| avian reservoirs and zoonotic potential of the emerging human pathogen helicobacter canadensis. | a polyphasic identification approach was used to investigate the taxonomic position of campylobacter-like isolates recovered from barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) and canada geese (branta candensis). seven strains were selected from a collection of 21 isolates and analyzed by extensive phenotypic testing; four strains were characterized by 16s rrna gene sequence analysis. the results clearly identified the bird isolates as helicobacter canadensis, recently described as an emerging human pathoge ... | 2003 | 14660407 |
| serosurvey for toxoplasma gondii in arctic foxes and possible sources of infection in the high arctic of svalbard. | samples (blood or tissue fluid) from 594 arctic foxes (alopex lagopus), 390 svalbard reindeer (rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus), 361 sibling voles (microtus rossiaemeridionalis), 17 walruses (odobenus rosmarus), 149 barnacle geese (branta leucopsis), 58 kittiwakes (rissa tridactyla), and 27 glaucous gulls (larus hyperboreus) from svalbard and nearby waters were assayed for antibodies against toxoplasma gondii using a direct agglutination test. the proportion of seropositive animals was 43% in ar ... | 2007 | 17950534 |
| a comparison and evaluation of techniques for diagnosis of avian tuberculosis in wildfowl. | to control the epizootic of avian tuberculosis within the collections of captive wildfowl of the wildfowl and wetlands trust an efficacious vaccine and a reliable diagnostic test are required. a number of potential diagnostic tests were compared for sensitivity and specificity using a flock of 178 feral barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) at the wildfowl and wetland trust's centre at slimbridge, gloucestershire. evaluations were made of: serodiagnosis by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa ... | 1993 | 18671045 |
| energetics and kinematics of walking in the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). | barnacle geese were walked on a treadmill at speeds ranging from 0.25 to 1.25 ms(-1), which was their highest sustainable speed. no evidence for a gait change was found. the gait of a barnacle goose appears to conform to the classical pendulum mechanics based model of walking, with the kinetic energy of forward motion (horizontal kinetic energy, e(kh)) out-of-phase with the sum of the gravitational potential (e(p)), and vertical kinetic (e(kv)) energies of the centre of mass at all speeds. why b ... | 2010 | 20138237 |
| the mallard duck (anas platyrhynchos) as intermediate host for sarcocystis wobeseri sp. nov. from the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). | morphometric and dna investigation results of sarcocystis wobeseri sp. nov. from the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis) and sarcocystis sp. (cyst type iv) from the mallard duck (anas platyrhynchos) are presented. no significant morphometric differences between the investigated sarcocystis species were found. its-1, 18s rrna, and 28s rrna gene sequences of these species showed 100% identity. the conclusion is drawn that it is one and the same sarcocystis species in different intermediate hosts. | 2010 | 20567986 |
| enhancement of local species richness in tundra by seed dispersal through guts of muskox and barnacle goose. | the potential contribution of vertebrate-mediated seed rain to the maintenance of plant community richness in a high arctic ecosystem was investigated. we analyzed viable seed content in dung of the four numerically most important terrestrial vertebrates in northeast greenland - muskox (ovibos moschatus), barnacle goose (branta leucopsis), arctic fox (alopex lagopus) and arctic hare (lepus arcticus). high numbers of plant propagules were found in the dung of muskox and barnacle goose. seeds of m ... | 2008 | 17990003 |
| spatial, temporal, and species variation in prevalence of influenza a viruses in wild migratory birds. | although extensive data exist on avian influenza in wild birds in north america, limited information is available from elsewhere, including europe. here, molecular diagnostic tools were employed for high-throughput surveillance of migratory birds, as an alternative to classical labor-intensive methods of virus isolation in eggs. this study included 36,809 samples from 323 bird species belonging to 18 orders, of which only 25 species of three orders were positive for influenza a virus. informatio ... | 2007 | 17500589 |
| mtdna from fossils reveals a radiation of hawaiian geese recently derived from the canada goose (brantacanadensis). | phylogenetic analysis of 1.35 kb of mtdna sequence from fossils revealed a previously unknown radiation of hawaiian geese, of which only one representative remains alive (the endangered hawaiian goose or nene, branta sandvicensis). this radiation is nested phylogenetically within a living species, the canada goose (branta canadensis) and is related most closely to the large-bodied lineage within that species. the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis) is also nested within the canada goose species an ... | 2002 | 11818543 |
| fatty acid binding protein in heart and skeletal muscles of the migratory barnacle goose throughout development. | the long-distance migratory flights of birds are predominantly fueled by the oxidation of fatty acids, which are sourced primarily from extracellular adipose stores. these fatty acids have to be transported, via the circulatory system, to the mitochondria of the active muscles. an important facilitator of fatty acid transport within the cytoplasm of muscle cells is fatty acid binding protein (fabp), which serves as an intracellular carrier of long-chain fatty acids. in mammals, the muscular fabp ... | 1999 | 10070122 |
| recovery of ecosystem carbon fluxes and storage from herbivory. | the carbon (c) sink strength of arctic tundra is under pressure from increasing populations of arctic breeding geese. in this study we examined how co2 and ch4 fluxes, plant biomass and soil c responded to the removal of vertebrate herbivores in a high arctic wet moss meadow that has been intensively used by barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) for ca. 20 years. we used 4 and 9 years old grazing exclosures to investigate the potential for recovery of ecosystem function during the growing season (ju ... | 2017 | 26069352 |
