Data for: Determinants of natal dispersal distances in North American birds

Natal dispersal—the movement from birth site to first breeding
site—determines demographic and population genetic dynamics and has
important consequences for ecological and evolutionary processes. Recent
work suggested that one of the main factors determining natal dispersal
distances is the cost of locomotion. We evaluated this hypothesis using
band-recovery data to estimate natal dispersal distances for 50 North
American bird species. We then analysed the relationships between
dispersal distances and a suite of morphological and ecological
predictors, including proxies for the cost of locomotion (flight
efficiency), using phylogenetic regression models. We found that flight
efficiency, population size and habitat influence natal dispersal
distances. We discuss how the effects of population size and habitat can
also be related to mobility and locomotion. Our findings are consistent
with a predominant effect of adaptations for mobility on dispersal
distances.