The EAAFP Science Unit is highlighting some key journal publications in the flyway. The abstract of each journal article is placed following the literature list below.
1) Biology & ecology
- Recent changes in the number of spoon-billed sandpipers Calidris pygmaea wintering on the Upper Gulf of Mottama in Myanmar
Aung, Pyae-Phyo, Moses, Saw, Clark, Nigel A., Anderson, Guy Q. A., Hilton, Geoff M., Buchanan, Graeme M., Zöckler, Christoph, Green, Rhys E.
- Reinforcement project and breeding cases of introduced endangered Red-crowned Cranes Grus japonensis in Yancheng National Nature Reserve, China
Xu, Peng, Chen, Hao, Cui, Duoying, Li, Chunrong, Chen, Guoyuan, Zhao, Yongqiang, Lu, Changhu
- Do Geese Facilitate or Compete with Wintering Hooded Cranes (Grus monacha) for Forage Resources?
Zhengrong Zhu, Lizhi Zhou, Chao Yu, Lei Cheng, Wenbin Xu, Yunwei Song
- Processes shaping wintering waterbird communities in an intensive modified landscape: Neutral assembly with dispersal limitation and localized competition
Yifei, JIA, Qing, ZENG, Yuyu, WANG, SAINTILAN, Neil, Guangchun, LEI, Li, WEN
- The Effects of Winter Temperature and Land Use on Mangrove Avian Species Richness and Abundance on Leizhou Peninsula, China
Chen, Quan, Xu, Guorui, Wu, Zhifeng, Kang, Peng, Zhao, Qian, Chen, Yuanqi, Lin, Guangxuan, Jian, Shuguang
- Migratory connectivity of Swan Geese based on species’ distribution models, feather stable isotope assignment and satellite tracking
Zhu, Qin, Hobson, Keith A.. Zhao, Qingshan, Zhou, Yiqi, Damba, Iderbat, Batbayar, Nyambayar, Natsagdorj, Tseveenmyadag, Davaasuren, Batmunkh, Antonov, Aleksei, Guan, Jian, Wang, Xin, Fang, Lei, Cao, Lei, David Fox, Anthony
- Annual migratory patterns of Far East Greylag Geese (Anser anser rubrirostris) revealed by GPS tracking
LI, Xianghuang, WANG, Xin, FANG, Lei, BATBAYAR, Nyambayar, NATSAGDORJ, Tseveenmyadag, DAVAASUREN, Batmunkh, DAMBA, Iderbat, XU, Zhenggang, CAO, Lei, FOX, Anthony David
- Foraging behavior of the Greater White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons) wintering at Shengjin Lake: diet shifts and habitat use
Fan, Yanguang, Zhou, Lizhi, Cheng, Lei, Song, Yunwei, Xu, Wenbin
- Use of stable isotopes (delta H-2, delta C-13 and delta N-15) to infer the migratory connectivity of Terek Sandpipers (Xenus cinereus) at stopover sites in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway
Young-Min Moon, Kwanmok Kim, Jinhan Kim, Hwajung Kim, Jeong-Chil Yoo
- Hydrological regime change and its ecological responses in East Dongting Lake, China
Gao, Ye, Xie, Yong-hong, Zou, Dong-sheng
- Research on the influence of land use change to habitat of cranes in Shengjin Lake wetland
Fang, Lei, Dong, Bin, Wang, Cheng, Yang, Fei, Cui, Yanglin, Xu, Wenrui, Peng, Liang, Wang, Yuting, Li, Haoran
- Navigating coasts of concrete: Pervasive use of artificial habitats by shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific
Jackson, Micha V., Choi, Chi-Yeung, Amano, Tatsuya, Estrella, Sora M., Lei, Weipan, Moores, Nial, Mundkur, Taej, Rogers, Danny I., Fuller, Richard A.
