Event:

Any underlying theory to explain why migrants are more prone to population declines than non-migratory species must arise from the differences between these two groups in their ability to deal with accelerated rates of habitat and climate change in the Anthropocene. Recent theoretical advances have therefore concentrated on understanding how migrant and resident birds differ in their evolutionary response to climate and habitat change, in particular how migrants are likely to be under selection to be bet-hedging generalists which makes them well adapted to climate change and habitat shifts but relatively poorly adapted to habitat loss and any site-based conservation solutions to address this. The main differences between migrants and residents are:
1. Migrants generally have a bet-hedging strategy with high migratory spread (low connectivity) over a large non-breeding area, and greater natal and breeding dispersal than residents.
2. Migrants depend more on a chain of suitable sites that must be correctly arranged in space and time for a successful annual cycle to be completed.
I will discuss how these characteristics lead to population dynamics and so potential conservation solutions for migratory birds, as many populations continue to decline.