Description
Flexibility in small-scale spatial behaviour may aid the resilience of birds toenvironmental change by holding off the need for potentially costly behavioural responses like large-scale dispersal. Such flexible abilities might be especially advantageous for migratory species, that are often faithful to multiple individual staging sites throughout their annual routines. However, generally little is known about the small-scale spatial behaviour of these species and to which extent it might aid a response to natural or anthropogenic environmental change, which is especially true for the non-breeding period. In this study we try to address this knowledge gap by investigating the dynamics in ecological conditions and its effect on the spatial behaviour within the context of the non-breeding environment of a migratory insectivorous songbird: the Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca). By combining novel techniques like UAV-based remote-sensing and automated animal tracking, we are able to investigate fine-grained spatiotemporal relationships between primary production (NDVI) and arthropod availability and its ultimate effect on individual home-range size and body condition. We discuss the results of our small-scale approach within the framework of the ongoing use of satellite based remote-sensing techniques in studies that address the links between environmental conditions and behaviour of avian migrants.
| Period | 21-Sept-2022 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Netherlands Annual Ecology Meeting 2022 |
| Event type | Conference |
| Conference number | 15 |
| Organiser | Netherlands Ecological Research Network (NERN) |
| Location | Lunteren, NetherlandsShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | National |