26 results on '"Buler, Jeffrey"'
Search Results
2. A comparison of traffic estimates of nocturnal flying animals using radar, thermal imaging, and acoustic recording
- Author
-
Horton, Kyle G., Shriver, W. Gregory, and Buler, Jeffrey J.
- Published
- 2015
3. A Multi-Scale Occupancy Model for the Grasshopper Sparrow in the Mid-Atlantic
- Author
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IRVIN, ERIC, DUREN, KENNETH R., BULER, JEFFREY J., JONES, WILLIAM, GONZON, ANTHONY T., and WILLIAMS, CHRISTOPHER K.
- Published
- 2013
4. Differential post-fledging habitat use of Nearctic-Neotropical migratory birds within an urbanized landscape
- Author
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Ladin, Zachary S., Van Nieuland, Steffie, Adalsteinsson, Solny A., D’Amico, Vincent, Bowman, Jacob L., Buler, Jeffrey J., Baetens, Jan M., De Baets, Bernard, and Shriver, W. Gregory
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
5. Autumn stopover hotspots and multiscale habitat associations of migratory landbirds in the eastern United States.
- Author
-
Fengyi Guo, Buler, Jeffrey J., Smolinsky, Jaclyn A., and Wilcove, David S.
- Subjects
- *
AUTUMN , *WEATHER radar networks , *BIRD conservation , *DECIDUOUS forests , *HABITAT conservation - Abstract
Halting the global decline of migratory birds requires a better understanding of migration ecology. Stopover sites are a crucial yet understudied aspect of bird conservation, mostly due to challenges associated with understanding broad-scale patterns of transient habitat use. Here, we use a national network of weather radar stations to identify stopover hotspots and assess multiscale habitat associations of migratory landbirds across the eastern United States during autumn migration. We mapped seasonal bird densities over 5 y (2015 to 2019) from 60 radar stations covering 63.2 million hectares. At a coarse scale, we found that landbirds migrate across a broad front with small differences in migrant density between radar domains. However, relatively more birds concentrate along the Mississippi River and Appalachian Mountains. At a finer scale, we identified radar pixels that consistently harbored high densities of migrants for all 5 y, which we classify as stopover hotspots. Hotspot probability increased with percent cover of all forest types and decreased with percent cover of pasture and cultivated crops. Moreover, we found strong concentrating effects of deciduous forest patches within deforested regions. We also found that the prairie biome in the Midwest (now mostly cropland) is likely a migration barrier, with large concentrations of migrants at the prairie--forest boundary after crossing the agricultural Midwest. Overall, the broad-front migration pattern highlights the importance of locally based conservation efforts to protect stopover habitats. Such efforts should target forests, especially deciduous forests in highly altered landscapes. These findings demonstrate the value of multiscale habitat assessments for the conservation of migratory landbirds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
6. An Improved Multi-Scale Approach to Modeling Habitat Occupancy of Northern Bobwhite
- Author
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DUREN, KENNETH R., BULER, JEFFREY J., JONES, WILLIAM, and WILLIAMS, CHRISTOPHER K.
- Published
- 2011
7. A Multi-Scale Examination of Stopover Habitat Use by Birds
- Author
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Buler, Jeffrey J., Moore, Frank R., and Woltmann, Stefan
- Published
- 2007
8. Using weather radar to help minimize wind energy impacts on nocturnally migrating birds.
- Author
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Cohen, Emily B., Buler, Jeffrey J., Horton, Kyle G., Loss, Scott R., Cabrera‐Cruz, Sergio A., Smolinsky, Jaclyn A., and Marra, Peter P.
