Effects of severe weather on reproduction for sympatric songbirds in an alpine environment: Interactions of climate extremes influence nesting success

Martin, Kathy; Wilson, Scott; MacDonald, Elizabeth C.; Camfield, Alaine F.; Martin, Michaela; Trefry, Sarah A.

doi:10.1642/auk-16-271.1

Cited by 54 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Sympatric species may vary in the extent to which they respond to variation in environmental conditions (Gorzo et al, 2016;Greenville, Wardle, Nguyen, & Dickman, 2016;Martin et al, 2017;Skagen et al, 2018). In contrast to the strong response to environmental conditions displayed by Lark Buntings, we found no evidence that Chestnut-collared Longspur spatial dynamics were influenced by drought conditions at either temporal scale.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 91%

Opposing responses to drought shape spatial population dynamics of declining grassland birds

Wilson

Smith

Naujokaitis‐Lewis

2018

Diversity and Distributions

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Aim: The joint threats of climate and land-use change require an understanding of how environmental variation influences species abundance and distribution. However, most species distribution models use static data and methods without considering how species respond over multiple temporal and spatial scales. Using a novel analytical approach, we show how multiscalar environmental variation drives spatial population dynamics of mobile species.Location: Great Plains, North America. Methods:We developed a spatial hierarchical model of abundance using long-term citizen science data for two severely declining species (Lark Bunting, Calamospiza melanocorys, Chestnut-collared Longspur, Calcarius ornatus). Specifically, we (a) compared regional variation in range-wide abundance and population trends, (b) evaluated the influence of short-term and long-term drought on range dynamics and (c) tested whether regional population dynamics are spatially autocorrelated by environmental conditions occurring in geographically separated areas.Results: Both species exhibited long-term range-wide declines >70% with contraction towards the range core. Lark Buntings showed opposing responses to environmental variation; regional abundance increased with wetter conditions during arrival on the breeding grounds but also with longer-term (4-year) drought conditions. Chestnut-collared Longspurs showed no response to drought at either temporal scale. We found strong evidence that Lark Bunting abundance in the southern portion of the range increases with favourable environmental conditions leading to subsequent declines in abundance in northern regions. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 91%

Opposing responses to drought shape spatial population dynamics of declining grassland birds

Wilson

Smith

Naujokaitis‐Lewis

2018

Diversity and Distributions

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“…Previous work has demonstrated the importance of insects as a food source for tetraonid chicks during the first few weeks posthatching. Our study may have also been too short in duration to capture weather conditions that were extreme enough to influence chick survival, which can be important for alpine birds (Martin & Wiebe, 2006;Martin et al, 2017). Lepidoptera larvae formed a significant quantity of the invertebrates consumed, consistent with other tetraonid species, including black grouse (Baines, Wilson, & Beeley, 1996;Wegge & Kastdalen, 2008), willow ptarmigan (Spidso, 1980), and capercaillie (Picozzi, Moss, & Kortland, 1999 (Jorgensen & Blix, 1985;Pedersen & Steen, 1979).…”

Section: Drivers Of Chick Survivalsupporting

confidence: 54%

“…This extreme seasonality and shortened period of resource productivity suggest animals in these habitats may incur higher fitness costs if they breed too early or too late relative to the pulse in food availability (Martin & Wiebe, 2004). Moreover, the frequency of extreme weather events increases with elevation, posing additional challenges for species in these environments (Martin et al, 2017). Moreover, the frequency of extreme weather events increases with elevation, posing additional challenges for species in these environments (Martin et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This prediction stems directly from limitations in the number of breeding attempts that can occur over a short growing season (Martin & Wiebe, 2004). Fecundity (i.e., the number of young produced per female) in high-elevation ecosystems tends to be lower compared to lower-elevation ecosystems (Badyaev & Ghalambor, 2001), and fewer breeding opportunities coupled with a highly stochastic environment may greatly influence annual variability in this vital rate (Martin et al, 2017). Fecundity (i.e., the number of young produced per female) in high-elevation ecosystems tends to be lower compared to lower-elevation ecosystems (Badyaev & Ghalambor, 2001), and fewer breeding opportunities coupled with a highly stochastic environment may greatly influence annual variability in this vital rate (Martin et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other environmental factors were also considered, including weather events during the brood-rearing periods, which are known drivers of reproduction in birds (Martin et al, 2017). We tracked individual hens throughout the breeding season to collect information on chick survival, in addition to temporal changes in alpine plant and insect abundance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mismatches between breeding phenology and resource abundance of resident alpine ptarmigan negatively affect chick survival

