For millennia, humans have been fascinated by the long-distance migrations that many birds undergo to find food, reproduce, and survive. In recent decades, scientists have observed that some populations are not migrating as far as their ancestors did. Why is it that some individuals stop their migration short while others continue to adopt traditional, long-distance migrations? What are the consequences of these changing behaviors for migratory species, and what are the seasonal mechanisms and cues involved in shaping these changes?

Numerous correlations have been established between facets of global change and avian performance, but prediction of how migratory birds will respond in the future will require deeper investigations into the seasonality of global change. To unveil a more mechanistic understanding of how global change has affected migratory birds, and will affect them in the future, our goal is to feature a collection of studies that reveal novel inference attained by studying the seasonal, cross-seasonal, and carry-over effects on migratory birds at multiple levels.

We welcome novel papers from studies of migratory birds that explicitly i) compare the effects of global change across seasons, ii), evaluate cross-seasonal effects of global change experienced in a given season on birds in subsequent seasons at the population or higher levels of organization, or iii) evaluate the carry-over influence of global change experienced in a given season on individual-level processes in subsequent seasons. Studies addressing any combination of these themes may focus on any type of relevant trait (e.g., physiological, morphological, behavioral, phenology) or process (e.g., evolutionary, population, community, and ecosystem-level processes and dynamics).

Aspects of Anthropogenic global change can include:

* climate change
* land-use change
* changes in hydrology or use of water
* pollution (air, light, noise, water)

Moreover, we welcome several types of manuscripts, including:

* research articles
* review papers
* special features of long-terms studies
* concept papers
* short communications

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Frontiers in Bird Science

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Impact