Early life conditions influence fledging success and subsequent local recruitment rates in a declining migratory songbird, the Whinchat .

Life history traits and environmental conditions influence reproductive success in animals, and consequences of these can influence subsequent survival and recruitment into breeding populations. Understanding influences on demographic rates is required to determine the causes of decline. Migratory species experience spatially and temporally variable conditions across their annual cycle, making identifying where the factors influencing demographic rates operate challenging.