Dataset Information

Nest-site selection, reproductive ecology and shifts within core-use areas of Black-necked Cranes at the northern limit of the Tibetan Plateau.

ABSTRACT: We investigated population dynamics, breeding pairs, breeding habitat selection, nest density, distance between neighboring nests, nest survival, reproductive success, and recruitment rate for Black-necked Cranes (BNC, Grus nigricollis) during 2013-2015 in Yanchiwan National Nature Reserve (YCW), Gansu, China. Numbers of BNC and breeding pairs remained relatively stable at around 140 individuals and 40 pairs. Recruitment rates ranged from 15.7% to 25.8%. The average nest distance was 718.66 ± 430.50 m (2013), 1064.51 ± 323.99 m (2014) and 534.99 ± 195.45 m (2015). Average nest survival rate, hatching success, and breeding success of all 29 nests were 65.56 ± 5.09%, 57.04 ± 6.12% and 32.78% ± 2.55. Water depth, water body area, and distance to land were positively related to nest survival, while disturbance level showed a negative relationship. However, nest site selection of BNC was determined by habitat type, disturbance and water depth. BNC often foraged in mudflats and freshwater marsh but seldom foraged in saline-alkali wet meadows due to food density and quantity in April, the month when BNC choose nest sites. Conservation strategies based on habitats should consider ecological factors that may not be well predicted by nest site selection. Shifts within core-use areas from satellite tracking of BNC demonstrated that maintaining populations demands that conservation areas are large enough to permit breeding BNC changes in space use. Our results are important for conservation management and provide quantitative reproductive data for this species.

SUBMITTER: Zhang L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5289107 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Nest-site selection, reproductive ecology and shifts within core-use areas of Black-necked Cranes at the northern limit of the Tibetan Plateau.

Zhang Lixun L An Bei B Shu Meilin M Yang Xiaojun X

PeerJ 20170131

We investigated population dynamics, breeding pairs, breeding habitat selection, nest density, distance between neighboring nests, nest survival, reproductive success, and recruitment rate for Black-necked Cranes (BNC, <i>Grus nigricollis</i>) during 2013-2015 in Yanchiwan National Nature Reserve (YCW), Gansu, China. Numbers of BNC and breeding pairs remained relatively stable at around 140 individuals and 40 pairs. Recruitment rates ranged from 15.7% to 25.8%. The average nest distance was 718. ...[more]

PMID: 28168110

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Project description:BackgroundThe black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis) is a vulnerable species and the only species that lives in the plateau. Five migration routes of different populations have been identified, but for cranes wintering in Nyingchi Prefecture, Tibet, the migration route and breeding/summering area are still unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the spatio-temporal migration patterns of black-necked cranes in this area and to identify important areas for conservation.MethodsIn 2016, we fitted seven black-necked cranes in Nyingchi with GPS-GSM satellite transmitters to record their migration routes. We used ArcGIS 10.2 to visualize important stopover sites and the 'ggplot' function in R to analyze the migration patterns.ResultsFrom March 2016 to May 2019, we recorded nine spring migration and four autumn migration tracks from five individuals. Four individuals spent the breeding/summering season in Qinghai Lake, while the other spent the breeding/summering season in the Jinzihai Wetland of Dulan County, Qinghai Province. Detailed spatio-temporal information showed that the spring migration lasted 8.7 ± 4.6 days and covered 1,182.5 ± 90.4 km, while the autumn migration lasted 30 ± 10.6 days and covered 1,455.7 ± 138 km. Basom Lake and the Shazhuyu River were the most important stopover sites during the spring and autumn migrations, respectively. The cranes spent 4.4 ± 3.7 days in Basom Lake and 26.3 ± 10.7 days in the Shazhuyu River. The black-necked cranes mainly migrated during the daytime (>85 % of the fly points), and 81 % (17/21) of all stopover and roosting sites were in the valley or at lakeside swamps. Only 17.7% (516 / 2,914) of the data points for stopover and roosting sites were in protected areas.Main conclusionsOur study revealed the breeding/summering areas and migration routes of the black-necked cranes wintering in Nyingchi. These results contribute to a better understanding of the annual spatio-temporal migration patterns and the development of conservation plans for this vulnerable species.

Project description:Stable and high-quality roosting-sites are crucial for the survival of migratory wading birds in winter. The black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis) is the only crane species that lives on the Tibetan plateau for its entire life. Every year, black-necked cranes routinely migrate to the wetlands on the southern lower plateau and roost at wetland sites. Currently, many roosting-sites are under threat from wetland degradation resulting from human disturbance, and changes in water depths and the landscape environment. To understand how the black-necked crane selects roosting-sites given these influencing factors, we conducted a study in the Caohai wetland in China by comparing and modeling the selection of roosting habitat. The vegetation factors mainly included the vegetation height of the swamp patch where the roosting-site was located (VHP) and the vegetation height in the roosting-site (VHR), and the geographic factors mainly included the height of the nearest hill (HNH) and the visible range (VR). These four factors were first considered by the black-necked cranes when choosing roosting-sites on the lakeshore. The roosting-site selection model of black-necked cranes was fitted as (P = e Logit(p) /(1 + e Logit(p)) Logit(p) = 1.243 + 8.397(VHP) -7.999(VHR) -4.105(HNH) + 1.584(VR)). In the Caohai wetland, black-necked cranes preferred roosting-sites away from human disturbances, such as villages/settlements and roads, and where the distance to main roads was > 1,300 m, the distance to villages/residential areas was > 650 m, the distance to rural/service roads was > 500 m, the relatively open area with surrounding hills had a relative height < 15 m, the visible range area was > 550,000 m2, and the shallow swamp area had a water depth of < 5 cm with a vegetation height of < 15 cm. Outside the area of the roosting-site, the surrounding vegetation height was 35 cm-60 cm. We believe that human disturbance, not energy savings or heat loss, was the main factor influencing crane roost site selection. We first gathered data about black-necked crane selection of roosting-sites in a highly complex wetland system. Based on our findings, we strongly recommend appropriately managing the habitat patches in the Caohai wetland, which will have implications for the conservation management of overwintering black-necked cranes in wetlands.

Dataset Information

Nest-site selection, reproductive ecology and shifts within core-use areas of Black-necked Cranes at the northern limit of the Tibetan Plateau.

Publications

Nest-site selection, reproductive ecology and shifts within core-use areas of Black-necked Cranes at the northern limit of the Tibetan Plateau.

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