Objective
In order to quantify the effects of climate change and habitat destruction on bird migration routes, we require a reliable and non-fatal method of locating the end-points of migratory birds. There is also a vital need to accurately establish the origins of migratory birds to better monitor and control the dispersion of zoonotic diseases, such as avian flu. Traditional bird ringing methods have very low recovery rates and radio-satellite transmitters are only suitable for large-size bird species. This multi-disciplinary project is designed to test the veracity of combined state-of-the-art radiogenic (Sr-Pb) and stable (δD-δ18O- δ13C-δ15N) isotope analysis of bird feathers to monitor migration. Feathers are keratine-based tissues that are inert after growth and their isotopic signature will record a signal indicative of the environment of their production. We will study European-breeding Pied and Collared Flycatchers that migrate to Africa in winter. Feathers have been collected from 23 different sites across Europe during the breeding season and by sampling different parts of the plumage, feathers produced on both breeding and wintering grounds are collected simultaneously. To ground-truth the multi-isotope approach, we will undertake a detailed study of feathers from the island of Gotland (Sweden), which has a varied but well mapped geology. The isotopic signatures of feathers will be compared to environment indicators such as rainwater, soils, bird prey and vegetation. This will determine which environmental proxies best correlate with the bird feathers and the spatial/geographical resolution of Sr-Pb isotope ratios. Subsequently, studies of feathers from Europe will establish if the technique can distinguish breeding European locations and constrain the wintering locations in Africa. This will allow future study of the extent of climate change induced variation in migration routes by comparing the isotopic composition of new and existing feather collections.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology ornithology
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences atmospheric sciences climatology climatic changes
- medical and health sciences health sciences public health epidemiology zoonosis
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences geology
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP7-PEOPLE-2007-2-1-IEF
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
1081 HV Amsterdam
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.