Wann

Aldridge

Seglund

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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Phenological mismatches—defined here as the difference in reproductive timing of an individual relative to the availability of its food resources—occur in many avian species. Mistiming breeding activities in environments with constrained breeding windows may have severe fitness costs due to reduced opportunities for repeated breeding attempts. Therefore, species occurring in alpine environments may be particularly vulnerable. We studied fitness consequences of timing of breeding in an alpine‐endemic species, the white‐tailed ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura), to investigate its influence on chick survival. We estimated phenological mismatch by measuring plant and arthropods used by ptarmigan in relation to their timing of breeding. We monitored 120 nests and 67 broods over a three‐year period (2013–2015) at three alpine study sites in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. During this same period, we actively monitored food resource abundance in brood‐use areas to develop year and site‐specific resource phenology curves. We developed several mismatch indices from these curves that were then fit as covariates in mark‐recapture chick survival models. A correlation analysis between seasonal changes in arthropod and food plant abundance indicated that a normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was likely the best predictor for food available to hens and chicks. A survival model that included an interaction between NDVI mismatch and chick age received strong support and indicated young chicks were more susceptible to mismatch than older chicks. We provide evidence that individual females of a resident alpine species can be negatively affected by phenological mismatch. Our study focused on individual females and did not examine if phenological mismatch was present at the population level. Future work in animal populations occurring in mountain systems focusing on a combination of both individual‐ and population‐level metrics of mismatch will be beneficial.

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Carry‐over effects of weather and decision‐making on nest success of a migratory shorebird

Clements

Loghry

Ballard

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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Weather conditions experienced by birds can influence their migration decision‐making and strategy both within and across seasons. Additionally, decision‐making during migration may influence subsequent fitness (reproductive success and/or survival). Examining the effects of fine‐scale weather variables on individuals throughout the year could help identify stages of the annual cycle when species may be most affected by weather. In this study, we captured 24 black‐bellied plovers (gray plovers; Pluvialis squatarola ) on nonbreeding areas along the western Gulf of Mexico coast and tracked their locations once every 2 h through their breeding season in the Alaskan and Canadian Arctic. We quantified migration strategies and weather conditions experienced by each individual throughout the nonbreeding, northward migration, and breeding seasons. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model which connected regressions linking weather with migration metrics, and migration metrics and breeding season weather with reproductive success. We found strong negative relationships between two migration metrics (migration duration and number of stopovers) and reproductive success, but no substantial relationships between breeding season weather variables and reproductive success. We found negative relationships between nonbreeding season temperature, migration temperature, and migration NDVI and both migration duration and number of stopovers, in addition to positive relationships between the number of stopovers and storms during migration, migration duration, and nonbreeding season precipitation. These results suggest that reproductive success is influenced by weather throughout the annual cycle and migration strategy is a key mechanism through which these effects operate. Our findings suggest that environmental factors throughout the year influence shorebird fitness, and, because black‐bellied plovers are often associated with mixed‐species flocks, many species likely experience similar constraints.

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Effects of severe weather on reproduction for sympatric songbirds in an alpine environment: Interactions of climate extremes influence nesting success

Cited by 54 publications

References 41 publications

Opposing responses to drought shape spatial population dynamics of declining grassland birds

Opposing responses to drought shape spatial population dynamics of declining grassland birds

Mismatches between breeding phenology and resource abundance of resident alpine ptarmigan negatively affect chick survival

Carry‐over effects of weather and decision‐making on nest success of a migratory shorebird

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