High individual repeatability of the migratory behaviour of a long-distance migratory seabird

• Published in: Movement Ecology
• Main Authors: Kürten, Nathalie, Schmaljohann, Heiko, Bichet, Coraline, Haest, Birgen, Vedder, Oscar, González-Solís, Jacob, Bouwhuis, Sandra
• Other Authors: Institute of Avian Research Germany, Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé - UMR 7372 (CEBC), La Rochelle Université (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Swiss Ornithological Institute, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat and Departament de Biologia Evolutiva Barcelona, Spain, Universitat de Barcelona (UB)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2022
• Subjects: Animal movement; Bird migration; Migratory behaviour; Individual consistency; Repeatability; Geolocation; Spatial ecology; Phenology; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; Common tern; Sterna hirundo
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-03576912; https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-022-00303-y

International audience Abstract Background Understanding the evolution of migration requires knowledge of the patterns, sources, and consequences of variation in migratory behaviour, a need exacerbated by the fact that many migratory species show rapid population declines and require knowledge-based conservation measures. We therefore need detailed knowledge on the spatial and temporal distribution of individuals across their annual cycle, and quantify how the spatial and temporal components of migratory behaviour vary within and among individuals. Methods We tracked 138 migratory journeys undertaken by 64 adult common terns ( Sterna hirundo ) from a breeding colony in northwest Germany to identify the annual spatiotemporal distribution of these birds and to evaluate the individual repeatability of eleven traits describing their migratory behaviour. Results Birds left the breeding colony early September, then moved south along the East Atlantic Flyway. Wintering areas were reached mid-September and located at the west and south coasts of West Africa as well as the coasts of Namibia and South Africa. Birds left their wintering areas late March and reached the breeding colony mid-April. The timing, total duration and total distance of migration, as well as the location of individual wintering areas, were moderately to highly repeatable within individuals (repeatability indexes: 0.36–0.75, 0.65–0.66, 0.93–0.94, and 0.98–1.00, respectively), and repeatability estimates were not strongly affected by population-level inter-annual variation in migratory behaviour. Conclusions We found large between-individual variation in common tern annual spatiotemporal distribution and strong individual repeatability of several aspects of their migratory behaviour.