- Subjects
- *
WIND power , *WEATHER radar networks , *ENERGY development , *RADAR meteorology , *SURVEILLANCE radar , *WINTER - Abstract
As wind energy rapidly expands worldwide, information to minimize impacts of this development on biodiversity is urgently needed. Here we demonstrate how data collected by weather radar networks can inform placement and operation of wind facilities to reduce collisions and minimize habitat‐related impacts on nocturnally migrating birds. We found over a third of nocturnal migrants flew through altitudes within the rotor‐swept zone surrounding the North American Great Lakes, a continentally important migration corridor. Migrating birds concentrated in terrestrial stopover habitats within 20‐km from shorelines, a distance well beyond the current guidelines for construction of new land‐based facilities, and their distributions varied seasonally and at local and regional scales, creating predictable opportunities to minimize impacts from wind energy development and operation. Networked radar data are available across the United States and other countries and broad application of this approach could provide information critical to bird‐friendly expansion of this globally important energy source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2022
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
9. Repurposing open‐source data from weather radars to reduce the costs of aerial waterbird surveys.
- Author
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Rogers, Rebecca M., Buler, Jeffrey, Clancy, Timothy, and Campbell, Hamish
- Published
- 2022
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
10. Quantifying bird density during migratory stopover using weather surveillance radar
- Author
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Buler, Jeffrey J. and Diehl, Robert H.
- Subjects
Weather radar networks -- Evaluation ,Radar systems -- Evaluation ,Weather forecasting ,Weather ,Algorithms ,Meteorological stations, Radar ,Animal behavior ,Radar meteorology ,Birds ,Algorithm ,Business ,Earth sciences ,Electronics and electrical industries - Published
- 2009
11. Potential Effect of Low-Rise, Downcast Artificial Lights on Nocturnally Migrating Land Birds.
- Author
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Cabrera-Cruz, Sergio A, Larkin, Ronald P, Gimpel, Maren E, Gruber, James G, Zenzal, Theodore J, and Buler, Jeffrey J
- Subjects
BIRD flight ,CLOUDINESS ,LIGHT emitting diodes ,BIRD behavior ,CITIES & towns ,LIGHT sources ,ELECTRON field emission ,MONOCHROMATIC light - Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) on tall or upward-pointed lighting installations affects the flight behavior of night-migrating birds. We hypothesized that common low-rise lights pointing downward also affect the movement of nocturnal migrants. We predicted that birds in flight will react close to low-rise lights, and be attracted and grounded near light sources, with a stronger effect on juveniles during their autumn migration. We conducted a controlled longitudinal experiment with light-emitting diode floodlights and considered nearby structures that turn on lights at night. We analyzed 1501 high-resolution 3D nocturnal flight paths of free-flying migrants and diurnally captured 758–2009 birds around experimental lights during spring and autumn 2016, and spring 2017. We identified change points along flight paths where birds turned horizontally or vertically, and we considered these indicative of reactions. Flight paths with and without reactions were generally closer to our experimental site in spring than in autumn when the lights were on. Reactions were up to 40% more likely to occur in autumn than in spring depending on the threshold magnitude of turning angle. Reactions in spring were up to ∼60% more likely to occur at ∼35 m from the lights than at >1.5 km. In autumn, some vertical reactions were ∼40% more likely to occur at ∼50 m from the lights than at >2.2 km. Interactions between distance to lights and visibility or cloud cover were consistent with known effects of ALAN on nocturnal migrants. Under poor visibility, reactions were up to 50% more likely to occur farthest from structures in spring, but up to 60% more likely to occur closest to lights in autumn. Thus, the effects of ALAN on night-migrating land birds are not limited to bright lights pointing upward or lights on tall structures in urban areas. Diurnal capture rates of birds were not different when lights were on or off for either season. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show that low-rise lights pointing downward affect night-migrating birds. Although the interpreted reactions constitute subtle modifications in the linearity of flight paths, we discuss future work that could verify whether the protection of nocturnal migrants with lights-out programs would have greater impact if implemented beyond urban areas and include management of low-rise lights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
