The relative importance of food abundance and weather on the growth of a sub-arctic shorebird chick

  • Paula Machín
  • Juan Fernández-Elipe
  • Raymond H. G. Klaassen
Original Article
First Online:
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:

Abstract

Understanding how environmental conditions affect growth is important because conditions experienced during early development could have immediate as well as long-term fitness consequences. Annual fluctuations in (environmental) conditions may influence life histories of entire cohorts of offspring. In birds, food availability and weather have been identified to affect chick growth. However, the relative importance of these factors in explaining growth in different years is poorly understood. We studied the growth of golden plover Pluvialis apricaria chicks by radio-tracking individuals from hatching till fledging and related variation in chick growth to food availability (as sampled by pitfall trapping) and weather conditions. 2011 appeared to be a favourable season in which the chicks achieved notably fast growth rates. In 2013, in contrast, chicks were lagging behind in growth and possibly even achieved smaller ultimate sizes. Food abundance had a dominant effect on growth, whereas temperature only had short-term effects (at least in body weight). Thus, variation in food availability rather than variation in weather could explain the marked difference in growth of the plover chicks between the years. A short but intense flush of Bibio flies late in the breeding season in 2011 seems the reason why the plover chicks managed to achieve high growth rates in that year, despite hatching after the main arthropod peak. Thus, understanding cohort effects in the growth of plover chicks, for example in relation to climate change, requires an understanding of the seasonal dynamics of individual prey species.

Significance statement

Yearly variation in environmental conditions may influence the life histories of whole cohorts of offspring. Understanding these ‘cohort effects’ is important to ultimately understand life history evolution. We studied the growth of golden plover chicks, a sub-arctic breeding shorebird, during two breeding seasons, and found that chick growth lagged behind in 2013. In birds, food availability and weather have been identified to be the two main factors affecting chick growth, but the relative importance of these factors in explaining differences in growth between years is poorly understood. These examples are indeed needed to ultimately understand population dynamics and life history evolution in the field.

Keywords

Chick growth Resources Wader Weather Year-effect 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

Notes

Acknowledgements

This research would have been impossible without the continuous encouragement of Martin Green and Åke Lindström. We thank Johannes Hungar and Rob van Bemmelen for all the help and support during the fieldwork campaigns. We are grateful to the volunteers that helped out with fieldwork, especially Manuel Flores, Zymantas Cekas and Maite Laso. We thank Yvonne Verkuil from the lab of the Global Flyway Ecology chair at the University of Groningen for molecular sexing of the second batch of plover chicks. At last, we would like to thank the anonymous reviewers that make the manuscript improve with their comments until final publication.

Compliance with ethical standards

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All applicable international, national and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

The fieldwork was carried out under permits from the Lund/Malmö Ethical Committee for Animal Experiments (M160-11, M27-10, M33-13).

Supplementary material

265_2018_2457_MOESM1_ESM.docx (47 kb)
ESM 1 (DOCX 47 kb)

