Continental-scale decreases in shorebird populations in Australia
Top Cited Papers
- 1 June 2016
- journal article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Emu - Austral Ornithology
- Vol. 116 (2), 119-135
- https://doi.org/10.1071/mu15056
Abstract
Decreases in shorebird populations are increasingly evident worldwide, especially in the East Asian—Australasian Flyway (EAAF). To arrest these declines, it is important to understand the scale of both the problem and the solutions. We analysed an expansive Australian citizen-science dataset, spanning the period 1973 to 2014, to explore factors related to differences in trends among shorebird populations in wetlands throughout Australia. Of seven resident Australian shorebird species, the four inland species exhibited continental decreases, whereas the three coastal species did not. Decreases in inland resident shorebirds were related to changes in availability of water at non-tidal wetlands, suggesting that degradation of wetlands in Australia's interior is playing a role in these declines. For migratory shorebirds, the analyses revealed continental decreases in abundance in 12 of 19 species, and decreases in 17 of 19 in the southern half of Australia over the past 15 years. Many trends were strongly associated with continental gradients in latitude or longitude, suggesting some large-scale patterns in the decreases, with steeper declines often evident in southern Australia. After accounting for this effect, local variables did not explain variation in migratory shorebird trends between sites. Our results are consistent with other studies indicating that decreases in migratory shorebird populations in the EAAF are most likely being driven primarily by factors outside Australia. This reinforces the need for urgent overseas conservation actions. However, substantially heterogeneous trends within Australia, combined with declines of inland resident shorebirds indicate effective management of Australian shorebird habitat remains important.Keywords
This publication has 52 references indexed in Scilit:
- Arctic Shorebirds in North AmericaPublished by University of California Press ,2019
- Fitting Linear Mixed-Effects Models Usinglme4Journal of Statistical Software, 2015
- Loss of periodicity in breeding success of waders links to changes in lemming cycles in Arctic ecosystemsOikos, 2014
- Conservation when nothing stands still: moving targets and biodiversity offsetsFrontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2013
- Costs, benefits, and fitness consequences of different migratory strategiesEcology, 2013
- Contrasting extreme long‐distance migration patterns in bar‐tailed godwits Limosa lapponicaJournal of Avian Biology, 2012
- A framework for monitoring the status of populations: An example from wader populations in the East Asian–Australasian flywayBiological Conservation, 2010
- Identifying declines in waterbirds: The effects of missing data, population variability and count period on the interpretation of long-term survey dataBiological Conservation, 2006
- Impacts of sudden winter habitat loss on the body condition and survival of redshank Tringa totanusJournal of Applied Ecology, 2006
- Rapid population decline in red knots: fitness consequences of decreased refuelling rates and late arrival in Delaware BayProceedings. Biological sciences, 2004