Short-term response to the North Atlantic Oscillation but no long-term effects of climate change on the reproductive success of an alpine bird

Barnagaud, Jean‐Yves; Crochet, Pierre André; Magnani, Yann; Laurent, Ariane Bernard; Ménoni, Emmanuel; Novoa, Claude; Giménez, Olivier

doi:10.1007/s10336-010-0623-8

Cited by 15 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…In a study of the white-tailed ptarmigan, Wang et al (2002b) reported that the local climate had a stronger signature on the demography of the species than did a largescale climate index. The use of the NAO index, as in the study by Barnagaud et al (2011) investigating the effect of climate on the breeding success of black grouse Lyrurus tetrix in the French Alps, would likely have been more appropriate if Rock Ptarmigan breeding success had been recorded over a broader scale.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

No short-term effects of climate change on the breeding of Rock Ptarmigan in the French Alps and Pyrenees

Novoa

Astruc

Desmet³

et al. 2016

J Ornithol

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In the last decades, the effects of climate warming have been particularly marked in high mountain areas. High-altitude species adapted to cold temperatures are consensually held to be particularly vulnerable to climate warming. Among these species at risk, alpine birds like the Rock Ptarmigan (Lagopus muta) are expected to exhibit a strong negative response, particularly at the southern margins of their ranges in the northern hemisphere. In this study, conducted from 1998 to 2011, we investigated whether variations in the local climate affected the breeding biology of Rock Ptarmigan in the French Alps and Pyrenees. The median hatching date did not significantly advance in either massif, suggesting that Rock Ptarmigan did not breed earlier during this period. The date of snowmelt and spring temperatures influenced the onset of breeding but not consistently in both sites. In the Alps, the median hatching date was significantly correlated with the date of snowmelt, but this correlation was less clear in the Pyrenees. Unlike woodland grouse which inhabit lower elevations, the onset of breeding in Rock Ptarmigan may be related to both date of snowmelt and spring temperatures. Reproductive success varied greatly over the years and among sites. On average, the number of young per adult in the Pyrenean population was greater than that recorded in the two populations in the Alps. A significant positive trend of reproductive success over the period of 2000-2009 was detected in the Pyrenees but not in the Alps. The model that best explained annual variation in reproductive success included the additive effects of site, date of total snowmelt and rainfall after hatching. The estimates from this model showed that for all sites, reproductive success was much lower when snowmelt was late, and rainfall after hatching was high. We did not detect any altitudinal changes in locations of either breeding females or nests, suggesting that the breeding habitat of the species has not shifted upward from 1998 to 2011. To conclude, although the Rock Ptarmigan is generally considered a potential sentinel species for indicating temperature-induced changes in alpine avifauna, our study did not show a short-term effect of climate change on the breeding biology of the southern populations of this species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

No short-term effects of climate change on the breeding of Rock Ptarmigan in the French Alps and Pyrenees

Novoa

Astruc

Desmet³

et al. 2016

J Ornithol

Self Cite

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“…The range of black grouse habitat is also larger and possibly provides more variation in, e.g., precipitation and thus climate refuges. Similarly, climate trends also failed to explain variation in black grouse reproduction in the French Alps (Barnagaud et al, 2010). Consequences of climate change are predicted to increase in severity with increasing latitude (Houghton et al, 2001) and species may not simply have latitudinal or altitudinal range-shifts to compensate for e.g.…”

Section: Climate Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Declining reproductive output in capercaillie and black grouse – 16 countries and 80 years

Jahren¹,

Storaas²,

Willebrand³

et al. 2016

Animal Biol

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Declines in populations of capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) and black grouse (Lyrurus tetrix) have been reported from both Central Europe and the continuous boreal forests of Fennoscandia. While intensified land-use is assumed to be the underlying cause of these declines, the mechanisms are not yet understood. Predation is the proximate cause of mortality of eggs, chicks and adults throughout capercaillie and black grouse ranges, but the link between predation and habitat and/or climate change remains unclear. To investigate temporal trends in reproductive output of woodland grouse, we collated previously published and unpublished data of reproduction in capercaillie and black grouse throughout their ranges from 1930 to 2012. We show that, overall, reproductive success has decreased and stabilized at low levels in most regions whilst capercaillie reproductive output in Scotland is still declining. With today's net reproduction, capercaillie and black grouse adult survival is too low to compensate for reproduction declines. Consequently, populations are expected to further decline unless reproductive performances improve. We put our findings in the context of changes in land use, climate and generalist predator numbers. By critically reviewing how these factors limit reproductive success in capercaillie and black grouse, we hope to shed light on the underlying mechanisms causing the decline. Our results imply that measures should be undertaken to reduce mortality of capercaillie and black grouse chicks and eggs. We suggest that future studies should aim to better understand which predators limit capercaillie and black grouse populations and how predation rates are mediated by continuously changing habitat and climate.

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“…Birds may profit from these phenological adjustments, as individuals breeding early often have larger clutch sizes or higher overall reproductive success than those breeding later (e.g., Hatchwell 1991;Winkler et al 2002). Indeed, measures of breeding success were positively related to temperatures on the breeding grounds in several European and North American birds (Barnagaud et al 2011;Mihoub et al 2012;Van Oudenhove et al 2014). However, increasingly warmer springs do not correspond to enhanced reproductive success in all bird species and populations (e.g., Winkler et al 2002;Ludwig et al 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Earlier breeding, lower success: does the spatial scale of climatic conditions matter in a migratory passerine bird?

Grimm

Weiß

Kulik

et al. 2015

Ecology and Evolution

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Following over 20 years of research on the climatic effects on biodiversity we now have strong evidence that climate change affects phenology, fitness, and distribution ranges of different taxa, including birds. Bird phenology likely responds to changes in local weather. It is also affected by climatic year‐to‐year variations on larger scales. Although such scale‐related effects are common in ecology, most studies analyzing the effects of climate change were accomplished using climatic information on a single spatial scale. In this study, we aimed at determining the scale‐dependent sensitivity of breeding phenology and success to climate change in a migratory passerine bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica). For both annual broods, we investigated effects of local weather (local scale) and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO, large scale) on the timing of breeding and breeding success. Consistent with previous studies in migratory birds we found that barn swallows in Eastern Germany bred progressively earlier. At the same time, they showed reduced breeding success over time in response to recent climatic changes. Responses to climatic variation were observed on both local and large climatic scales, but they differed with respect to the ecological process considered. Specifically, we found that the timing of breeding was primarily influenced by large‐scale NAO variations and to a lesser extent by local weather on the breeding grounds. Conversely, climatic conditions on the local scale affected breeding success, exclusively. The observed decrease in breeding success over years is likely a consequence of scale‐related mismatches between climatic conditions during different breeding phases. This provides further evidence that a species' response of earlier breeding may not be enough to cope with climate change. Our results emphasize the importance of considering the response of ecological processes along different climatic scales in order to better understand the complexity of climate change effects on biodiversity.

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Short-term response to the North Atlantic Oscillation but no long-term effects of climate change on the reproductive success of an alpine bird

Cited by 15 publications

References 62 publications

No short-term effects of climate change on the breeding of Rock Ptarmigan in the French Alps and Pyrenees

No short-term effects of climate change on the breeding of Rock Ptarmigan in the French Alps and Pyrenees

Declining reproductive output in capercaillie and black grouse – 16 countries and 80 years

Earlier breeding, lower success: does the spatial scale of climatic conditions matter in a migratory passerine bird?

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