Increasing evidence suggests that the environment encountered by migrating landbirds during the nonbreeding season, including temperature and precipitation, may influence individuals and population processes in subsequent seasons. However, to date, most studies have focused on linkages between factors encountered during the wintering and breeding periods in long-distance, primarily insectivorous landbirds. Here, we take advantage of a long-term (23 breeding seasons) data set on the arrival and breeding ecology of female field sparrows (Spizella pusilla), a granivorous, short-distance species that winters in the southeastern USA, to look for time periods (windows) over the preceding winter and spring migratory periods when average daily precipitation or temperature may have influenced when a female arrived at breeding grounds in northeastern Pennsylvania and correlates of seasonal reproductive performance. We employed a sliding window analysis approach using weather data obtained from the south of our site (to evaluate effects of weather experienced during the nonbreeding period) and, separately, near our site (to evaluate effects of weather experienced during the breeding period), finding windows in which temperature and precipitation during the nonbreeding period were associated with arrival timing and clutch initiation day and a window in which temperature experienced during the breeding period was associated with clutch initiation day. We did not, however, find evidence that temperature or precipitation, either during the nonbreeding period or breeding period, was associated with clutch size nor total egg volume. Finally, early arriving females initiated clutches early, produced larger clutches, more nests, and more total eggs than later arriving females. Our findings contribute to the growing body of evidence that events experienced prior to the breeding season may influence individuals and population processes in subsequent seasons.

中文翻译：

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美国宾夕法尼亚州东北部非繁殖期和繁殖期的到达时间和天气对雌性麻雀（Spizella pusilla）繁殖成功相关性的影响

越来越多的证据表明，陆鸟迁徙在非繁殖季节遇到的环境，包括温度和降水，可能会影响随后季节的个体和种群过程。然而，迄今为止，大多数研究都集中在长距离（主要是食虫陆鸟）越冬和繁殖期间遇到的因素之间的联系。在这里，我们利用关于雌性麻雀（Spizella pusilla）的到来和繁殖生态的长期（23 个繁殖季节）数据集，这是一种在美国东南部越冬的食谷短距离物种，在之前的冬季和春季迁徙期间寻找时间段（窗口），其中平均日降水量或温度可能影响雌性何时到达宾夕法尼亚州东北部的繁殖地，并与季节性繁殖性能相关联。我们采用滑动窗口分析方法，使用从我们场地南部（以评估非繁殖期间经历的天气影响）和我们场地附近（评估繁殖期间经历的天气影响）获得的天气数据，发现非繁殖期温度和降水与到达时间和离合器开始日相关的窗口，以及繁殖期温度与离合器开始日相关的窗口。然而，我们并没有，找到证据表明温度或降水，无论是在非繁殖期还是繁殖期，都与产蛋量或总产蛋量有关。最后，早到的雌性比晚到的雌性早开始产卵，产生更大的窝，更多的巢穴和更多的卵。我们的发现有助于越来越多的证据表明繁殖季节之前经历的事件可能会影响随后季节的个体和种群过程。