Worldwatch Institute

Golden eagles Aquila chrysaetos are a long‐lived and wide‐ranging species believed to be stable or in slight decline across North America. Golden eagles have an extended subadult stage (4–5 years) that is critical to maintaining recruitment into the breeding population and population viability. Compared to adult golden eagles, the ecology of subadult golden eagles (hereafter, subadults) has received little attention. We investigated patterns of resource selection for subadults in the Great Basin Desert of the western United States during summer and winter, 2013–2019. We monitored 46 subadults with GPS transmitters and related locations (n = 99 037) with predictors hypothesized to influence seasonal patterns of space use with mixed‐effects logistic regression. Subadults selected for ridges and upper slopes in summer and winter, but higher elevations in summer. Subadults showed weak selection for lower ridge density in summer, which was likely facilitated by selection for areas with greater thermal wind current potential. In contrast, subadults showed strong selection for higher ridge density in winter. Subadults selected areas further from roads in summer and closer to roads and electrical transmission lines in winter, which may be related to winter scavenging of road‐killed ungulates. Resource selection functions suggested subadults selected for shrublands and woodlands in both seasons, but odds ratios revealed that during winter subadults avoided shrublands and increased selection of woodlands relative to summer. Subadults selected for areas with infrequent fires in both seasons; areas with frequent fires were avoided in summer but selected for in winter. Seasonal changes in resource selection suggested that subadults used woodlands more than expected, potentially reflecting spatial partitioning by subadults to lower‐quality habitats to minimize competition with breeding adults during winter when energetic demands for thermoregulation were presumably higher and prey more limited.

Abstract Identifying population genetic structure is useful for inferring evolutionary process and comparing the resulting structure with subspecies boundaries can aid in species management. The American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) is a widespread and highly diverse species with 17 total subspecies, only 2 of which are found north of U.S./Mexico border (F. s. paulus is restricted to southeastern United States, while F. s. sparverius breeds across the remainder of the U.S. and Canadian distribution). In many parts of their U.S. and Canadian range, American Kestrels have been declining, but it has been difficult to interpret demographic trends without a clearer understanding of gene flow among populations. Here we sequence the first American Kestrel genome and scan the genome of 197 individuals from 12 sampling locations across the United States and Canada in order to identify population structure. To validate signatures of population structure and fill in sampling gaps across the U.S. and Canadian range, we screened 192 outlier loci in an additional 376 samples from 34 sampling locations. Overall, our analyses support the existence of 5 genetically distinct populations of American Kestrels—eastern, western, Texas, Florida, and Alaska. Interestingly, we found that while our genome-wide genetic data support the existence of previously described subspecies boundaries in the United States and Canada, genetic differences across the sampled range correlate more with putative migratory phenotypes (resident, long-distance, and short-distance migrants) rather than a priori described subspecies boundaries per se. Based on our results, we suggest the resulting 5 genetically distinct populations serve as the foundation for American Kestrel conservation and management in the face of future threats.

Eurasian Thick-knee (Burhinus oedicnemus) is a widespread wading bird that occurs throughout much of Europe, the Middle East, and northern Africa. We captured a juvenile specimen at the Aras River Ornithological Research Station, Turkey in October 2019, fitted it with a GPS-GSM transmitter, and tracked its migration. The bird migrated from Turkey in late October, made an eight-day stopover in northern Iraq, and then flew southwest to the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia. The bird was killed in early November by a falcon being flown for falconry near Yanbu Al Sinaiyah, Saudi Arabia. The thick-knee migrated more than 2100 km in 36 days between tagging and death. This study provides the first description of Eurasian Thick-knee migration in the Middle East, as well as the first description of autumn migration of this species from satellite-tracking data.

Species considered raptors are subjects of monitoring programs, textbooks, scientific societies, legislation, and multinational agreements. Yet no standard definition for the synonymous terms “raptor” or “bird of prey” exists. Groups, including owls, vultures, corvids, and shrikes are variably considered raptors based on morphological, ecological, and taxonomic criteria, depending on the authors. We review various criteria previously used to define raptors and we present an updated definition that incorporates current understanding of bird phylogeny. For example, hunting live vertebrates has been largely accepted as an ecological trait of raptorial birds, yet not all species considered raptors are raptorial (e.g., Palm-nut Vulture [Gypohierax angolensis]), and not all raptorial birds are considered raptors (e.g., skuas [Stercorariidae]). Acute vision, a hooked bill, and sharp talons are the most commonly used morphological characters for delineating raptors; however, using those characters as criteria may cause confusion because they can be vague and exceptions are sometimes made. Old World vultures, for example, are in the family Accipitridae along with hawks and eagles, and thus are usually considered raptors despite their lack of sharp talons. We define raptors as species within orders that evolved from raptorial landbirds (Telluraves) in which most species maintained raptorial lifestyles. Raptors are therefore all species within Accipitriformes, Cathartiformes, Falconiformes, and Strigiformes. Importantly, we believe that seriemas (Cariamiformes) should also be considered raptors. Our definition combines phylogeny with morphology and ecology, and avoids ambiguity associated with owls, vultures, and shrikes. Establishing a common definition of raptors should improve interpretability across studies and lessen ambiguity of research and management recommendations.

