Movements Of Birds Research Articles

Unraveling the Contact Network Patterns between Commercial Turkey Operation in North Carolina and the Distribution of Salmonella Species.

Salmonellosis originating from poultry poses a significant threat to human health. Surveillance within production is thus needed to minimize risk. The objectives of this work were to investigate the distribution of Salmonella spp. from a commercial turkey operation and describe the animal movement patterns to investigate the association between contact network structure and Salmonella infection status. Four years of routine growout farm samples along with data on facility location, time since barns were built, production style, and bird movement data were utilized. From all of the surveillance samples collected, Salmonella serotyping was performed on positive samples and results showed that the most represented groups were C1 (28.67%), B (24.37%) and C2 (17.13%). The serovar Infantis (26.44%) was the most highly represented, followed by Senftenberg (12.76%) and Albany (10.93%). Results illustrated the seasonality of Salmonella presence with a higher number of positive samples being collected in the second half of each calendar year. We also demonstrated that Salmonella was more likely to occur in samples from older farms compared to farms built more recently. The contact network connectivity was low, although a few highly connected farms were identified. Results of the contact network showed that the farms which tested positive for Salmonella were not clustered within the network, suggesting that even though Salmonella dissemination occurs via transferring infected birds, for this study case it is unlikely the most important route of transmission. In conclusion, this study identified seasonality of Salmonella with significantly more cases in the second half of each year and also uncovered the role of between-farm movement of birds as not a major mode of Salmonella transmission.

Impacts of tropical selective logging on local-scale movements of understory birds

Widespread selective logging in tropical forest causes structural damage and associated shifts in species composition, but we lack understanding of how selective logging impacts mechanistic processes that drive these biodiversity changes. Movement is a vital mechanistic process underpinning demographic, ecological, and evolutionary processes that likely determine species responses to logging. We assessed how tropical selective logging impacts local movements of 71 understory avian species in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, and determined whether movement patterns relate to species' conservation status, functional traits, sensitivity to logging and trophic position. We used a capture-mark-recapture methodology and a hierarchical Bayesian framework to model maximum observed local movement distances, accounting for spatial sampling heterogeneity. Across the avian community, we found a higher probability of moving shorter distances (up to 200 m) in logged forests, and higher movement probability at longer distances (above 200 m) in unlogged forests. Altered movement patterns after logging may reflect increased understory density, changed resource distribution and/or predation risks, and suggest smaller home-range sizes. Species' conservation status, body mass, foraging guild, logging sensitivity and trophic position were unrelated to the magnitude of movement change. The continued persistence of understory species in our sample after selective logging may depend on flexibility in movement behaviour, conferring resilience to habitat degradation and the retention of high conservation values. This lends further support for the protection of these logged forests for biodiversity conservation.

Design and Experiment of a Deformable Bird-inspired UAV Perching Mechanism

Energy consumption and acoustic noise can be significantly reduced through perching in the sustained flights of small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). However, the existing flying perching robots lack good adaptability or loading capacity in unstructured environments. Aiming at solving these problems, a deformable UAV perching mechanism with strong adaptability and high loading capacity, which is inspired by the structure and movements of birds' feet, is presented in this paper. Three elastic toes, an inverted crank slider mechanism used to realize the opening and closing movements, and a gear mechanism used to deform between two configurations are included in this mechanism. With experiments on its performance towards different objects, Results show that it can perch on various objects reliably, and its payload is more than 15 times its weight. By integrating it with a quadcopter, it can perch on different types of targets in outdoor environments, such as tree branches, cables, eaves, and spherical lamps. In addition, the energy consumption of the UAV perching system when perching on objects can be reduced to 0.015 times that of hovering.

