Data from: Supportive wind conditions influence offshore movements of Atlantic Coast piping plovers (Charadrius melodus melodus) during fall migration

In advance of large-scale development of offshore wind energy facilities throughout the U.S. Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), information on the migratory ecology and routes of federally threatened Atlantic coast Piping Plovers (Charadrius melodus melodus) is needed to conduct risk assessments pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. We tagged adult Piping Plovers (n = 150) with digitally-coded VHF transmitters at two breeding areas within the southern New England region of the U.S. Atlantic Coast from 2015 to 2017. We tracked their migratory departure flights using a regional automated telemetry network (n = 30 stations) extending across a portion of the U.S. Atlantic Bight region, a section of the U.S. Atlantic coast and adjacent waters of the Atlantic Ocean extending from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Most adults departed within a 10-d window from 19 – 29 July, migrated nocturnally, and over 75% of individuals departed within 3-hrs of local sunset on evenings with supportive winds. Piping Plovers migrated offshore directly across the mid-Atlantic Bight, from breeding areas in southern New England to stopover sites spanning from New York to North Carolina, USA, over 800 km away. During offshore migratory flights, Piping Plovers flew at estimated mean speeds of 42 km/hr and altitudes of 288 m (range of model uncertainty: 36 – 1,031 m). This study provides new information on the timing, weather conditions, routes and altitudes of Piping Plovers during fall migration. This information can be used in estimations of collision risk that could potentially result from the construction of offshore wind turbines under consideration across large areas of the U.S. Atlantic OCS.

在美国大西洋外大陆架（Outer Continental Shelf, OCS）大规模开发海上风能设施前，需获取受联邦保护的大西洋海岸笛鸻（Charadrius melodus melodus）的迁徙生态学特征与迁徙路线信息，以依据《濒危物种法》开展风险评估。2015年至2017年，研究团队在美国大西洋海岸新英格兰南部区域的两处繁殖地，为150只成年笛鸻佩戴了数字编码甚高频（VHF）发射器。研究人员依托覆盖美国大西洋湾部分区域的自动化遥测网络（共30个监测站点），追踪这些笛鸻的迁徙起飞行为；该网络范围北起马萨诸塞州科德角，南至北卡罗来纳州哈特拉斯角，涵盖美国大西洋海岸及毗邻的大西洋海域。多数成年笛鸻的迁徙起飞集中于7月19日至29日的10天窗口期内，且均于夜间迁徙；超75%的个体在当地日落后的3小时内，于伴随适宜风力的傍晚起飞。笛鸻直接跨大西洋湾中部海域飞行，从新英格兰南部的繁殖地飞往距离超800公里、跨度覆盖美国纽约州至北卡罗来纳州的中途停歇地。在跨洋迁徙飞行期间，笛鸻的平均飞行速度约为42千米/小时，平均飞行高度为288米（模型不确定性区间为36至1031米）。本研究阐明了笛鸻秋季迁徙的时间、气象条件、迁徙路线及飞行高度等全新信息，该数据可用于评估美国大西洋外大陆架大片区域拟议建设的海上风力发电机组可能引发的碰撞风险。