Journal ArticleDOI
Birds: blowin’ by the wind?
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TLDR
In this paper, a review brings together numerous theoretical and empirical studies investigating the flight behaviour of migratory birds in relation to the wind, concluding that birds select for favorable wind conditions both at departure and aloft to save energy and that for some long-distance migrants a tail-wind is an indispensable support to cover large barriers.Abstract:
Migration is a task that implies a route, a goal and a period of time To achieve this task, it requires orientation abilities to find the goal and energy to cover the distance Completing such a journey by flying through a moving airspace makes this relatively simple task rather complex On the one hand birds have to avoid wind drift or have to compensate for displacements to reach the expected goal On the other hand flight costs make up a large proportion of energy expenditure during migration and, consequently, have a decisive impact on the refuelling requirements and the time needed for migration As wind speeds are of the same order of magnitude as birds’ air speeds, flight costs can easily be doubled or, conversely, halved by wind effects Many studies have investigated how birds should or actually do react to winds aloft, how they avoid additional costs or how they profit from the winds for their journeys This review brings together numerous theoretical and empirical studies investigating the flight behaviour of migratory birds in relation to the wind The results of these studies corroborate that birds select for favourable wind conditions both at departure and aloft to save energy and that for some long-distance migrants a tail-wind is an indispensable support to cover large barriers Compensation of lateral wind drift seems to vary between age classes, depending on their orientation capacities, and probably between species or populations, due to the variety of winds they face en route In addition, it is discussed how birds might measure winds aloft, and how flight behaviour with respect to wind shall be tested with field dataread more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Extreme endurance flights by landbirds crossing the Pacific Ocean : Ecological corridor rather than barrier?
Robert E. Gill,T. Lee Tibbitts,David C. Douglas,Colleen M. Handel,Daniel M. Mulcahy,Jon Gottschalck,Nils Warnock,Brian J. McCaffery,Philip F. Battley,Theunis Piersma +9 more
TL;DR: It is proposed that this transoceanic route of bar-tailed godwits may function as an ecological corridor rather than a barrier, providing a wind-assisted passage relatively free of pathogens and predators.
Journal ArticleDOI
Travelling through a warming world: climate change and migratory species.
Robert A. Robinson,Humphrey Q. P. Crick,J.A. Learmonth,Ilya M. D. Maclean,Chris D. Thomas,Franz Bairlein,Mads C. Forchhammer,Charles M. Francis,Jennifer A. Gill,Brendan J. Godley,John Harwood,Graeme C. Hays,Brian Huntley,Anthony M. Hutson,Graham J. Pierce,Mark M. Rehfisch,David W. Sims,M. Begoña Santos,Tim H. Sparks,David A. Stroud,Marcel E. Visser +20 more
TL;DR: This multi- taxon review shows that the characteristics of species that undertake such movements appear to make them particularly vulnerable to detrimental impacts of climate change, and conservation strategies for migrants will require substantial shifts in site designation policies, flexibility of management strategies and the integration of forward planning.
Journal ArticleDOI
Optimal bird migration revisited
TL;DR: Using optimality perspectives is now regarded as an essential way of analysing and understanding adaptations and behavioural strategies in bird migration using stochastisch-dynamischer Programmierung, Jahresroutinemodellen and multiobjektiver Optimierung.
Journal ArticleDOI
Indigenous climate knowledge in southern Uganda: the multiple components of a dynamic regional system
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the social contexts in which this information is perceived, evaluated, discussed and applied, and consider the cultural frameworks that support the use of this information, leading farmers to participate as agents as well as consumers in programs that use modern climate science to plan for and adapt to climate variability and climate change.
Journal ArticleDOI
Individual improvements and selective mortality shape lifelong migratory performance
Fabrizio Sergio,Alessandro Tanferna,Renaud de Stephanis,Lidia López Jiménez,Julio Blas,Giacomo Tavecchia,Damiano Preatoni,Fernando Hiraldo +7 more
TL;DR: It is shown that the development of migratory behaviour follows a consistent trajectory, more gradual and prolonged than previously appreciated, and that this is promoted by both individual improvements and selective mortality, mainly operating in early life and during the pre-breeding migration.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Handbuch der Vogel Mitteleuropas
Book ChapterDOI
Optimal Bird Migration: The Relative Importance of Time, Energy, and Safety
Thomas Alerstam,Åke Lindström +1 more
TL;DR: “Optimization is the process of minimizing costs or maximizing benefits, or obtaining the best possible compromise between the two,” (R. McNeill Alexander 1982).
Journal ArticleDOI
Bird flight performance: a practical calculation manual
TL;DR: In this article, a pre-recorded program disc fuel consumed on short and long flights, transferring the programs to other computers, entering the programs from the listings, testing and debugging the reality behind the power calculations.
Book
Sturkie's avian physiology
TL;DR: J.L. Necker, Functional Anatomy of the Spinal Cord, Somato-Sensory System, and R. R. Ne Becker, Avian Ear and Hearing, Sensory Physiology: Vision.