Full-service hotels, convenience stores, or fire-escapes: evaluating fall stopover sites for Neotropical migratory songbirds in the northern Yucatan Peninsula

Neotropical migratory songbirds have recently exhibited widespread population declines. The functional value of a stopover site is essential when prioritizing sites for the conservation and management of Neotropical migrants. We evaluated the function and quality of two sites along the southern Gulf of Mexico in the fall: Contoy Island National Park (14 km east of mainland) and El Eden Ecological Reserve (mainland) in Quintana Roo, Mexico. We considered capture rates and physical condition of common migratory species and estimates of stopover behavior based on automated radio-telemetry for two focal species: Swainson’s Thrush (Catharus ustulatus) and Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus). We captured 2,694 migrants in 2014 and 2015. Capture rates varied by site (0.49 birds/net hour at Contoy, 0.26 birds/net hour at Eden). The distribution of fat ( ̃ score 2) and lean (—score 1) birds was not different between sites (x2 =0.92, df=2, p =0.6). We estimated minimum stopover duration for 71 individuals. Mean stopover duration did not differ by site (F1, 68 = 1.48, p = 0.22, R2 = 0.02) but departure direction did (F1, 61= 9.18, p = 0.003, R2 = 0.13). Migrants departed Contoy heading west towards mainland Mexico whereas birds at Eden departed south. Based on our data Contoy appears to function as a lower quality site, demonstrated by the higher proportion of birds departing in a seasonally inappropriate direction. Our results will inform conservation and management activities in the Yucatan Peninsula and contribute to the development of full-life-cycle conservation plans for Neotropical migratory songbir