Crossing artificial obstacles during migration: The relative global ecological risks and interdependencies illustrated by the migration of common quail Coturnix coturnix

The effects of cities on quail (Coturnix coturnix) migration: a disturbing story of population connectivity, health, and ecography

“…By comparing recoveries of ringed birds across time, we examined how changes in quail movements relate to changes: (1) in cities (indicated by the number of people, the number of graduates, and GDP); (2) in agrosystems (indicated by the areas under cereal and legume cultivation, and cereal and legume production volumes (ISTAT)); (3) in weather (indicated by the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)); and (4) in movement ecology (indicated by movement type and direction) (Nadal et al 2019 ). In order to describe and compare migratory trajectories through time, we analyzed the average vector of quail movements (Nadal et al 2022 ). We identified mega-urbanized areas using maps and assessed the number of trajectories crossing these areas.…”

“…According to the biological gap between the quail’s ringing and recovery (Spina and Volponi 2008 ), which was primarily caused by hunting, we divided trajectories into eight groups: (a) stopover (less than 5 days between ringing and recovery); (b) sedentary (ringing and recovery at the same site and not studied); (c) wintering (recovery between September and February); (d) direct trip (less than 180 days between ringing and recovery); (e) return trip (more than 180 days between ringing and recovery). Following Nadal et al ( 2022 ), reproduction was divided into three sub-categories: reproduction 1 (ringing between March and May); reproduction 2 (ringing between June and July); and reproduction 3 (ringing between August and September). Four groups (direct trip, return, reproduction 1, and reproduction 2) by two directions (North and South) accounted for this study (Table 1 ).…”

Ghrelin, not corticosterone, is associated with transitioning of phenotypic states in a migratory Galliform

“…Wild common quails show large variability in their migratory routes and distances with populations wintering south of the Sahara migrating longer distances compared to populations wintering north of the Sahara (between 25-35 N°). Common quails show physiological adaptations to migration similar to those found in most Passerines species, including remarkable increases in nocturnal activity and fat deposition at the onset of the migratory season in captive conditions ( 54 – 56 ), and the temporal interruption of their migratory flights at stopover sites ( 57 ). Furthermore, the extensive knowledge on photoperiodic control system, husbandry and breeding in captivity of the closely related Japanese quail - Coturnix japonica ( 58 ) makes the Common quail a good laboratory model for studying migratory physiology, in particular to examine the endocrine changes associated with pre-migratory fuelling while controlling for potential confounding factors such as variation in age, sex, and circadian rhythmicity of experimental animals which would be very difficult to achieve in nature.…”

Methodology for Identifying Ecological Corridors: A Spatial Planning Perspective

“…Climate change and human activities are the main cause of accelerating biodiversity loss, habitat fragmentation and species isolation [1][2][3] which, according to official reports [4], have led to a 47% decrease in the number of ecosystems globally. Urbanization, economic development, expansion of transport networks and land-use change are causing habitat fragmentation, reducing connectivity and creating artificial barriers along wildlife routes [5,6]. The decline in biodiversity and the loss of ecosystem services can be avoided by increasing ecological connectivity.…”