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Saltmarsh Sparrow perched among the tidal marsh vegetation. Photo by Grace McCulloch
Saltmarsh Sparrow perched among the tidal marsh vegetation. Photo by Grace McCulloch: Insta @grace.eliza.photography

Fighting against the rising tides: Climate change outpaces tidal marsh sparrows’ ability to adapt

Conservation practitioners need information that can help predict species’ ability to cope with rapid environmental changes in order to make management decisions. We wanted to better understand the adaptive capacity of two tidal marsh nesting sparrow species, the Saltmarsh (Ammospiza caudacutus) and Nelson’s (Ammospiza nelsoni) sparrows.

Orange-crowned Warbler (Leiothlypis celata), one of the most common warblers that uses Iona Island as a migration stopover site in southwestern British Columbia every year. Photo credit: Brendan Toews.
Orange-crowned Warbler (Leiothlypis celata), one of the most common warblers that uses Iona Island as a migration stopover site in southwestern British Columbia every year. Photo credit: Brendan Toews.

Should they stay or should they go: What drives variation in refueling rates and stopover length among migrating songbirds?

By Kiirsti Owen, Andrew Huang, and Devin R. de ZwaanLinked paper: Mass gain and stopover dynamics among migrating songbirds are linked to seasonal, environmental, and life-history effects, by D.R. de …

HPAI wild birds North America
Generalized ecology of avian-origin influenza A (AI) viruses showing common directionality of cross-species transmission events, including those for highly pathogenic (HP) phenotypes. Reprinted from the Journal of Wildlife Management (2022) with permission.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI): An emerging disease threat in North America

By Andrew M. Ramey and Colleen M. Handel, U.S. Geological Survey Linked paper: Highly pathogenic avian influenza is an emerging disease threat to wild birds in North America by A. …