| bryophyte dna sequences from faeces of an arctic herbivore, barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). | we tested dna extraction methods and pcr conditions for the amplification of bryophyte dna from barnacle goose (branta leucopsis) faeces collected from spitsbergen (svalbard). both the qiagen stool kit and a silica-based extraction method received sufficient dna from fresh and older droppings, as indicated by successful amplification of the plastid psba-trnh spacer. standard taq polymerase outperformed two hot start polymerases. sequencing of cloned pcr products revealed at least ten moss and tw ... | 2011 | 21429154 |
| the isotope composition of carbon and oxygen in eggshell of barnacle goose branta leucopsis. | | 2016 | 21562962 |
| wild geese do not increase flight behaviour prior to migration. | hypertrophy of the flight muscles is regularly observed in birds prior to long-distance migrations. we tested the hypothesis that a large migratory bird would increase flight behaviour prior to migration, in order to cause hypertrophy of the flight muscles, and upregulate key components of the aerobic metabolic pathways. implantable data loggers were used to record year-round heart rate in six wild barnacle geese (branta leucopsis), and the amount of time spent in flight each day was identified. ... | 2012 | 22090201 |
| a vocal-based analytical method for goose behaviour recognition. | since human-wildlife conflicts are increasing, the development of cost-effective methods for reducing damage or conflict levels is important in wildlife management. a wide range of devices to detect and deter animals causing conflict are used for this purpose, although their effectiveness is often highly variable, due to habituation to disruptive or disturbing stimuli. automated recognition of behaviours could form a critical component of a system capable of altering the disruptive stimuli to av ... | 2012 | 22737037 |
| baseline immune activity is associated with date rather than with moult stage in the arctic-breeding barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). | variation in immune defence in birds is often explained either by external factors such as food availability and disease pressure or by internal factors such as moult and reproductive effort. we explored these factors together in one sampling design by measuring immune activity over the time frame of the moulting period of arctic-breeding barnacle geese (branta leucopsis). we assessed baseline innate immunity by measuring levels of complement-mediated lysis and natural antibody-mediated agglutin ... | 2014 | 25517982 |
| management of a dutch resident barnacle goose branta leucopsis population: how can results from counts, ringing and hunting bag statistics be reconciled? | the resident dutch northern delta barnacle geese branta leucopsis population expanded steadily since birds first bred in 1982, increasing agricultural conflict. derogation shooting has been used since 2005 to scare geese from sensitive crops and to reduce population size. numbers almost doubled to ca. 28 000 individuals during 2007-2014, despite annual removal of 15-25% of geese and adult and juvenile survival rates of 79 and 67% (cf. natural survival of 96% for both age classes). simple populat ... | 2017 | 28215014 |
| potential for an arctic-breeding migratory bird to adjust spring migration phenology to arctic amplification. | arctic amplification, the accelerated climate warming in the polar regions, is causing a more rapid advancement of the onset of spring in the arctic than in temperate regions. consequently, the arrival of many migratory birds in the arctic is thought to become increasingly mismatched with the onset of local spring, consequently reducing individual fitness and potentially even population levels. we used a dynamic state variable model to study whether arctic long-distance migrants can advance thei ... | 2017 | 28295932 |
| the influence of load carrying on the energetics and kinematics of terrestrial locomotion in a diving bird. | the application of artificial loads to mammals and birds has been used to provide insight into the mechanics and energetic cost of terrestrial locomotion. however, only two species of bird have previously been used in loading experiments, the cursorial guinea fowl (numida meleagris) and the locomotor-generalist barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). here, using respirometry and treadmill locomotion, we investigate the energetic cost of carrying trunk loads in a diving bird, the tufted duck (aythya f ... | 2013 | 24244861 |
| heart rate and the rate of oxygen consumption of flying and walking barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) and bar-headed geese (anser indicus). | we tested the hypotheses that the relationship between heart rate (fh) and the rate of oxygen consumption ((o(2))) differs between walking and flying in geese and that fh and (o(2)) have a u-shaped relationship with flight speed. we trained barnacle geese branta leucopsis (mean mass 2.1 kg) and bar-headed geese anser indicus (mean mass 2.6 kg) to walk inside a respirometer on a treadmill and to fly in a wind tunnel with a respirometry mask at a range of speeds. we measured fh and (o(2)) simultan ... | 2002 | 12324544 |
| pre-breeding survival of barnacle geese branta leucopsis in relation to fledgling characteristics. | pre-breeding survival, i.e. survival from fledging up to the third winter, of barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) was analysed by using more than 45000 resightings of 1302 individually marked birds. since observations from the wintering areas only were used, the survival estimates obtained were not confounded by natal dispersal. post-fledging survival, i.e. survival from fledging to the start of the first winter, differed significantly among the 10 cohorts analysed. these differences were related ... | 1998 | 26412374 |
