Pre-Migration Roost Site use and Timing of Postnuptial Migration of Red-Footed Falcons (Falco Vespertinus) Revealed by Satellite Tracking

Péter, Palatitz and Lázár, Bence and Fehérvári, Péter and Solt, Szabolcs and Attila, Nagy and Mátyás, Prommer and Károly, Nagy and Harnos, Andrea (2014) Pre-Migration Roost Site use and Timing of Postnuptial Migration of Red-Footed Falcons (Falco Vespertinus) Revealed by Satellite Tracking. ORNIS HUNGARICA, 22 (1). pp. 36-47. ISSN 1215-1610

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Abstract

Red-footed Falcons are gregarious trans-equatorial migrants, forming up to several thousand strong roost sites after the breeding season and before commencing migration. This pre-migration period is presumed to play a major role in defining the survival of long-range migrants. Here we investigate the autumn movements of 8 individuals caught and satellite-tagged within the Carpathian Basin. We found that birds may use multiple roost sites that can be separated by large distances. A single individual’s home range was 88 km2 (80% kernel home range) and was near concentrical to the roost site. Two individuals travelled to southern Ukraine soon after tag-deployment. Our results demonstrate that even a small number of satellite tagged birds show behavioural plasticity in terms of roost site selection indicating that post-breeding foraging habitat choice decisions may have substantial variability. The night localization points of birds marked out 2 and 5 yet unknown potential roost sites in Hungary and in the Ukraine, respectively. Using the data of an international weekly survey (2006-2011) carried out in the Carpathian Basin, we cross-referenced the departure dates of tagged individuals with the 6 year means of counted individuals. The tagged birds initiated migration with the first 25% percent of the surveyed population.

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