Survival of Sooty Falcons (Falco concolor) breeding in Oman

McGrady, Michael; Fazari, Waheed Al; Jahdhami, Mansoor H. Al; Hines, James E.; Oli, Madan K.

doi:10.1007/s10336-015-1302-6

Cited by 6 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…The islands have been described in detail by Walter () and McGrady et al . (). The Daymaniyat Islands are a National Marine Nature Reserve; Fahal and the Daymaniyats are Important Bird Areas (Evans ), in Fahal's case due solely to the Sooty Falcons that breed there.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…In August we captured breeders and ringed them (McGrady et al . ). In September–October, besides revisiting the nests we had found in August to record the number of chicks, we also searched for nests we had failed to locate in August.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…We used estimates of survival of birds prior to breeding (dispersing age class) and breeding birds (McGrady et al . ) as surrogates for juvenile and adult survival. Reproduction begins at age 2, and birds reproduce with age‐specific fertility rates, F i .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Capture‐mark‐recapture and satellite‐tracking studies suggest that survival of juvenile Sooty Falcons is low, and most juvenile deaths occur during their first outward migration towards their wintering grounds in Madagascar (McGrady & Gschweng , McGrady , McGrady et al . ). Information on reproduction and modelling of the population is an important step to filling knowledge gaps.…”

mentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Using data from a 7‐year study of Sooty Falcons breeding on the Daymaniyat and Fahal Islands of Oman (where most Sooty Falcons in Oman breed; Walter ), we aimed to: (1) provide estimates of reproductive parameters, and compare them between the island groups and across years; (2) integrate those reproductive parameters with estimates of survival rates (McGrady et al . ) to estimate population growth rate; and (3) undertake sensitivity analysis to identify life history parameters to be targeted for species conservation. The data on productivity were collected from > 200 nests during 2007–2014.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Sooty FalconFalco concolorreproduction and population dynamics on the islands in the Sea of Oman

McGrady¹,

AlFazari²,

AlJahdhami³

et al. 2017

Ibis

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Knowledge of demographic parameters affecting population dynamics is critical to the formulation of effective conservation strategies. Sooty Falcon Falco concolor is a little‐studied, Near‐threatened species; estimates of global population size and trend for this species are uncertain. They lay eggs during mid‐summer and sometimes nest in colonies. This unusual breeding ecology suggests that demographic parameters driving their population growth rate may differ from those of most other falcons. We studied Sooty Falcon reproduction at breeding aggregations on Fahal Island and the Daymaniyat islands in the Sea of Oman during 2007–2014, modelled population growth and identified important life history parameters using elasticity analysis. The mean (± se) clutch and brood size was 2.83 ± 0.06 and 2.11 ± 0.07, respectively. Overall, 11.7% of nests failed between the egg and nestling stages, and the failure rate differed significantly between Fahal and the Daymaniyats, and across years. The mean proportion of eggs that hatched annually was 0.66 ± 0.02, and broods were significantly smaller on the Daymaniyats than on Fahal. Falcons on Fahal Island had a higher rate of hatching, a higher rate of nests that produced at least one chick, and produced more chicks per nest than on the Daymaniyats. We suggest that Fahal's proximity to the mainland gives breeding Sooty Falcons access to a more plentiful and stable source of food, especially during the period between arrival from the wintering grounds and the onset of the autumn migration of prey birds, resulting in the better reproductive rates for falcons on Fahal Island, relative to those on the Daymaniyat Islands. The annual asymptotic population growth rate (λ) was 0.87 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.75–0.99), suggesting a declining population, although Sooty Falcons enjoyed a slightly higher population growth rate on Fahal than on the Daymaniyats. Because our study population is on the edge of the breeding range and is isolated from other breeding areas, measures to improve reproductive success of Sooty Falcons breeding on the islands in the Sea of Oman could be important for conservation of Sooty Falcons in Oman.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 97%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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