Autumn migration strategy of Asian Dowitcher (Limnodromus semipalmatus) from eastern Mongolia

The Asian dowitcher (Limnodromus semipalmatus) breeds in the wetlands of southeast Siberia, Mongolia, and northeast China. It is a Near Threatened shorebird species that only occurs in East Asian Australasian Flyway (EAAF) sites. It is reported that its wintering area extends from East India to South Asia, but its migration route remains unknown. Identifying specific migration routes and migratory stopovers is essential for conserving the declining Asian dowitcher populations. We deployed mobile based transmitters that provide information within the mobile network on eight Asian dowitchers from the eastern Mongolia. Based on this information, the migration route, distance, wintering area, time, and speed of migration of the Asian dowitcher were determined. Asian dowitchers passed through China's Bohai Sea and Lianyungang coast to Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore for the winter. This species adopted a coastal migration strategy and traveled an average distance of 4,833 km to reach its wintering grounds. They recover their energy after a long rest and travel long distances in a short time. The duration of the autumn migration varied from individual to individual but averaged 47 days (min=14, max=90). Lianyungang, located on the east coast of China, is an important stopover site for the Asian dowitcher, and the tracked individuals landed and rested in this area. During autumn migration, eight Asian dowitchers used 14 stop over sites along the coast, of which two were nature reserves, three were provincial and local protected areas, three were protected areas near cities, and the remaining six were densely populated areas with no protection.