Abstract
Although there is a general understanding of Montagu’s harriers migration routes and wintering areas, detailed information on the species’ migration is still lacking. However, improvements in satellite tracking technology in recent years, have enabled the study of medium-sized species by means of satellite telemetry. In 2006, ten adult Montagu’s harriers were fitted with satellite transmitters in northeastern Spain and tracked during their autumn migration to their wintering grounds in sub-Saharan Africa. The migration took between 10 and 30 days, and the end point was determined using breakpoint regressions. Whereas some birds had stopovers of more than a week, others stayed at the same site for only 1 or 2 days at the most. The tagged birds ultimately established at wintering grounds located along the border of Mauritania with Mali and Senegal, a distance of nearly 3000 km from the breeding sites. These sites are situated within a small range of latitudes (14° and 17°N), although distributed over a wider range of longitudes (−15°E and −4°E), with some birds occupying sites more than 1000 km apart. The distance covered in 1 day during the migration ranged between 93 and 219 km, with peaks of traveling speed of up to 65 km/h. Harriers were recorded traveling only during daytime, covering the longest distances in the late afternoon, suggesting that they are daytime migrants. Most of the distance was covered between 1500 and 2000 hours, and no traveling was recorded between 2000 and 0500 hours. During migration, harriers flew close to the ground (40–100 m on average). Improved knowledge of the harriers’ exact wintering sites may provide insights on the problems Montagu’s harriers face during the winter, highlighting the need to take into account what happens in both the breeding and wintering grounds to implement successful conservation measures.
References
Agostini N, Logozzo D (1997) Autumn migration of Accipitriformes through Italy en route to Africa. Avocetta 21:174–179
Arroyo BE (1997) Diet of Montagu’s Harrier Circus pygargus in central Spain: analysis of temporal and geographical variation. Ibis 139:664–672
Arroyo B, King JR, Palomares LE (1995) Obsevations on the ecology of Montagu’s and Marsh harriers wintering in north-west Senegal. Ostrich 66:37–39
Bernis F (1980) La migración de las aves en el Estrecho de Gibraltar, vol 1. Aves planeadoras. Universidad Complutense, Madrid
Berthold P, Nowak E, Querner U (1995) Satelliten-Telemetrie eines Zugvogels von Mitteleuropa bin in das südafrikanische Winterquartier eine Fallstudie am Weis-storch (Ciconia ciconia). J Ornithol 136:73–76
Bub H (1991) Bird trapping and bird banding. Cornell University Press, Ithaca
Cadahía L, Urios V, Negro JJ (2005) Survival and movements of satellite tracked Bonelli’s eagles during their first winter. Ibis 147:415–419
Chatfield C (2004) The analysis of time series. An introduction, 6th edn. Chapman & Hall/CRC, Boca Raton
Clarke R (1996) Montagu’s Harrier. Arlequin, Chelmsford
Cormier JP, Baillon F (1991) Concentrations de busards cendres Circus pygargus dans la region de M’Bour (Senegal) durant l’hiver 1988–1989: utilisation du milieu et regime alimentaire. Alauda 59:163–168
Corso A (2001) Raptor migration across the Strait of Messina, southern Italy. Br Birds 94:196–202
Coyne MS, Godley BJ (2005) Satellite tracking and analysis tool (STAT): an integrated system for archiving, analyzing and mapping animal tracking data. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 301:1–7
Cramp S, Simmons KEL (1980) The birds of the Western Paleartic, vol 2. Oxford University Press, Oxford
Finlayson C (1992) Birds of the Strait of Gibraltar. T & AD Poyser, London
Fuller MR, Seegar WS, Howey PW (1995) The use of satellite telemetry systems for the study of bird migration. Isr J Zool 41:243–252
Ganusevich SA, Maechtle TL, Seegar WS, Yates MA, McGrady MJ, Fuller M, Schueck L, Dayton J, Henny CJ (2004) Autumn migration and wintering areas of Peregrine Falcons Falco peregrinus nesting oh the Kola Peninsula, northern Russia. Ibis 146:291–297
García JT, Arroyo BE (1998) Migratory movements of Montagu’s harriers Circus pygargus: a review. Bird Study 45:188–194
Guan HL, Higuchi H (2000) Review on satellite tracking of migratory birds and its prospect. Zool Res 21:412–415
Hake M, Kjellén N, Alerstam T (2001) Satellite tracking of Swedish Ospreys Pandion haliaetus: autumn migration routes and orientation. J Avian Biol 32:47–56
