Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth
Abstract The ecological consequences of climate change have been recognized in numerous species, with perhaps phenology being the most well‐documented change. Phenological changes may have negative consequences when organisms within different trophic levels respond to environmental changes at differ...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5248 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.5248 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ece3.5248 |
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crwiley:10.1002/ece3.5248 2024-09-15T17:58:16+00:00 Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth Saalfeld, Sarah T. McEwen, Daniel C. Kesler, Dylan C. Butler, Malcolm G. Cunningham, Jenny A. Doll, Andrew C. English, Willow B. Gerik, Danielle E. Grond, Kirsten Herzog, Patrick Hill, Brooke L. Lagassé, Benjamin J. Lanctot, Richard B. Arctic Landscape Conservation Cooperative National Fish and Wildlife Foundation University of Colorado Denver North Dakota State University U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Kansas State University University of Alaska Fairbanks 2019 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5248 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.5248 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ece3.5248 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ecology and Evolution volume 9, issue 11, page 6693-6707 ISSN 2045-7758 2045-7758 journal-article 2019 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5248 2024-08-30T04:11:29Z Abstract The ecological consequences of climate change have been recognized in numerous species, with perhaps phenology being the most well‐documented change. Phenological changes may have negative consequences when organisms within different trophic levels respond to environmental changes at different rates, potentially leading to phenological mismatches between predators and their prey. This may be especially apparent in the Arctic, which has been affected more by climate change than other regions, resulting in earlier, warmer, and longer summers. During a 7‐year study near Utqiaġvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska, we estimated phenological mismatch in relation to food availability and chick growth in a community of Arctic‐breeding shorebirds experiencing advancement of environmental conditions (i.e., snowmelt). Our results indicate that Arctic‐breeding shorebirds have experienced increased phenological mismatch with earlier snowmelt conditions. However, the degree of phenological mismatch was not a good predictor of food availability, as weather conditions after snowmelt made invertebrate availability highly unpredictable. As a result, the food available to shorebird chicks that were 2–10 days old was highly variable among years (ranging from 6.2 to 28.8 mg trap −1 day −1 among years in eight species), and was often inadequate for average growth (only 20%–54% of Dunlin and Pectoral Sandpiper broods on average had adequate food across a 4‐year period). Although weather conditions vary among years, shorebirds that nested earlier in relation to snowmelt generally had more food available during brood rearing, and thus, greater chick growth rates. Despite the strong selective pressure to nest early, advancement of nesting is likely limited by the amount of plasticity in the start and progression of migration. Therefore, long‐term climatic changes resulting in earlier snowmelt have the potential to greatly affect shorebird populations, especially if shorebirds are unable to advance nest initiation sufficiently to keep ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Barrow Climate change Alaska Wiley Online Library Ecology and Evolution 9 11 6693 6707 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract The ecological consequences of climate change have been recognized in numerous species, with perhaps phenology being the most well‐documented change. Phenological changes may have negative consequences when organisms within different trophic levels respond to environmental changes at different rates, potentially leading to phenological mismatches between predators and their prey. This may be especially apparent in the Arctic, which has been affected more by climate change than other regions, resulting in earlier, warmer, and longer summers. During a 7‐year study near Utqiaġvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska, we estimated phenological mismatch in relation to food availability and chick growth in a community of Arctic‐breeding shorebirds experiencing advancement of environmental conditions (i.e., snowmelt). Our results indicate that Arctic‐breeding shorebirds have experienced increased phenological mismatch with earlier snowmelt conditions. However, the degree of phenological mismatch was not a good predictor of food availability, as weather conditions after snowmelt made invertebrate availability highly unpredictable. As a result, the food available to shorebird chicks that were 2–10 days old was highly variable among years (ranging from 6.2 to 28.8 mg trap −1 day −1 among years in eight species), and was often inadequate for average growth (only 20%–54% of Dunlin and Pectoral Sandpiper broods on average had adequate food across a 4‐year period). Although weather conditions vary among years, shorebirds that nested earlier in relation to snowmelt generally had more food available during brood rearing, and thus, greater chick growth rates. Despite the strong selective pressure to nest early, advancement of nesting is likely limited by the amount of plasticity in the start and progression of migration. Therefore, long‐term climatic changes resulting in earlier snowmelt have the potential to greatly affect shorebird populations, especially if shorebirds are unable to advance nest initiation sufficiently to keep ... |
author2 |
Arctic Landscape Conservation Cooperative National Fish and Wildlife Foundation University of Colorado Denver North Dakota State University U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Kansas State University University of Alaska Fairbanks |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Saalfeld, Sarah T. McEwen, Daniel C. Kesler, Dylan C. Butler, Malcolm G. Cunningham, Jenny A. Doll, Andrew C. English, Willow B. Gerik, Danielle E. Grond, Kirsten Herzog, Patrick Hill, Brooke L. Lagassé, Benjamin J. Lanctot, Richard B. |
spellingShingle |
Saalfeld, Sarah T. McEwen, Daniel C. Kesler, Dylan C. Butler, Malcolm G. Cunningham, Jenny A. Doll, Andrew C. English, Willow B. Gerik, Danielle E. Grond, Kirsten Herzog, Patrick Hill, Brooke L. Lagassé, Benjamin J. Lanctot, Richard B. Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
author_facet |
Saalfeld, Sarah T. McEwen, Daniel C. Kesler, Dylan C. Butler, Malcolm G. Cunningham, Jenny A. Doll, Andrew C. English, Willow B. Gerik, Danielle E. Grond, Kirsten Herzog, Patrick Hill, Brooke L. Lagassé, Benjamin J. Lanctot, Richard B. |
author_sort |
Saalfeld, Sarah T. |
title |
Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
title_short |
Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
title_full |
Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
title_fullStr |
Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
title_full_unstemmed |
Phenological mismatch in Arctic‐breeding shorebirds: Impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
title_sort |
phenological mismatch in arctic‐breeding shorebirds: impact of snowmelt and unpredictable weather conditions on food availability and chick growth |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5248 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.5248 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ece3.5248 |
genre |
Barrow Climate change Alaska |
genre_facet |
Barrow Climate change Alaska |
op_source |
Ecology and Evolution volume 9, issue 11, page 6693-6707 ISSN 2045-7758 2045-7758 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5248 |
container_title |
Ecology and Evolution |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
6693 |
op_container_end_page |
6707 |
_version_ |
1810434672082026496 |