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Flexibility of Timing of Avian Migration to Climate Change Masked by Environmental Constraints En Route

2010; Elsevier BV; Volume: 20; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.cub.2009.11.074

1879-0445

Christiaan Both,

Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies

During the past decades, phenology of many organisms has advanced in response to climate change [1Root T.L. Price J.T. Hall K.R. Schneider S.H. Rosenzweig C. Pounds J.A. Fingerprints of global warming on wild animals and plants.Nature. 2003; 421: 57-60Crossref PubMed Scopus (3188) Google Scholar]. Earlier arrival of long-distance migrants has been reported frequently [2Lehikoinen E. Sparks T.H. Zalakevicius M. Arrival and departure dates.Adv. Ecol. Res. 2004; 35: 1-31Crossref Scopus (292) Google Scholar, 3Rubolini D. Møller A.P. Rainio K. Lehikoinen E. Assessing intraspecific consistency and geographic variability in temporal trends of spring migration phenology among European bird species.Clim. Res. 2007; 35: 135-146Crossref Scopus (168) Google Scholar], but advancements of arrival and breeding were not always sufficient to match phenology at other trophic levels [4Visser M.E. Both C. Shifts in phenology due to global climate change: The need for a yardstick.Proc. Biol. Sci. 2005; 272: 2561-2569Crossref PubMed Scopus (939) Google Scholar]. This has led to increased selection for early breeding [5Both C. Visser M.E. Adjustment to climate change is constrained by arrival date in a long-distance migrant bird.Nature. 2001; 411: 296-298Crossref PubMed Scopus (715) Google Scholar] and severe population declines [6Both C. Bouwhuis S. Lessells C.M. Visser M.E. Climate change and population declines in a long-distance migratory bird.Nature. 2006; 441: 81-83Crossref PubMed Scopus (937) Google Scholar, 7Both C. van Turnhout C.A.M. Bijlsma R.G. Siepel H. Van Strien A.J. Foppen R.P.B. Avian population consequences of climate change are most severe for long-distance migrants in seasonal habitats.Proc. Biol. Sci. 2009; (Published online December 16, 2009)https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2009.1525Crossref PubMed Scopus (353) Google Scholar]. This inadequate response has been explained by an inflexible start of migration, governed by cues unrelated to climate change, such as photoperiod [8Gwinner E. Circannual clocks in avian reproduction and migration.Ibis. 1996; 138: 47-63Crossref Google Scholar]. It has been suggested that evolution at the genetic level is required for a change in photoresponsiveness [9Pulido F. Berthold P. Microevolutionary response to climate change.Adv. Ecol. Res. 2004; 35: 151-183Crossref Scopus (91) Google Scholar]. Recently, such an evolutionary change in migration timing was suggested [10Jonzén N. Lindén A. Ergon T. Knudsen E. Vik J.O. Rubolini D. Piacentini D. Brinch C. Spina F. Karlsson L. et al.Rapid advance of spring arrival dates in long-distance migratory birds.Science. 2006; 312: 1959-1961Crossref PubMed Scopus (329) Google Scholar]. Here I show that timing of spring migration of pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca) has responded flexibly to climate change. Recovery dates during spring migration in Northern Africa advanced by ten days between 1980 and 2002, which was explained by improving Sahel rainfall and a phenotypic effect of birth date. The lack of advance on the breeding grounds most likely was due to environmental constraints during migration. Adjustment of arrival date in migrants to climate change could thus be rapid, but only if circumstances favorably change for the whole journey.