Full description
This dataset contains modelled monthly migration patterns across Bass Strait for three priority shorebird species: Curlew Sandpiper (Calidris ferruginea), Far Eastern Curlew (Numenius madagascariensis) and Red Knot (Calidris canutus). The species were selected from a suite of priority species identified by NOPSEMA and DCCEEW, building on species priorities investigated under NESP MaC Project 3.21. Modelling for Siberian Sand Plover (Anarhynchus mongolus) was not progressed because insufficient records were available from Tasmania. Migration was modelled using BirdFlow, a population-level movement model that infers migration routes, timing and connectivity from weekly relative-abundance distributions. Available telemetry, banding and re-sighting data were used to evaluate and select candidate model configurations. The spatial outputs represent the rate (predicted number of crossings per 1 km grid cell) during each month of an average annual migration cycle. Separate raster products are provided for northward and southward movement, together with combined northward + southward transit surfaces. Values represent transit through a cell rather than occupancy or the number of birds present at a location. A single simulated bird may contribute to multiple cells as it moves across the landscape. The models were developed to support assessment of shorebird exposure to offshore renewable energy development in Bass Strait as part of NESP Hub Project 4.7. The products are intended for comparison of the spatial and seasonal intensity of migratory movement, including movement through and around offshore renewable energy areas. ***This data is under development. Access to the finalised spatial data will be provided once finalised, estimated early 2027.***Lineage
Maintenance and Update Frequency: notPlanned
Statement: Weekly relative-abundance surfaces were developed for Curlew Sandpiper, Far Eastern Curlew and Red Knot from eBird and Australian bird-monitoring data using hurdle models. These weekly surfaces were aligned to a common 10 km grid and normalised to form spatial probability distributions for input to BirdFlow. Because the study species migrate outside the assessment domain during parts of the year, an abundance-conservation procedure used artificial absorbing cells to account for birds entering or leaving the observable modelling domain.
BirdFlow models were evaluated using available telemetry, banding and re-sighting information, including data from Movebank, the Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme and BirdMark. Selected models were used to simulate migration trajectories, which were rasterised to a 1 km grid and aggregated by calendar month and migration direction.
Pixel values represent modelled bird passages through each grid cell and are transit counts rather than occupancy estimates. An individual crossing several cells contributes to each cell crossed. A spatial confidence weighting was used to reduce the influence of simulated trajectories in areas poorly supported by the underlying relative-abundance data.
Each Cloud Optimised GeoTIFF contains 12 bands corresponding to JanuaryโDecember monthly transit counts. Separate products are provided for northward and southward migration, with a combined product derived by summing northward and southward values for each grid cell and month.
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The dataset contains three 12-band raster products for each species:
*_transit_count_north.tif = modelled northward migration through each 1 km grid cell.
*_transit_count_south.tif = modelled southward migration through each 1 km grid cell.
*_transit_count_combined.tif = combined northward and southward migration, calculated as the sum of the directional values for each cell and month.
The selected BirdFlow model configuration is indicated in the filename: configuration 19 (Curlew Sandpiper and Far Eastern Curlew); configuration 37 (Red Knot). The model identifier denotes the selected BirdFlow hyperparameter configuration. Monthly bands describe an average annual migration cycle rather than observations from a specific calendar year.
Notes
CreditThe data collections described in this record are funded by the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) through the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub. In addition to NESP (DCCEEW) funding, this project is matched by an equivalent amount of in-kind support and co-investment from project partners and collaborators.
Issued: 10 10 2026
Data time period: 2015-01-01 to 2025-12-31
text: westlimit=133.00; southlimit=-45.00; eastlimit=157.00; northlimit=-30.00
Subjects
AGRICULTURE |
ANIMAL ECOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR |
ANIMAL SCIENCE |
ANIMALS/VERTEBRATES |
BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION |
Biological Sciences |
BIOSPHERIC INDICATORS |
BIRDS |
Behavioural Ecology |
CLIMATE INDICATORS |
Calidris canutus |
Calidris ferruginea |
Community Ecology |
EARTH SCIENCE |
Ecology |
Marine and Estuarine Ecology (Incl. Marine Ichthyology) |
Migratory shorebirds |
National Environmental Science Program (NESP) Marine and Coastal Hub |
Numenius madagascariensis |
Offshore renewable energy |
Offshore wind farms |
SANDPIPERS |
SPECIES MIGRATION |
biota |
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Other Information
global : 7e1f590e-a75e-47d7-83d6-8a5aaa730eb7
NESP MaC Project 4.7 - Development of regional modelling and risk assessments to inform offshore renewable decision-making, 2024-2027 (CSIRO)
raid :
10.71676/c08a3bc3
Identifiers
- DOI : 10.25959/MEMW-XC92
- global : 707d5675-d528-41a9-8eab-6b1fe80db57d
