Vulnerability to geomorphological hazards of an Arctic cliff-nesting raptor, the rough-legged hawk

Abstract

Increase in temperature and precipitation associated with climate change may enhance the risk of destruction by geomorphological processes of nests or dens used by Arctic wildlife. We assessed nest vulnerability to mass movements and identified environmental factors associated with the persistence of nesting structures of rough-legged hawks (Buteo lagopus), a species that typically nests on steep slopes or cliffs. The study was conducted on Bylot Island (Nunavut) where 82 permanent hawk nesting structures, built mainly on sedimentary rocks, were monitored from 2007 to 2015. More than a quarter of known nests were destroyed during the course of the study and among those still intact, more than half were associated with a moderate to high risk of being destroyed. Nest survival analysis suggested a relatively short persistence of rough-legged hawk nesting structures on Bylot Island compared to other Arctic cliff-nesting species. Nest destruction probability increased for nests built on unconsolidated sediments, with heavy rainfall and temperature during the summer. The anticipated increase in precipitation and temperature due to climate change is likely to augment the exposure of hawk nests to mass movements, which could ultimately reduce the availability of suitable sites for the reproduction of this Arctic-nesting raptor.