| altitude matters: differences in cardiovascular and respiratory responses to hypoxia in bar-headed geese reared at high and low altitudes. | bar-headed geese (anser indicus) fly at high altitudes during their migration across the himalayas and tibetan plateau. however, we know relatively little about whether rearing at high altitude (i.e. phenotypic plasticity) facilitates this impressive feat because most of what is known about their physiology comes from studies performed at sea level. to provide this information, a comprehensive analysis of metabolic, cardiovascular and ventilatory responses to progressive decreases in the equival ... | 2016 | 27385754 |
| towards a solution to the goose-agriculture conflict in north norway, 1988-2012: the interplay between policy, stakeholder influence and goose population dynamics. | this paper presents results from a multidisciplinary study of a negotiation process between farmers and wildlife authorities which led to an agricultural subsidy scheme to alleviate conflicts between agriculture and geese in norway. the svalbard-breeding population of pink-footed geese anser brachyrhynchus has increased considerably over the last decades and conflicts with farmers have escalated, especially at stopover sites in spring when geese feed on newly sprouted pasture grass. in vesteråle ... | 2013 | 23977175 |
| reconciling competing values placed upon goose populations: the evolution of and experiences from the islay sustainable goose management strategy. | the scottish island of islay hosts 45 000 barnacle geese branta leucopsis (56% of the greenland barnacle goose population, plus those passing through on migration), 5000 greenland white-fronted geese anser albifrons flavirostris (up to 30% of the world population) and 2500 greylag geese anser anser, most of which feed on 9000 ha of grassland. the financial impacts of estimated agricultural damage have risen greatly over the past 20 years due to increasing goose numbers and higher farming costs. ... | 2017 | 28215016 |
| the development of a genome wide snp set for the barnacle goose branta leucopsis. | migratory birds are of particular interest for population genetics because of the high connectivity between habitats and populations. a high degree of connectivity requires using many genetic markers to achieve the required statistical power, and a genome wide snp set can fit this purpose. here we present the development of a genome wide snp set for the barnacle goose branta leucopsis, a model species for the study of bird migration. we used the genome of a different waterfowl species, mallard a ... | 2012 | 22808008 |
| personality predicts the use of social information. | the use of social information is known to affect various important aspects of an individual's ecology, such as foraging, dispersal and space use and is generally assumed to be entirely flexible and context dependent. however, the potential link between personality differences and social information use has received little attention. in this study, we studied whether use of social information was related to personality, using barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, where boldness is a personality trait ... | 2010 | 20482585 |
| load carrying during locomotion in the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis): the effect of load placement and size. | load carrying has been used to study the energetics and mechanics of locomotion in a range of taxa. here we investigated the energetic and kinematic effects of trunk and limb loading in walking barnacle geese (branta leucopsis). a directly proportional relationship between increasing back-load mass and metabolic rate was established, indicating that the barnacle goose can carry back loads (up to 20% of body mass) more economically than the majority of mammals. the increased cost of supporting an ... | 2010 | 20153444 |
| [the aerobic bacterial intestinal flora of various wintering geese species]. | the aerobic fecal flora of wintering brent goos (branta bernicla), barnacle goose (branta leucopsis), greylag goose (anser anser), white-fronted goose (anser albifrons), pink-footed goose (anser brachyrhynchus), and bean goose (anser fabalis) was studied. there were no specific differences between the various geese. bacterial counts were in the range of 10(5)-10(7) cpu per gram of feces. neither pathogenic bacteria nor rotavirus could be detected in the fecal samples of the wintering geese, so t ... | 1982 | 7136353 |
| predicting the rate of oxygen consumption from heart rate in barnacle geese branta leucopsis: effects of captivity and annual changes in body condition. | quantifying a relationship between heart rate (f(h)) and rate of oxygen consumption (v(o(2))) allows the estimation of v(o(2)) from f(h) recordings in free-ranging birds. it has been proposed that this relationship may vary throughout an animal's annual cycle, due to changes in physiological status. barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, provide an ideal model to test this hypothesis, as they exhibit significant intra-annual variability in body mass, body composition and abdominal temperature, even i ... | 2009 | 19717676 |
| testing the use/disuse hypothesis: pectoral and leg muscle changes in captive barnacle geese branta leucopsis during wing moult. | previous studies on wild moulting waterfowl have demonstrated that flight and leg muscles experience periods of hypertrophy and atrophy. this is thought to be in response to the change in use of the locomotor muscles as described in the use/disuse hypothesis. we tested this hypothesis using captive barnacle geese. forty geese were dissected before, during and after wing moult, to determine the changes in mass and functional capacity of the flight and leg muscles. physiological cross sectional ar ... | 2009 | 19617433 |
| skipping the baltic: the emergence of a dichotomy of alternative spring migration strategies in russian barnacle geese. | 1. since the early 1990s, an increasing proportion of barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, bound for breeding sites in the russian arctic delay their departure from the wintering quarters in the wadden sea by 4 weeks. these late-migrating geese skip spring stopover sites in the baltic traditionally used by the entire population. 2. individual geese from an arctic colony tracked by satellite or light-level geolocators during spring migration in 2004 and 2005 predominantly followed the new strategy, ... | 2009 | 19120596 |
| evaluation of the deuterium dilution method to estimate body composition in the barnacle goose: accuracy and minimum equilibration time. | we examined body composition in barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) by proximate carcass analysis and by deuterium isotope dilution. we studied the effect of isotope equilibration time on the accuracy of total body water (tbw) estimates and evaluated models to predict fat-free mass (ffm) and fat mass (fm) from different measurements varying in their level of invasiveness. deuterium enrichment determined at 45, 90, and 180 min after isotope injection did not differ significantly. at all sampling in ... | 2015 | 18513149 |
| annual changes in body mass and resting metabolism in captive barnacle geese (branta leucopsis): the importance of wing moult. | many different physiological changes have been observed in wild waterfowl during the flightless stage of wing moult, including a loss of body mass. we aimed to determine whether captive barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) would show the characteristic decrease in body mass during their wing moult, even though they had unlimited and unrestricted access to food. fourteen captive geese were weighed at 1-2-week intervals for two complete years. during the flightless period of the moult, body mass decr ... | 2007 | 17401121 |
| the metabolic cost of walking on gradients with a waddling gait. | using open-flow respirometry and video footage (25 frames s(-1)), the energy expenditure and hindlimb kinematics of barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, were measured whilst they were exercising on a treadmill at gradients of +7 and -7 deg, and on a level surface. in agreement with previous studies, ascending a gradient incurred metabolic costs higher than those experienced on level ground at comparable speeds. the geese, however, are the first species to show an increased duty factor when ascendin ... | 2012 | 22786634 |
| barnacle geese achieve significant energetic savings by changing posture. | here we report the resting metabolic rate in barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) and provide evidence for the significant energetic effect of posture. under laboratory conditions flow-through respirometry together with synchronous recording of behaviour enabled a calculation of how metabolic rate varies with posture. our principal finding is that standing bipedally incurs a 25% increase in metabolic rate compared to birds sitting on the ground. in addition to the expected decrease in energy consum ... | 2012 | 23071672 |
| telomere dynamics in a long-lived bird, the barnacle goose. | theories of ageing predict a trade-off between metabolism, reproduction, and maintenance. species with low investment in early reproduction are thus expected to be able to evolve more efficient maintenance and repair mechanisms, allowing for a longer potential life span (intrinsic longevity). the erosion of telomeres, the protective caps at the ends of linear chromosomes, plays an important role in cellular and organismal senescence, signalling the onset of age-related disease due to accumulatio ... | 2012 | 23273548 |
| aphid-willow interactions in a high arctic ecosystem: responses to raised temperature and goose disturbance. | recently, there have been several studies using open top chambers (otcs) or cloches to examine the response of arctic plant communities to artificially elevated temperatures. few, however, have investigated multitrophic systems, or the effects of both temperature and vertebrate grazing treatments on invertebrates. this study investigated trophic interactions between an herbivorous insect (sitobion calvulum, aphididae), a woody perennial host plant (salix polaris) and a selective vertebrate graze ... | 2013 | 23749580 |
| genetic consequences of breaking migratory traditions in barnacle geese branta leucopsis. | cultural transmission of migratory traditions enables species to deal with their environment based on experiences from earlier generations. also, it allows a more adequate and rapid response to rapidly changing environments. when individuals break with their migratory traditions, new population structures can emerge that may affect gene flow. recently, the migratory traditions of the barnacle goose branta leucopsis changed, and new populations differing in migratory distance emerged. here, we in ... | 2013 | 24118391 |
| forecasting spring from afar? timing of migration and predictability of phenology along different migration routes of an avian herbivore. | herbivorous birds are hypothesized to migrate in spring along a seasonal gradient of plant profitability towards their breeding grounds (green wave hypothesis). for arctic breeding species in particular, following highly profitable food is important, so that they can replenish resources along the way and arrive in optimal body condition to start breeding early. we compared the timing of migratory movements of arctic breeding geese on different flyways to examine whether flyways differed in the p ... | 2015 | 25117616 |
| the energetics of barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) flying in captive and wild conditions. | experimental data on the relationship between mean heart rate (f(h)) and mean rate of oxygen consumption (vo(2)) of captive barnacle geese during flights in a wind tunnel are assessed in terms of their capacity to predict the typical vo(2) of wild barnacle geese, based on the recordings of their f(h), while undertaking autumn migratory flights between spitsbergen (78 degrees n) and caerlaverock, scotland (55 degrees n). a significant linear relationship has been demonstrated between the f(h) and ... | 2002 | 12208297 |
