Lunar synchrony, geography, and individual clocks shape autumn migration timing in an avian migrant.

ABSTRACT: Timing programs in animal migrants have been selected to synchronize movements that coincide with predictable resources on the breeding and nonbreeding grounds. Migrants face potential temporal conflicts if their migration schedules benefit from synchrony to conflicting rhythms associated with annual biogeographical (circannual) cues, lunar (circalunar) cues, or individually repeatable internal clocks. We repeat-tracked individuals of an avian lunaphilic species, Eastern Whip-poor-will (Antrostomus vociferus), for two to three successive autumn migrations to determine the influence of the lunar cycle, breeding location, and individual repeatability on migration timing. Almost all birds avoided departing for migration during a full moon, likely to take advantage of the bright moonlig

SUBMITTER: Korpach AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11453104 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar-Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature