From Mediterranean to Scandinavia – timing and body mass condition in four long distance migrants

• In spring, long-distance migrants are considered to adopta time-minimizing strategy to promote early arrival atbreeding sites. The phenology of spring migration wasexamined and compared between two insular stopoversites in Greece and Sweden for Icterine Warbler, WoodWarbler, Spotted Flycatcher and Collared Flycatcher. All  of them migrate due north which means that some proportion of birds that pass through Greece are headingto Scandinavia. The Collared Flycatcher had the earliestand the Icterine Warbler the latest arrival time. Thedifferences in median dates between Greece and Swedenwere 3–4 weeks and the passages in Sweden weregenerally more condensed in time. The average overallspeed estimates were very similar and varied between129 and 137 km/d. In most of the species higher speedestimates were associated with years when birds arrivedlate in Greece. After crossing continental Europe birdsarrive at the Swedish study site with significantly higherbody masses compared to when they arrive in Greece andthis might indicate a preparation for arriving at breedinggrounds with some overload.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Biologi -- Ekologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Biological Sciences -- Ecology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Man and the environment

Naturmiljö och människan

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)