| seasonal hypothermia in a large migrating bird: saving energy for fat deposition? | we have tested the hypothesis that a large (2 kg) migratory bird, such as the barnacle goose branta leucopsis, becomes hypothermic before its autumn migration, when food is not scarce, but when it is necessary to conserve and/or store energy in the form of fat. abdominal temperature (t(ab)) was measured in wild geese using an implanted data logger. commencing a few days before and continuing until approximately 20 days after the start of their autumn migration, mean daily t(ab) fell progressivel ... | 2001 | 11249844 |
| subordinates explore but dominants profit: resource competition in high arctic barnacle goose flocks. | social dominance plays an important role in assessing and obtaining access to patchy or scarce food sources in group-foraging herbivores. we investigated the foraging strategies of individuals with respect to their social position in the group in a flock of nonbreeding, moulting barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, on high arctic spitsbergen. we first determined the dominance rank of individually marked birds. the dominance of an individual was best described by its age and its sex-specific body ma ... | 2001 | 11170715 |
| heart rate and rate of oxygen consumption during flight of the barnacle goose, branta leucopsis. | we report the first measurements of heart rate (f(h)) and the rate of oxygen consumption (v(o(2))) during flights from a species of bird larger than 500 g. v(o(2))was obtained from nine forward flapping flights of 8.9 min mean duration at a mean speed of 13.2 m s(-1) performed by three barnacle geese of mean mass 1.68 kg. mean v(o(2))was 332 ml min(-1)or 201 ml min(-1) kg(-1). sixteen flights were obtained from two of these birds equipped with heart rate data loggers, both when they were wearing ... | 2000 | 10964032 |
| tissue-specific effects of hypothyroidism on postnatal muscle development in the barnacle goose. | the hypothesis that tissue-specific levels of thyroid hormones may be required for normal locomotor muscle development was investigated in the barnacle goose branta leucopsis. hypothyroidism was induced in goslings by treatment with methimazole from either 3 days or 2 weeks of age, and birds were killed at 7 weeks of age. the masses of the pectoralis, iliofibularis, semimembranosus and cardiac ventricle muscles were measured, and samples from these tissues were analysed for the mass-specific act ... | 1998 | 9464963 |
| comparative development in captive and migratory populations of the barnacle goose. | the development of the locomotory muscles and associated skeletal structures of goslings and adults from a captive population of barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) was compared with that from a wild migratory population. there was no significant difference between flight-muscle development of wild and captive goslings up to 7 wk of age, when the birds are first able to fly. in contrast, mass-specific citrate-synthase activity in the semimembranosus leg muscle of the captive goslings was significa ... | 2006 | 9548652 |
| vegetation growth and a seasonal habitat shift of the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). | barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) wintering on the island of schiermonnikoog in the netherlands abruptly switch all their foraging activities from a dairy pasture (a 'polder') to an adjacent salt-marsh during the early spring. we present evidence to show that this shift is related to changes in the quality of the diet available in these different habitats. barnacle geese shift from polder to salt-marsh at the precise time that these are equal in dietary protein availability, which occurs as the ... | 1985 | 28310823 |
| no evidence that migratory geese disperse avian influenza viruses from breeding to wintering ground. | low pathogenic avian influenza virus can mutate to a highly pathogenic strain that causes severe clinical signs in birds and humans. migratory waterfowl, especially ducks, are considered the main hosts of low pathogenic avian influenza virus, but the role of geese in dispersing the virus over long-distances is still unclear. we collected throat and cloaca samples from three goose species, bean goose (anser fabalis), barnacle goose (branta leucopsis) and greater white-fronted goose (anser albifro ... | 2017 | 28542340 |
| a history of hybrids? genomic patterns of introgression in the true geese. | the impacts of hybridization on the process of speciation are manifold, leading to distinct patterns across the genome. genetic differentiation accumulates in certain genomic regions, while divergence is hampered in other regions by homogenizing gene flow, resulting in a heterogeneous genomic landscape. a consequence of this heterogeneity is that genomes are mosaics of different gene histories that can be compared to unravel complex speciation and hybridization events. however, incomplete lineag ... | 2017 | 28830337 |
| colony kin structure and host-parasite relatedness in the barnacle goose. | conspecific brood parasitism (cbp), females laying eggs in the nest of other 'host' females of the same species, is a common alternative reproductive tactic among birds. for hosts there are likely costs of incubating and rearing foreign offspring, but costs may be low in species with precocial chicks such as waterfowl, among which cbp is common. waterfowl show strong female natal philopatry, and spatial relatedness among females may influence the evolution of cbp. here we investigate fine-scale ... | 2009 | 19889040 |
| the effect of personality on social foraging: shy barnacle geese scrounge more. | animals foraging in groups can either search for food themselves (producing) or search for the food discoveries of other individuals (scrounging). tactic use in producer-scrounger games is partly flexible but individuals tend to show consistency in tactic use under different conditions suggesting that personality might play a role in tactic use in producer-scrounger games. here we studied the use of producing and scrounging tactics by bold and shy barnacle geese (branta leucopsis), where boldnes ... | 2010 | 19864281 |
