View source for Wind and Bird Migration Modeling

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==The influence of  wind selectivity on migratory behavioral strategies==

'''Abstract:''' Air and water currents affect the timing and energy expenditure of many migratory animals, and therefore selection of favorable 
currents is important for optimal migratory performance. However, waiting for favorable currents also incurs costs. Here we conduct an 
optimality  analysis  to  determine  how  wind  selectivity  affects  3  migratory  currencies:  time,  energy,  and  risk.  To  describe  variation  in  
these metrics under varying degrees of selectivity, we constructed an individual-based model to simulate fall migration of passerines 
across eastern North America, allowing birds to use different thresholds of wind profit as the criterion for daily departure. A gradient 
of thresholds were tested across a range of realistic wind currents, from initiating flights only on nights when winds were directed in 
their preferred migratory direction (highly selective), to flying under most wind conditions (low selectivity). Our analysis indicated that 
relative mortality risk was lowest at intermediate selectivity; energy expended during flight was least for the most selective individuals; 
and of those that successfully completed migration, time spent on migration was lowest for the least selective birds. We solved for the 
optimal range of wind selectivity and show that this departure criterion alone can produce a tradeoff between time and energy that has 
been  seen  in  many  other  behavioral  contexts.  While  we  solved  for  optima  using  some  conditions  specific  to  eastern  North  America,  
we show that variation in wind selectivity at departure can produce migratory behaviors that mimic the classic “time-minimizer” and 
“energy-minimizer” strategies developed from measurements of wild birds across multiple continents.
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<pdf>File:McCabeBirdMigration.pdf</pdf>


doi:10.1093/beheco/arx141

J. D. McCabe, B. J. Olsen, B. Osti, P. O. Koons, The influence of wind selectivity on migratory behavioral strategies. Behavioral Ecology. 29, 160–168 (2017).