We do not. But these Arctic breeding species with low site fidelity also often show substantial year-to-year variation in local breeding densities.

I’m guessing Alex means that inter-annual spatial variability in snow patterns in the Arctic could contribute to inter-annual variation in patterns of vagrancy

Would in general be interesting to see how a species’ degree of breeding site fidelity is linked to its propensity for vagrancy. I suspect there is a strong correlation.

Good question! Or perhaps females' help could buffer against an otherwise seasonal decline in reproductive success. Would be great to find out!

Agreed!

We suggest that the Arctic’s high spatio-temporal variability in snow conditions and short breeding season, especially at the highest latitudes, may favour a flexible settlement strategy and lead to low breeding site fidelity 7/n

Also, populations nesting in the tundra had lower return rates than populations of the same species nesting in other biomes. Tundra breeding populations thus have lower breeding site fidelity both across and within species 6/n

Moreover, we found that breeding site fidelity decreased strongly with latitude within the Arctic tundra, whereas there was no latitudinal pattern within other biomes. 5/n

We initially found an apparent global latitudinal pattern, with breeding site fidelity gradually decreasing with increasing latitude. However, closer inspection showed that this effect was driven entirely by low return rates in the Arctic tundra. 4/n

We compiled a dataset of 189 site fidelity estimates from 55 shorebird species. Shorebirds 1️⃣ nest in open habitats, allowing reliable estimates of site fidelity, 2️⃣ have high longevity, reducing biases in site fidelity estimates due to mortality, and 3️⃣ are well represented across latitudes. 3/n

Whether birds disperse or are site faithful has important consequences for population connectivity, with implications for evolution (gene flow, subspecies formation) and conservation (adaptability to habitat change, disease transmission). But the underlying drivers remain poorly understood. 2/n

A new study has tracked female Eurasian Dotterel throughout an entire summer for the first time, revealing a summer of long-distance travel in search of multiple partners:

thanks Kirsty! 😊

Thanks Jamie!

Thanks Wolfgang!

Thanks!

Thanks Will 😊