From Clive Minton in Australia:
This is one of
the most memorable days in forty years of wader migration studies in Australia.
All four of the remaining satellite-tagged Grey Plovers have reached their
breeding grounds in Siberia!
Who would have
believed this successful outcome was possible just a few weeks ago when we were
losing contact with several birds as they reached China?
Over the last
few days all four individuals – two from South Australia and two from
North-west Australia – have flown virtually non-stop some 3000km from their
stop-over locations in the Yellow Sea to breeding locations in Arctic Siberia.
The two birds from Broome have finished up close to the coast at locations
about 500km apart close to the north coast of Yakutia.
Charlie’s likely nesting location (circled in red) in Northern Yakutia. |
The two birds
from South Australia initially touched down in the same areas but then, after a
short stop, both proceeded to fly out over the Arctic Ocean to Wrangel Island
–71 degrees north, some 200km north of the Chukotka Peninsula in north-east
Siberia. These are the first birds of any species from Australia which have
been known to visit this remote Arctic island.
It is
interesting that quite a number of species of waterfowl (e.g. Snow Geese) and
waders breeding in Wrangel Island are known to migrate to Alaska and the North
American continent. In many ways therefore, Wrangel Island has more affinities
ornithologically with Alaska than with Siberia. On the other hand it is well
known as an important breeding area for Grey Plovers and these two records
indicate that at least some of these come from non-breeding areas in
Australasia. It is also particularly interesting that in a paper published
nearly twenty years ago analysing the biometrics of Australasian Grey Plover it
was speculated that birds wintering in south east Australia may well come from
breeding grounds on Wrangel Island! (Minton, C.D.T. & L. Serra (2001).
Biometrics and moult of Grey Plovers, Pluvialis squatarola, in Australia. Emu.
101:13-18.)
Grey Plover on Wrangel Island. Photo: State Nature Reserve, Wrangel Island.
|
Wrangel Island in June (summer). Photo: Robert Mock.
|
So now, after
weeks of nail-biting as the Grey Plovers carrying satellite transmitters
migrated northwards from Australia to, and through, the Yellow Sea, we finally
have the principal answers we wanted from this Project. We know the breeding
locations of four birds and we now also know that the migration route to these from
the Yellow Sea was directly across Siberia and achieved without any significant
intermediate stop-overs. With all four birds having reached their breeding
locations in the first week of June they are well placed for a successful
breeding season should local weather and feeding conditions permit this.
It is also
interesting that the birds with the most southerly non-breeding area (the South
Australian birds) finished up at the northern-most breeding locations. This
‘leap-frog’ migration pattern is recorded quite commonly in waders (and many
other species).
We can now
expect a period of several weeks with no further significant movements of these
birds. Let us hope that their satellite transmitters continue to operate and
that we are ultimately able to obtain similar detailed information on the
birds’ southward migration.
Thank you again
enormously to all those who have contributed to these Grey Plover satellite
transmitter Projects over the past year (two years in South Australia). It is
really pleasing that your efforts and perseverance have now paid off so
handsomely. Thank you also to those who have provided funding (at $5000 for
each satellite transmitter + $1000-2000 for Argus satellite downloading time
for each unit). The funding for the South Australian Project was provided by
Tony Flaherty, Manager, Coast and Marine, Natural Resources Adelaide and Mt
Lofty Ranges, and the funding for the Broome birds by many individuals through
a Birdlife Australia crowd-funding project, by the NWA 2016 Wader Expedition
and an additional generous individual donor.
Clive Minton,
Maureen Christie, Katherine Leung, on behalf of the Grey Plover Satellite
Transmitter Project Teams of the Australasian Wader Studies Group (Broome
Birds) and the FOSSE team (South Australian birds).
The Grey
Plover project team:
Katherine Leung
Clive Minton
Ken Gosbell
Chris Hassell
Grace Maglio
Inka Veltheim
Maureen Christie
30 May 2016
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