A review of avian experimental translocations that measure movement through human-modified landscapes

Understanding how landscape characteristics such as matrix composition and configuration affect bird movement is essential for conservation in human-disturbed habitats. An important tool for such studies is experimental translocation, in which birds are removed from their territories, and observed, often using radio telemetry, as to whether they return (“home”). Here we reviewed 28 translocation studies to investigate (1) in what regions and habitats, and with what species the technique has been used, (2) what proportion of birds fail to home, a measure of “bird safety”, (3) the findings the studies have uncovered about bird movement, and (4) how the studies have dealt with confounding variables. A phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis complemented the qualitative results, testing the effects of the species’ habitat usage and migration ecology on the difference between birds’ homing success when moving through contiguous forest as compared to other land-use types. Of the total sample, 25 studies were conducted in the Western Hemisphere, and 17 in locations where pasturelands were the dominant land-use. The technique has been mostly used with small, forest-preferring passerine species, and males. Regarding safety, the proportion of individuals that failed to home was 27.1 ± 21.8 (SD)%. Translocation distance was found to be an important predictor of homing time or success in seven studies. The meta-analysis confirmed that on average birds move better through contiguous forests than through other land-use types, with habitat generalists and species with seasonal migration having less trouble moving through disturbed land-use types. The qualitative analyses also demonstrated the importance of habitat usage, with forest specialists especially affected by forest cover and connectivity. In considering the utility of translocations, it is important to remember that they are not measuring juvenile dispersal, and the birds’ homing mechanisms might influence their movements. However, long-distance translocations can avoid homing and hence simulate breeding (adult) dispersal. The confounding effects of variation among capture and release sites, or among individuals in their physiological condition, must be carefully considered. Overall, experimental translocation is a mature technique for which possible pitfalls have been identified. Strengths of the approach are that bird motivations to move can be standardized, and fine-scale movement patterns can be described with telemetry. However, we encourage consideration of bird safety, and meticulous reporting of birds that fail to home, or fail to find suitable habitat in long-distance translocation designs. • Translocated birds either home to their territories or move to suitable habitat. • 28 studies mostly in Western hemisphere and with male forest-preferring passerines. • Meta-analysis shows birds are most successful in moving through contiguous forest. • Migrant species show less of a difference between forest and other land-types. • The technique has known weaknesses, but also strengths, and few alternatives.

Backyard poultry flocks in France: A diversity of owners and biosecurity practices

Over the past few years, the number of backyard poultry flocks has been increasing in France. A mandatory step to improve backyard poultry management is to assess health risks by characterizing the flocks and understanding the owners’ motivations for keeping poultry and their husbandry practices. A survey of backyard poultry owners was conducted in France to gather information about their motivations for owning poultry, flock characteristics, and breeding and biosecurity practices. The survey was completed by 1,160 owners. The major motivations for owning poultry flocks were egg consumption (93.3 %), recycling (72.4 %) and having pet animals (53.2 %). Most owners had already heard about avian influenza (96.7 %), but were less aware about other diseases such as Newcastle Disease (41.6 %), salmonellosis (79.1 %), or campylobacteriosis (18.6 %). Owners mainly kept only egg-layers (78.4 %), and the median size flock was five egg-layers. Owners gave eggs to their relatives, occasionally or regularly, in 86.6 % of the cases. Contacts with other family poultry owners were frequent (68.9 %) and biosecurity practices were poorly implemented: 50 % of owners did not wash their hands systematically after visiting the flock and more than 60 % of owners did not wear specific shoes. Drawing from the survey data, five profiles of family poultry flocks were identified with multiple correspondence analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis. The profiles, based on flock characteristics and owners’ practices and motivations, illustrate the heterogeneity of the backyard poultry sector: 1) urban poultry, 2) traditional poultry, 3) student poultry, 4) pet poultry and 5) hobby poultry. Urban poultry consisted of recently constituted (< 2 years old), small (< 3 birds) flocks of layers, and traditional poultry of older, medium-sized flocks belonging to retired and older people. These two profiles were characterized by limited contacts (direct or indirect) with other flocks and owners. Student poultry consisted of younger owners (<30 years old) with flocks over 5 years old. Pet poultry consisted of recently established, medium-size flocks of layers located in both rural or urban environments. Hobby poultry consisted of dedicated owners who breed and sell poultry and participate in exhibitions and poultry shows. Pet and hobby poultry profiles were characterized by greater knowledge of diseases and biosecurity practices, more bird movements, and reported more frequent clinical signs. The observation of different profiles can help target veterinary and public health education messages to prevent disease transmission in backyard poultry flocks in France.