- Upper tidal flats are disproportionately important for the conservation of migratory shorebirds
Tong Mu, David S. Wilcove
2) Conservation & management
- Filling The southern Jiangsu coast is a critical moulting site for Spoon-billed Sandpiper Calidris pygmaea and Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer
Yang, Ziyou, LagassÉ, Benjamin J. Xiao, H. U. I., Jackson, Micha V., Chiang, Chung-Yu, Melville, David S., Leung, Kar Sin Katherine, Li, Jing, Zhang, L. I. N., Peng, He-Bo, Gan, Xiaojing, Liu, Wen-Liang, Ma, Zhijun, Choi, Chi-Yeung
- Extent and potential impact of hunting on migratory shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific
Gallo-Cajiao, Eduardo, Morrison, Tiffany H., Woodworth, Bradley K., Lees, Alexander C., Naves, Liliana C., Yong, Ding Li, Choi, Chi-Yeung, Mundkur, Taej, Bird, Jeremy, Jain, Anuj, Klokov, Konstantin, Syroechkovskiy, Evgeny, Chowdhury, Sayam U., Fu, Vivian Wing Kan, Watson, James E. M., Fuller, Richard A.
- Protection of wetlands as a strategy for reducing the spread of avian influenza from migratory waterfowl
Wu, Tong, Perrings, Charles, Shang, Chenwei, Collins, James P., Daszak, Peter, Kinzig, Ann, Minteer, Ben A.
3) Others
- Epidemiologic Survey of Avian Influenza Virus Infection in Shorebirds Captured in Hokkaido, Japan.
Masayoshi Kakogawa, Manabu Onuma, Keisuke Saito, Yukiko Watanabe, Koichi Goka, Mitsuhiko Asakawa
- Mercury exposure in sedentary and migratory Charadrius plovers distributed widely across China
Su, Tongping, Lin, Xin, Huang, Qin, Jiang, Demeng, Zhang, Chi, Zhang, Xuecong, Dingle, Caroline, Goodale, Eben, Que, Pinjia, Wang, Rui, Liu, Yang
- First detection of Enterocytozoon bieneusi in whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) in China
Wang, Yuexin, Zhang, Kaihui, Zhang, Yifan, Wang, Ke, Gazizova, Azhar, Wang, Luyang, Cao, Letian, Zhang, Yajun, Huang, Jianying, Cui, Yuan, Zhang, Yuxi, Zhang, Longxian
- Novel H5N6 avian influenza virus reassortants with European H5N8 isolated in migratory birds, China
Sun, Jing, Zhao, Lu, Li, Xiang, Meng, Weiyue, Chu, Dong, Yang, Xiaoyu, Peng, Peng, Zhi, Min, Qin, Siyuan, Fu, Tian, Li, Jinghao, Lu, Shaoxia, Wang, Weidong, He, Xin, Yu, Mengqi, Lv, Xinru, Ma, Wenge, Liao, Mengying, Liu, Zhensheng, Zhang, Guogang, Wang, Yulong, Li, Yanbing, Chai, Hongliang, Lu, Jun, Hua, Yuping
1) Biology & ecology
Aung, Pyae-Phyo, Moses, Saw, Clark, Nigel A., Anderson, Guy Q. A., Hilton, Geoff M., Buchanan, Graeme M., Zöckler, Christoph, Green, Rhys E.
Abstract：
The spoon-billed sandpiper Calidris pygmaea, a migratory Arctic-breeding shorebird, is one of the rarest birds and its population has declined since the 1970s. We surveyed its most important known wintering area in the Upper Gulf of Mottama in Myanmar to estimate recent (2009–2016) changes in its numbers there. The total number of small shorebirds present in the Upper Gulf was counted and the proportion of them that were spoon-billed sandpipers was estimated from sample scans. These two quantities were multiplied together to give the estimated number of spoon-billed sandpipers in each of 4 years. Total numbers of combined small shorebird species tripled from 21,000 to 63,000 between 2009 and 2016, coincident with efforts to reduce hunting pressure on waterbirds. However, the proportion of small shorebirds that were spoon-billed sandpipers declined and their estimated absolute numbers fell by about half, from 244 to 112 individuals. It is probable that loss of intertidal habitat and shorebird hunting elsewhere on the migration route of the spoon-billed sandpipers wintering at Mottama is causing a continued decline, although this is occurring at a less rapid rate than that recorded from Arctic Russia before 2010. The number of spoon-billed sandpipers wintering on the Upper Gulf of Mottama remains the highest single-site total for this species from any known wintering site. Preventing resurgence of illegal shorebird hunting and ensuring long-term protection of the intertidal feeding habitats and roost sites in the Gulf are high priorities if extinction of this species is to be averted.
