Reproduction status of Siskins (Carduelis spinus) in Spanish

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2008
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Reproduction status of Siskins (Carduelis spinus) in Spanish
mountains after a strong winter invasion
Marc I. Förschler & Esther del Val
The Siskin (Carduelis spinus) is a Palearctic species, mainly distributed in the boreal zone and in its
southern distribution range in montane and subalpine conifer forests (Cramp & Perrins 1994). Siskins
show strong population fluctuations due to seed crop
availability (Eriksson 1970, Förschler et al. 2006). In
Spain, its general distributional pattern is very irregular and its reproduction is rather scarce (González A.
A. in Purroy 1997; Senar J. C. & Borrás A. in Martí &
Del Moral 2003). Only the Pyrenees and the Cantabric Mountains seem to be used as regular breeding
sites (Senar J. C. & Borrás A. in Martí & Del Moral
2003). Due to this irregularity, population estimates
and distribution range on the Iberian Peninsula show
strong variations. While in the breeding atlas of 1997
(González A. A. in Purroy 1997) its total population
size in Spain was estimated to range from 500-1100
pairs, in the last atlas only 264 pairs were counted
between 1998 and 2001 (Senar J. C. & Borrás A. in
Martí & Del Moral 2003). Accordingly, in the distribution map of this last atlas, evidence for reproduction in the southern part of Spain is lacking completely, although it has been confirmed before (González
A. A. in Purroy 1997).
In winter, significant numbers from Central and Northern Europe may visit in an irruptive way the Iberian
Peninsula (Eriksson 1970; Asensio 1985). During these irruptions Siskins get locally very abundant and
nourrish themselves mainly from pine seeds (Pinus
nigra, Pinus sylvestris, Pinus uncinata). If these seeds are still available in late spring and early summer,
some birds may opportunistically breed in these areas (Payevsky 1973; Senar & Borrás 2004).
During winter 2005/2006 an extraordinary large
number of Siskins visited the mountainous parts of
the Iberian Peninsula (T. Borrás & J. C. Senar, pers.
comm.). Therefore we expected that in the following
spring (2006) a larger number of reproductive birds
might also appear in other Spanish mountain ranges
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Fig. 1 Juvenile Siskin in Sierra de Cazorla, May 2006
/ Tarin juvénile dans la Sierra de Cazorla, mai 2006
(Foto: M.I.Förschler)
Fig. 2 Juvenile Siskin in Sierra de Neila, June 2006 /
Tarin juvénile dans la Sierra de Neila, juin 2006 (Foto:
M.I.Förschler)
possessing suitable habitat conditions and food supply,
beside its regular occurence as a breeding bird in the
Pyrenees and the Cantabric Mountains.
We had the possibility to check this assumption
during a research program on the historical demography of Citril Finches (Carduelis citrinella) in Spanish mountain ranges. Between mid-April and mid-
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Tableau Reproductive status of Siskins Carduelis spinus at ten study sites on the Iberian Peninsula in 2006 after a
strong winter invasion. / Statut reproducteur du Tarin des aulnes sur 10 sites d’étude dans la péninsule Ibérique après
une forte invasion hivernale.
geographic
position /
position géographique
North / nord
site
(coordinates /
coodonnées)
tree species /
espèce d’arbre
Sierra de Urbión
(42º 02’ N / 3º 06’ W)
Pinus sylvestris
June / juin
Sierra de Neila
(42º02’ N / 3º02’ W)
Pinus sylvestris
June /juin
Pinus sylvestris
June /juin
Pinus sylvestris
June /juin
Pinus sylvestris
May / mai
Pinus sylvestris
May / mai
Sierra de Guadarrama Pinus sylvestris
(40º 47’ N / 4º 00’ W)
May / mai
Picos de Europa
(43º04’ N / 5º14’ W)
Sierra de la Demanda
(42°19’ N/ 3°01’ W)
Center / centre Sierra de Javalambre
(40º 03’ N / 0º 50’ W)
Sierra de Albarracín
(40º 31’ N / 1º 39’ W)
South / sud
Sierra Gúdar
(40º 22’ N / 0º 39’ W)
Pinus sylvestris, May / mai
Pinus uncinata
Sierra de Cazorla
(37º 55’ N / 2º 50’ W)
Pinus nigra
Sierra Nevada
Pinus sylvestris
(37º 07’ N / 3º 02’ W)
June 2006 we randomly recorded the appearence of
young Siskins in the following study sites: Sierra de
Cazorla, Sierra Nevada, Sierra Gúdar, Sierra de Javalambre, Sierra de Guadarrama, Sierra de Albarracín,
Sierra de la Demanda, Sierra de Urbión, Sierra de
Neila y Picos de Europa (see Tab. 1).
