May 12, 2015 12:05 PM EDT
Massive bird invasions taking place across the United States and Canada, a phenomenon that has long puzzled scientists and birdwatchers alike, is reportedly linked to climate shifts, new research indicates.
Over the years, vast numbers of birds from Canada's boreal forests have migrated hundreds-of-thousands of miles south from their usual winter range. While previous studies have blamed these so-called irruptions on food shortages, it seems that climate also plays a role. Specifically, persistent shifts in rainfall and temperature drive boom-and-bust cycles in forest seed production, which in turn drive the mass migrations of pine siskins.
"It's a chain reaction from climate to seeds to birds," atmospheric scientist and lead author Court Strong, from the University of Utah, said in a news release.
"We've known for a long time that weather was probably important, but prior analyses by ecologists have been unable to identify exactly what role weather was playing in this phenomenon," says ecologist Walt Koenig, a senior scientist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and co-author of the new study incorporating climate science. "It's a good example of the value of interdisciplinary work," added study co-author Walt Koenig.
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