Hake M, Kjellén N, Alerstam T (2003) Age-dependent migration strategy in honey buzzards Pernis apivorus tracked by satellite. Oikos 103:385–396
Judas J, Combreau O, Lawrence M, Saleh M, Launay F, Xingy G (2006) Migration and range use of Asian Houbara Bustard Chlamydotis macqueenii breeding in the Gobi desert, China, revealed by satellite tracking. Ibis 148:343–351
Kenward RE (2001) A manual for wildlife radio tagging. Academic, London
Kjellén N, Hake M, Alerstam T (2001) Timing and speed of migration in male, female and juvenile Ospreys Pandion haliaetus between Sweden and Africa as revealed by field observations, radar and satellite tracking. J Avian Biol 32:57–67
Limiñana R, Surroca M, Miralles S, Urios V, Jiménez J (2006a) Population trend and breeding biology of Montagu’s Harrier Circus pygargus in a natural vegetation site in northeast Spain. Bird Study 53:126–131
Limiñana R, Soutullo A, Urios V, Surroca M (2006b) Vegetation height selection in Montagu’s harriers Circus pygargus breeding in a natural habitat. Ardea 94:280–284
McGrady MJ, Ueta M, Potapov E, Utekhina I, Masterov V, Ladyguine A, Zykov V, Cibor J, Fuller M, Seegar WS (2003) Movements by juvenile and immature Steller’s sea eagles Haliaeetus pelagicus tracked by satellite. Ibis 145:318–328
Meyburg BU, Eichaker X, Meyburg C, Paillat P (1995) Migrations of an adult spotted eagle tracked by satellite. Br Birds 88:357–361
Meyburg B-U, Meyburg C, Barbraud JC (1998) Migration strategies of an adult short-toed eagle Circaetus gallicus tracked by satellite. Alauda 66:39–48
Meyer SK, Spaar R, Bruderer B (2003) Sea crossing behaviour of falcons and harriers at the southern mediterranean coast of Spain. Avian Sci 3:153–162
Neter J, Wasserman W, Kutner MH (1985) Applied linear statistical models: regression, analysis of variance, and experimental designs. Irwin, Homewood
Panuccio M, Agostini N (2006) Spring migration of Pallid (Circus macrourus) and Montagu’s harriers (Circus pygargus) in relation to sex and age classes at two watchsites of the central mediterranean. Buteo 15:3–10
Panuccio M, Agostini N, Mellone U (2005) Autumn migration strategies of honey buzzards, black kites, marsh and Montagu’s harriers over land and over water in the central mediterranean. Avocetta 29:27–32
Shirihai H, Christie DA (1992) Raptor migration in Eilat. Br Birds 85:141–186
Soutullo A, Urios V, Ferrer M (2006a) How far away in an hour? daily movements of juvenile golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) tracked with satellite telemetry. J Ornithol 147:69–72
Soutullo A, Urios V, Ferrer M, Peñarrubia SG (2006b) Dispersal of golden eagles Aquila chrysaetos during their first year of life. Bird Study 53:258–264
Soutullo A, Urios V, Ferrer M, Peñarrubia SG (2006c) Post-fledging behaviour in golden eagles: onset of the juvenile dispersal and progressive distancing from the nest. Ibis 148:307–312
Soutullo A, Limiñana R, Urios V, Surroca M, Gill JA (2006d) Density-dependent regulation of population size in colonial breeders: Allee and buffer effects in the migratory Montagu’s harrier. Oecología 149:543–552
Soutullo A, Cadahía L, Urios V, Ferrer M, Negro JJ (2007) Accuracy of lightweight satellite telemetry: a case study in Iberian Peninsula. J Wildl Manage 71:1010–1015
Spaar R, Bruderer B (1997) Migration by flapping or soaring: flight strategies of marsh, Montagu’s and pallid harriers in southern Israel. Condor 99:458–469
Underhill-Day JC (1993) The foods and feeding rates of Montagu’s harriers Circus pygargus breeding in arable farmland. Bird Study 40:74–80
Acknowledgements
The satellite tracking study of Montagu’s harrier in Castellon is fully funded by Aeropuerto de Castellón. We are grateful to Conselleria de Territori I Habitatge (Generalitat Valenciana) for providing the necessary permission for tagging harriers, especially to Juan Jiménez and Martín Surroca. Beatriz Arroyo, Keith Bildstein and an anonymous referee improved a previous draft of the manuscript. The first author has a grant from Generalitat Valenciana; this paper is part of his PhD thesis at the Universidad de Alicante. Tagging of individuals comply the current laws of Spain.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Communicated by A. Hedenström.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Limiñana, R., Soutullo, A. & Urios, V. Autumn migration of Montagu’s harriers Circus pygargus tracked by satellite telemetry. J Ornithol 148, 517–523 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-007-0182-9
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-007-0182-9