The Global South harbors a large share of imperiled biodiversity. Effective research and conservation in the Global South are negatively affected by weak or turbulent socio-political contexts, such as poor governance and/or high violence levels. There is a need to understand how priorities for research and conservation relate to different levels of violence and governance, in order to highlight opportunities and challenges for biodiversity conservation. We explore the spatial overlap between density of violence and raptor research and conservation priorities, and unveil the effect of considering governance and violence when prioritizing areas for raptor research and conservation. Raptors are a group of species potentially highly affected by violence that may lead to proliferation of firearms and uncontrolled wildlife resource extraction. We found low spatial correlation between raptor research and conservation priorities and violence in the Global South. Exceptions are represented by distinct areas of high or increasing violence and that are important for raptors, such as the central African Rift Valley and west Yemen. We also highlight emerging potential opportunities, such as coastal West Africa, where violence is decreasing. Overall, while we show that governance and violence only marginally affected the distribution of raptor priority areas, results also highlight spatio-temporal dynamics in violence and governance that should be considered when navigating the research-implementation space in the Global South. In these regions it is crucial to focus on societal issues to reduce social and economic inequalities, stabilize unsafe regions and promote community-led initiatives that would mutually benefit people and wildlife.

Abstract Land managers regularly use temporal nest protections to reduce the likelihood of raptor nest disturbance or abandonment, but guidelines are not consistent across management boundaries. We assessed alternative nest use (i.e., egg-laying) and nest spacing at 28 Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) territories that were monitored ≥25 yr between 1976 and 2013 (all except seven territories were monitored annually without interruption). Territories contained 1–8 nests (x¯ = 2.9), and average spacing between alternative nests was 0.5 km. Inspection of 21 territories monitored for 26–38 yr without interruption suggested eagles used individual nests an average of every 3.3 yr, laid eggs in any nest within territories an average of every 1.8 yr, and switched nests between 43.3% of consecutive nesting attempts (i.e., egg-laying in discrete breeding seasons). Protecting individual nests for 7 yr, or protecting all nests within a territory for 4 yr after the last documented use of any nest when alternative nests...

Abstract Conserving wide-ranging animals requires knowledge about their year-round movements and resource use. Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) exhibit a wide range of movement patterns across North America. We combined tracking data from 571 Golden Eagles from multiple independent satellite-telemetry projects from North America to provide a comprehensive look at the magnitude and extent of these movements on a continental scale. We compared patterns of use relative to four alternative administrative and ecological mapping systems, namely Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs), U.S. administrative migratory bird flyways, Migratory Bird Joint Ventures, and Landscape Conservation Cooperatives. Our analyses suggested that eagles initially captured in eastern North America used space differently than those captured in western North America. Other groups of eagles that exhibited distinct patterns in space use included long-distance migrants from northern latitudes, and southwestern and Californian desert residents....

Research with humans and other animals suggests that walking benefits physical health. Perhaps because these links have been demonstrated in other species, it has been suggested that walking is important to elephant welfare, and that zoo elephant exhibits should be designed to allow for more walking. Our study is the first to address this suggestion empirically by measuring the mean daily walking distance of elephants in North American zoos, determining the factors that are associated with variations in walking distance, and testing for associations between walking and welfare indicators. We used anklets equipped with GPS data loggers to measure outdoor daily walking distance in 56 adult female African (n = 33) and Asian (n = 23) elephants housed in 30 North American zoos. We collected 259 days of data and determined associations between distance walked and social, housing, management, and demographic factors. Elephants walked an average of 5.3 km/day with no significant difference between species. In our multivariable model, more diverse feeding regimens were correlated with increased walking, and elephants who were fed on a temporally unpredictable feeding schedule walked 1.29 km/day more than elephants fed on a predictable schedule. Distance walked was also positively correlated with an increase in the number of social groupings and negatively correlated with age. We found a small but significant negative correlation between distance walked and nighttime Space Experience, but no other associations between walking distances and exhibit size were found. Finally, distance walked was not related to health or behavioral outcomes including foot health, joint health, body condition, and the performance of stereotypic behavior, suggesting that more research is necessary to determine explicitly how differences in walking may impact elephant welfare.

"Conflict transformation through school: a curriculum for sustainable peace." Intercultural Education, 27(4), pp. 392–393