Xu, Peng, Chen, Hao, Cui, Duoying, Li, Chunrong, Chen, Guoyuan, Zhao, Yongqiang, Lu, Changhu
Abstract:
The Red-crowned Crane Grus japonensis is an endangered species in East Asia. The western flyway population in China has been in steady decline in recent years because of the loss and deterioration of the natural wetland habitat it requires. To enhance this migratory Red-crowned Crane population, a project was designed to return captive Red-crowned Cranes to the wild in 2013 and 2015 in the Yancheng National Nature Reserve (YNNR). This reserve is the most important wintering site for the continental migratory population. The survival rate of introduced Red-crowned Cranes was 40%. However, aggregation of introduced and wild individuals was not observed. Introduced individuals did not pair with wild individuals nor did they migrate to breeding areas with them. They remained in the core zone of the YNNR over summer. Here, we report the first breeding of introduced Red-crowned Cranes in the YNNR in 2017 and 2018. Suitable rearing methods and the use of aircraft to inform them of the migration route are necessary. Further research is necessary to confirm the migratory status of the cranes that are reared in the reserve.
Do Geese Facilitate or Compete with Wintering Hooded Cranes (Grus monacha) for Forage Resources?
Zhengrong Zhu, Lizhi Zhou, Chao Yu, Lei Cheng, Wenbin Xu, Yunwei Song
Abstract:
Foraging is the key behavior of waterbirds, which profoundly affects the survival of their population, and it is affected by interspecific interaction. At Shengjin Lake in China, owing to the reduced availability of suitable habitats for a large population of migratory waterbirds (especially wild geese) over winter, mixed species foraging inevitably occurs. This study aimed to investigate whether mixed-species foraging affects the foraging of hooded cranes (Grus monacha). Fields surveys were carried out at Shengjin Lake from November 2018 to March 2019. Mixed-species foraging was surveyed between the flocks of hooded cranes and three species of geese, greater white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons), lesser white-fronted geese (Anser erythropus) and bean geese (Anser fabalis). Instantaneous scanning and focal animal methods were used to collect behavioral samples of hooded cranes. The quadrat method was used to survey the food density in three habitats: meadows, mudflats, and paddy fields. The results showed that the foraging success rate of hooded cranes was not significantly correlated with food density and the relative flock size in the mixed-species foraging flock in meadows, but a significant negative correlation with the relative flock size in mudflats. However in paddy fields it was a significant positive correlation with the relative flock size. Foraging efforts of hooded cranes were negatively correlated with food density and positively correlated with the relative flock size in meadows. In mudflats, foraging efforts of hooded cranes had a significant positively correlation with the relative flock size, however, there was a significant negative correlation with the relative flock size in paddy fields. To sum up, larger numbers of geese mixed with hooded cranes has a favorable effect on the foraging of hooded cranes in meadows and mudflats, however, the reverse was observed in the paddy fields.
Yifei, JIA, Qing, ZENG, Yuyu, WANG, SAINTILAN, Neil, Guangchun, LEI, Li, WEN
Abstract:
Better understanding of the mechanisms structuring ecological communities is not only a long-term theoretical pursuit in ecology but also critical for biodiversity conservation. Here, we used two complementary approaches (β-diversity partitioning, and phylogenetic and functional null models) to explore the processes structuring wintering waterbird communities in the floodplain lakes of middle-lower Yangtze River (MLYR), China. We found that 1) neutral assembly might be the predominant process shaping the composition of wintering waterbird communities in MLYR; 2) compared to environmental factors, spatial variables, in particular those describing the large scale spatial structure among lakes, contributed more in explaining the functional and phylogenetic composition variations across the region, indicating dispersal constraints might strongly mediate neutral processes. The dispersal constraint could be imposed by movement barriers caused by anthropogenic landscape modification, site fidelity, or both; and 3) strong dispersal constraints could lead to competitive exclusion superimposed over neutrally assembly isolated communities, a hypothesis confirmed by the α- and β-null models. These findings provide strong support for the importance of conserving and improving ecological connectivity at the regional scale as well as habitat quality enhancement at lake scale.