12. A place to land: spatiotemporal drivers of stopover habitat use by migrating birds.
- Author
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Cohen, Emily B., Horton, Kyle G., Marra, Peter P., Clipp, Hannah L., Farnsworth, Andrew, Smolinsky, Jaclyn A., Sheldon, Daniel, Buler, Jeffrey J., and Coulson, Tim
- Subjects
BIRD populations ,RADAR meteorology ,SURVEILLANCE radar ,MIGRATORY birds ,HABITATS ,BIRDS ,BIRD conservation ,AUTUMN - Abstract
Migrating birds require en route habitats to rest and refuel. Yet, habitat use has never been integrated with passage to understand the factors that determine where and when birds stopover during spring and autumn migration. Here, we introduce the stopover‐to‐passage ratio (SPR), the percentage of passage migrants that stop in an area, and use 8 years of data from 12 weather surveillance radars to estimate over 50% SPR during spring and autumn through the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coasts of the south‐eastern US, the most prominent corridor for North America's migratory birds. During stopovers, birds concentrated close to the coast during spring and inland in forested landscapes during autumn, suggesting seasonal differences in habitat function and highlighting the vital role of stopover habitats in sustaining migratory communities. Beyond advancing understanding of migration ecology, SPR will facilitate conservation through identification of sites that are disproportionally selected for stopover by migrating birds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
13. Opportunities and challenges in using weather radar for detecting and monitoring flying animals in the Southern Hemisphere.
- Author
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Rogers, Rebecca M., Buler, Jeffrey J., Wainwright, Charlotte E., and Campbell, Hamish A.
- Subjects
- *
ANIMAL flight , *RADAR meteorology , *ANIMAL behavior , *ANIMAL ecology , *SURVEILLANCE radar , *ACQUISITION of data - Abstract
Operational weather surveillance radars (WSRs) are permanent radars that constantly detect precipitation at regular intervals (approx. every 4–10 min) for the purpose of weather reporting and are often part of a larger network of radars. Ecological studies using WSR to detect flying animals within the airspace have been on the rise since the early 2000s. However, the vast majority of published ecological studies (>300) have occurred in the Northern Hemisphere with only two published studies occurring in the Southern Hemisphere, both on insects. The lag in uptake of the technique in the Southern hemisphere is likely due to limited WSR coverage and the challenges of data acquisition and interpretation. However, we argue that WSRs are numerous enough in the Southern Hemisphere to offer equal opportunity to understand the movement of flying animals there. Here, we explore why that might be and present a road map so that ecological researchers in the Southern Hemisphere may take advantage of this valuable data resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
14. Environmental effects on flying migrants revealed by radar.
- Author
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Becciu, Paolo, Menz, Myles H. M., Aurbach, Annika, Cabrera‐Cruz, Sergio A., Wainwright, Charlotte E., Scacco, Martina, Ciach, Michał, Pettersson, Lars B., Maggini, Ivan, Arroyo, Gonzalo M., Buler, Jeffrey J., Reynolds, Don R., and Sapir, Nir
- Subjects
MIGRATORY animals ,STAGING areas (Birds) ,RADAR ,ANIMAL mechanics ,RADAR meteorology ,ANIMAL flight - Abstract
Migratory animals are affected by various factors during their journeys, and the study of animal movement by radars has been instrumental in revealing key influences of the environment on flying migrants. Radars enable the simultaneous tracking of many individuals of almost all sizes within the radar range during day and night, and under low visibility conditions. We review how atmospheric conditions, geographic features and human development affect the behavior of migrating insects and birds as recorded by radars. We focus on flight initiation and termination, as well as in‐flight behavior that includes changes in animal flight direction, speed and altitude. We have identified several similarities and differences in the behavioral responses of aerial migrants including an overlooked similarity in the use of thermal updrafts by very small (e.g. aphids) and very large (e.g. vultures) migrants. We propose that many aerial migrants modulate their migratory flights in relation to the interaction between atmospheric conditions and geographic features. For example, aerial migrants that encounter crosswind may terminate their flight or continue their migration and may also drift or compensate for lateral displacement depending on their position (over land, near the coast or over sea). We propose several promising directions for future research, including the development and application of algorithms for tracking insects, bats and large aggregations of animals using weather radars. Additionally, an important contribution will be the spatial expansion of aeroecological radar studies to Africa, most of Asia and South America where no such studies have been undertaken. Quantifying the role of migrants in ecosystems and specifically estimating the number of departing birds from stopover sites using low‐elevation radar scans is important for quantifying migrant–habitat relationships. This information, together with estimates of population demographics and migrant abundance, can help resolve the long‐term dynamics of migrant populations facing large‐scale environmental changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
