Climatic variation influences annual survival of an island-breeding tropical shorebird

Noémie Engel, Brett K. Sandercock, András Kosztolányi, Andreia Adrião, Alex Tavares, Romy Rice, Tamás Székely

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Global biodiversity loss is a major environmental concern. The wildlife on islands are particularly vulnerable to threats posed by alien predators, habitat loss and overexploitation. Effective conservation management of vulnerable species requires reliable information on vital population rates for all life stages and an understanding of key environmental drivers. However, demographic data are often not available for island populations before they decline or are extirpated. Here, we use Cormack–Jolly–Seber (CJS) models and 15 years of data for 1370 juveniles and 687 adults to estimate apparent survival for a genetically distinct resident population of Kentish plovers Charadrius alexandrinus on the island of Maio, Cabo Verde. We report two main findings. First, environmental conditions have a large effect on demographic performance since chicks that hatch during dry years experience a tenfold reduction in first-year survival compared to chicks that hatch during wet years. Second, female and male plovers in Maio are expected to live for 7.41 ± 0.69 (mean ± SE) years and 6.75 ± 0.64 years, respectively, due to relatively high annual survival among comparable-sized shorebirds. High adult survival thus could buffer the population against low reproductive success that this population has experienced over the last decade. Cabo Verde is typical of tropical islands with increased development that can impact native breeders and/or will accelerate habitat loss. Thus, more frequent droughts associated with climate change may exacerbate the prospects of native wildlife on many islands.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere03191
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Avian Biology
Early online date5 Jan 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 5 Jan 2024

Funding

– NE was funded by Luxemburg National Research Fund (grant no. 13530957), and RR by Evolution Education Trust (grant no. EH‐BB1311). Funding for fieldwork was provided by Maio Biodiversity Foundation and by the National Research, Development, and Innovation Office of Hungary to TS (ÉLVONAL KKP‐126949). TS was also funded by The Royal Society (Wolfson Merit Award WM170050, APEX APX\R1\191045). BKS was supported by funding to the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research from the Research Council of Norway (project no. 160022/F40). AK was supported by the National Research, Development, and Innovation Office of Hungary (ANN 143995).

FundersFunder number
The Evolution Education TrustEH‐BB1311
Luxemburg National Research Fund13530957
Maio Biodiversity Foundation
Norwegian Institute for Nature Research from the Research Council of NorwayANN 143995, 160022/F40
Royal SocietyWM170050, APEX APX\R1\191045
Nemzeti Kutatási Fejlesztési és Innovációs HivatalKKP‐126949

    Keywords

    • apparent survival
    • demography
    • island conservation
    • Kentish plover
    • Macaronesia
    • wader

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
    • Animal Science and Zoology

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