Vagrancy theories: Are autumn vagrants really reverse migrants?

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Gilroy, James J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7597-5780 and Lees, Alexander C. (2003) Vagrancy theories: Are autumn vagrants really reverse migrants? British Birds, 96 (9). pp. 427-438. ISSN 0007-0335

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Abstract

Reverse migration is a popular concept, often used to explain the occurrence of autumn vagrants. The term 'reverse migration shadow' has been used to identify regions in which autumn vagrancy of a given species may occur, and to predict potential future vagrants to Britain. In this paper, we evaluate this theory and, by analysing vagrancy patterns, demonstrate that autumn vagrancy is not limited to the 'shadow' of a 180° route-reversal. Although the vast majority of individuals follow a traditional route to winter quarters, vagrancy during autumn migration occurs in all directions, and we contend that it is the pattern of observer coverage which determines the number of vagrants discovered. The occurrence patterns of some vagrants reaching Britain can be explained using the idea of long-range dispersal. We suggest that some comparatively regular vagrants reaching Britain are, in fact, performing annual migrations to presently undiscovered wintering grounds in western Europe or West Africa.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	animal science and zoology ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/1100/1103
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Environmental Biology Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Organisms and the Environment
Related URLs:	http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	04 Jul 2022 09:31
Last Modified:	21 Jun 2024 09:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/85917
DOI:

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