering grounds, and migratory strategies for the most southwestern populations of the near-threatened European Roller Coracias garrulus in order to identify conservation key areas for the non-breeding stage of this species. To this end, we used tracking data from seven satellite transmitters fitted to birds breeding in different populations throughout the Iberian Peninsula and four geolocators fitted to individuals in a southeastern Iberian population. Precise satellite data were used to describe daily activity patterns and speed in relation to the main regions crossed during the migration. Individuals from the most southwestern Iberian populations made a detour towards the Atlantic African coast whereas those from northeastern populations followed a straight north-to-south route. We identified important stopover areas in the Sahel belt, mainly in the surroundings of the Lake Chad, and wintering grounds on southwestern Africa farther west than previously reported for the species. Concerning the migratory strategy, satellite data revealed: 1) a mainly nocturnal flying activity, 2) that migration speed depended on the type of crossed habitat, with higher average speed while crossing the desert; and 3) that the migration was slower and lasted longer in autumn than in spring. The studied populations showed weak migratory connectivity, suggesting the confluence of birds from a wide range of breeding grounds in a restricted wintering area. Therefore, we suggest to target on defining precisely key areas for this species and identifying specific threats in them in order to develop an appropriate global conservation programme for the European Roller. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:44:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-07792433eeb1462496988f3238746b2b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:44:57Z |
| publishDate | 2014-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-07792433eeb1462496988f3238746b2b2022-12-22T00:49:39ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032014-01-01912e11561510.1371/journal.pone.0115615Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus.Juan Rodríguez-RuizJavier de la PuenteDeseada ParejoFrancisco ValeraMiguel A Calero-TorralboJosé M Reyes-GonzálezZuzana ZajkováAna BermejoJesús M AvilésLong-distance migrants are suffering drastic declines in the last decades. Causes beneath this problem are complex due to the wide spatial and temporal scale involved. We aim to reveal migratory routes, stopover areas, wintering grounds, and migratory strategies for the most southwestern populations of the near-threatened European Roller Coracias garrulus in order to identify conservation key areas for the non-breeding stage of this species. To this end, we used tracking data from seven satellite transmitters fitted to birds breeding in different populations throughout the Iberian Peninsula and four geolocators fitted to individuals in a southeastern Iberian population. Precise satellite data were used to describe daily activity patterns and speed in relation to the main regions crossed during the migration. Individuals from the most southwestern Iberian populations made a detour towards the Atlantic African coast whereas those from northeastern populations followed a straight north-to-south route. We identified important stopover areas in the Sahel belt, mainly in the surroundings of the Lake Chad, and wintering grounds on southwestern Africa farther west than previously reported for the species. Concerning the migratory strategy, satellite data revealed: 1) a mainly nocturnal flying activity, 2) that migration speed depended on the type of crossed habitat, with higher average speed while crossing the desert; and 3) that the migration was slower and lasted longer in autumn than in spring. The studied populations showed weak migratory connectivity, suggesting the confluence of birds from a wide range of breeding grounds in a restricted wintering area. Therefore, we suggest to target on defining precisely key areas for this species and identifying specific threats in them in order to develop an appropriate global conservation programme for the European Roller.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC4281181?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Juan Rodríguez-Ruiz Javier de la Puente Deseada Parejo Francisco Valera Miguel A Calero-Torralbo José M Reyes-González Zuzana Zajková Ana Bermejo Jesús M Avilés Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus. PLoS ONE |
| title | Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus. |
| title_full | Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus. |
| title_fullStr | Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus. |
| title_short | Disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of Iberian near-threatened European Rollers Coracias garrulus. |
| title_sort | disentangling migratory routes and wintering grounds of iberian near threatened european rollers coracias garrulus |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC4281181?pdf=render |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT juanrodriguezruiz disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT javierdelapuente disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT deseadaparejo disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT franciscovalera disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT miguelacalerotorralbo disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT josemreyesgonzalez disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT zuzanazajkova disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT anabermejo disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus AT jesusmaviles disentanglingmigratoryroutesandwinteringgroundsofiberiannearthreatenedeuropeanrollerscoraciasgarrulus |