Detours in bird migration

Journal of Theoretical Biology
T Alerstam

Abstract

Bird migration routes often follow detours where passages across ecological barriers are reduced in extent. This occurs in spite of the fact that long barrier crossings are within the birds' potential flight range capacity. Long-distance flights are associated with extra energy costs for transport of the heavy fuel loads required. This paper explores how important the fuel transport costs, estimated on the basis of flight mechanics, may be to explain detours for birds migrating by flapping flight. Maximum detours in relation to expanse of the barrier are predicted for cases where birds travel along the detour by numerous short flights and small fuel reserves, divide the detour into a limited number of flight steps, and where a reduced barrier passage is included in the detour. The principles for determining the optimum route, often involving a shortcut across part of the barrier, are derived. Furthermore, the effects of differences in fuel deposition rates and in transport costs for the profitability of detours are briefly considered. An evaluation of a number of observed and potential detours in relation to the general predictions of maximum detours, indicates that reduction of fuel transport costs may well be a factor of wide...Continue Reading

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Citations

Jun 25, 2002·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Kristen C Ruegg, Thomas B Smith
Sep 30, 2005·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Sara S Henningsson, Thomas Alerstam
Nov 1, 2008·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Robert E GillTheunis Piersma
Nov 19, 2015·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Jill L DeppeWilliam W Cochran
Dec 18, 2009·Ecological Applications : a Publication of the Ecological Society of America·Hall SawyerJon S Horne
Aug 17, 2016·Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences·Susanne ÅkessonAnders Hedenström
Mar 24, 2017·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Heiko Schmaljohann, Cas Eikenaar
Jan 18, 2017·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Tom FinchWill Cresswell
Oct 11, 2017·Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences·Susanne ÅkessonBarbara Helm
Dec 24, 2014·Ecology and Evolution·Allison H AlvaradoThomas B Smith
Aug 28, 2018·PloS One·Alexander Peña-PenicheOctavio Rojas-Soto
Oct 4, 2019·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Gabriel NorevikAnders Hedenström
Dec 23, 2015·PloS One·Jesús Hernández-PliegoJavier Bustamante
Jul 22, 2014·Ecology Letters·Kira E Delmore, Darren E Irwin
May 7, 2020·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Silke BauerZoltan Barta
Oct 21, 2016·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Wouter M G VansteelantWillem Bouten
Feb 5, 2013·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Silke Bauer, Marcel Klaassen
May 31, 2018·Scientific Reports·Anastasios BounasKonstantinos Sotiropoulos
Jun 4, 2011·Journal of Evolutionary Biology·G Beauchamp
Dec 16, 2016·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Frank A La Sorte, Daniel Fink
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May 28, 2011·The Journal of Animal Ecology·Heiko Schmaljohann, Beat Naef-Daenzer

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