Chen, Quan, Xu, Guorui, Wu, Zhifeng, Kang, Peng, Zhao, Qian, Chen, Yuanqi, Lin, Guangxuan, Jian, Shuguang
Abstract:
Mangrove wetlands are indispensable habitats for birds but are being altered by global warming and changes in land use. The effects of climate and land use on migratory birds at their stopover or wintering grounds have not been previously studied over a long and continuous time period. Leizhou Peninsula, China, is an internationally important habitat for birds, particularly migrants. From 2005 to 2014, we surveyed the birds at seven major mangrove wetlands on Leizhou Peninsula. We recorded 51,200 individuals belonging to 8 orders, 10 families, 34 genera, and 58 species. Seven of the species are listed as “near threatened” or “vulnerable” in the IUCN Red List (World Conservation Union). During the 10-year survey, avian species richness and abundance tended to increase, whereas the relative proportions of all avian functional feeding groups were relatively constant. Avian species richness and abundance on the whole Leizhou Peninsula were positively related to the average temperature and average low temperature but were independent of extreme temperatures. Across the seven sites, avian species richness and abundance were positively related to the proportion of the area represented by mudflats, and avian species richness was negatively related to the proportion represented by open water. Our long-term assessment increases the understanding of the dynamics of global migratory birds at their wintering or stopover sites. The results highlight that bird conservation in mangrove wetlands may depend on maintaining the proportion of mudflats.
Zhu, Qin, Hobson, Keith A.. Zhao, Qingshan, Zhou, Yiqi, Damba, Iderbat, Batbayar, Nyambayar, Natsagdorj, Tseveenmyadag, Davaasuren, Batmunkh, Antonov, Aleksei, Guan, Jian, Wang, Xin, Fang, Lei, Cao, Lei, David Fox, Anthony
Abstract:
Understanding connectivity between avian breeding and non‐breeding areas is essential to understand processes affecting threatened migrants throughout their annual cycle. We attempted to establish migratory connectivity and flyway structure of the IUCN vulnerable Swan Geese (Anser cygnoides ) by combining citizen science species’ distribution models (SDMs) and feather stable isotope analysis. We established migratory origins and movements of 46 Swan Geese from five wintering locations by integrating citizen science SDMs and feather stable hydrogen isotope (δ2H) measurements by linking feathers to precipitation isoscapes in a Bayesian probability framework. We determined multiple summering origins among Swan Geese from the most important wintering location, Poyang Lake, Jiangxi Province, China. As predicted, we found no evidence for sex‐biased differences in δ2H measurements. Four geese tracked with GPS/GSM loggers all migrated to moulting areas, which confirmed the accuracy of our predictions from δ2H assignments. Differences between summering ranges inferred from historical and modern samples coincided with major wetland loss in northeastern China since the 1950s. Despite limited historical data, we contend that this supports the hypothesis that the summering range prior to 1950 was much wider than that of the current population. This was the first Asian study to establish migratory origins of wintering Anatidae based on stable isotopes and citizen science SDMs. We advocate the wider combined application of SDMs, telemetry studies and stable isotopes to investigate effectively avian migratory connectivity, as the results from this study provided important contributions to the development of conservation measures for this threatened and declining species in East Asia.