15. Artificial light at night confounds broad‐scale habitat use by migrating birds.
- Author
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McLaren, James D., Buler, Jeffrey J., Schreckengost, Tim, Smolinsky, Jaclyn A., Boone, Matthew, Emiel van Loon, E., Dawson, Deanna K., and Walters, Eric L.
- Subjects
- *
BIRD habitats , *MIGRATORY birds , *BIRD declines , *BIRD conservation , *STAGING areas (Birds) - Abstract
Abstract: With many of the world's migratory bird populations in alarming decline, broad‐scale assessments of responses to migratory hazards may prove crucial to successful conservation efforts. Most birds migrate at night through increasingly light‐polluted skies. Bright light sources can attract airborne migrants and lead to collisions with structures, but might also influence selection of migratory stopover habitat and thereby acquisition of food resources. We demonstrate, using multi‐year weather radar measurements of nocturnal migrants across the northeastern U.S., that autumnal migrant stopover density increased at regional scales with proximity to the brightest areas, but decreased within a few kilometers of brightly‐lit sources. This finding implies broad‐scale attraction to artificial light while airborne, impeding selection for extensive forest habitat. Given that high‐quality stopover habitat is critical to successful migration, and hindrances during migration can decrease fitness, artificial lights present a potentially heightened conservation concern for migratory bird populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
16. Multiflora rose invasion amplifies prevalence of Lyme disease pathogen, but not necessarily Lyme disease risk.
- Author
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Adalsteinsson, Solny A., Shriver, W. Gregory, Hojgaard, Andrias, Bowman, Jacob L., Brisson, Dustin, D'Amico, Vincent, and Buler, Jeffrey J.
- Subjects
LYME disease ,DISEASE prevalence ,IXODES scapularis ,POLYMERASE chain reaction ,NYMPHS (Insects) - Abstract
Background: Forests in urban landscapes differ from their rural counterparts in ways that may alter vector-borne disease dynamics. In urban forest fragments, tick-borne pathogen prevalence is not well characterized; mitigating disease risk in densely-populated urban landscapes requires understanding ecological factors that affect pathogen prevalence. We trapped blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) nymphs in urban forest fragments on the East Coast of the United States and used multiplex real-time PCR assays to quantify the prevalence of four zoonotic, tick-borne pathogens. We used Bayesian logistic regression and WAIC model selection to understand how vegetation, habitat, and landscape features of urban forests relate to the prevalence of B. burgdorferi (the causative agent of Lyme disease) among blacklegged ticks. Results: In the 258 nymphs tested, we detected Borrelia burgdorferi (11.2% of ticks), Borrelia miyamotoi (0.8%) and Anaplasma phagocytophilum (1.9%), but we did not find Babesia microti (0%). Ticks collected from forests invaded by non-native multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora) had greater B. burgdorferi infection rates (mean = 15.9%) than ticks collected from uninvaded forests (mean = 7.9%). Overall, B. burgdorferi prevalence among ticks was positively related to habitat features (e.g. coarse woody debris and total understory cover) favorable for competent reservoir host species. Conclusions: Understory structure provided by non-native, invasive shrubs appears to aggregate ticks and reservoir hosts, increasing opportunities for pathogen transmission. However, when we consider pathogen prevalence among nymphs in context with relative abundance of questing nymphs, invasive plants do not necessarily increase disease risk. Although pathogen prevalence is greater among ticks in invaded forests, the probability of encountering an infected tick remains greater in uninvaded forests characterized by thick litter layers, sparse understories, and relatively greater questing tick abundance in urban landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
17. Scale-dependent effects of nonnative plant invasion on host-seeking tick abundance.
- Author
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Adalsteinsson, Solny A., D'Amico, Vincent, Shriver, W. Gregory, Brisson, Dustin, Buler, Jeffrey J., and Peters, D. P. C.