| forage plants of an arctic-nesting herbivore show larger warming response in breeding than wintering grounds, potentially disrupting migration phenology. | during spring migration, herbivorous waterfowl breeding in the arctic depend on peaks in the supply of nitrogen-rich forage plants, following a "green wave" of grass growth along their flyway to fuel migration and reproduction. the effects of climate warming on forage plant growth are expected to be larger at the arctic breeding grounds than in temperate wintering grounds, potentially disrupting this green wave and causing waterfowl to mistime their arrival on the breeding grounds. we studied th ... | 2017 | 28428856 |
| predation danger can explain changes in timing of migration: the case of the barnacle goose. | understanding stopover decisions of long-distance migratory birds is crucial for conservation and management of these species along their migratory flyway. recently, an increasing number of barnacle geese breeding in the russian arctic have delayed their departure from their wintering site in the netherlands by approximately one month and have reduced their staging duration at stopover sites in the baltic accordingly. consequently, this extended stay increases agricultural damage in the netherla ... | 2010 | 20614027 |
| the effect of impaired thyroid function during development on the mechanical properties of avian bone. | thyroid hormones show fluctuating levels during the post-hatching development of birds. in this paper we report the results of the first mechanical tests to quantify the effect of hypothyroidism, during post-natal development, on the skeletal properties of a precocial bird, the barnacle goose, as determined by microhardness testing. the effect of hypothyroidism is tissue-specific; bone from the femora of birds is not significantly affected by induced hypothyroidism, however, there is a strong po ... | 2004 | 15286943 |
| body size declines despite positive directional selection on heritable size traits in a barnacle goose population. | analyses of more than 2000 marked barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) in the largest baltic colony, sweden, showed that structurally large females generally produced larger clutches and larger eggs, hatched their broods earlier in the season, and produced more and heavier young than smaller females. in males, the corresponding relationships between reproductive parameters and structural body size were weaker or nonsignificant. because structural body size traits have previously been found to be si ... | 1998 | 28565228 |
| development of metabolic enzyme activity in locomotor and cardiac muscles of the migratory barnacle goose. | preflight development of the goslings was typified by rapid increases in the mitochondrial enzymes of the semimembranosus and heart ventricular muscles resulting in near-adult values by 3 wk of age. in contrast, aerobic capacity of the pectoralis muscle initially developed slowly but showed a rapid increase between 5 and 7 wk of age, in preparation for becoming airborne. activities of glycolytic enzymes in the pectoralis muscle showed similar patterns of development as those found for the aerobi ... | 1995 | 7631904 |
| genetic and social inheritance of body and egg size in the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). | we present heritability estimates for final size of body traits and egg size as well as phenotypic and genetic correlations between body and egg traits in a recently established population of the barnacle goose (branta leucopsis) in the baltic area. body traits as well as egg size were heritable and, hence, could respond evolutionarily to phenotypic selection. genetic correlations between body size traits were significantly positive and of similar magnitude or higher than the corresponding pheno ... | 1992 | 28564970 |
| a morphometric analysis of the lungs of high-altitude ducks and geese. | we examined the morphology of the lungs of five species of high-altitude resident ducks from lake titicaca in the peruvian andes (yellow-billed pintail [anas georgica], cinnamon teal [anas cyanoptera orinomus], puna teal [anas puna], speckled teal [anas flavirostris oxyptera], and ruddy duck [oxyura jamaicensis ferruginea]) and compared them with those of the high-altitude migratory bar-headed goose (anser indicus) and the low-altitude migratory barnacle goose (branta leucopsis). we then determi ... | 2020 | 32173858 |
| respiratory mechanics and morphology of tibetan and andean high-altitude geese with divergent life histories. | high-altitude bar-headed geese (anser indicus) and andean geese (chloephaga melanoptera) have been shown to preferentially increase tidal volume over breathing frequency when increasing ventilation during exposure to hypoxia. increasing tidal volume is a more effective breathing strategy but is also thought to be more mechanically and metabolically expensive. we asked whether there might be differences in the mechanics or morphology of the respiratory systems of high-altitude transient bar-heade ... | 2018 | 29180602 |
| diel pattern of corticosterone metabolites in arctic barnacle goslings (branta leucopsis) under continuous natural light. | here we describe the excretion pattern of corticosterone metabolites collected from droppings in barnacle goslings (branta leucopsis) raised under 24 hours of continuous natural light in the arctic. in lower latitudes, circulating corticosterone peaks around waking and shows a nadir between midnight and 4:00, whereas the peak and nadir are time-delayed slightly when measuring corticosterone metabolites from droppings. photoperiod, along with other environmental factors, helps to entrain an anima ... | 2017 | 28787012 |
| a study of the progression of damage in an axially loaded branta leucopsis femur using x-ray computed tomography and digital image correlation. | this paper uses x-ray computed tomography to track the mechanical response of a vertebrate (barnacle goose) long bone subjected to an axial compressive load, which is increased gradually until failure. a loading rig was mounted in an x-ray computed tomography system so that a time-lapse sequence of three-dimensional (3d) images of the bone's internal (cancellous or trabecular) structure could be recorded during loading. five distinct types of deformation mechanism were observed in the cancellous ... | 2017 | 28652932 |
