Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds
Abstract Rare birds known as “accidentals” or “vagrants” have long captivated birdwatchers and puzzled biologists, but the drivers of these rare occurrences remain elusive. Errors in orientation or navigation are considered one potential driver: migratory birds use the Earth’s magnetic field—sensed...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26586-0 |
| _version_ | 1828063863845683200 |
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| author | Benjamin A. Tonelli Casey Youngflesh Morgan W. Tingley |
| author_facet | Benjamin A. Tonelli Casey Youngflesh Morgan W. Tingley |
| author_sort | Benjamin A. Tonelli |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Rare birds known as “accidentals” or “vagrants” have long captivated birdwatchers and puzzled biologists, but the drivers of these rare occurrences remain elusive. Errors in orientation or navigation are considered one potential driver: migratory birds use the Earth’s magnetic field—sensed using specialized magnetoreceptor structures—to traverse long distances over often unfamiliar terrain. Disruption to these magnetoreceptors or to the magnetic field itself could potentially cause errors leading to vagrancy. Using data from 2 million captures of 152 landbird species in North America over 60 years, we demonstrate a strong association between disruption to the Earth’s magnetic field and avian vagrancy during fall migration. Furthermore, we find that increased solar activity—a disruptor of the avian magnetoreceptor—generally counteracts this effect, potentially mitigating misorientation by disabling the ability for birds to use the magnetic field to orient. Our results link a hypothesized cause of misorientation to the phenomenon of avian vagrancy, further demonstrating the importance of magnetoreception among the orientation mechanisms of migratory birds. Geomagnetic disturbance may have important downstream ecological consequences, as vagrants may experience increased mortality rates or facilitate range expansions of avian populations and the organisms they disperse. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T22:49:45Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c1dd74520c25427e9fc6c893966d7b2f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T22:49:45Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-c1dd74520c25427e9fc6c893966d7b2f2023-01-15T12:08:37ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222023-01-0113111210.1038/s41598-022-26586-0Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirdsBenjamin A. Tonelli0Casey Youngflesh1Morgan W. Tingley2Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of CaliforniaAbstract Rare birds known as “accidentals” or “vagrants” have long captivated birdwatchers and puzzled biologists, but the drivers of these rare occurrences remain elusive. Errors in orientation or navigation are considered one potential driver: migratory birds use the Earth’s magnetic field—sensed using specialized magnetoreceptor structures—to traverse long distances over often unfamiliar terrain. Disruption to these magnetoreceptors or to the magnetic field itself could potentially cause errors leading to vagrancy. Using data from 2 million captures of 152 landbird species in North America over 60 years, we demonstrate a strong association between disruption to the Earth’s magnetic field and avian vagrancy during fall migration. Furthermore, we find that increased solar activity—a disruptor of the avian magnetoreceptor—generally counteracts this effect, potentially mitigating misorientation by disabling the ability for birds to use the magnetic field to orient. Our results link a hypothesized cause of misorientation to the phenomenon of avian vagrancy, further demonstrating the importance of magnetoreception among the orientation mechanisms of migratory birds. Geomagnetic disturbance may have important downstream ecological consequences, as vagrants may experience increased mortality rates or facilitate range expansions of avian populations and the organisms they disperse.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26586-0 |
| spellingShingle | Benjamin A. Tonelli Casey Youngflesh Morgan W. Tingley Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds Scientific Reports |
| title | Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds |
| title_full | Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds |
| title_fullStr | Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds |
| title_full_unstemmed | Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds |
| title_short | Geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds |
| title_sort | geomagnetic disturbance associated with increased vagrancy in migratory landbirds |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26586-0 |
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