Body mass and fat reserves of Sedge Warblers during vernal nocturnal migration: departure versus arrival

Body mass and fat reserves of Sedge Warblers (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) on nocturnal departure and arrival were studied by two methods (capture in high nets and playback of songs) on the Courish Spit (Eastern Baltic, Russia) in spring 1998–2000. The average body mass of departing Sedge Warblers wa...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of field ornithology 2003, Vol.74 (1), p.81-89
Main Authors: Bolshakov, Casimir V, Bulyuk, Victor N, Mukhin, Andrey, Chernetsov, Nikita
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acrocephalus
Aerial locomotion
Animal migration behavior
Bird banding
Bird songs
Birds
body fat
CONTENTS
flight
flight duration
flight range
high nets
migratory behavior
migratory strategy
playback of songs
risk
Sandspits
Seasonal migration
Sedges
Songbirds
spring
Warblers
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Body mass and fat reserves of Sedge Warblers (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) on nocturnal departure and arrival were studied by two methods (capture in high nets and playback of songs) on the Courish Spit (Eastern Baltic, Russia) in spring 1998–2000. The average body mass of departing Sedge Warblers was 13.7 g, and the average body mass of arriving birds was 13.1 g. The difference between arrival and departure masses was not significant. The calculated flight range of departing Sedge Warblers in still air varied from 19 to 665 km, with a mean of 295 km. The high fuel loads of Sedge Warblers on departure and on arrival may be explained by the necessity for Scandinavian populations to cross the Baltic; the risk of drifting out to sea for birds migrating over land; or the general vernal migratory strategy of Sedge Warblers, involving a series of short (4.5–6.2 h) flights on several consecutive nights.
ISSN:0273-8570
1557-9263
DOI:10.1648/0273-8570-74.1.81