| indices of stress and immune function in arctic barnacle goslings (branta leucopsis) were impacted by social isolation but not a contaminated grazing environment. | in many areas around the arctic remains and spoil heaps of old mines can be found, which have been abandoned after their heydays. runoff from tailings of these abandoned mines can directly contaminate the local environment with elevated concentrations of trace metals. few studies have investigated the possible negative effects of contaminants on arctic terrestrial animals that use these areas. trace metals can accumulate in animals and this accumulation has been linked to negative effects on fit ... | 2017 | 28550726 |
| flight feather moult drives minimum daily heart rate in wild geese. | waterfowl undergo an annual simultaneous flight-feather moult that renders them flightless for the duration of the regrowth of the flight feathers. in the wild, this period of flightlessness could restrict the capacity of moulting birds to forage and escape predation. selection might therefore favour a short moult, but feather growth is constrained and presumably energetically demanding. we therefore tested the hypothesis that for birds that undergo a simultaneous flight-feather moult, this woul ... | 2018 | 30487260 |
| arctic geese tune migration to a warming climate but still suffer from a phenological mismatch. | climate warming challenges animals to advance their timing of reproduction [1], but many animals appear to be unable to advance at the same rate as their food species [2, 3]. as a result, mismatches can arise between the moment of largest food requirements for their offspring and peak food availability [4-6], with important fitness consequences [7]. for long-distance migrants, adjustment of phenology to climate warming may be hampered by their inability to predict the optimal timing of arrival a ... | 2018 | 30033332 |
| mercury associated neurochemical response in arctic barnacle goslings (branta leucopsis). | | 2018 | 29929222 |
| contrasting consequences of climate change for migratory geese: predation, density dependence and carryover effects offset benefits of high-arctic warming. | climate change is most rapid in the arctic, posing both benefits and challenges for migratory herbivores. however, population-dynamic responses to climate change are generally difficult to predict, due to concurrent changes in other trophic levels. migratory species are also exposed to contrasting climate trends and density regimes over the annual cycle. thus, determining how climate change impacts their population dynamics requires an understanding of how weather directly or indirectly (through ... | 2020 | 31436007 |
| site selection by geese in a suburban landscape. | in european and north american cities geese are among the most common and most visible large herbivores. as such, their presence and behaviour often conflict with the desires of the human residents. fouling, noise, aggression and health concerns are all cited as reasons that there are "too many". lethal control is often used for population management; however, this raises questions about whether this is a sustainable strategy to resolve the conflict between humans and geese when, paradoxically, ... | 2020 | 33024625 |
| avian influenza overview - update on 19 november 2020, eu/eea and the uk. | since 16 october 2020, outbreaks ofhighly pathogenic avian influenza (hpai) viruseshavebeen reported inseveral eu/eeacountries -belgium, denmark, france, germany, ireland, the netherlands, and swedenas well asin the united kingdom.as of 19 november,12pm, 302 hpai a(h5) detections have been reported, with the majority of the detections referring to wild birds (n=281), and a few related to outbreaks in poultry (n=18) and captive birds (n=3). most of the detections in wild birds were in wild waterb ... | 2020 | 33281979 |
| ingestion of anthropogenic debris by migratory barnacle geese branta leucopsis on a remote north-eastern atlantic island. | although seabirds are frequently used as sentinel species for anthropogenic pollution, the extent and impacts of synthetic debris ingestion remains poorly studied for many water bird species. here, we assess ingestion of synthetic particles (≥0.5 mm) by barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, wintering on a remote island. faecal samples were collected over a period of four wintering seasons. in total, 71 individual samples were assessed, with 79% of samples displaying at least one debris particle (max ... | 2020 | 32853840 |
| temperature and precipitation at migratory grounds influence demographic trends of an arctic-breeding bird. | anthropogenic climate disruption, including temperature and precipitation regime shifts, has been linked to animal population declines since the mid-20th century. however, some species, such as arctic-breeding geese, have thrived during this period. an increased understanding of how climate disruption might link to demographic rates in thriving species is an important perspective in quantifying the impact of anthropogenic climate disruption on the global state of nature. the greenland barnacle g ... | 2020 | 32677737 |
| ontogenetic niche shifts as a driver of seasonal migration. | ontogenetic niche shifts have helped to understand population dynamics. here we show that ontogenetic niche shifts also offer an explanation, complementary to traditional concepts, as to why certain species show seasonal migration. we describe how demographic processes (survival, reproduction and migration) and associated ecological requirements of species may change with ontogenetic stage (juvenile, adult) and across the migratory range (breeding, non-breeding). we apply this concept to widely ... | 2020 | 32529317 |