Зимняя авифауна Кольского залива в 2020–2021 гг

The water area of the Kola Bay is an important place for marine and near-water birds during spring-autumn migrations and wintering periods. The results of counts of wintering birds in different parts of the bay in 2020–2021 are presented. The observations were carried out on the coast areas of the bay with the adjacent water area (Gryaznaya Bay, the area of the Kola Bridge). In general, in the southern and middle parts of the Kola Bay, the most numerous species in winter were common eider Somateria mollissima,long-tailed duck Clangula hyemalis, mallard Anas platyrhynchos, and glaucous gull Larus hyperboreus. During the observations, a relatively low nymber of wintering purple sandpipers Calidris maritima was noted in comparison to previous years. The composition of the bird fauna in the Kola Bay is fairly constant during the winter. Abrupt weather changes, such as warming, cooling, or snowstorms, c ause only small movements of birds within the wintering area.

Evidence that rural wintering bird populations supplement suburban breeding populations

ABSTRACT Capsule: Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus and Great Tits Parus major wintering in rural areas tended to move further to breed the following breeding season and more frequently cross the urban–rural boundary, than did those wintering in urban gardens. Aims: To explore and quantify the movements of birds from winter to breeding season locations across the urban–rural ecotone at the boundary of a large urban area. Methods: Birds were colour-ringed at rural and urban/suburban garden ringing sites during the winter. This was followed by breeding season surveys and resighting in the surrounding areas to quantify the movements of colour-ringed birds and changes in habitat selection between seasons. Results: Blue Tits and Great Tits ringed in winter in rural areas tended to move further and selected more urbanized breeding territories the following spring than did urban/suburban garden-ringed conspecifics. This shows that the populations were connected across the urban–rural ecotone by the seasonal movements of individuals, but that net movement was from rural wintering areas to urban breeding habitat. Conclusion: The results suggest that rural populations may not be subsidized by urban wintering birds and winter supplementary feeding, but that the resources in gardens within urban areas, perhaps spring/summer feeding and nestboxes, draw birds in to breed. Combined with independent evidence for lower breeding success in urban areas, this may show the operation of source-sink dynamics. The results suggest important implications for connections between populations, the conservation value of urban areas and potential for the spread of disease, but further work is required to extend evidence and inference to other regions and species. Nevertheless, the approach used here provides a scalable study model that can be applied in other contexts.

The first survey of cryptococcal cells in bird droppings across Bloemfontein, South Africa.

Background and Aim:Cryptococcal yeast cells are spread across different ecosystems through bird movement and are deposited in bird guano. These cells may be inhaled by humans and lead to cryptococcal pneumonia. In individuals with reduced immune T-cell populations, cells may disseminate to the brain and cause the often-deadly cryptococcal meningitis. In this study, we surveyed cryptococcal cells in bird droppings across the city of Bloemfontein, South Africa.Materials and Methods:We aseptically collected 120 bird dropping samples from 15 representative city sites. In the laboratory, samples were assessed with regards to location, weighed, and standardized to a mass of 1 g before suspension in 10 mL phosphate buffer saline. Samples were first screened usingCalcofluor-white stain as it is a rapid technique for the detection of fungi via binding to cell wall components such as chitin. After this, positive Calcofluor samples were serologically assayed for the cryptococcal antigen (CrAg). To confirm assay data, CrAg positive samples were then cultured on bird seed agar and resulting colonies were assessed using Indian ink.Results:We determined that 10/15 locations were positive for the CrAg. Pathogenic cells were identified on bird seed agar as brown colonies. When examined using microscopy, brown colony cells exhibited characteristic thick capsules representative of cryptococcal cells.Conclusion:This is the first proximate analysis showing the ecological distribution of cryptococcal cells in Bloemfontein. This is important as associated infections are acquired from the environment. Similarly, given the threat posed by cryptococcal cells to immunocompromised individuals, local authorities must initiate measures curbing the spread of these cells.

A highly invasive malaria parasite has expanded its range to non-migratory birds in North America.