LI, Xianghuang, WANG, Xin, FANG, Lei, BATBAYAR, Nyambayar, NATSAGDORJ, Tseveenmyadag, DAVAASUREN, Batmunkh, DAMBA, Iderbat, XU, Zhenggang, CAO, Lei, FOX, Anthony David
Abstract:
Twenty Far East Greylag Geese, Anser anser rubrirostris , were captured and fitted with Global Positioning System/Global System for Mobile Communications (GPS/GSM) loggers to identify breeding and wintering areas, migration routes and stopover sites. Telemetry data for the first time showed linkages between their Yangtze River wintering areas, stopover sites in northeastern China, and breeding/molting grounds in eastern Mongolia and northeast China. 10 of the 20 tagged individuals provided sufficient data. They stopped on migration at the Yellow River Estuary, Beidagang Reservoir and Xar Moron River, confirming these areas as being important stopover sites for this population. The median spring migration duration was 33.7 days (individuals started migrating between 25 February and 16 March and completed migrating from 1 to 9 April) compared to 52.7 days in autumn (26 September–13 October until 4 November–11 December). The median stopover duration was 31.1 and 51.3 days and the median speed of travel was 62.6 and 47.9 km/day for spring and autumn migration, respectively. The significant differences between spring and autumn migration on the migration duration, the stopover duration and the migration speed confirmed that tagged adult Greylag Geese traveled faster in spring than autumn, supporting the hypothesis that they should be more time‐limited during spring migration.
Fan, Yanguang, Zhou, Lizhi, Cheng, Lei, Song, Yunwei, Xu, Wenbin
Abstract:
The habitat use and foraging behaviors of waterbirds are closely related to the distribution and abundance of their food resources. Reductions in food supply can cause waterbirds to shift their habitats and adjust their foraging behaviors to meet their nutritional requirements and increase fitness. Seasonal withdraw of the water levels in the river-connected lakes in the middle and lower Yangtze River floodplain provides abundant food resources for the wintering Greater White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons). Sedge (Carex) meadows are critical foraging habitats for herbivorous waterbirds in the hydro-fluctuation belt, which changes with hydrological conditions and climate. This study aimed to examine the behavioral responses of the Greater White-fronted Goose to temporal- spatial changes of food availability in the Sedge meadows. Fields surveys were carried out at Shengjin Lake from November 2017 to April 2018. According to the phenology of Shengjin Lake, we divided the wintering season into three periods. The food density, minimum temperature, food items, grass height, and number of foraging geese were surveyed, and samples of the foraging behavior were collected. We analyzed the relationship of the foraging behavior and habitat use relative to the food resources, using correlation and linear regression analyses. Along with the temporal-spatial variation and exploitation of food resources, the food abundance and items varied widely among the foraging sites. Over the whole wintering period, the foraging habitat with the highest utilization rate was the meadows, followed by the paddy fields, and then mudflats. Furthermore, the utilization of the meadows showed a bimodal distribution trend, while the paddy fields showed a unimodal trend, and a decreasing trend was seen in the mudflats over the whole wintering period. The results of the generalized linear model showed that the foraging rate was related to the food density and grass height, with a linearly increasing trend during the winter. With the change of food resources in the three habitats, the habitats used by the Greater White-fronted Geese shifted from meadows in the hydro-fluctuation belt to the paddy fields, and then back to the meadows. The time budget for foraging activities increased correspondingly, and there was an increase in the foraging rate to compensate for food shortages.
Young-Min Moon, Kwanmok Kim, Jinhan Kim, Hwajung Kim, Jeong-Chil Yoo
Abstract:
Stable isotopes are well documented as effective intrinsic markers to infer migratory connectivity which provides key information for establishing an effective conservation strategy in migratory birds. However, there are few studies using stable isotopes that have been applied to long-distance migratory shorebirds globally and such studies are especially scarce along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway. We used stable isotope analysis (δ2H, δ13C and δ15N) to infer breeding and wintering areas and examine the differences in those values among populations of Terek Sandpipers (Xenus cinereus) at stopover sites in South Korea. The range of δ2H in feathers sampled from birds caught in the Korean peninsula at spring and autumn migration stopover sites was consistent with them being grown at sites throughout their flyway as confirmed by leg flag resightings of birds on this flyway. The eastern Siberia region from Yakutsk to Norilsk and Chukotka in Russia was inferred as the most probable breeding area of the population. Papua New Guinea in the Melanesia region, Malaysia and Indonesia were identified as the most probable wintering areas. Isotope values of populations at different stopover sites and different seasons were consistent. These results suggest that stable isotopes can be effectively used alongside other existing methods (e.g. ringing, coloured leg flags, light level geolocation, satellite tag telemetry) to infer the migratory connectivity for long-distance migratory shorebird species that occur over many countries and continents.
