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| Yellow-browed Warblers occur in increasing numbers in Europe, but their origin remains unknown © Arend Heim |
De Jong A, Torniainen J, Bourski OV, Heim W, Edenius L (2019) Tracing the origin of vagrant Siberian songbirdswith stable isotopes: the case of Yellow-browed Warbler (Abrornis inornatus) in Fennoscandia. Ornis Fennica 96
Vagrant birds are mesmerizing birdwatchers worldwide, but the nature of vagrancy and the true origin of the vagrants are poorly known. To Western Europe, the massive Siberian land mass delivers most of the vagrant songbirds, e.g. Yellow-browed Warbler (YBW) Phylloscopus inornatus. In this study we used stable hydrogen isotope ratios in tail feathers (d2Hf) from two ringing stations in northern Fennoscandia in an attempt to link vagrant YBW to potential regions of origin. We could do this thanks to a collection of samples from nestling and breeding adult YBW in Central Siberia. Compared with the nestling samples, the Fennoscandian d2Hf data indicated origins in the western and/or southern parts of the breeding range. The assignment map created in IsoMAP showed high probabilities of origins in the Komi Republic, N/NW of the Ural Mountains. Although our study rules out a large proportion of the YBW breeding range, our method could not pin-point a precise region of origin. The main reason for this is the similarity of environmental hydrogen isotope ratios across longitudes in Eurasia. For increased precision, we propose a multi-method approach (e.g. stable isotopes and genetics) based on significantly more data from across the vast and challenging Siberian territory. More international collaboration will be vital for this endeavour.
Please find the full text here.
In unseren neuesten Publikation gehen wir der Herkunft sibirischer Irrgäste in Europa auf die Spur. Dabei vergleichen wir die Isotopen-Signatur in Federn von Gelbbrauen-Laubsängern, welche westlich ihres bekannten Verbreitungsgebietes in Skandinavien aufgetaucht sind, mit der von Vögeln aus dem Brutgebiet in Sibirien. Das wahrscheinlichste Herkunftsgebiet der in Europa gefangenen Vögel liegt am nord-westlichen Verbreitungsrand der Art nahe des Uralgebirges, eine genaue Zuordnung scheitert jedoch an den bisher kaum untersuchten und wenig differenzierten Isotopengradienten in der borealen Zone Eurasiens. Es gibt noch viel zu entdecken!
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// Wieland