Parasite range expansions are a direct consequence of globalization and are an increasing threat to biodiversity. Here, we report a recent range expansion of the SGS1 strain of a highly invasive parasite, Plasmodium relictum, to two non-migratory passerines in North America. Plasmodium relictum is considered one of the world's most invasive parasites and causes the disease avian malaria: this is the first reported case of SGS1 in wild non-migratory birds on the continent. Using a long-term database where researchers report avian malaria parasite infections, we summarized our current understanding of the geographical range of SGS1 and its known hosts. We also identified the most likely geographical region of this introduction event using the MSP1 allele. We hypothesize that this introduction resulted from movements of captive birds and subsequent spillover to native bird populations, via the presence of competent vectors and ecological fitting. Further work should be conducted to determine the extent to which SGS1 has spread following its introduction in North America.

A Novel Automated Method for Point-Based Change Detection Increases Estimation Accuracy of Breeding Pairs in Waterbird Colonies

The number of breeding pairs is an essential indicator for assessing waterbird colony status. Accurate estimates require distinguishing stationary adults (likely to be breeders on nests) from nonstationary adults (likely to be loafing or foraging breeders or non-breeders). High-resolution multi-temporal aerial imagery obtained from manned aircraft, satellites, or unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) can be analyzed to determine bird movements and derive estimates of the number of stationary adults, which corresponds to the number of active nests, and thereby breeding pairs. Automated detection of stationary objects, such as nesting waterbirds, can be complicated by small positional changes of objects, either because of image co-registration errors or because the object slightly shifts position. A non-parametric, point-based approach was developed to distinguish stationary birds from moving birds using sequences of either two or three consecutive remotely-sensed images. This approach was tested with simulated data and during a case study of nesting American White Pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos). In both cases, the non-parametric point-based approach had higher accuracy than other established methods such as ground counts. Using two consecutive images had higher sensitivity (correct classification of stationary birds) while using three consecutive images had higher specificity (correct classification of nonstationary birds). This novel, multi-temporal nearest-neighbor method is most useful when positional shifts of stationary animals is low between consecutive images.

Performance enhancement of solar photovoltaic (PV) module using a novel flat plate (NFP) glass cover by reducing the effect of bird dropping (BD) settlement.

A massive bird dropping (BD) deposition on the common rectangular flat plate (RFP) of photovoltaic (PV) module is a matter of great concern in Western Rajasthan (WR) that diminish the overall energy production capacity of the system remarkably. In this research article, a prototype novel flat plate (NFP) design of a front glass cover of PV module is proposed to prevent the impact of BD settlement by the restriction of bird's sitting/movement on the front glass cover. In this regard, the performance analysis of PV module with common RFP and newly designed NFP glass covers has been assessed at the different inclination β° (0-90). The BD accumulation onto the both glass covers was explored by the optical transmittance profiles at the different tilt angles, i.e., explained by bird movement on each flat glass surfaces. Consequently, a significant amount of output electric energy has been gained in NFP design rather than RFP corresponding to particular tilt regions TR I (0° ≤ β ≤ 25°), TR II (25° ≤ β ≤ 60°), and TR III (60° ≤ β ≤ 90°). According to the results achieved, an excellent level of improvement in average power loss, ~ 97.85%, corresponding to optimal TR (III) has been detected by employing NFP glass collector.

Bird strikes at commercial airports explained by citizen science and weather radar data

Abstract Aircraft collisions with birds span the entire history of human aviation, including fatal collisions during some of the first powered human flights. Much effort has been expended to reduce such collisions, but increased knowledge about bird movements and species occurrence could dramatically improve decision support and proactive measures to reduce them. Migratory movements of birds pose a unique, often overlooked, threat to aviation that is particularly difficult for individual airports to monitor and predict the occurrence of birds vary extensively in space and time at the local scales of airport responses. We use two publicly available datasets, radar data from the US NEXRAD network characterizing migration movements and eBird data collected by citizen scientists to map bird movements and species composition with low human effort expenditures but high temporal and spatial resolution relative to other large‐scale bird survey methods. As a test case, we compare results from weather radar distributions and eBird species composition with detailed bird strike records from three major New York airports. We show that weather radar‐based estimates of migration intensity can accurately predict the probability of bird strikes, with 80% of the variation in bird strikes across the year explained by the average amount of migratory movements captured on weather radar. We also show that eBird‐based estimates of species occurrence can, using species’ body mass and flocking propensity, accurately predict when most damaging strikes occur. Synthesis and applications. By better understanding when and where different bird species occur, airports across the world can predict seasonal periods of collision risks with greater temporal and spatial resolution; such predictions include potential to predict when the most severe and damaging strikes may occur. Our results highlight the power of federating datasets with bird movement and distribution data for developing better and more taxonomically and ecologically tuned models of likelihood of strikes occurring and severity of strikes.

