The description of a new subspecies of Bar-tailed Godwit begs two questions, ‘How do we identify new subspecies?’ and ‘Is the concept of a subspecies helpful?’. Put simply, the answers are ‘That depends’ and ‘Yes, especially when subspecies are the focus for conservation action’.
A new study of Bar-tailed Godwits, and the proposal to identify Limosa lapponica yamalensis as a new race, usefully highlight the importance of the flyway between Siberia and the Arabian Sea and the challenges being faced by waders that use this migration route.
Limosa lapponica yamalensis
Bar-tailed Godwits breed across the whole of northern Eurasia and in Alaska. Since the last Ice Age, following glacial retreat, new breeding opportunities in northern latitudes have become available to waders. The emergence of separate migration flyways, linking wintering and breeding areas, has led to a divergence of the species into a number of distinct populations, some…
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