Reproductive success is strongly related to local and regional climate in the Arctic snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis)

Global climate change is regarded as one of the major threats to biodiversity. Both local and regional climate parameters can have strong effects on ecological processes affecting the survival and reproduction of plants and animals. High Arctic ecosystems are characterized by low species diversity a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar biology 2015-03, Vol.38 (3), p.393-400
Main Authors: Fossøy, Frode, Stokke, Bård G., Kåsi, Tone Kjersti, Dyrset, Kristian, Espmark, Yngve, Hoset, Katrine S., Wedege, Morten Ingebrigtsen, Moksnes, Arne
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal populations
Animal reproduction
Arctic environments
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Birds
Breeding seasons
Climate change
Climate cycles
Ecology
Ecosystems
Global climate
Global temperature changes
Habitats
Life Sciences
Microbiology
Oceanography
Original Paper
Plant reproduction
Plant Sciences
Plectrophenax nivalis
Reproduction
Snow
Species diversity
Spring
Winter
Zoology
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Summary:Global climate change is regarded as one of the major threats to biodiversity. Both local and regional climate parameters can have strong effects on ecological processes affecting the survival and reproduction of plants and animals. High Arctic ecosystems are characterized by low species diversity and the local species have often evolved specific adaptations to the harsh Arctic environment. Here, we investigate the effect of local and regional climate parameters on snow bunting ( Plectrophenax nivalis ) reproductive success in the Arctic using a long-term dataset of 15 years. We found strong relationships between both local weather and the Arctic oscillation (AO), a regional climate index, with several breeding parameters. Onset of breeding was earlier in years with high spring temperatures and later in years with high AO index the preceding winter. Importantly, high AO winter index also increased the number of successful fledglings the following summer, possibly mediated via spring phenology. Nestling weight was negatively associated with the AO index during the breeding season. The strong effects of local and regional climate suggest that the ongoing global climate change could potentially have a large effect on this Arctic passerine population.
ISSN:0722-4060
1432-2056
DOI:10.1007/s00300-014-1595-6