Changing places: spatial ecology and social interactions of female and male Montagu\u2019s Harrier (Circus pygargus) in the Spanish Extremadura

The ground nesting raptor Montagu’s Harrier breeds in loose colonies in cereal fields in the Spanish Extremadura. It is unclear how and whether birds in different colonies interact and how harriers spend time before and after nesting, before starting migration. We used GPS–GSM tags deployed on ten females and three males, some over multiple seasons, to follow bird movements with unprecedented detail. Arriving from spring migration, all males and most females returned to their old nest site, and spent between 13 and 25 days in mate choice and local site inspection. During incubation and early nesting female movements were strongly reduced, but increased significantly during late nesting and post-fledging periods. After fledging or after breeding failure, females increased their flying radius. Some of them visited other colonies, for single days or for longer periods, or flew long distances within Spain. These visits might have included help in breeding attempts of other pairs (adoptions). Four out of six females returned to their own breeding site before starting migration. Several females repeatedly used common roosts in this phase. Non-breeding females were active in defending nests in the colony against predators. Females with successful brood initiated migration earlier and spent less time in Spain than non-breeders or those with predated nests. Unlike females, daily distances in males were more uniform. While all males remained in the breeding area for the entire season, their activity centres shifted more within that area than those of females.

Construction methods of urban ecological corridor for birds: A review

The ecological corridors considering bird movement characteristics and habitat requirements would mitigate species extinction caused by habitat loss or habitat fragmentation and facilitate species gene dispersal and exchange. These functions may in turn benefit urban residents' physical and mental health as well as appreciation of real estates. Nonetheless, main ecological corridor construction methods developed by foreign scholars have not internally considered the movement and habitat characteristics of birds, while corridor research for birds by domestic scholars have focused on explorations of foreign technical methods yet lacked enough knowledge on studied birds' characteristics. Therefore, there is still much room for improvement in the study of urban ecological corridor construction from the perspective of birds. Based on the analyses of domestic and foreign related research from 1975 to 2020, we identified seven corridor construction methods and three corridor optimization methods within which bird ecology can be integrated. The advantages, drawbacks, and applicable scenarios of all the methods were explored accordingly. Finally, we argued that the develop-ment of computational models, which could not only combine bird species' observation data and spatial movement data with landscape structures but could also possess efficient computation power as well as simulate corridor's ecological benefits, would be a trend for constructing ecological corridor for birds.

Unleveled playing fields: Gendered institutional entrepreneurship and deviance neutralization

Although existing studies highlight that new institutional logics are grounded in pre-existing norms and beliefs in society, few studies have examined how a society’s gendered expectations can shape and constrain the development of a new logic. To address this gap, I focus on the first American movement for bird conservation from 1889 to 1920 and the movement participants’ responses to women’s institutional entrepreneurship. Specifically, I investigate a mechanism that is responsible for the slow expansion of the new logic and that perpetuates gender inequality throughout the bird conservation movement: deviance neutralization. This is an individual strategy to counteract perceived deviance from gender norms by living up to society’s gendered expectations. When female participants introduce a new technology-based practice and hold leadership positions that enable them to further the movement, movement participants see the women’s entrepreneurial action as deviance from generally expected feminine qualities. To neutralize such deviance, movement participants are less likely to promote what these women campaign for, environmentalism. I test this mechanism using an event count analysis of individual contributions, by article count, to the movement’s bimonthly magazine that shared the movement’s vision with the public. I find that the more women implemented a new practice and the more women occupied official positions, the fewer contributions participants were likely to make to the magazine. The findings of this study extend current understanding of institutional entrepreneurship using the lens of gender, and the mechanism of gender inequality in even progressive movements. They also have practical implications for addressing deviance neutralization today.