| high-arctic family planning: earlier spring onset advances age at first reproduction in barnacle geese. | quantifying how key life-history traits respond to climatic change is fundamental in understanding and predicting long-term population prospects. age at first reproduction (afr), which affects fitness and population dynamics, may be influenced by environmental stochasticity but has rarely been directly linked to climate change. here, we use a case study from the highly seasonal and stochastic environment in high-arctic svalbard, with strong temporal trends in breeding conditions, to test whether ... | 2020 | 32264780 |
| climate warming may affect the optimal timing of reproduction for migratory geese differently in the low and high arctic. | rapid climate warming is driving organisms to advance timing of reproduction with earlier springs, but the rate of advancement shows large variation, even among populations of the same species. in this study, we investigated how the rate of advancement in timing of reproduction with a warming climate varies for barnacle goose (branta leucopsis) populations breeding at different latitudes in the arctic. we hypothesized that populations breeding further north are generally more time constrained an ... | 2019 | 31624958 |
| northward range expansion in spring-staging barnacle geese is a response to climate change and population growth, mediated by individual experience. | all long-distance migrants must cope with changing environments, but species differ greatly in how they do so. in some species, individuals might be able to adjust by learning from individual experiences and by copying others. this could greatly speed up the process of adjustment, but evidence from the wild is scarce. here, we investigated the processes by which a rapidly growing population of barnacle geese (branta leucopsis) responded to strong environmental changes on spring-staging areas in ... | 2019 | 31475774 |
| impacts of "supermoon" events on the physiology of a wild bird. | the position of the moon in relation to the earth and the sun gives rise to several predictable cycles, and natural changes in nighttime light intensity are known to cause alterations to physiological processes and behaviors in many animals. the limited research undertaken to date on the physiological responses of animals to the lunar illumination has exclusively focused on the synodic lunar cycle (full moon to full moon, or moon phase) but the moon's orbit-its distance from the earth-may also b ... | 2019 | 31380065 |
| density-dependent population dynamics of a high arctic capital breeder, the barnacle goose. | density regulation of the population growth rate occurs through negative feedbacks on underlying vital rates, in response to increasing population size. here, we examine in a capital breeder how vital rates of different life-history stages, their elasticities and population growth rates are affected by changes in population size. we developed an integrated population model for a local population of svalbard barnacle geese, branta leucopsis, using counts, reproductive data and individual-based ma ... | 2019 | 31032900 |
| stress behaviour and physiology of developing arctic barnacle goslings ( branta leucopsis) is affected by legacy trace contaminants. | natural populations are persistently exposed to environmental pollution, which may adversely impact animal physiology and behaviour and even compromise survival. responding appropriately to any stressor ultimately might tip the scales for survival, as mistimed behaviour and inadequate physiological responses may be detrimental. yet effects of legacy contamination on immediate physiological and behavioural stress coping abilities during acute stress are virtually unknown. here, we assessed these ... | 2018 | 30963902 |
| potential effect of migration strategy on pollutant occurrence in eggs of arctic breeding barnacle geese ( branta leucopsis). | arctic-breeding geese acquire resources for egg production from overwintering grounds, spring stopover sites and breeding grounds, where pollutant exposure may differ. we investigated the effect of migration strategy on pollutant occurrence of lipophilic polychlorinated biphenyls (pcbs) and protein-associated poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (pfass) and mercury (hg) in eggs of herbivorous barnacle geese ( branta leucopsis) from an island colony on svalbard. stable isotopes (δ13c and δ15n) in ... | 2019 | 30938990 |
| avian influenza overview august - december 2020. | between 15 august and 7 december 2020, 561highly pathogenic avian influenza (hpai) virus detections were reported in 15eu/eea countries and uk in wild birds, poultry andcaptive birds, with germany (n=370), denmark (n=65), the netherlands (n=57) being the most affected countries.the majority of the detections have been reported in wild birds(n=510), primarily in barnacle goose, greylag goose, andeurasian wigeon. raptors have also been detected infected, particularly common buzzard. the majority o ... | 2020 | 33343738 |
| does intensive goose grazing affect breeding waders? | increasing goose population sizes gives rise to conflicts with human socioeconomic interests and in some circumstances conservation interests. grazing by high abundances of geese in grasslands is postulated to lead to a very short and homogeneous sward height negatively affecting cover for breeding meadow birds and impacting survival of nests and chicks. we studied the effects of spring grazing barnacle geese branta leucopsis and brent geese branta bernicla on occupancy of extensively farmed fre ... | 2019 | 31938537 |
| avian influenza virus surveillance in high arctic breeding geese, greenland. | the connectedness in arctic regions between migratory waterbird populations originating from different continents and the potential for virus exchange at their shared arctic breeding ground point to the need to explore the largely unstudied circumpolar circulation of avian influenza viruses (aiv). we here report the investigation of aiv in wild birds and lakes in a high arctic area of northeast greenland. no aiv could be detected in the fecal, feather, and water samples collected from large floc ... | 2018 | 29944408 |