Hydrological regime change and its ecological responses in East Dongting Lake, China
Gao, Ye, Xie, Yong-hong, Zou, Dong-sheng
Abstract:
Extent, frequency and duration of lake water level fluctuations (WLF) are dominant forces controlling the functioning of lake ecosystems, especially in the lake’s littoral and aquatic-terrestrial interface processes. In East Dongting Lake, Carex life history synchronize the arrival of overwintering birds, Carex meadow provide vital wintering ground for migratory waterbirds, especially for the Lesser White-fronted Geese. However, significant changes had taken place in the hydrological regime of East Dongting Lake and our research showed it caused chiefly by sediment deposition in the lake basin and the replenishment of the Three Gorges Dam. The annual lowest water level of the East Dongting Lake had gradually risen and the annual water level amplitude had decreased obviously over the past 60 years. Since the operation of the Three Gorges Dam, the average water level increased significantly from January to June. The Three Gorges Dam holder the incoming water from late September to late October that the status will change from flood control limited water level to normal water level, meanwhile the water level of East Dongting Lake declined significantly through the same duration, especially in October. The operation of the Three Gorges Dam decreased flooding days in the areas above 22-m elevation, resulting in lowering of the minimum elevation of vegetation-covered area and synchronous downward movement of vegetation distribution pattern. As the timing of water level recession at elevations of 24–27 m were 12, 17, 19 and 16 days earlier than that in 1981–2002, the optimum elevation for Carex growth decreased from 25–26 m to 24–25 m. After the operation of the Three Gorges Dam, the annual reversal times of water level increased significantly, which is not conducive to the formation of stable habitat and the utilization of resources by organisms.
Research on the influence of land use change to habitat of cranes in Shengjin Lake wetland
Fang, Lei, Dong, Bin, Wang, Cheng, Yang, Fei, Cui, Yanglin, Xu, Wenrui, Peng, Liang, Wang, Yuting, Li, Haoran
Abstract:
Shengjin Lake wetland reserve is an important habitat for the winter cranes of our country, and the change of land use structure in the area have had a vital influence on the winter cranes and their habitat. The TM remote sensing images of 1986–2015 years were selected in this paper, and the land use change model and gray relational analysis model were used to analyze the effect of land use degree on the habitat of the winter crane and correlation degree between cranes and land use of Shengjin lake wetland. The land use transformation method was employed to analyze the transfer of the habitat of cranes and the relationship between the size of the cranes habitat and the number of populations. The results showed that the degree of land use change fluctuated greatly in different periods, and comprehensive index of land use degree between 220 and 260, also the land use was based on woodland, grassland, and water and their effect on the habitat was limited; the marsh land had the highest retention rate among the cranes habitat being 34.44%. While the reed flat had the lowest rate, only 15.36%, and the reed breach land was mainly transferred to marsh and dry land, 23.22% and 18.16%, respectively. The mud was mainly transferred to water and farmland, respectively, for 31.79% and 27.75%; except the period from 2011 to 2015, the change of habitat area was basically consistent with the change of the number of cranes.
Micha V. Jacksona, Chi-Yeung Choia, Tatsuya Amanoa, Sora M. Estrellac, Weipan Leid, Nial Moorese, Taej Mundkurf, Danny I. Rogersg, Richard A. Fullera
Abstract:
Loss and degradation of wetlands has occurred worldwide, impacting ecosystems and contributing to the decline of waterbirds, including shorebirds that occur along the heavily developed coasts of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF). Artificial (i.e. human-made) wetlands are pervasive in the EAAF and known to be used by shorebirds, but this phenomenon has not been systematically reviewed. We collated data and expert knowledge to understand the extent and intensity of shorebird use of coastal artificial habitats along the EAAF. We found records of 83 species, including all regularly occurring coastal migratory shorebirds, across 176 artificial sites with eight different land uses. Thirty-six species including eleven threatened species occurred in internationally important numbers. However, threatened species were less likely to occur, and larger-bodied, migratory and coastal specialist species less likely to feed, at artificial sites. Abundance, species richness and density varied across artificial habitats, with high abundance and richness but low density on salt production sites; high abundance and density on port and power production sites; and, low abundance and richness on aquaculture and agriculture. Overall, use of coastal artificial habitats by shorebirds is widespread in the flyway, warranting a concerted effort to integrate artificial habitats alongside natural wetlands into conservation frameworks. Salt production sites are cause for particular concern because they support large shorebird aggregations but are often at risk of production cessation and conversion to other land uses. Preserving and improving the condition of all remaining natural habitats and managing artificial habitats are priorities for shorebird conservation in the EAAF.
