The Great Migration A Study Of Animal Movement Across Continents

"The Great Migration: A Study of Animal Movement Across Continents" offers a comprehensive exploration of the awe-inspiring phenomenon of animal migration. From the sweeping plains of Africa to the icy tundras of the Arctic, this book delves into the epic journeys undertaken by diverse species as they traverse continents in search of sustenance, breeding grounds, and survival. Through captivating narratives and scientific insights, readers will gain a profound understanding of the challenges and triumphs experienced by migratory animals, shedding light on the intricate web of life that spans the globe. This compelling study celebrates the resilience and adaptability of wildlife, illuminating the interconnectedness of ecosystems and the enduring spirit of the natural world.

Finalist for the 2021 PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award A Library Journal Best Science & Technology Book of 2020 A Publishers Weekly Best Nonfiction Book of 2020 2020 Goodreads Choice Award Semifinalist in Science & Technology A prize-winning journalist upends our centuries-long assumptions about migration through science, history, and reporting--predicting its lifesaving power in the face of climate change. The news today is full of stories of dislocated people on the move. Wild species, too, are escaping warming seas and desiccated lands, creeping, swimming, and flying in a mass exodus from their past habitats. News media presents this scrambling of the planet's migration patterns as unprecedented, provoking fears of the spread of disease and conflict and waves of anxiety across the Western world. On both sides of the Atlantic, experts issue alarmed predictions of millions of invading aliens, unstoppable as an advancing tsunami, and countries respond by electing anti-immigration leaders who slam closed borders that were historically porous. But the science and history of migration in animals, plants, and humans tell a different story. Far from being a disruptive behavior to be quelled at any cost, migration is an ancient and lifesaving response to environmental change, a biological imperative as necessary as breathing. Climate changes triggered the first human migrations out of Africa. Falling sea levels allowed our passage across the Bering Sea. Unhampered by barbed wire, migration allowed our ancestors to people the planet, catapulting us into the highest reaches of the Himalayan mountains and the most remote islands of the Pacific, creating and disseminating the biological, cultural, and social diversity that ecosystems and societies depend upon. In other words, migration is not the crisis--it is the solution. Conclusively tracking the history of misinformation from the 18th century through today's anti-immigration policies, The Next Great Migration makes the case for a future in which migration is not a source of fear, but of hope.

Despite the wealth of natural historical research conducted on migration over decades, there is still a dearth of hypothesis-driven studies that fully integrate theory and empirical analyses to understand the causes and consequences of migration, and a taxonomic bias towards birds in much migration research. This book takes a comparative, integrated view of animal migration, linking evolution with ecology and management, theory with empirical research, and embracing all the major migratory taxa (including human pastoralists). The scope extends beyond the target organism to consider the ecosystem-level dynamics of migration. The emphasis is on exciting new research avenues that are now opening up, whether due to advances in our understanding of migration as a biological phenomenon or through the availability of a range of new technologies. Broad themes that emerge include integrating migration into the broad spectrum of movement behaviour, the need for a comparative and cross-taxonomic approach that considers migration at a range of temporal and spatial scales, and examination of the key roles of resource uncertainty and spatial heterogeneity in driving migratory behaviour. The book identifies the potential for new tools to revolutionise the study of migration, including satellite-tracking technology, genomics, and modelling - all of which are linked to increasing computing power. We are now on the verge of a breakthrough in migration research, which is crucial given the multiple threats that face the conservation of migration as a phenomenon, including climate change.

Adopts a broad, cross-taxonomic approach to animal movement across both temporal and spatial scales; addresses how and why animals move, and in what ways they differ in their locomotion and navigation performance; synthesizes our current knowledge of the genetics of movement/migration, including gene flow and local adaptations; provides a future perspective on how patterns of animal migration may change over time, together with the potential evolutionary consequences.--Provided by publisher.

Tracking Animal Migration with Stable Isotopes, Second Edition, provides a complete introduction to new and powerful isotopic tools and applications that track animal migration, reviewing where isotope tracers fit in the modern toolbox of tracking methods. The book provides background information on a broad range of migration scenarios in terrestrial and aquatic systems and summarizes the most cutting-edge developments in the field that are revolutionizing the way migrant individuals and populations are assigned to their true origins. It allows undergraduates, graduate students and non-specialist scientists to adopt and apply isotopes to migration research, and also serves as a useful reference for scientists. The new edition thoroughly updates the information available to the reader on current applications of this technique and provides new tools for the isotopic assignment of individuals to origins, including geostatistical multi-isotope approaches and the ways in which researchers can combine isotopes with routine data in a Bayesian framework to provide best estimates of animal origins. Four new chapters include contributions on applications to the movements of terrestrial mammals, with particular emphasis on how aspects of animal physiology can influence stable isotope values. Includes an animal physiology component that is an in-depth overview of the cautions and caveats related to this technique Covers marine and aquatic isoscapes and methods to track marine organisms for researchers trying to apply isotopic tracking to animals in these environments Features state-of-the-art statistical treatments for assignment and combining diverse datasets

Adopts a broad, cross-taxonomic approach to animal movement across both temporal and spatial scales; addresses how and why animals move, and in what ways they differ in their locomotion and navigation performance; synthesizes our current knowledge of the genetics of movement/migration, including gene flow and local adaptations; provides a future perspective on how patterns of animal migration may change over time, together with the potential evolutionary consequences.--Provided by publisher.

Examines several animals and their great migrations, ranging in size from the army ant to the sperm whale.

This study of migration in nature shows how comparisons across taxa can illuminate migratory life cycles & the relation of migration to other movements; it takes an integrated ecological perspective, focusing on migration as a biological phenomenon. Dingle defines migration, gives examples, & places migration in the spectrum of movement behaviors. Also, focuses on proximate mechanisms; the evolution of migratory life histories; & a brief consideration of migration & its relation to pest management & conservation. This work will be valued by researchers & students in the fields of animal behavior, ecology, & zoology. Illustrated.