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Intersexual difference in early natal dispersal: abrupt departure by females and gradual emigration by males in Tengmalm’s Owl Aegolius funereus

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Abstract

The decision to emigrate from the natal area can influence future fitness prospects, yet detailed data on sex-specific juvenile dispersal behaviour is still lacking for most bird species. We tracked 13 radio-tagged Tengmalm’s Owl Aegolius funereus juveniles from 13 different nests from fledging to independence and onwards. Six out of the seven female juveniles departed abruptly and disappeared from the natal area. In contrast, only one male juvenile departed abruptly, whereas the other five males and one female remained in the study area until tracking was terminated. We propose two alternative interpretations: (1) females initiated natal dispersal earlier than males, or (2) the manner of dispersal differed between the sexes, with females departing abruptly, and males moving gradually out of the natal area. We found no statistically significant influence of body condition or date of independence on dispersal behaviour. We suggest that early onset of dispersal and fast movements out of the natal area may increase a juvenile female’s chances of successful breeding in the following spring. In contrast to females, male Tengmalm’s Owls rarely breed as 1-year-olds, and the benefits of early/abrupt dispersal may be lower for juvenile males. We suggest that female-biased natal dispersal in Tengmalm’s Owl may come about through relatively higher lifetime reproductive success of early dispersing in females than in males.

Zusammenfassung

Geschlechtsspezifische Unterschiede in der frühen Jugendstreuung: Abruptes Verlassen bei Weibchen und graduelles Abwandern bei Männchen beim Raufußkauz Aegolius funereus

Die Entscheidung zur Abwanderung vom Geburtsort kann die zukünftige Fitness beeinflussen. Dennoch fehlen detaillierte Daten zum geschlechtsspezifischen Abwanderungsverhalten der Jungvögel bei den meisten Vogelarten. Wir haben 13 junge Raufußkäuze Aegolius funereus aus 13 verschiedenen Nestern vom Ausfliegen bis zum Selbständigwerden und darüber hinaus telemetriert. Sechs der sieben jungen Weibchen verließen den Geburtsplatz abrupt. Dagegen verschwand nur ein Männchen abrupt, wogegen die anderen fünf Männchen und das eine Weibchen bis zum Ende der Untersuchung im Gebiet verblieben. Wir schlagen zwei alternative Hypothesen vor: (1) Weibchen beginnen mit der Jugendstreuung früher als Männchen, oder (2) die Geschlechter unterscheiden sich in der Art und Weise der Abwanderung, wobei die Weibchen abrupt abwandern, die Männchen dagegen graduell. Wir fanden keine signifikanten Einflüsse der Körperkondition oder des Zeitpunktes des Selbständigwerdens auf das Abwanderungsverhalten. Wir vermuten, dass das frühe und rasche Abwandern der Weibchen ihre Aussichten auf erfolgreiches Brüten im kommenden Frühjahr erhöht. Männliche Raufußkäuze brüten dagegen nur selten schon als Einjährige, weshalb bei ihnen die Vorteile eines frühen und abrupten Abwanderns geringer sind. Wir vermuten weiterhin, dass das frühere Abwandern der jungen Weibchen des Raufußkauzes einhergeht mit einem im Vergleich zu den Männchen höheren Lebenszeitbruterfolg.

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Acknowledgments

We thank O. Heie for assistance in the field; R. Bjørnstad, G.C. Nyhus, the late F. Rønning, K. Skjærvik, O. Skjærvik, T. Wernberg and E. Østby for finding some of the of owl nests; G. Bjørnstad for DNA extraction; and J. Beheim and H. Klungland for analysing blood samples. We also thank Vincenzo Penteriani and an anonymous reviewer for their constructive comments on a previous version of the manuscript. The Directorate for Nature Management and the National Animal Research Authority in Norway granted permission to trap and radio-tag the owls, and the Directorate for Nature Management granted permission to trap small mammals. The Research Council of Norway (Grant No. 123604/410) and the Nansen Endowment (Grants No. 75/96 and 81/97) provided financial support for the study.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical standards

This study complies with Norwegian law; trapping, handling, radio-tagging and follow-up of radio-tagged individuals were done with permission from, and in accordance with, the ethical standards provided by the Directorate for Nature Management and the National Animal Research Authority of Norway. An ethical note can be found in Online Resource 1 in Eldegard and Sonerud (2012).

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  1. Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003, 1432, Ås, Norway

    Katrine Eldegard, Heidi Vognild & Geir A. Sonerud

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  1. Katrine Eldegard
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  2. Heidi Vognild
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  3. Geir A. Sonerud
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Correspondence to Katrine Eldegard.

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Communicated by T. Friedl.

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Eldegard, K., Vognild, H. & Sonerud, G.A. Intersexual difference in early natal dispersal: abrupt departure by females and gradual emigration by males in Tengmalm’s Owl Aegolius funereus . J Ornithol 155, 235–242 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-013-1005-9

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