Science at UM [S04-ep22]: The Migration Routes of Seabirds
This week on "Science at UM," Marie-Morgane Rouyer, a doctoral student at CEFE, reveals the migratory routes of seabirds. Louise Nyssen, co-director of’Ires, gets us to play with math, and the pharmacy students’ association invites us to visit a giant colon. A show airing every Wednesday at 6 p.m. on Divergence.
From dawn each day, between November and March, they gather in the reed beds of the Scamandre River for a chance to watch the cranes take flight as they leave their roost and head for their feeding grounds. A mere four months remain before these famous migratory birds—whose numbers are growing as they spend the winter in the Camargue—return to Northern Europe to breed. These are undoubtedly the same people who, starting in April, stroll about with their noses in the air, hoping to catch that little black flash that signals the return of the swallows.
Green-winged teals, purple herons, lesser kestrels—migratory birds hold a certain fascination for us, one that can easily be attributed to the mysteries and ever-renewed magic of their eternal returns. While the migratory routes of land and coastal birds have long been relatively well known to researchers and naturalists, the same cannot be said for seabirds and their great intercontinental odysseys.
It is high time, however, that our conservation policies paid greater attention to the fate of these great migratory birds, many of which are classified as endangered species. To provide a framework for international cooperation, researchers have mapped and identified six marine migration routes across the world’s oceans. This groundbreaking cross-species study included the participation of Marie-Morgane Rouyer. We had already interviewed her two years ago upon her return from COP 15 on biodiversity; she is now continuing her thesis at CEFE, the Center for Functional and Evolutionary Ecology. A study published in Global Ecology and Biogeography.
In the second part of the program, we continue our visit toIRES, the Research Institute for Science Education, which aims to bridge the gap between research and secondary education. This time, we’re focusing on mathematics with Louise Nyssen, its co-director and a specialist in number theory at Imag. She offers us a unique approach: math that you can manipulate, fit together, and cut up—with surprising results designed to capture the attention of young children.
Finally, our last-minute guest is Leonardo Zezza, vice president for social affairs and public health at the Montpellier Pharmacy Students’ Association. He’ll be introducing the “Côlon Tour,” which will be stopping by the Pharmacy campus tomorrow between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Read:
- The study: " Global Marine Flyways Identified for Long-Distance Migrating Seabirds Using Tracking Data," February 16, 2025.
Listen:
- Science Has Fun: From Seabird Migration to Earth’s Movements, 2021
- Science at UM: From COP15 to the Science Bar, 2023
At UM Science, you’ve got the program—let’s get started!
Co-production: Divergence FM / University of Montpellier
Host: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Interview: Lucie Lecherbonnier / Aline Périault
Reporting and editing: Aline Périault / Lucie Lecherbonnier
Director: Robin Laillou
Tune in to the show “A l’UM la science” on Divergence FM 93.9
