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Tape lures swell bycatch on a Mediterranean island harbouring illegal bird trapping

View ORCID ProfileMatteo Sebastianelli, Georgios Savva, Michaella Moysi, View ORCID ProfileAlexander N. G. Kirschel
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.03.13.991034
Matteo Sebastianelli
1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, PO Box 20537, Nicosia 1678, Cyprus
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Georgios Savva
1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, PO Box 20537, Nicosia 1678, Cyprus
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Michaella Moysi
1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, PO Box 20537, Nicosia 1678, Cyprus
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Alexander N. G. Kirschel
1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, PO Box 20537, Nicosia 1678, Cyprus
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  • For correspondence: kirschel@ucy.ac.cy
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Abstract

Mediterranean islands are critical for migrating birds, providing shelter and sustenance for millions of individuals each year. Humans have long exploited bird migration through hunting and illegal trapping. On the island of Cyprus, trapping birds during their migratory peak is considered a local tradition, but has long been against the law. Illegal bird trapping is a lucrative business, however, with trappers using tape lures that broadcast species’ vocalizations because it is expected to increase numbers of target species. Yet, by how much the use of song playback increases capture rates remains underappreciated. In particular, it is not known whether song playback of target species affects bycatch rates. Here, we show with the use of playback experiments that song playback is highly effective in luring birds towards trapping sites. We found that playback increases six to eight times the number of individuals of target species captured, but also significantly increases bycatch. Our findings thus show that in contrast to popular belief that tape lures are a selective trapping method, they also lead to increased captures of non-target species, which can include species of conservation concern.

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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
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Posted March 15, 2020.
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Tape lures swell bycatch on a Mediterranean island harbouring illegal bird trapping
Matteo Sebastianelli, Georgios Savva, Michaella Moysi, Alexander N. G. Kirschel
bioRxiv 2020.03.13.991034; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.03.13.991034
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Tape lures swell bycatch on a Mediterranean island harbouring illegal bird trapping
Matteo Sebastianelli, Georgios Savva, Michaella Moysi, Alexander N. G. Kirschel
bioRxiv 2020.03.13.991034; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.03.13.991034

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