Upper tidal flats are disproportionately important for the conservation of migratory shorebirds
Tong Mu, David S. Wilcove
Abstract:
Migratory animals play vital ecological roles in ecosystems worldwide, yet many species are threatened by human activities. Understanding the detailed patterns of habitat use throughout the migration cycle is critical to developing effective conservation strategies for these species. Migratory shorebirds undertake some of the longest known migrations, but they are also declining precipitously worldwide. To better understand the dynamics of shorebird declines along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, we quantified the spatiotemporal foraging distribution of 17 migratory shorebirds at two critical stopover sites. We found that shorebirds exhibit substantial interspecific and site-specific differences in their foraging distributions. Notwithstanding these differences, however, the upper tidal flats appear to be especially important to most shorebirds by providing more than 70% of the birds’ cumulative foraging time, twofold greater than their proportional area. Because the upper tidal flats are also more prone to coastal development, our findings may help to explain why shorebird populations along the flyway have declined much faster than the overall rate of tidal flat loss. Our work highlights the importance of protecting upper tidal flats to conserve migratory shorebirds and demonstrates the value of a detailed ecological understanding of habitat usage by migratory animals for conservation planning.
2) Conservation & management
Yang, Ziyou, LagassÉ, Benjamin J. Xiao, H. U. I., Jackson, Micha V., Chiang, Chung-Yu, Melville, David S., Leung, Kar Sin Katherine, Li, Jing, Zhang, L. I. N., Peng, He-Bo, Gan, Xiaojing, Liu, Wen-Liang, Ma, Zhijun, Choi, Chi-Yeung
Abstract:
The extent of intertidal flats in the Yellow Sea region has declined significantly in the past few decades, resulting in severe population declines in several waterbird species. The Yellow Sea region holds the primary stopover sites for many shorebirds during their migration to and from northern breeding grounds. However, the functional roles of these sites in shorebirds’ stopover ecology remain poorly understood. Through field surveys between July and November 2015, we investigated the stopover and moult schedules of migratory shorebirds along the southern Jiangsu coast, eastern China during their southbound migration, with a focus on the ‘Critically Endangered’ Spoon-billed Sandpiper Calidris pygmaea and ‘Endangered’ Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer. Long-term count data indicate that both species regularly occur in globally important number in southern Jiangsu coast, constituting 16.67–49.34% and 64.0–80.67% of their global population estimates respectively, and it is highly likely that most adults undergo their primary moult during this southbound migration stopover. Our results show that Spoon-billed Sandpiper and Nordmann’s Greenshank staged for an extended period of time (66 and 84 days, respectively) to complete their primary moult. On average, Spoon-billed Sandpipers and Nordmann’s Greenshanks started moulting primary feathers on 8 August ± 4.52 and 27 July ± 1.56 days respectively, and their moult durations were 72.58 ± 9.08 and 65.09 ± 2.40 days. In addition, some individuals of several other shorebird species including the ‘Endangered’ Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris, ‘Near Threatened’ Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica, ‘Near Threatened’ Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata and Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultii also underwent primary moult. Our work highlights the importance of the southern Jiangsu region as the primary moulting ground for these species, reinforcing that conservation of shorebird habitat including both intertidal flats and supratidal roosting sites in this region is critical to safeguard the future of some highly threatened shorebird species.
Extent and potential impact of hunting on migratory shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific
Gallo-Cajiao, Eduardo, Morrison, Tiffany H., Woodworth, Bradley K., Lees, Alexander C., Naves, Liliana C., Yong, Ding Li, Choi, Chi-Yeung, Mundkur, Taej, Bird, Jeremy, Jain, Anuj, Klokov, Konstantin, Syroechkovskiy, Evgeny, Chowdhury, Sayam U., Fu, Vivian Wing Kan, Watson, James E. M., Fuller, Richard A.