- Subjects
IXODES scapularis ,INTRODUCED plants ,TICKS ,PLANT invasions ,BIOLOGICAL invasions ,PLANT succession - Abstract
Nonnative, invasive shrubs can affect human disease risk through direct and indirect effects on vector populations. Multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora) is a common invader within eastern deciduous forests where tick‐borne disease (e.g., Lyme disease) rates are high. We tested whether R. multiflora invasion affects blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) abundance and at what scale. We sampled host‐seeking ticks at two spatial scales: fine scale, within R. multiflora‐invaded forest fragments; and patch scale, among R. multiflora‐invaded and R. multiflora‐free forest fragments. At a fine scale, we trapped 2.3 times more ticks under R. multiflora compared with paired traps 25 m away from R. multiflora. At the patch scale, we trapped 3.2 times as many ticks in R. multiflora‐free forests compared with R. multiflora‐invaded forests. Thus, ticks are concentrated beneath R. multiflora within invaded forests, but uninvaded forests support significantly more ticks. Among all covariates tested, leaf litter volume was the best predictor of tick abundance; at the patch scale, R. multiflora‐invaded forests had less leaf litter than uninvaded forests. We suggest that leaf litter availability at the patch scale plays a greater role in constraining tick abundance than the fine‐scale, positive effect of invasive shrubs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
18. An assessment of spatio-temporal relationships between nocturnal bird migration traffic rates and diurnal bird stopover density.
- Author
-
Horton, Kyle G., Shriver, W. Gregory, and Buler, Jeffrey J.
- Published
- 2016
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
19. Mapping Wintering Waterfowl Distributions Using Weather Surveillance Radar.
- Author
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Buler, Jeffrey J., Randall, Lori A., Fleskes, Joseph P., Barrow Jr., Wylie C., Bogart, Tianna, and Kluver, Daria
- Subjects
- *
WATERFOWL management , *WATERFOWL culture , *RADAR , *BIRD watching - Abstract
The current network of weather surveillance radars within the United States readily detects flying birds and has proven to be a useful remote-sensing tool for ornithological study. Radar reflectivity measures serve as an index to bird density and have been used to quantitatively map landbird distributions during migratory stopover by sampling birds aloft at the onset of nocturnal migratory flights. Our objective was to further develop and validate a similar approach for mapping wintering waterfowl distributions using weather surveillance radar observations at the onset of evening flights. We evaluated data from the Sacramento, CA radar (KDAX) during winters 1998-1999 and 1999-2000. We determined an optimal sampling time by evaluating the accuracy and precision of radar observations at different times during the onset of evening flight relative to observed diurnal distributions of radio-marked birds on the ground. The mean time of evening flight initiation occurred 23 min after sunset with the strongest correlations between reflectivity and waterfowl density on the ground occurring almost immediately after flight initiation. Radar measures became more spatially homogeneous as evening flight progressed because birds dispersed from their departure locations. Radars effectively detected birds to a mean maximum range of 83 km during the first 20 min of evening flight. Using a sun elevation angle of -5° (28 min after sunset) as our optimal sampling time, we validated our approach using KDAX data and additional data from the Beale Air Force Base, CA (KBBX) radar during winter 1998-1999. Bias-adjusted radar reflectivity of waterfowl aloft was positively related to the observed diurnal density of radio-marked waterfowl locations on the ground. Thus, weather radars provide accurate measures of relative wintering waterfowl density that can be used to comprehensively map their distributions over large spatial extents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2012
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
20. PREDATION OF NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL NESTS IN A SOUTHERN PINE FOREST.
- Author
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Buler, Jeffrey J. and Hamilton, Robert B.
