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Geographic and seasonal distribution of the Cock-tailed Tyrant (Alectrurus tricolor) inferred from niche modeling

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Abstract

The Cock-tailed Tyrant (Alectrurus tricolor) is a habitat-sensitive and vulnerable bird found in South American grasslands. It is assumed to be migratory but no detailed analysis of distributional records per season has been made. Because of a limited number of field records, we used niche-modeling tools to predict the geographic distribution of the Cock-tailed Tyrant with three objectives: identifying its breeding (summer) and non-breeding (winter) grounds based on climatic suitability, test the hypothesis that it migrates, and test the assumption that it is a niche tracker. The species is apparently not migratory since there was an equivalency of the breeding and winter niches and we found no pattern of latitudinal or altitudinal migration. However, the species seems to be a climatic niche switcher since breeding and winter estimated distributions are not good predictors of the other season’s occurrences. We conclude that the Cock-tailed Tyrant is probably resident throughout its range, and that the reported apparent migratory behavior probably reflects partial population migration, seasonal changes in social behavior, or even nomadism. Long-term year-round population studies are warranted.

Zusammenfassung

Geografische und jahreszeitliche Verbreitung des Hahnenschwanztyranns (Alectrurus tricolor) anhand von ökologischer Nischenmodellierung

Der Hahnenschwanztyrann (Alectrurus tricolor) ist eine habitatsensitive und gefährdete Vogelart des südamerikanischen Graslandes. Allgemein gilt er als Zugvogel, allerdings wurde bisher noch keine detaillierte jahreszeitliche Analyse der Verbreitungsnachweise durchgeführt. Aufgrund der begrenzten Anzahl von Freilandnachweisen verwendeten wir Methoden der ökologischen Nischenmodellierung zur Vorhersage der geografischen Verbreitung des Hahnenschwanztyranns. Dabei verfolgten wir drei Ziele: Ermittlung der Brut- und Winterverbreitung auf der Grundlage geeigneter klimatischer Rahmenbedingungen, Überprüfung der Zugvogel-Hypothese sowie Überprüfung der Annahme, dass der Hahnenschwanztyrann ein Nischenverfolger ist. Die Art ist offenbar kein Zugvogel, da sich ihre ökologischen Nischen zur Brutzeit und im Winter entsprechen und wir kein Muster von breiten- oder höhenbedingten Wanderungen feststellen konnten. Allerdings scheint die Art die klimatische Nische zu wechseln, da die geschätzte Brutverbreitung hier keine guten Voraussagen für die geschätzte Winterverbreitung ergibt und umgekehrt. Unsere Schlussfolgerungen lauten, dass der Hahnenschwanztyrann vermutlich in seinem gesamten Verbreitungsgebiet ein Standvogel ist. Berichte über sein scheinbares Zugverhalten spiegeln möglicherweise Wanderungen von Teilpopulationen, jahreszeitliche Veränderungen des Sozialverhaltens oder sogar Nomadismus wider. Zur weiteren Aufklärung wären langfristige ganzjährige Populationsstudien erforderlich.

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Acknowledgments

M.Â.M. was supported by a Post-doctorate fellowship from Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES), and L.E.L. by a doctorate fellowship from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG). We thank W. Thuiller for providing the updated version of BIOMOD. A.S. Di Giacomo, H. del Castillo, J. C. Chebez, J. Fjeldså, M. Kanegae, J.C. Motta-Junior, M.H. Hurtado, V. Braz, D. Tubelis, G. Malacco and R.B. Machado helped with unpublished field observations or data on museum specimens. D. Levey criticized a previous version of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Zoologia, IB, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, 70910-900, Brazil

    Miguel Ângelo Marini

  2. CRBPO, UMR 7204 MNHN-CNRS-UPMC ‘Conservation des Espèces, Restauration et Suivi des Populations’, 55 rue Buffon, CP 51, 75005, Paris, France

    Morgane Barbet-Massin & Frédéric Jiguet

  3. Laboratório de Biologia Animal, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Campus Florestal, Rodovia LMG-818, km 6, Florestal, MG, 35690-000, Brazil

    Leonardo E. Lopes

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  1. Miguel Ângelo Marini
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  2. Morgane Barbet-Massin
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  3. Leonardo E. Lopes
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  4. Frédéric Jiguet
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Correspondence to Miguel Ângelo Marini.

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Communicated by J. Fjeldså.

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Marini, M.Â., Barbet-Massin, M., Lopes, L.E. et al. Geographic and seasonal distribution of the Cock-tailed Tyrant (Alectrurus tricolor) inferred from niche modeling. J Ornithol 154, 393–402 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-012-0903-6

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