Do tropical cyclones shape shorebird habitat patterns? Biogeoclimatology of snowy plovers in Florida

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 6; no. 1; p. e15683
• Main Authors: Convertino, Matteo, Elsner, James B, Muñoz-Carpena, Rafael, Kiker, Gregory A, Martinez, Christopher J, Fischer, Richard A, Linkov, Igor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 12-01-2011; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Abundance; Animals; Aquatic birds; Behavior, Animal; Biology; Birds; Brackish; Breeding; Calidris canutus; Charadriiformes - physiology; Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus; Charadrius melodus; Climate change; Coastal ecology; Coastal ecosystems; Coastlines; Coasts; Cyclones; Cyclonic Storms; Earth Sciences; Endangered Species; Estuaries; Estuarine environments; Extreme values; Florida; Future climates; Habitats; Hurricanes; Marine ecosystems; Nesting; Oceans and Seas; Population Dynamics; Sea level; Shorelines; Species richness; Storms; Threatened species; Tropical cyclone intensities; Tropical cyclones; Wildlife conservation; Florida; United States > US; ASW, USA, Florida
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0015683
• EISSN: 1932-6203

The Gulf coastal ecosystems in Florida are foci of the highest species richness of imperiled shoreline dependent birds in the USA. However environmental processes that affect their macroecological patterns, like occupancy and abundance, are not well unraveled. In Florida the Snowy Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) is resident along northern and western white sandy estuarine/ocean beaches and is considered a state-threatened species.
Here we show that favorable nesting areas along the Florida Gulf coastline are located in regions impacted relatively more frequently by tropical cyclones. The odds of Snowy Plover nesting in these areas during the spring following a tropical cyclone impact are seven times higher compared to the odds during the spring following a season without a cyclone. The only intensity of a tropical cyclone does not appear to be a significant factor affecting breeding populations.
Nevertheless a future climate scenario featuring fewer, but more extreme cyclones could result in a decrease in the breeding Snowy Plover population and its breeding range. This is because the spatio-temporal frequency of cyclone events was found to significantly affect nest abundance. Due to the similar geographic range and habitat suitability, and no decrease in nest abundance of other shorebirds in Florida after the cyclone season, our results suggest a common bioclimatic feedback between shorebird abundance and tropical cyclones in breeding areas which are affected by cyclones.