ARCTIC SHOREBIRD DEMOGRAPHICS NETWORK (ASDN) https://doi.org/10.18739/A2222R68W
Data set hosted by the NSF Arctic Data Center data repository
Recent shorebird trend analyses indicate that many North America shorebirds are declining, but we do not know why (Morrison et al. 2006). The goal of the Arctic Shorebird Demographic Network is to collaboratively conuct demographic studies on several shorebird focal species that will help determine factors limiting their population size. The Network will measure demographic rates such as adult apparent survival, annual productivity, population age-structure, etc. on the Arctic breeding grounds. Additionally, site-specific ecological and environmental variables (e.g. food resources, prey and predator abundance, weather, etc.) that influence demographic rates and are influenced by climate change and other anthropogenic forces will be measured and incorporated into the analyses.
Field data on shorebird ecology and environmental conditions were collected from 1993-2014 at 16 field sites in Alaska, Canada, and Russia.
Data were not collected every year at all sites. Studies of the population ecology of these birds included nest-monitoring to determine the timing of reproduction and reproductive success; live capture of birds to collect blood samples, feathers, and fecal samples for investigations of population structure and pathogens; banding of birds to determine annual survival rates; resighting of color-banded birds to determine space use and site fidelity; and use of light-sensitive geolocators to investigate migratory movements.
Data on climatic conditions, prey abundance, and predators were also
collected. Environmental data included weather stations that recorded
daily climatic conditions, surveys of seasonal snowmelt, weekly sampling
of terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates that are prey of shorebirds,
live trapping of small mammals (alternate prey for shorebird predators),
and daily counts of potential predators (jaegers, falcons, foxes).
Detailed field methods for each year are available in the
ASDN_protocol_201X.pdf files. All research was conducted under permits
from relevant federal, state, and university authorities.
See 01_ASDN_Readme.txt provided in the course data
repository
for full metadata information about this data set.