Meeting Abstract

9.2  Saturday, Jan. 4 08:15  When Siberia Comes to The Netherlands: The Response of Continental Black-tailed Godwits to Extreme Spring Weather SENNER, N.R.*; VERHOEVEN, M; ZWART, L; TIBBITTS, T.L.; GUTIéRREZ, J; ABAD, J.M.; PIERSMA, T; University of Groningen; University of Groningen; University of Groningen; USGS-Alaska Science Center; NIOZ; Universidad de Extremadura; NIOZ n.r.senner@rug.nl

Many migratory bird species are able to anticipate weather conditions along their migration routes and adjust their progress and behavior accordingly, but there are numerous instances of extreme weather events surprising birds mid-migration. These occurrences can act as strong selection events and even affect population dynamics. Global climate change is predicted to increase the frequency of extreme weather events and lower the predictability of longer-term conditions. As such, migratory birds may increasingly face adverse conditions during inherently stressful periods of their annual cycle. In March 2013, Western Europe experienced a severe snowstorm that preceded a prolonged period of record low temperatures, coinciding with the northward migration and pre-breeding period of Continental Black-tailed Godwits, Limosa limosa limosa. We documented the response of Continental godwits breeding in The Netherlands to these conditions using a combination of tracking devices, foraging observations, measurements of food availability, resighting color-marked individuals, and quantifying godwit aggregations in the region and compared these measures with data from our long-term study of this population. We found that different individuals used different response mechanisms—including stalling migration, reversing migration, using novel habitats and sites, and increasing foraging effort—to survive the period. Despite these energetically costly responses, we subsequently found that both breeding propensity and success were high, suggesting that godwits have significant behavioral plasticity to respond to environmental stochasticity.