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month / mois
2008
April-May /
avril-mai
April / avril
observation
at least 5 birds (several
singing males), probably
with young / 5+ oiseaux
(plrs chanteurs), prob.
avec jeunes
several families with young: 15 young catched
2/6, 2 young catched 4/6
(some recently fledged) /
plrs familles avec jeunes:
15 j. capturés le 2/6, 2
le 4/6 (plrs récemment
envolés)
no observation / pas
d’observation
no observation /
pas d’observation
no observation / pas
d’observation
at least 10 birds (several
singing males), probablywith young / 10+ oiseaux
(plrs chanteurs), prob.
avec jeunes
at least 5 birds (several
singing males), probably
with young / 5+ oiseaux
(plrs chanteurs), prob.
avec jeunes
at least 5-10 birds (several
singing males), probably
with young / 5-10+ oiseaux (plrs chanteurs),
prob. avec jeunes
2-3 families with several
young: 1 young catched
13/5 (recently fledged) /
2-3 familles avec plusieurs
jeunes: 1 jeune capturé le
13/5 (récemment envolé)
at least 2 birds /
2+ oiseaux
reproduction
probable
strong / forte
no evidence /
pas de preuve
no evidence /
pas de preuve
no evidence /
pas de preuve
probable
probable
probable
reproduction
no evidence /
pas de preuve
In two of these areas we were able to confirm the expected reproduction in 2006 by capturing recently
fledged Siskins (Fig. 1, 2). Interestingly, one of these
areas was in Sierra de Cazorla in southern Spain. Here
the birds bred in Pinus nigra conifer forest. A rather important number of young birds was also observed and
63
captured in Pinus sylvestris conifer forest of Sierra de
Neila. Both areas provided good reproduction conditions for the species in 2006 due to a high crop fructification. Very probable reproductive activities took place
as well in four more mountain ranges: Sierra de Gúdar,
Sierra de Albarracín, Sierra de Guadarrama and Sierra
de Urbión. No evidence for reproductive activity of Siskins was found in Sierra Nevada, Sierra de Javalambre, Sierra de la Demanda and Picos de Europa.
In spite of its random sampling character, our observational data suggests that after irruption years even
areas which lay very south on the Iberian Peninsula
such as Sierra de Cazorla may be used as “opportunistic” breeding sites, and the distributional pattern in
such years might be more extended than shown in the
distributional maps of the actual Spanish Atlas (Martí
& Del Moral 2003).
It would be highly interesting to study the Iberian breeding populations in more detail, e. g. to observe how the
young birds survive in summer/ autumn, whether they
migrate northwards later in the year or in the following
spring season, or whether they stay the whole year in
Spain and try to reproduce again in their native areas.
The example of Sierra de Neila shows furthermore that
the output of such “opportunistic” breeders may be
rather high under good habitat conditions and could
contribute substantially to the total population of Siskins in Spain.
Acknowledgements - We thank Daniel Alonso, Toni Polo
Aparisi, Juan Arizaga, Toni Borrás, Toni Cabrera, Josep
Cabrera, Juan Calleja, Alfonso Godino, Juan José Lorite,
José Martin and Juan Carlos Senar for assistance.
References
Asensio, B. (1985): Migración e invernada en España de
Lúganos (Carduelis spinus, L.) de origen europeo. Ardeola, 32: 179-186.
Cramp, S. & Perrins, C. M. (1994): The birds of the western Palearctic, Vol. 8. University press, Oxford.
Eriksson, K. (1970): Autumn migration and wintering ecology
of the Siskins Carduelis spinus. Ornis Fennica, 47: 52-69.
Förschler, M .I., Förschler, L. & Dorka, U. (2006): Flowering intensity of spruces Picea abies and the population
dynamics of siskins Carduelis spinus, common crossbills
Loxia curvirostra, and citril finches Carduelis citrinella. Ornis Fennica, 83: 91-96.
Martí, R & Del Moral, J. C. (Eds.) (2003): Atlas de las
Aves Reproductoras de España. Dirección General de
Conservación de la Naturaleza-Sociedad Española de Ornitología. Madrid.
Payevsky, V. A. (1973): Bird migration atlas according to
ringing data in the Kur Bay (Kaliningrad). In Bykhovskii,
B. E. (Ed.): Bird migrations. Ecological and physiological
factors, pp. 1-124. John Wiley & Sons. New York.
Purroy, F. J. (Edt.) (1997): Atlas de las aves de España
(1975-1995). Lynx Editions. Barcelona.
Senar, J. C. & Borrás, A (2004): Sobrevivir al invierno: estrategias de las aves invernantes en la Península Ibérica.
Ardeola, 51: 133-168.
Marc I. Förschler
Institute of Avian Research (IfV)
“Vogelwarte Helgoland”
An der Vogelwarte, 21
D-26386 Wilhelmshaven. Germany
[email protected]
Esther del Val
C/ Cruz del Sur, 1
28007 Madrid
[email protected]
Résumé - Statut reproducteur du Tarin des aulnes (Carduelis spinus) dans les montagnes espagnoles après
une forte invasion hivernale
En hiver, des nombres importants de Tarins originaires d’Europe centrale et nordique peuvent visiter la
péninsule Ibérique, où ils se nourrissent des graines de pin (Pinus nigra, Pinus sylvestris, Pinus uncinata). Si ces graines restent accessibles au printemps et au début de l’été, certains oiseaux peuvent
nicher dans ces zones. L’importance de l’invasion de l’hiver 2005-2006 poussa les auteurs à effectuer
au printemps des observations sur des points échantillons répartis dans divers massifs espagnols. La
nidification, probable dans plusieurs sites (voir Tableau 1), fut prouvée par la capture de jeunes récemment envolés, notamment dans la Sierra de Cazorla (Andalousie), où les oiseaux ont dû nicher dans une
forêt de Pinus nigra. Les cartes de répartition du Tarin du dernier atlas des oiseaux nicheurs d’Espagne
(Martí & Del Moral, 2003) pourraient donc être étendues à ces zones.
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