A novel version of Cuckoo search algorithm for solving optimization problems

In this paper, a Cuckoo search algorithm, namely the New Movement Strategy of Cuckoo Search (NMS-CS), is proposed. The novelty is in a random walk with step lengths calculated by Lévy distribution. The step lengths in the original Cuckoo search (CS) are significant terms in simulating the Cuckoo bird's movement and are registered as a scalar vector. In NMS-CS, step lengths are modified from the scalar vector to the scalar number called orientation parameter. This parameter is controlled by using a function established from the random selection of one of three proposed novel functions. These functions have diverse characteristics such as; convex, concave, and linear, to establish a new strategy movement of Cuckoo birds in NMS-CS. As a result, the movement of NMS-CS is more flexible than a random walk in the original CS. By using the proposed functions, NMS-CS achieves the distance of movement long enough at the first iterations and short enough at the last iterations. It leads to the proposed algorithm achieving a better convergence rate and accuracy level in comparison with CS. The first 23 classical benchmark functions are selected to illustrate the convergence rate and level of accuracy of NMS-CS in detail compared with the original CS. Then, the other Algorithms such as Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Gravitational Search Algorithm (GSA), and Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO) are employed to compare with NMS-CS in a ranking of the best accuracy. In the end, three engineering design problems (tension/compression spring design, pressure vessel design and welded beam design) are employed to demonstrate the effect of NMS-CS for solving various real-world problems. The statistical results show the potential performance of NMS-CS in a widespread class of optimization problems and its excellent application for optimization problems having many constraints.Source codes of NMS-CS is publicly available at http://goldensolutionrs.com/codes.html.

A study of rural chicken farmers, diseases and remedies in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa

The source of emerging diseases and antimicrobial resistance is of increasing interest to epidemiologists. This paper looks at village chickens as such a source. In addition, infectious diseases constitute a major challenge to the growth and profitability of the rural poultry sector in Sub-Saharan Africa. A serological survey was conducted to estimate the apparent seroprevalence of selected chicken diseases in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa alongside a sociological survey of poultry farmers and the remedies most commonly used to prevent diseases in their flocks. Sera collected from village chickens (n = 1007) in the province were screened for specific antibodies against Newcastle disease (ND), avian influenza (AI), avian infectious bronchitis (IB) and Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG).The overall seroprevalence of ND, AI, IB and MG in the province was found to be 69.2 % (95 % CI 51.9−86.5%); 1.8 % (95 % CI 0.2−3.4%); 78.5 % (95 % CI 74.9−82%) and 55.8 % (95 % CI 41.3−70.3%) respectively with clustering found at the District level. Cross hemagglutination inhibition (HI) tests indicated that the chickens were exposed to the ND vaccine. AI ELISA-positive samples were tested using HIs against the H5, H6 and H7-subtypes, but only H6-specific antibodies were detected. Avian influenza strains shared the common ancestor responsible for the 2002 chicken outbreak in KwaZulu-Natal Province.The majority of chicken farmers were females and pensioners (69 % and 66.1 % respectively) and had a primary school education (47.1 %). Traditional remedies were commonly used by farmers (47.15 %) and among the remedies, Aloe plant (Aloe ferox Mill.) or ikhala (Xhosa) was the most commonly used product (28.23 %) for preventing and reducing mortalities among village chickens.The findings stress the importance of village chickens as a substitute for social welfare and highlight the exposure of village chickens to important chicken pathogens. The economic impact of these pathogens on the development of this sub-sector needs further investigation. Village chickens are a potential source of virulent Newcastle disease virus (NDV) because of the lack of vaccination and biosecurity. They may serve as amplification hosts which increases the probability that virulent NDV could spill over into commercial poultry flocks due to large amounts of circulating virus. The zoonotic threat of circulating H6N2 viruses raise concern due to their mutation and reassortment among chickens and a potential movement of infected birds within the province. Finally, the use of antibiotics by untrained chicken farmers constitute another major concern as it could serve as a source of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

