Age-related changes in migratory behaviour within the first annual cycle of a passerine bird

ABSTRACT: First time migrants (juveniles hereafter) of many species migrate without specific knowledge of non-breeding locations, but experience may aid adults in timing and route decisions because they can migrate more efficiently to their previous non-breeding sites. Consequently, we expect a transition to more efficient migratory behaviour with age, but when and how this happens is little known. We used light-level geolocator data from Cyprus wheatears Oenanthe cypriaca to compare migration timing and route directness between juveniles and adults, and repeatability of their timing and non-breeding locations. We predicted that juveniles would depart and arrive later than adults for both autumn and spring migration; that duration of migration would be greater for juveniles; that routes taken by juv

SUBMITTER: Patchett R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9581414 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature