Descrizione

Birds living in high-elevation mountain areas are currently threatened by climate change and human-induced habitat modifications. Predictive models based on future climatic scenarios indicate that especially those species that are strictly associated to high-elevation open areas will suffer a severe breeding range reduction and fragmentation. In this unfavourable context, high dispersal ability is crucial to allow colonization or re-colonization of suitable habitat patches, and to guarantee the interchange of individuals among isolated breeding areas, and therefore sufficient levels of gene flow to reduce the probability of inbreeding and genetic drift. However, the current knowledge about the dispersal ability of high-altitude birds is very scarce, and this limits our capability to predict future distribution trends and to implement adequate conservation measures.

The proposed project aims at filling this important knowledge gap, following a strongly innovative approach that combines genomics and landscape ecology. 

Our aims are: 

1. to assess the gene flow level in two bird species that are highly representative of high-elevation open areas, the Water Pipit Anthus spinoletta and the White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis, across a wide area in the central-eastern European Alps (South Tyrol and Trentino) which shows a north-south gradient in the fragmentation of the habitat suitable for these birds; if habitat fragmentation reduces gene flow, we expect to find gene flow limitations in the southern and more isolated breeding sites; 
2. to assess the effects on gene flow of a variety of environmental characteristics (land use, climate, topography), comparing the isolation by distance hypothesis (dispersal is limited by the geographic distance) with the isolation by resistance hypothesis (dispersal is influenced by the characteristics of the landscape matrix separating distinct breeding areas).

This approach allows obtaining very detailed information about dispersal and gene flow, and will be applied for the first time for high-elevation birds. Besides providing completely new information about these species, this study will provide also useful indications for conservation and habitat management.

The research network that proposes the project includes: 

• Francesco Ceresa and Petra Kranebitter (Museum of Nature South Tyrol, lead partner); 
• Paolo Pedrini (Museum of Science of Trento – MUSE); 
• Laura Kvist (University of Oulu, Finland); 
• Andreas Hilpold and Matteo Anderle (Institute for Alpine Environment, Eurac Research); 
• scientific collaborators: Mattia Brambilla and Alessandro Franzoi.

Partner

Lead Partner Azienda Musei provinciali, Museo di Science Naturali Alto Adige