Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird
Many birds change their partners every year and pairing may occur before arrival on the breeding grounds. Early pairing strategies can benefit mates by strengthening pair-bonds and increasing the rate of pre-breeding resource acquisition, leading to increased reproductive output and success, especia...
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ftunivwindsor:oai:scholar.uwindsor.ca:glierpub-1504 2023-06-11T04:08:56+02:00 Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird Steenweg, Rolanda J. Legagneux, Pierre Crossin, Glenn T. Gilchrist, H. Grant Kyser, T. Kurt Love, Oliver P. 2019-07-01T07:00:00Z application/pdf https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/502 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-019-01661-y https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/context/glierpub/article/1504/viewcontent/Steenweg2019_Article_StableIsotopesOfCarbonRevealFl.pdf unknown Scholarship at UWindsor https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/502 doi:10.1007/s10336-019-01661-y https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/context/glierpub/article/1504/viewcontent/Steenweg2019_Article_StableIsotopesOfCarbonRevealFl.pdf Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research Publications Pair bond Pairing phenology Sea duck Spring staging Stable isotope analysis Winter migration Biochemistry Biophysics and Structural Biology Biodiversity Biology Life Sciences Marine Biology text 2019 ftunivwindsor https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-019-01661-y 2023-05-06T19:11:20Z Many birds change their partners every year and pairing may occur before arrival on the breeding grounds. Early pairing strategies can benefit mates by strengthening pair-bonds and increasing the rate of pre-breeding resource acquisition, leading to increased reproductive output and success, especially for migratory species breeding in seasonally-constrained environments like the Arctic. Despite the theorized and documented advantages of early pairing, we know rather little about pairing phenology in many species. Here, we test the use of a stable isotope (carbon δ13C) method to assign geographic origin of paired birds to examine pairing phenology in Arctic-breeding Common Eiders (Somateria mollissima borealis). During two consecutive years, we captured paired individuals upon their arrival at breeding grounds approximately 2–3 weeks before laying. Pairs with similar δ13C in their claws indicates that they paired during winter, while similar blood values (with no similarity in claws) would reveal pairs formed much later, during the pre-breeding period near or on the breeding grounds. While a large proportion of pairs (43%) appeared to pair on wintering grounds, an almost equal number (52%) likely paired within 1 month prior to arrival on the breeding grounds. The remaining 5% did not have an obvious pairing time. Despite this variability in pairing phenology, we found no significant differences in body condition between females or males which paired in winter or spring. In the year characterized with more challenging winter conditions, pairs formed in spring tended to have a higher breeding propensity than those formed in winter, although there were no detectable links to body condition. Delaying pairing until spring may be advantageous for Arctic-breeding eiders, although a specific mechanism is unknown. Future research focusing on the energetic costs and benefits for male eiders during these periods would help further understand pairing phenology and potential impacts on males of female breeding decisions. Text Arctic Somateria mollissima University of Windsor, Ontario: Scholarship at UWindsor Arctic Journal of Ornithology 160 3 607 616 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Windsor, Ontario: Scholarship at UWindsor |
op_collection_id |
ftunivwindsor |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Pair bond Pairing phenology Sea duck Spring staging Stable isotope analysis Winter migration Biochemistry Biophysics and Structural Biology Biodiversity Biology Life Sciences Marine Biology |
spellingShingle |
Pair bond Pairing phenology Sea duck Spring staging Stable isotope analysis Winter migration Biochemistry Biophysics and Structural Biology Biodiversity Biology Life Sciences Marine Biology Steenweg, Rolanda J. Legagneux, Pierre Crossin, Glenn T. Gilchrist, H. Grant Kyser, T. Kurt Love, Oliver P. Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird |
topic_facet |
Pair bond Pairing phenology Sea duck Spring staging Stable isotope analysis Winter migration Biochemistry Biophysics and Structural Biology Biodiversity Biology Life Sciences Marine Biology |
description |
Many birds change their partners every year and pairing may occur before arrival on the breeding grounds. Early pairing strategies can benefit mates by strengthening pair-bonds and increasing the rate of pre-breeding resource acquisition, leading to increased reproductive output and success, especially for migratory species breeding in seasonally-constrained environments like the Arctic. Despite the theorized and documented advantages of early pairing, we know rather little about pairing phenology in many species. Here, we test the use of a stable isotope (carbon δ13C) method to assign geographic origin of paired birds to examine pairing phenology in Arctic-breeding Common Eiders (Somateria mollissima borealis). During two consecutive years, we captured paired individuals upon their arrival at breeding grounds approximately 2–3 weeks before laying. Pairs with similar δ13C in their claws indicates that they paired during winter, while similar blood values (with no similarity in claws) would reveal pairs formed much later, during the pre-breeding period near or on the breeding grounds. While a large proportion of pairs (43%) appeared to pair on wintering grounds, an almost equal number (52%) likely paired within 1 month prior to arrival on the breeding grounds. The remaining 5% did not have an obvious pairing time. Despite this variability in pairing phenology, we found no significant differences in body condition between females or males which paired in winter or spring. In the year characterized with more challenging winter conditions, pairs formed in spring tended to have a higher breeding propensity than those formed in winter, although there were no detectable links to body condition. Delaying pairing until spring may be advantageous for Arctic-breeding eiders, although a specific mechanism is unknown. Future research focusing on the energetic costs and benefits for male eiders during these periods would help further understand pairing phenology and potential impacts on males of female breeding decisions. |
format |
Text |
author |
Steenweg, Rolanda J. Legagneux, Pierre Crossin, Glenn T. Gilchrist, H. Grant Kyser, T. Kurt Love, Oliver P. |
author_facet |
Steenweg, Rolanda J. Legagneux, Pierre Crossin, Glenn T. Gilchrist, H. Grant Kyser, T. Kurt Love, Oliver P. |
author_sort |
Steenweg, Rolanda J. |
title |
Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird |
title_short |
Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird |
title_full |
Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird |
title_fullStr |
Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird |
title_full_unstemmed |
Stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory Arctic bird |
title_sort |
stable isotopes of carbon reveal flexible pairing strategies in a migratory arctic bird |
publisher |
Scholarship at UWindsor |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/502 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-019-01661-y https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/context/glierpub/article/1504/viewcontent/Steenweg2019_Article_StableIsotopesOfCarbonRevealFl.pdf |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic Somateria mollissima |
genre_facet |
Arctic Somateria mollissima |
op_source |
Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research Publications |
op_relation |
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/glierpub/502 doi:10.1007/s10336-019-01661-y https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/context/glierpub/article/1504/viewcontent/Steenweg2019_Article_StableIsotopesOfCarbonRevealFl.pdf |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-019-01661-y |
container_title |
Journal of Ornithology |
container_volume |
160 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
607 |
op_container_end_page |
616 |
_version_ |
1768382594346385408 |