Xingnan Du’s research while affiliated with Lanzhou University and other places

Ecological barriers present significant challenges to bird migration by limiting the availability of stopover sites and shelters. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, a major migratory barrier located in higher latitude Central Asia, exerts a substantial influence on avian migration patterns. Species traversing such ecological barriers may adopt multiple optimal routes, which can contribute to the formation of migratory divides. From 2018 to 2021, the migration routes of 13 adult Common Cuckoos (Cuculus canorus) breeding in the north of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau were tracked using satellite transmitters. We found Common Cuckoos have two primary migration routes: western and eastern, respectively following western and eastern edges of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. The eastern and western routes are likely the optimal routes for the Central Asian Common Cuckoos population to navigate the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Furthermore, two individuals exhibited intermediate migration routes, suggesting attempted traverses of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, although neither completed the migration. These intermediate routes may indicate migratory behavior influenced by hybridization between eastern and western populations or migratory flexibility. Common Cuckoos exhibit significantly faster migration speed, flight speed, and shorter stopover durations during spring compared to autumn. The observed seasonal differences in migration behavior support birds following time-minimization strategies during spring migration. These results revealed the diverse migration routes of Common Cuckoos shaped by the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and seasonal variation in migration patterns.

Seasonal climate changes and fluctuations in food resources drive the migratory behavior of birds between their breeding and wintering sites. Migratory birds change their migration routes in response to climate and environmental stresses. Existing studies have indicated that the widely distributed Eurasian Common cuckoo migrates individually during the night, necessitating further research to elucidate its global migration routes. From 2018 to 2021, the migration routes of 13 adult Common cuckoos breeding in the north of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau were tracked using satellite trackers. We found that (1) the migration routes of this Common cuckoo population mainly separate into three directions: 8 individuals followed the western routes along the western edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the south, 3 individuals traversed the eastern routes along the eastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the rest 2 opted for the middle routes across most of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the south. (2) Individual marked with the identifier 201907 exhibited a consistent stopover site selection during autumn migration. However, it changed the breeding area after spring migration. (3) In the context of autumn migration, 4 tracked Common cuckoos (50%) along the western migratory routes exhibited a consistent preference for the Hotan area in Xinjiang as their stopover site. Concurrently, 3 individuals (100%) traversing the eastern migratory route consistently selected stopover locations in the vicinity of Baoshan city, Yunnan. (4) The migration speed of Common cuckoos is significantly higher in spring than in autumn, and the stopover duration of spring migration is significantly lower than that of autumn migration. The daily flight time of spring migration is concentrated between 0–12 clock, while that of autumn migration is between 0–6 clock. (5) Migration routes of the Central Asian Common cuckoo population were limited by the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. The population exhibited high levels of plasticity, with individuals with longer wings tending to select the east and middle routes, while shorter wings were observed more frequently in the west route. Our findings reveal that central Asian common cuckoo populations exhibit a preference for a minimum-time strategy during spring migration, with migration routes selected based on wing length.

The golden snub-nosed monkey (GSNM), Rhinopithecus roxellana, is an endangered species on the IUCN Red List, and the Yuhe National Nature Reserve in Gansu is one of its principal habitats. The GSNM’s protection and management rely heavily on predicting its probable suitable habitat. The Maxent model was used to examine the habitat suitability of GSNM in the Yuhe Nature Reserve and surrounding areas. Infrared cameras used to monitor GSNM in 2019–2020 provided the model with data. Through analysis and screening, 23 distribution sites of GSNM and five environmental variables were included in the final model. The findings revealed that the Yuhe Nature Reserve’s area of appropriate habitat for GSNM was 248.43 km2, accounting for 52.79 percent of the reserve’s total area and that this was concentrated in the core zone. The Maxent model was optimized using the Kuenm package, and the resulting value reached an exceptional level of 0.948. A Jackknife test revealed that the mean diurnal range was the most important environmental factor affecting the distribution of GSNM (45.84%). Finally, the planning of the reserve was generally in line with the predictions, and the functional zoning could be altered accordingly. We advised extending the reserve southward based on the study’s findings, while strengthening the supervision of marginal areas of the reserve.

Background Parental investment by birds is limited by the habitat environment, and a male parent increases its effort to reproduce in birds that live in high-altitude areas. Methods A study of the reproductive behaviour of the Saxaul Sparrow ( Passer ammodendri ) and the Isabelline Shrike ( Lanius isabellinus ) was carried out at the Gansu An’xi Extremely Arid Desert National Nature Reserve in northwest China to determine the reproductive input of passerine species in desert habitats. Results In Saxaul Sparrows, compared to the female parent, the male parent exhibited a significantly higher frequency of nest-defense behaviour (chirping and warning) during nesting, hatching and feeding periods. In addition, in comparison to the female parent, the male parent exhibited almost equal frequencies of nesting and incubation but fed nestlings significantly more times. Similar to the male sparrows, the feeding rates of the male Isabelline Shrikes were significantly higher than those of the females. The hatching rate and fledging rate of the Saxaul Sparrow on average in this study were 81.99 and 91.92%, respectively, while those of the shrike were 69.00 and 96.53%, respectively. Conclusions These two different passerine species living in the same desert environment exhibited the same trend in their reproductive investments. Adapting to desert environments is a strategy that may have evolved in passerines where male parent birds put more effort than females into reproduction to ensure high reproductive output.