Intracontinental spatial connections of lesser white-fronted geese (Anser erythropus) from mountain subarctic regions of the Central Palearctic

Abstract

The lesser whitefronted goose, Anser erythropus L., 1758, is an endangered species included in the Red Data lists of IUCN and Russia. Its total abundance is apparently no more than 16000 ind. (Morozov and Syroechkovskii, 2002). Among measures aimed at the conservation of rare species of migratory birds, of great significance are the study and monitoring of condi� tions along their migration routes. Therefore, in 2006 and 2007 we performed the first study on interconti� nental spatial connections of A. erythropus geese nest� ing on the Putorana Plateau, a major but as yet poorly known segment of the species range. Regions, dates, and methods of bird tagging and tracking. The Putorana Plateau, which forms the northwestern tip of the Central Siberian Highland, is the central part of the A. erythropus nesting range. The plateau is a basalt massif with flat peaks (up to 1500 a.s.l.) located in the northern taiga subzone. To study A. erythropus migrations, we used the method of satel� lite telemetry. Between July 23 and August 2, 2006, six molting adult birds attending their broods on Dyup� kun (Kureiskii) Lake, in the southwestern part of the plateau, were tagged with plastic collars fitted with sat� ellite transmitters. For technical reasons, we failed to receive signals from three transmitters as soon as in late August, but movements of the remaining three birds were successfully tracked during the following 8 months. The results of tracking are summarized in the table, and the general scheme of movements (tracks) of the three geese tagged on the Putorana Plateau is shown in the figure. Migrations in Western Siberia and northern Kaza