Weimerskirch H. auteur aut IRD Borsa Philippe auteur aut IRD Cruz S. auteur aut IRD de Grissac S. auteur aut IRD Gardes L. auteur aut IRD Lallemand J. auteur aut IRD Le Corre M. auteur aut IRD Prudor A. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf reformatted digital access Migratory behavior varies extensively between bird taxa, from long distance migration to purely sedentary behavior. Variability in migratory behavior also occurs within taxa, where individuals within some species, or even populations, show mixed strategies. The same variability occurs in seabird species. We examined the migratory behavior of distinct populations of great frigatebirds Fregata minor in three distant oceanographic basins. Great frigatebird populations showed extensive variation in post-breeding migratory behavior. Birds from Europa Island (Mozambique Channel) made long-distance migration to numerous distinct roosting sites in the Indian Ocean, New Caledonia birds made shorter distance migrations to roosting sites in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, and Galapagos birds were resident within the archipelago year round. Juvenile birds from Europa Is. and New Caledonia dispersed widely whereas Galapagos juveniles were resident year round. The migratory behavior of Europa Is. and New Caledonia resulted in complete separation of foraging grounds between breeding adults, non-breeding adults, and juveniles, whereas in the Galapagos the overlap was complete. We suggest that population variability in migratory behavior may have arisen because of different environmental conditions at sea, and also depends on the availability of suitable roosting sites on oceanic islands. The results also highlight the capacity of frigatebirds to remain airborne most of the time even outside the breeding season when they have to molt. specialized NOUVELLE CALEDONIE 034 080 48 1 103-113 2017 0908-8857 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010069330 10.1111/jav.01330 0908-8857 [F B010069330] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010069330 https://horizon.documentation.ird.fr/exl-doc/pleins_textes/divers17-04/010069330.pdf IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2017-05-09 2023-07-11 fdi:010069330 fre