- Subjects
- *
BIRD nests , *PREDATION - Abstract
Features a study that examined nest predation in a Louisiana pine forest from 1997 to 1998 through comparison of predation between artificial and natural open-cup nests. Significance of artificial-nest experiments on nest predation studies; Methodology of the study; Results and discussion; Conclusion.
- Published
- 2000
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
21. Effects of broadcasting calls during surveys to estimate density and occupancy of northern bobwhite.
- Author
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Duren, Kenneth R., Buler, Jeffrey J., Jones, William L., and Williams, Christopher K.
- Subjects
- *
NORTHERN bobwhite , *SURVEYS , *ANIMAL population density - Abstract
We assessed the effects of using a broadcast caller during surveys and increasing survey duration to estimate northern bobwhite ( Colinus virginianus) density and occupancy. From 15 May 2009 to 15 August 2009, we conducted repeat-visit breeding bobwhite surveys at 180 sites in Delaware, USA. Increasing survey duration from 3 min to 7 min, or using a broadcast caller, improved detection probability for a single visit by 52% and 42%, respectively. However, density estimates when using a broadcast caller were biased high-≥3 times greater compared to passive-listening surveys. Density estimates for 3-min and 7-min passive surveys were not different. Additionally, bobwhite occupancy was similar among all 3 survey treatments. Use of a broadcast caller to survey for bobwhites appears to violate the assumption of distance sampling that an individual is detected prior to movement. Use of a broadcast caller is inappropriate for determining density estimates through distance sampling, but may be appropriate for determining site occupancy. © 2011 The Wildlife Society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2012
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
22. Broad-Scale Weather Patterns Encountered during Flight Influence Landbird Stopover Distributions.
- Author
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Clipp, Hannah L., Cohen, Emily B., Smolinsky, Jaclyn A., Horton, Kyle G., Farnsworth, Andrew, and Buler, Jeffrey J.
- Subjects
FLIGHT ,BIRD migration ,WEATHER ,SURVEILLANCE radar ,RADAR meteorology ,SPRING - Abstract
The dynamic weather conditions that migrating birds experience during flight likely influence where they stop to rest and refuel, particularly after navigating inhospitable terrain or large water bodies, but effects of weather on stopover patterns remain poorly studied. We examined the influence of broad-scale weather conditions encountered by nocturnally migrating Nearctic-Neotropical birds during northward flight over the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) on subsequent coastal stopover distributions. We categorized nightly weather patterns using historic maps and quantified region-wide densities of birds in stopover habitat with data collected by 10 weather surveillance radars from 2008 to 2015. We found spring weather patterns over the GOM were most often favorable for migrating birds, with winds assisting northward flight, and document regional stopover patterns in response to specific unfavorable weather conditions. For example, Midwest Continental High is characterized by strong northerly winds over the western GOM, resulting in high-density concentrations of migrants along the immediate coastlines of Texas and Louisiana. We show, for the first time, that broad-scale weather experienced during flight influences when and where birds stop to rest and refuel. Linking synoptic weather patterns encountered during flight with stopover distributions contributes to the emerging macro-ecological understanding of bird migration, which is critical to consider in systems undergoing rapid human-induced changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
23. Artificial Light at Night is Related to Broad-Scale Stopover Distributions of Nocturnally Migrating Landbirds along the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.
- Author
-
Cabrera-Cruz, Sergio A., Cohen, Emily B., Smolinsky, Jaclyn A., and Buler, Jeffrey J.