References

  1. Andersen PK, Gill RD (1982) Cox’s regression model for counting processes: a large sample study. Ann Stat 10(4):1100–1120.  https://doi.org/10.1214/aos/1176345976 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  2. Beintema AJ, Visser GH (1989) Growth parameters in chicks of charadriiform birds. Ardea 77:169–180Google Scholar
  3. Byrkjedal I, Thompson DBA (1998) Tundra plovers: the Eurasian, Pacific and American golden plovers, and grey plover. T. & A.D, PoyserGoogle Scholar
  4. Callaghan TV, Björn LO, Chapin FS, Chernov Y, Christensen TR, Huntley B, Ims R, Johansson M (2005) Arctic tundra and polar desert ecosystems. In: Symon C, Arris L, Heal B (eds) Arctic climate impact assessment: scientific report. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 243–352Google Scholar
  5. Cam E, Aubry L (2011) Early development, recruitment and life history trajectory in long-lived birds. J Ornithol 152(Suppl 1):187–201.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-011-0707-0 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  6. Dunn JC, Hamer KC, Benton TG (2010) Fear for the family has negative consequences: indirect effects of nest predators on chick growth in a farmland bird. J Appl Ecol 47(5):994–1002.  https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2010.01856.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  7. Fridolfsson AK, Ellegren H (1999) A simple and universal method for molecular sexing of non-ratite birds. J Avian Biol 30(1):116–121.  https://doi.org/10.2307/3677252 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  8. Giner G, Smyth GK (2016) Statmod: probability calculations for the inverse Gaussian distribution. R J 8:339–351Google Scholar
  9. Grafen A (1988) On the uses of data on lifetime reproductive success. In: Clutton-Brock TH (ed) Reproductive success. Studies of individual variation in contrasting breeding systems. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, pp 454–471Google Scholar
  10. Handel CM, Gill RE (2001) Black turnstone (Arenaria melanocephala), no. 585. In: Poole A, Gill F (eds) The birds of North America. The birds of North America, Inc., PhiladelphiaGoogle Scholar
  11. Kentie R, Hooijmeijer JCEW, Trimbos KB, Groen NM, Piersma T (2013) Intensified agricultural use of grasslands reduces growth and survival of precocial shorebird chicks. J Appl Ecol 50(1):243–251.  https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12028 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  12. Krijgsveld KL, Reneerkens JWH, McNett GD, Ricklefs RE (2003) Time budgets and body temperatures of American golden-plover chicks in relation to ambient temperature. Condor 105(2):268–278. https://doi.org/10.1650/0010-5422(2003)105[0268:TBABTO]2.0.CO;2Google Scholar
  13. Liebezeit JR, Smith PA, Lanctot RB et al (2007) Assessing the development of shorebird eggs using the flotation method: species-specific and generalized regression models. Condor 109(1):32–47. https://doi.org/10.1650/0010-5422(2007)109[32:ATDOSE]2.0.CO;2Google Scholar
  14. Lindström J (1999) Early development and fitness in birds and mammals. Trends Ecol Evol 14:343–348CrossRefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  15. Machín P, Fernández-Elipe J (2012) The role of snow after a lemming peak year in Lapland. Poster presented at: International Wader Study Group Conference, Séné, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312936860_The_role_of_snow_after_a_lemming_peak_year_in_Lapland
  16. Machín P, Fernández-Elipe J, Flinks H, Laso M, Aguirre JI, Klaassen RHG (2017) Habitat selection, diet and food availability of European golden plover Pluvialis apricaria chicks in Swedish Lapland. Ibis 159(3):657–672.  https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12479 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  17. Machín P, Fernández-Elipe J, Flores M, Fox JW, Aguirre JI, Klaassen RHG (2012) Individual migration patterns of Eurasian golden plovers Pluvialis apricaria breeding in Swedish Lapland; examples of cold spell induced winter movements. J Avian Biol 46:634–642CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  18. McKinnon L, Nol E, Juillet C (2013) Arctic-nesting birds find physiological relief in the face of trophic constraints. Sci Rep 3(1):1816.  https://doi.org/10.1038/srep01816 CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentralGoogle Scholar
  19. Meltofte H, Piersma T, Boyd H et al (2007) Effects of climate variation on the breeding ecology of Arctic shorebirds. Bioscience 59:1–48Google Scholar
  20. Metcalfe NB, Monaghan P (2001) Compensation for a bad start: grow now, pay later? Trends Ecol Evol 16:254–260CrossRefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  21. Newton I (1989) Lifetime reproduction in birds. Academic Press, LondonGoogle Scholar
  22. Parmesan C (2007) Influences of species, latitudes and methodologies on estimates of phenological response to global warming. Glob Chang Biol 13(9):1860–1872.  https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2007.01404.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  23. Pearce-Higgins JW, Yalden DW (2002) Variation in the growth and survival of golden plover Pluvialis apricaria chicks. Ibis 144(2):200–209.  https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1474-919X.2002.00048.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  24. Pearce-Higgins JW, Yalden DW (2004) Habitat selection, diet, arthropod availability and growth of a moorland wader: the ecology of European golden plover Pluvialis apricaria chicks. Ibis 146(2):335–346.  https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919X.2004.00278.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  25. Pearce-Higgins JW, Yalden DW, Whittingham MJ (2005) Warmer springs advance the breeding phenology of golden plovers Pluvialis apricaria and their prey (Tipulidae). Oecologia 143(3):470–476.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-004-1820-z CrossRefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  26. Pearce-Higgins JW, Dennis P, Whittingham MJ, Yalden DW (2010) Impacts of climate on prey abundance account for fluctuations in a population of a northern wader at the southern edge of its range. Glob Chang Biol 16(1):12–23.  https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2009.01883.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  27. Piersma T, Lindstrom A, Drent RH, Tulp I, Jukema J, Morrison RIG, Reneerkens J, Schekkerman H, Visser GH, Lindström Å (2003) High daily energy expenditure of incubating shorebirds on high Arctic tundra: a circumpolar study. Funct Ecol 17(3):356–362.  https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2435.2003.00741.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  28. Pinheiro J, Bates D, DebRoy S, Sarkar D, Core Team R (2017) nlme: linear and nonlinear mixed effects models. R Package Version 3:1–131 https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/nlme/nlme.pdf Google Scholar
