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Vulnerability of an alpine population of Rock partridge (Alectoris graeca saxatilis) to climatic events: evaluation with deterministic and stochastic models
Abstract
Game and Wildlife Science, vol. 17(2), June 2000, p. 63-79
Rock partridge Alectoris graeca saxatilis populations surveyed in the southern French Alps declined rapidly from 1994, reaching very low levels in 1997 and 1998. This decline could be due to the impact of several climatic events which occurred from 1994 through 1996. To evaluate the likelihood of this hypothesis, we examined two types of model population variations incorporating demographic parameters determined in a population of rock partridge surveyed since 1982 in the French department Alpes-Maritimes.
... A cela s'ajoute la survie hivernale qui est plus élevée lors des hivers faiblement enneigés, que lors des hivers à fort enneigement (Bernard-Laurent et al., 2018). En effet, l'espèce est très sensible à la fréquence et à l'importance de chutes de neige qui peuvent priver les oiseaux de l'accès à la nourriture, exclusivement fournie par les plantes herbacées en hiver, et provoquer une mortalité élevée (Bernard-Laurent & Léonard, 2000). On considère qu'outre les conditions météorologiques, le parasitisme par les helminthes est un autre facteur susceptible d'influencer la dynamique des populations de perdrix bartavelles (Rosà et al., 2011). ...
... Survival seems to be better in years with winters where snow cover is low than in years with a high amount of snow (Bernard-Laurent et al., 2018). In fact the species is very sensitive to the frequency and height of snow cover which limits access to food, exclusively supplied by herbaceous plants in winter, and leads to high mortality (Bernard-Laurent & Léonard, 2000). Besides weather conditions, Helminth parasites are considered as potential drivers of Rock Partridge population dynamics (Rosà et al., 2011). ...
The chapter of this book (available in English and French languages) document the conservation status and management of Rock partridge populations, that are listed in the Annex II/A of the Birds Directive, in the various countries of its European distribution.
... In certain seasons, the Rock Partridge shares its habitat with two other galliform mountain birds, the Black Grouse Lyrurus tetrix and the Rock Ptarmigan Lagopus muta (Calenge et al. 2003). However, although the Rock Partridge can cope with montane conditions, it is less adapted to alpine environments than the two grouse species; its winter ecology, in particular, is characterized by an exclusively herbaceous diet and great vulnerability to thick layers of snow, which reduce the area available for foraging and can lead to displacements and starvation (Bernard-Laurent & Léonard 2000). The Rock Partridge nests on the ground, incubates its clutch for an average of 25 days (own unpubl. ...
... Since also bird species have been proved to be largely affected by the vegetation dynamic processes (Rolando et al. 2014), we focused on the interplay between the grassland mosaic structure and dynamism of vegetation in the Alpine/sub-Alpine Apennine mountain belts and the habitat suitability for Alectoris graeca Meisner 1804. A. graeca is listed in the 2009/147/EC Directive and is declining in many territories (Nicolai 1986;Del Hoyo et al. 1994;Trouvilliez 1994;Bernard-Laurent and Boev 1997;Meriggi et al. 1998;Bernard-Laurent and Léonard 2000). In particular, along the Apennine ridge, A. graeca survives in small and fragmented populations undergoing a drastic decrease in connectivity, likely as a result of a reduction in numbers and size of suitable patches, increasingly separated by unsuitable areas (Siragusa and Carelli 1979;Bologna et al. 1983;Angelici and Luiselli 2001). ...
Over the last several decades, the Mediterranean region has been subjected to mountain abandonment and farming cessation, leading to changes in vegetation and coenological features of grasslands, contextually to the strong decline of the rock partridge (Alectoris graeca). Our hypothesis was that the ongoing dynamic processes leading to the compositional changes of grasslands in central Apennines affect the habitat suitability for the singing male (territorial male defending its reproductive site). In 2015, we defined the presence/absence of spring territorial singing males in seven sites (1,250-2,400 m a.s.l.), by the census in 74 playback stations, distributed along 15 transects. We characterized the topography and the vegetation mosaic of such sites according to the collected topographic and vegetation cover data in 59 randomly selected plots (100 m × 100 m) along the transects. To understand the relations among the environmental variables and the effect of the composition and dynamism of the vegetation mosaics on the presence/absence of the singing male, we used principal components analysis and generalized linear mixed-effect modelling. Our results emphasized the marked overlap between the general environmental conditions, which proved to define the habitat suitability for A. graeca, and the characteristics of the site chosen by the singing male for starting the reproductive activities. Moreover, we found that the site suitability for the singing male decreases when the vegetation recovery processes are ongoing, because of the spread of coarse tall grasses-dominated communities and/or grassland types with dense turf. Tall grass-dominated communities and thick-turf grasslands exert their negative effect decreasing the habitat suitability for the singing male starting from low cover values. Therefore, it is conceivable that singing male’s suitable habitat will be dramatically restricted to the steepest south-facing slopes, where topographic and soil conditions do not allow the spread of grasslands with dense turf and of invasive/dominant tall grasses, increasing the threat to the species due to the effect of climate change on the vegetation features.
... The combined incubation efforts of two parents may be an effective strategy to increase the probability that at least some offspring will fledge. Climatic constraints could also limit the frequency of doublenesting (Bernard-Laurent & Léonard 2000). Weather conditions in montane environments are highly variable between years (Table 1) and we found some indices of inter-annual difference in occurrence of male incubation which could be linked to variation in climatic conditions. ...
Capsule: Double-nesting occurs frequently in Rock Partridges Alectoris graeca living in the southern French Alps.
Aims: To investigate reproductive parameters of a Rock Partridge Alectoris graeca population.
Methods: The reproductive behaviour of 62 radio-tagged birds was monitored during the breeding seasons 2012–16, to record breeding phenology, clutch sizes, hatching success, nest survival and parental care.
Results: Double-nesting behaviour in the Rock Partridge was confirmed for the first time. Participation in incubation was similar for males and females (86% versus 70%). Clutch size was larger for nests incubated by males (11.0 ± 1.6 eggs) than by females (9.5 ± 1.2). Male nest survival rate (0.37) tended to be lower than female nest survival rate (0.62), although the difference was not significant. No significant difference was detected between male and female hatching success. Nest failures were caused by mammals taking the eggs (78%) or predation of the incubating parent (13%). Some circumstantial evidence suggests that occurrence of double-nesting behaviour could depend on previous winter and spring weather influencing the body condition of females. The reproductive biology of the Rock Partridge contrasts in some breeding traits with Red-legged Partridge and natural partridge hybrids, possibly due to climatic differences between habitats.
Conclusion: Confirmation of double-nesting in Rock Partridges indicates that climatic constraints inherent to its mountain environment do not act as an impediment to this behaviour. Variation in weather conditions between years could influence the annual occurrence of double-nesting.
... The differences between A. rufa and A. graeca may be largely attributable to differences in habitat preferences. Alectoris graeca is an alpine species which populations are probably somewhat isolated and undergo large interannual fluctuations in population size and experience unpredictable weather conditions ( Bernard-Laurent & Leonard 2000). In contrast, A. rufa inhabits a more contiguous landscape, which could result in greater connectivity among populations. ...
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