- Subjects
RADAR meteorology ,BODIES of water ,PENINSULAS ,MIGRATORY birds ,SPRING ,BIRD migration ,TEMPERATE climate - Abstract
The distributions of birds during migratory stopovers are influenced by a hierarchy of factors. For example, in temperate regions, migrants are concentrated near areas of bright artificial light at night (ALAN) and also the coastlines of large water bodies at broad spatial scales. However, less is known about what drives broad-scale stopover distributions in the tropics. We quantified seasonal densities of nocturnally migrating landbirds during spring and fall of 2011–2015, using two weather radars on the Yucatan peninsula, Mexico (Sabancuy and Cancun). We tested the influence of environmental predictors in explaining broad-scale bird stopover densities. We predicted higher densities in areas (1) closer to the coast in the fall and farther away in spring and (2) closer to bright ALAN and with lower ALAN intensity in both seasons. We found that birds were more concentrated near the coastline in the fall and away from it in spring around Cancun but not Sabancuy. Counter to our expectations, we detected increased bird densities with increased distance from lights in spring around Sabancuy, and in both seasons around Cancun, suggesting avoidance of bright areas during those seasons. This is the first evidence of broad-scale bird avoidance of bright areas during stopover. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
24. Autumn stopover hotspots and multiscale habitat associations of migratory landbirds in the eastern United States.
- Author
-
Guo F, Buler JJ, Smolinsky JA, and Wilcove DS
- Subjects
- Animals, United States, Seasons, Forests, Birds, Mississippi, Animal Migration, Ecosystem
- Abstract
Halting the global decline of migratory birds requires a better understanding of migration ecology. Stopover sites are a crucial yet understudied aspect of bird conservation, mostly due to challenges associated with understanding broad-scale patterns of transient habitat use. Here, we use a national network of weather radar stations to identify stopover hotspots and assess multiscale habitat associations of migratory landbirds across the eastern United States during autumn migration. We mapped seasonal bird densities over 5 y (2015 to 2019) from 60 radar stations covering 63.2 million hectares. At a coarse scale, we found that landbirds migrate across a broad front with small differences in migrant density between radar domains. However, relatively more birds concentrate along the Mississippi River and Appalachian Mountains. At a finer scale, we identified radar pixels that consistently harbored high densities of migrants for all 5 y, which we classify as stopover hotspots. Hotspot probability increased with percent cover of all forest types and decreased with percent cover of pasture and cultivated crops. Moreover, we found strong concentrating effects of deciduous forest patches within deforested regions. We also found that the prairie biome in the Midwest (now mostly cropland) is likely a migration barrier, with large concentrations of migrants at the prairie-forest boundary after crossing the agricultural Midwest. Overall, the broad-front migration pattern highlights the importance of locally based conservation efforts to protect stopover habitats. Such efforts should target forests, especially deciduous forests in highly altered landscapes. These findings demonstrate the value of multiscale habitat assessments for the conservation of migratory landbirds.
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
25. Author Correction: Light pollution is greatest within migration passage areas for nocturnally-migrating birds around the world.
- Author
-
Cabrera-Cruz SA, Smolinsky JA, and Buler JJ
- Abstract
A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has been fixed in the paper.
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
26. Light pollution is greatest within migration passage areas for nocturnally-migrating birds around the world.
- Author
-
Cabrera-Cruz SA, Smolinsky JA, and Buler JJ
- Subjects
- Animals, Geography, Animal Migration, Birds physiology, Darkness, Environmental Pollution, Lighting
- Abstract
Excessive or misdirected artificial light at night (ALAN) produces light pollution that influences several aspects of the biology and ecology of birds, including disruption of circadian rhythms and disorientation during flight. Many migrating birds traverse large expanses of land twice every year at night when ALAN illuminates the sky. Considering the extensive and increasing encroachment of light pollution around the world, we evaluated the association of the annual mean ALAN intensity over land within the geographic ranges of 298 nocturnally migrating bird species with five factors: phase of annual cycle, mean distance between breeding and non-breeding ranges, range size, global hemisphere of range, and IUCN category of conservation concern. Light pollution within geographic ranges was relatively greater during the migration season, for shorter-distance migrants, for species with smaller ranges, and for species in the western hemisphere. Our results suggest that migratory birds may be subject to the effects of light pollution particularly during migration, the most critical stage in their annual cycle. We hope these results will spur further research on how light pollution affects not only migrating birds, but also other highly mobile animals throughout their annual cycle.
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
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