Ecology of Intercontinental Avian Migrants

长途迁徙是许多动物生活史的一个组成部分，包括一半以上的北美陆鸟。与迁徙有关的死亡率很高，一岁的迁徙者的死亡率高于成年个体。这个研究项目比较了一岁的新热带陆鸟和成年候鸟的行为生态学，并研究了年龄对候鸟如何满足迁徙的能量需求的影响。当鸟类必须跨越地理障碍时，与长途迁徙相关的许多适应能力是至关重要的。因此，研究新热带陆鸟候鸟中途停留生态学的最佳地点和时间是在它们穿越墨西哥湾之前或之后。墨西哥湾北部沿岸的研究地点为研究迁徙物种提供了一个独特的机会。栖息地丧失是与全球环境变化相关的最严重的生态问题之一。这些大规模影响的程度和时间可能会产生重大的生态影响，除非能够评估物种生命周期的每个阶段，否则很难衡量。摩尔博士对关键中途停留阶段的研究有望对高阶生态动态对物种水平的影响提供新的见解。新热带陆地候鸟数量的减少是一个严重的保护问题；其中一个与越冬地的栖息地丧失和森林繁殖栖息地的破碎化有关。移徙人口的状况也受到是否有适当的中途停留生境和移徙者对途中事件的反应的影响。因此，与候鸟中途停留生物学有关的因素必须考虑到任何种群变化分析和新热带陆鸟候鸟综合保护“战略”的发展。目前的研究项目结合了观察和实验研究，比较了一岁鸟和成年鸟的中途停留生物学，并将对新热带陆地候鸟的保护做出可测量的贡献。

Long-distance migration is an integral part of the life history of many animals, including over half of all North American landbirds. The mortality associated with migration is substantial, and yearling migrants suffer greater mortality than adult individuals. This research project compares the behavioral ecology of yearling and adult Neotropical landbird migrants and examines the consequences of age in relation to how migrants meet the energy demands of migration. Many of the adaptations that have evolved in association with long-distance migration are critical when birds must cross geographic barriers. Hence, the best place and time to study the stopover ecology of Neotropical landbird migrants is immediately before or after they cross the Gulf of Mexico. Study sites along the northern Gulf coast provide a unique opportunity to work with populations of migratory species. Habitat loss is one of the most critical ecological problems associated with global environmental change. The degree and timing of these large-scale effects can have significant ecological repercussions that are hard to measure unless one can assess each stage of a species' life cycle. Dr Moore's research into the critical stopover stage promises new insight into species-level effects of higher-order ecological dynamics. Decline in populations of Neotropical landbird migrants is a serious conservation problem; one linked to habitat loss on the wintering grounds and fragmentation of forested breeding habitat. The status of migrant populations is also affected by the availability of suitable stopover habitat and the response of migrants to en route events. Consequently, factors associated with the stopover biology of migrants must figure in any analysis of population change and in the development of a comprehensive conservation "strategy" for Neotropical landbird migrants. The current research project combines observational and experimental studies to compare stopover biology of yearling and adult birds and should contribute measurably to the conservation of Neotropical landbird migrants.