Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Density Dependent Refueling Of Migratory Songbirds During Stopover Within An Urbanizing Coastal Landscape, Emily B. Cohen, Jill M. Lafleur, Frank R. Moore

Faculty Publications

Refueling performance is the primary currency of a successful migration as birds must maintain energy stores to achieve an optimal travel schedule. Migrating birds can anticipate heightened energy demand, not to mention increased uncertainty that energy demands will be satisfied, especially within an urbanizing landscape following long-distance flights. We tested the expectation that refueling performance of songbirds is reduced as densities increase at stopover sites in an urbanizing coastline of the Gulf of Mexico. We measured the density of migrating birds, their refueling performance, and arthropod abundance in two large tracts of contiguous forest paired with two small isolated patches …

Temporal Migration Patterns Between Natal Locations Of Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus Colubris) And Their Gulf Coast Stopover Site, Theodore J. Zenzal Jr., Andrea J. Contina, Jeffrey F. Kelly, Frank R. Moore

Faculty Publications

Background

Autumn latitudinal migrations generally exhibit one of two different temporal migration patterns: type 1 where southern populations migrate south before northern populations, or type 2 where northern populations overtake southern populations en route. The ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) is a species with an expansive breeding range, which allows opportunities to examine variation in the timing of migration. Our objective was to determine a relationship between natal origin of ruby-throated hummingbirds and arrival at a Gulf coast stopover site; and if so, what factors, such as differences in body size across the range as well as the …

Stopover Ecology Of Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus Colubris) During Autumn Migration, Theodore Joseph Zenzal Jr

Dissertations

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) is one of the smallest Nearctic-Neotropical migrants and the only species of hummingbird that breeds in Eastern North America, yet few studies have investigated the biology of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds when they stopover during migration. Given their small size, high metabolism, aggression, and specialized diet, hummingbirds may represent a migrant that operates on the physiological edge. Therefore it is important to understand the factors that influence their stopover as well as the decision to resume migration. Towards this end, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were captured during autumn migration along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico to …