Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region

Bird migration was recorded by tracking radar and visual observations in the Beringia region. The data were subdivided into seven areas extending from north of Wrangel Island southeastward toward the Bering Strait and then northwestward off the coast of Alaska to Point Barrow. The studies, which too...

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Main Authors: Hedenström, Anders, Alerstam, Thomas, Bäckman, Johan, Gudmundsson, G. A., Henningsson, Sara, Karlsson, Håkan, Rosén, Mikael, Strandberg, Roine
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: The Arctic Institute of North America 2009
Subjects:
Online Access:https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1401241
id ftulundlup:oai:lup.lub.lu.se:b3441f2b-5182-4790-9b48-68a3b908c101
record_format openpolar
spelling ftulundlup:oai:lup.lub.lu.se:b3441f2b-5182-4790-9b48-68a3b908c101 2023-05-15T14:21:58+02:00 Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region Hedenström, Anders Alerstam, Thomas Bäckman, Johan Gudmundsson, G. A. Henningsson, Sara Karlsson, Håkan Rosén, Mikael Strandberg, Roine 2009 https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1401241 eng eng The Arctic Institute of North America https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1401241 wos:000264781200003 scopus:64549143833 Arctic; 62(1), pp 25-37 (2009) ISSN: 0004-0843 Biological Sciences speed flight flight altitude Beringia migration Arctic birds bird flight orientation great circle radar contributiontojournal/article info:eu-repo/semantics/article text 2009 ftulundlup 2023-02-01T23:35:29Z Bird migration was recorded by tracking radar and visual observations in the Beringia region. The data were subdivided into seven areas extending from north of Wrangel Island southeastward toward the Bering Strait and then northwestward off the coast of Alaska to Point Barrow. The studies, which took place during a ship-based expedition between 30 July and 19 August 2005, recorded a total of 557 tracks (average duration 120 seconds) of bird flocks or individuals on post-breeding migration. The dominant eastward-flying flocks were likely composed of shorebirds on their way from breeding areas in central or eastern Siberia to intermediate stopovers and final destinations in North and South America. The courses were more southerly into the Bering Strait, possibly because of topographical influence. At two areas, the Chukchi Sea and Koluchinskaya Bay, there was also a westward component of migrants. At the Chukchi Sea these were almost certainly passerine birds migrating from Alaska to wintering areas in Asia and Africa, while at Koluchinskaya Bay, king ciders on molt migration could represent an important part of the westward component. The overall mean altitude of flights was 1157 m, and flight altitude was positively correlated with latitude. The mean ground speed was 15.9 m/s and the mean airspeed was 14.1 m/s, indicating that on average the birds were experiencing a small tail wind component. The airspeed was a function of the tail wind component and the vertical speed; altitude and the side wind component did not contribute significantly to variation in airspeed in this data set. Comparing these results with similar data obtained from Siberia and Canada, we concluded that Beringia is a migration hotspot where intense bird migration crosses between Asia and Alaska in both directions. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic birds Arctic Barrow Bering Strait Chukchi Chukchi Sea Point Barrow Wrangel Island Alaska Beringia Siberia Lund University Publications (LUP) Arctic Chukchi Sea Bering Strait Canada Wrangel Island ENVELOPE(-179.385,-179.385,71.244,71.244)
institution Open Polar
collection Lund University Publications (LUP)
op_collection_id ftulundlup
language English
topic Biological Sciences
speed
flight
flight altitude
Beringia
migration
Arctic birds
bird flight
orientation
great circle
radar
spellingShingle Biological Sciences
speed
flight
flight altitude
Beringia
migration
Arctic birds
bird flight
orientation
great circle
radar
Hedenström, Anders
Alerstam, Thomas
Bäckman, Johan
Gudmundsson, G. A.
Henningsson, Sara
Karlsson, Håkan
Rosén, Mikael
Strandberg, Roine
Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region
topic_facet Biological Sciences
speed
flight
flight altitude
Beringia
migration
Arctic birds
bird flight
orientation
great circle
radar
description Bird migration was recorded by tracking radar and visual observations in the Beringia region. The data were subdivided into seven areas extending from north of Wrangel Island southeastward toward the Bering Strait and then northwestward off the coast of Alaska to Point Barrow. The studies, which took place during a ship-based expedition between 30 July and 19 August 2005, recorded a total of 557 tracks (average duration 120 seconds) of bird flocks or individuals on post-breeding migration. The dominant eastward-flying flocks were likely composed of shorebirds on their way from breeding areas in central or eastern Siberia to intermediate stopovers and final destinations in North and South America. The courses were more southerly into the Bering Strait, possibly because of topographical influence. At two areas, the Chukchi Sea and Koluchinskaya Bay, there was also a westward component of migrants. At the Chukchi Sea these were almost certainly passerine birds migrating from Alaska to wintering areas in Asia and Africa, while at Koluchinskaya Bay, king ciders on molt migration could represent an important part of the westward component. The overall mean altitude of flights was 1157 m, and flight altitude was positively correlated with latitude. The mean ground speed was 15.9 m/s and the mean airspeed was 14.1 m/s, indicating that on average the birds were experiencing a small tail wind component. The airspeed was a function of the tail wind component and the vertical speed; altitude and the side wind component did not contribute significantly to variation in airspeed in this data set. Comparing these results with similar data obtained from Siberia and Canada, we concluded that Beringia is a migration hotspot where intense bird migration crosses between Asia and Alaska in both directions.
format Article in Journal/Newspaper
author Hedenström, Anders
Alerstam, Thomas
Bäckman, Johan
Gudmundsson, G. A.
Henningsson, Sara
Karlsson, Håkan
Rosén, Mikael
Strandberg, Roine
author_facet Hedenström, Anders
Alerstam, Thomas
Bäckman, Johan
Gudmundsson, G. A.
Henningsson, Sara
Karlsson, Håkan
Rosén, Mikael
Strandberg, Roine
author_sort Hedenström, Anders
title Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region
title_short Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region
title_full Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region
title_fullStr Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region
title_full_unstemmed Radar Observations of Arctic Bird Migration in the Beringia Region
title_sort radar observations of arctic bird migration in the beringia region
publisher The Arctic Institute of North America
publishDate 2009
url https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1401241
long_lat ENVELOPE(-179.385,-179.385,71.244,71.244)
geographic Arctic
Chukchi Sea
Bering Strait
Canada
Wrangel Island
geographic_facet Arctic
Chukchi Sea
Bering Strait
Canada
Wrangel Island
genre Arctic
Arctic birds
Arctic
Barrow
Bering Strait
Chukchi
Chukchi Sea
Point Barrow
Wrangel Island
Alaska
Beringia
Siberia
genre_facet Arctic
Arctic birds
Arctic
Barrow
Bering Strait
Chukchi
Chukchi Sea
Point Barrow
Wrangel Island
Alaska
Beringia
Siberia
op_source Arctic; 62(1), pp 25-37 (2009)
ISSN: 0004-0843
op_relation https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1401241
wos:000264781200003
scopus:64549143833
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