Transoceanic migration by a 12 g songbird

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Abstract

Many fundamental aspects of migration remain a mystery, largely due to our inability to follow small animals over vast spatial areas. For more than 50 years, it has been hypothesized that, during autumn migration, blackpoll warblers (Setophaga striata) depart northeastern North America and undertake a non-stop flight over the Atlantic Ocean to either the Greater Antilles or the northeastern coast of South America. Using miniaturized light-level geolocators, we provide the first irrefutable evidence that the blackpoll warbler, a 12 g boreal forest songbird, completes an autumn transoceanic migration ranging from 2270 to 2770 km (mean ± s.d.: 2540 ± 257) and requiring up to 3 days (62 h ± 10) of non-stop flight. This is one of the longest non-stop overwater flights recorded for a songbird and confirms what has long been believed to be one of the most extraordinary migratory feats on the planet.

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Most cited references 13

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David Kahle, Hadley Wickham (2013)

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Tracking long-distance songbird migration by using geolocators.

Bridget Stutchbury, Scott Tarof, Tyler Done … (2009)

We mapped migration routes of migratory songbirds to the Neotropics by using light-level geolocators mounted on breeding purple martins (Progne subis) and wood thrushes (Hylocichla mustelina). Wood thrushes from the same breeding population occupied winter territories within a narrow east-west band in Central America, suggesting high connectivity of breeding and wintering populations. Pace of spring migration was rapid (233 to 577 kilometers/day) except for one individual (159 kilometers/day) who took an overland route instead of crossing the Gulf of Mexico. Identifying songbird wintering areas and migration routes is critical for predicting demographic consequences of habitat loss and climate change in tropical regions.

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Extreme endurance flights by landbirds crossing the Pacific Ocean: ecological corridor rather than barrier?

Robert Gill, T. Tibbitts, David C. Douglas … (2008)

Mountain ranges, deserts, ice fields and oceans generally act as barriers to the movement of land-dependent animals, often profoundly shaping migration routes. We used satellite telemetry to track the southward flights of bar-tailed godwits (Limosa lapponica baueri), shorebirds whose breeding and non-breeding areas are separated by the vast central Pacific Ocean. Seven females with surgically implanted transmitters flew non-stop 8117–11 680 km (10 153±1043 s.d.) directly across the Pacific Ocean; two males with external transmitters flew non-stop along the same corridor for 7008–7390 km. Flight duration ranged from 6.0 to 9.4 days (7.8±1.3 s.d.) for birds with implants and 5.0 to 6.6 days for birds with externally attached transmitters. These extraordinary non-stop flights establish new extremes for avian flight performance, have profound implications for understanding the physiological capabilities of vertebrates and how birds navigate, and challenge current physiological paradigms on topics such as sleep, dehydration and phenotypic flexibility. Predicted changes in climatic systems may affect survival rates if weather conditions at their departure hub or along the migration corridor should change. We propose that this transoceanic route may function as an ecological corridor rather than a barrier, providing a wind-assisted passage relatively free of pathogens and predators.

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Author and article information

Journal

Title: Biology Letters

Abbreviated Title: Biol. Lett.

Publisher: The Royal Society

ISSN (Print): 1744-9561

ISSN (Electronic): 1744-957X

Publication date Created: April 2015

Publication date Created: April 30 2015

Publication date (Electronic): April 2015

Publication date (Print): April 30 2015

Volume: 11

Issue: 4

Page: 20141045

Affiliations

[1 ]Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA

[2 ]Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1

[3 ]Vermont Center for Ecostudies, Norwich, VT 05055, USA

[4 ]Migratory Bird Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, Washington, DC 20008, USA

[5 ]Department of Biology, Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada B4P 2R6

[6 ]Bird Studies Canada—Long Point Bird Observatory, Port Rowan, Ontario, Canada N0E1M0

Article

DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2014.1045

PubMed ID: 25832815

SO-VID: 9e7bd668-41da-4ebe-8d94-c0387c6e3dfb

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Transoceanic migration by a 12 g songbird

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Most cited references 13

ggmap: Spatial Visualization with ggplot2

Tracking long-distance songbird migration by using geolocators.

Extreme endurance flights by landbirds crossing the Pacific Ocean: ecological corridor rather than barrier?

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