Forest cover and connectivity have pervasive effects on the maintenance of evolutionary distinct interactions in seed dispersal networks

Seed dispersal by animals is one of the most important ecological processes in tropical forests, entailing millions of years of evolutionary adaptations of plants and frugivorous animals forming networks of interactions that, ultimately, contribute to the resilience of such forests. We analyze 29 seed dispersal networks in the threatened Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot, with data on the frequency of feeding visits by birds to fruiting plants to answer: 1) which are the effects of forest cover and landscape connectivity on the maintenance of phylogenetic diversity (PD) of interacting birds and plants and the evolutionary distinctiveness of the interactions (EDi) between them; and 2) how EDi and plant/bird PD affects the robustness of the interaction networks? We found that forest cover positively influences both plant and bird PD and EDi. Landscape connectivity is an important predictor of bird PD, but not plant PD, suggesting that the spatial arrangement of forest remnants is essential for guaranteeing bird movement among forest fragments. Furthermore, interaction networks of areas with higher PD and EDi had great robustness to the simulated extinction of species, which underscore the importance of larger forest blocks for conserving evolutionary information and, consequently, the health and natural resistance of seed dispersal networks against environmental change.

A new optimization method based on COOT bird natural life model

Recently, many intelligent algorithms have been proposed to find the best solution for complex engineering problems. These algorithms can search volatile and multi-dimensional solution spaces and find optimal answers timely. In this paper, a new meta-heuristic method is proposed that inspires the behavior of the swarm of birds called Coot. The Coot algorithm imitates two different modes of movement of birds on the water surface: in the first phase, the movement of birds is irregular, and in the second phase, the movements are regular. The swarm moves towards a group of leading leaders to reach a food supply; the movement of the end of the swarm is in the form of a chain of coots, each of coot which moves behind its front coots. The algorithm then runs on a number of test functions, and the results are compared with well-known optimization algorithms. In addition, to solve several real problems, such as Tension/Compression spring, Pressure vessel design, Welded Beam Design, Multi-plate disc clutch brake, Step-cone pulley problem, Cantilever beam design, reducer design problem, and Rolling element bearing problem this algorithm is used to confirm the applicability of this algorithm. The results show that this algorithm is capable to outperform most of the other optimization methods. The source code is currently available for public from: https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/89102-coot-optimization-algorithm.

Migration efficiency sustains connectivity across agroecological networks supporting sandhill crane migration

AbstractPreserving avian flyway connectivity has long been challenged by our capacity to meaningfully quantify continental habitat dynamics and bird movements at temporal and spatial scales underlying long‐distance migrations. Waterbirds migrating hundreds or thousands of kilometers depend on networks of wetland stopover sites to rest and refuel. Entire populations may rely on discrete wetland habitats, particularly in arid landscapes where the loss of limited stopover options can have disproportionately high impacts on migratory cost. Here, we examine flyway connectivity in water‐limited ecosystems of western North America using 108 GPS tagged greater sandhill cranes. Bird movements were used to reconstruct wetland stopover networks across three geographically unique sub‐populations spanning 12 U.S.–Mexican states and Canadian provinces. Networks were monitored with remote sensing to identify long‐term (1988–2019) trends in wetland and agricultural resources supporting migration and evaluated using network theory and centrality metrics as a measure of stopover site importance to flyway connectivity. Sandhill crane space use was analyzed in stopover locations to identify important ownership and landscape factors structuring bird distributions. Migratory efficiency was the primary mechanism underpinning network function. A small number of key stopover sites important to minimizing movement cost between summering and wintering locations were essential to preserving flyway connectivity. Localized efficiencies were apparent in stopover landscapes given prioritization of space use by birds where the proximity of agricultural food resources and flooded wetlands minimized daily movements. Model depictions showing wetland declines from 16% to 18% likely reflect a new normal in landscape drying that could decouple agriculture–waterbird relationships as water scarcity intensifies. Sustaining network resilience will require conservation strategies to balance water allocations preserving agricultural and wetlands on private lands that accounted for 67–96% of habitat use. Study outcomes provide new perspectives of agroecological relationships supporting continental waterbird migration needed to prioritize conservation of landscapes vital to maintaining flyway connectivity.