  29. Qvenild T, Rognerud S (2017) Mass aggregations of Bibio pomonae (Insecta: Diptera: Bibionidae), an indication of climate change? Fauna Norv 37:1–12.  https://doi.org/10.5324/fn.v37i0.2194 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  30. Development Core Team R (2008) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna http://www.R-project.org Google Scholar
  31. Reid JM, Bignal EM, Bignal S, McCracken DI, Monaghan P (2003) Environmental variability, life-history covariation and cohort effects in the red-billed chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax. J Anim Ecol 72(1):36–46.  https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2656.2003.00673.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  32. Ricklefs RE (1973) Patterns of growth in birds. II. Growth rate and mode of development. Ibis 115:177–201CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  33. Ritz C, Streibig JC (2005) Bioassay analysis using R. J Stat Softw 12:1–22CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  34. Roff D (1993) The evolution of life histories. Chapman and Hall, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  35. Rogers LE, Hinds WT, Buschbom RL (1976) A general weight vs length relationship for insects. Ann Entomol Soc Am 69(2):387–389.  https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/69.2.387 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  36. Saether B, Bakke O (2000) Avian life history variation and contribution of demographic traits to the population growth rate. Ecology 81(3):642–653. https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(2000)081[0642:ALHVAC]2.0.CO;2Google Scholar
  37. Sæther B, Ringsby T, Røskaft E (1996) Life history variation, population processes and priorities in species conservation: towards a reunion of research paradigms. Oikos 77(2):217–226.  https://doi.org/10.2307/3546060 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  38. Saino N, Ambrosini R, Rubolini D, von Hardenberg J, Provenzale A, Huppop K, Huppop O, Lehikoinen A, Lehikoinen E, Rainio K, Romano M, Sokolov L (2011) Climate warming, ecological mismatch at arrival and population decline in migratory birds. Proc R Soc Lond B 278(1707):835–842.  https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2010.1778 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  39. Schekkerman H, Tulp I, Piersma T, Visser GH (2003) Mechanisms promoting higher growth rate in arctic than in temperate shorebirds. Oecologia 134(3):332–342.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-002-1124-0 CrossRefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  40. Schekkerman H, Tulp I, Calf K, de Leeuw JJ (2004) Studies on breeding shorebirds at Medusa Bay, Taimyr, in summer 2002. Alterra report 922, WageningenGoogle Scholar
  41. Schekkerman H, van Roomen MW, Underhill LG (1998) Growth, behaviour of broods, and weather-related variation in breeding productivity of curlew sandpipers Calidris ferruginea. Ardea 86:153–168Google Scholar
  42. Skartveit J (1995) Distribution and flight periods of Bibio Geoffrow, 1972 species (Diptera, Bibionidae) in Norway, with a key to the species. Fauna Norv B 42:83–112Google Scholar
  43. Stearns SC (1992) The evolution of life histories. Oxford University Press, OxfordGoogle Scholar
  44. Therneau T, Grambsch P (2000) Modeling survival data: extending the Cox model. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.  https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-3294-8 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  45. Thomson DL (1994) Growth and development in dotterel chicks Charadrius morinellus. Bird Study 41(1):61–67.  https://doi.org/10.1080/00063659409477198 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  46. Tjørve KMC (2007) Does chick development relate to breeding latitude in waders and gulls? Wader Study Group Bull 112:12–23Google Scholar
  47. Tjørve KMC, Garcia-Peña GE, Szekely T (2009) Chick growth rates in Charadriiformes: comparative analyses of breeding climate, development mode and parental care. J Avian Biol 40:53–558CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  48. Tjørve KMC, Schekkerman H, Tulp I, Underhill LG, De Leeuw JJ, Visser GH (2007) Growth and energetics of a small shorebird species in a cold environment: the little stint Calidris minuta on the Taimyr Peninsula, Siberia. J Avian Biol 38(5):552–563.  https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2007.0908-8857.04014.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  49. Tulp I, Schekkerman H (2001) Studies on breeding shorebirds at Medusa Bay, Taimyr, in summer 2001. Alterra report 451, WageningenGoogle Scholar
  50. Tulp I, Schekkerman H (2008) Has prey availability for arctic birds advanced with climate change? Hindcasting the abundance of tundra arthropods using weather and seasonal variation. Arctic 61:48–60CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  51. van Gils JA, Lisovski S, Lok T, Meissner W, Ożarowska A, de Fouw J, Rakhimberdiev E, Soloviev MY, Piersma T, Klaassen M (2016) Body shrinkage due to Arctic warming reduces red knot fitness in tropical wintering range. Science 352(6287):819–821.  https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aad6351 CrossRefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  52. van de Pol M, Bruinzeel LW, Heg D, van der Jeugd HP, Verhulst S (2006) A silver spoon for a golden future: long-term effects of natal origin on fitness prospects of oystercatchers (Haematopus ostralegus). J Anim Ecol 75(2):616–626.  https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2656.2006.01079.x CrossRefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  53. van der Velde M, Haddrath O, Verkuil YI, Baker AJ, Piersma T (2017) New primers for molecular sex identification of waders. Wader Study 124 (published online, doi:  https://doi.org/10.18194/ws.00069)

Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2018

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES)Groningen UniversityGroningenThe Netherlands
  2. 2.CandeledaSpain
  3. 3.Dutch Montagu’s Harrier FoundationScheemdaThe Netherlands

Personalised recommendations