Abstract:
Harvesting has driven population declines of migratory species. In the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF), declines of migratory shorebirds have been largely attributed to habitat loss. However, despite concerns about hunting, no study has considered this potential threat at a flyway scale. We synthesised and analysed the current state of knowledge of hunting of migratory shorebirds in the EAAF to determine: (i) whether there is flyway-wide coordination for monitoring hunting; (ii) the temporal, spatial, and taxonomic extent of hunting; and (iii) the potential population-level effects. We conducted an exhaustive literature search, aggregated data considering uncertainty in different dimensions, and appraised hunting levels against sustainable harvest thresholds. We identified 138 references (i.e., peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, books, conference proceedings, technical reports, theses, and newsletters) as potential sources of records of hunting of migratory shorebirds of which we were able to obtain 107. We discovered a lack of coordinated monitoring of hunting, despite harvest being temporally, spatially, and taxonomically pervasive, including species of conservation concern. Past harvest levels of migratory shorebirds may have reached at least half of the flyway-wide sustainable thresholds in the EAAF. Despite our inability to assess current hunting levels and unambiguous population-level effects, it is evident that hunting has the potential to be an additional stressor on migratory shorebird populations interplaying with habitat loss. We therefore highlight the need to develop a coordinated monitoring system of hunting at a flyway scale, as past levels of take are likely to have been unsustainable, hunting still occurs, and the current thresholds for sustainable harvest have become lower as a result of declines in shorebird populations.
Wu, Tong, Perrings, Charles, Shang, Chenwei, Collins, James P., Daszak, Peter, Kinzig, Ann, Minteer, Ben A.
Abstract:
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 has led to the death or destruction of millions of domesticated and wild birds and caused hundreds of human deaths worldwide. As with other HPAIs, H5N1 outbreaks among poultry have generally been caused by contact with infected migratory waterfowl at the interface of wildlands and human-dominated landscapes. Using a case–control epidemiological approach, we analyzed the relation between habitat protection and H5N1 outbreaks in China from 2004 to 2017. We found that while proximity to unprotected waterfowl habitats and rice paddy generally increased outbreak risk, proximity to the most highly protected habitats (e.g., Ramsar-designated lakes and wetlands) had the opposite effect. Protection likely involves two mechanisms: the separation of wild waterfowl and poultry populations and the diversion of wild waterfowl from human-dominated landscapes toward protected natural habitats. Wetland protection could therefore be an effective means to control avian influenza while also contributing to avian conservation.
3) Others
Epidemiologic Survey of Avian Influenza Virus Infection in Shorebirds Captured in Hokkaido, Japan.
Masayoshi Kakogawa, Manabu Onuma, Keisuke Saito, Yukiko Watanabe, Koichi Goka, Mitsuhiko Asakawa
Abstract:
There is limited information about virus epidemiology of shorebirds (family Charadriidae and Scolopacidae) in the East Asia-Australasia flyway. We investigated the prevalence of avian influenza viruses (AIVs) in shorebirds in Hokkaido, Japan, the stopover site of the flyway, to understand the ecology of AIV translocation in the flyway from 2006 to 2010. In total, 1,698 shorebirds belonging to 26 species were captured and released into two different sites using mist nets. Tracheal and cloacal swabs were collected from each bird using cotton swabs. The RNA of influenza A viruses was detected using reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification. One AIV-positive sample was obtained from a Lesser Sand Plover (Charadrius mongolus) captured in September 2010 at Lake Komuke. Full lengths of hemagglutinin (HA), neuraminidase (NA), polymerase acidic protein (PA), nucleoprotein (NP), matrix protein 1 (MP), and nuclear export protein (NS) genes were successfully amplified from the AIV-positive sample. All sequences showed the highest identity with sequences obtained from virus strains from Anseriformes species. Shorebirds migrated to Japan 1 mo earlier than did Anseriformes species. Therefore, the Lesser Sand Plover could have been infected by the virus from Anseriformes species on the breeding grounds. The HA sequence showed the highest identity
