Abstract
AbstractCerulean Warblers (Setophaga cerulea) are among the fastest declining Nearctic-Neotropical migrant wood-warblers (Parulidae) in North America. Despite ongoing conservation efforts, little is known about their non-breeding distribution. In June 2016-2018, we deployed geolocators (n = 30) on adult male Cerulean Warblers in Indiana, USA, to track annual movements of individuals. Recovered geolocators (n = 4) showed that Cerulean Warblers occurred broadly throughout northern South America. Autumn migration lasted 44-71 days (n = 4), whereas spring migration lasted 37-41 days (n = 3). The average migration distance was 5268 km. During autumn migration, Cerulean Warblers made 1-4 stopovers (i.e., ≥2 days; n = 4) and 1-2 stopovers during spring migration (n = 3). When crossing the Gulf of Mexico during autumn migration, two birds stopped over after crossing, but not beforehand. Two others navigated through the Caribbean rather than crossing the Gulf of Mexico. During spring migration, one individual stopped after crossing, one individual stopped before crossing, and one individual stopped before and after crossing the Gulf of Mexico. No birds migrated through the Caribbean Islands during spring migration. These results represent novel information describing annual movements of individual Cerulean Warblers and will inform conservation efforts for this declining species.
Highlights
Cerulean Warblers (Setophaga cerulea) are among the fastest declining Nearctic-Neotropical migrant wood-warblers (Parulidae) in North America
Other studies tracking small songbirds using identical geolocator attachment methods found no evidence that geolocators affect apparent return rates [e.g., 6]
The lack of evidence for geolocator effects in our study suggests that our results likely represent an unbiased sample of the migratory behavior of adult male Cerulean Warblers breeding in our study area; future efforts to study Cerulean Warblers with geolocators should continue monitoring for any effects of geolocators on survival or other fitness parameters [22]
Summary
Abstract: Cerulean Warblers (Setophaga cerulea) are among the fastest declining Nearctic-Neotropical migrant wood-warblers (Parulidae) in North America. In June 2016-2018, we deployed geolocators (n = 30) on adult male Cerulean Warblers in Indiana, USA, to track annual movements of individuals. Cerulean Warblers made 1-4 stopovers (i.e., ≥2 days; n = 4) and 1-2 stopovers during spring migration (n = 3). When crossing the Gulf of Mexico during autumn migration, two birds stopped over after crossing, but not beforehand. One individual stopped after crossing, one individual stopped before crossing, and one individual stopped before and after crossing the Gulf of Mexico. No birds migrated through the Caribbean Islands during spring migration. These results represent novel information describing annual movements of individual Cerulean Warblers and will inform conservation efforts for this declining species
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