armenian gull larus armenicus formerly listed as a subspecies for herring gull larus argentatus and further introduced as a full species in 1980. this species mostly found in caucasus and middle east regions. thair breeding areas are in georgia, armenia, turkey and iran. meyghan wetland is an important wintering area for a number of migratory species especially for common crane grus grus, furth...

As colony-specific wintering ecology of small and medium-sized seabirds is poorly understood, it has been generally assumed that winter conditions have the same effect on all individuals from any given colony. However, advances in global positioning technology now allow researchers to investigate movements of smaller seabirds. We tracked black-legged kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla using geolocator...

Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) implies correlated differences in energetic requirements and feeding opportunities, such that sexes will face different trade-offs in habitat selection. In seasonal migrants, this could result in a differential spatial distribution across the wintering range. To identify the ecological causes of sexual spatial segregation, we studied a sexually dimorphic shorebird, ...

The Purple Sandpiper (Calidris maritima) is a medium-sized shorebird that breeds in the Arctic and winters along northern Atlantic coastlines. Migration routes and affiliations between breeding grounds and wintering grounds are incompletely understood. Some populations appear to be declining, and future management policies for this species will benefit from understanding their migration pattern...

The possession of a suitable spot on the wintering grounds may be important for an individual's survival in migrant species showing territoriality in the nonbreeding season (e.g., Rappole et al. 1989, Winker et al. 1990). If the earliest arrivals are favored in securing the best winter territories (e.g., Smallwood 1988), then selection might favor individuals who quickly return to wintering are...

A 4-yr study using 217 cows/yr (3/4 Red Angus, 1/4 Simmental) evaluated effects of calving date and wintering system on cow and calf performance from birth to harvest. Cows were assigned to 1 of 5 treatments: 1) March (Mar) calving cows wintered on native range, 2) Mar calving cows wintered on corn residue, 3) June (Jun) calving cows wintered on native range, 4) Jun calving cows wintered on cor...

During the winter months, humpback whales Megaptera novaeangliae prefer warm and shallow regions, and these habitat preferences have been linked to reproductive status and success. Central North Pacific humpback whales winter in the main Hawaiian Islands (MHI), with peak densities occurring in late March. The Hawaiian Archipelago extends over 1800 km to the northwest of the MHI and includes a n...

Individual wintering strategies and patterns of winter site fidelity in successive years are highly variable among seabird species. Yet, an understanding of consistency in timing of movements and the degree of site fidelity is essential for assessing how seabird populations might be influenced by, and respond to, changing conditions on wintering grounds. To explore annual variation in migratory...

-census methods developed for breeding populations of Nearctic-Neotropic migrant passerines are largely ineffective for determining the distribution and abundance of Swainson’ s Warbler (Limnothlypis swainsonii) on its wintering grounds in the Caribbean basin. Using playback of tape-recorded call notes interspersed with advertising songs, I found the warbler to be widespread and relatively comm...