Spring and summer predation on fish by the Antarctic fur seal, Arctocephalus gazella, at King George Island, South Shetland Islands

1999 ◽  
Vol 77 (7) ◽  
pp. 1157-1160 ◽  
Author(s):  
G A Daneri ◽  
A R Carlini
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Relative Proportion ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Arctocephalus Gazella ◽  
King George Island ◽  
Pleuragramma Antarcticum ◽  
Fish Prey ◽  
Austral Spring ◽  
Shetland Islands ◽  
Fur Seals

The fish component of the diet of nonbreeding male Antarctic fur seals, Arctocephalus gazella, was analyzed from 70 scats collected at Stranger Point, King George Island, South Shetland Islands, during the austral spring (n = 36) and summer (n = 34) of 1993-1994. Fish occurred in approximately 70% of scats that contained food remains irrespective of season. In spring, the main fish prey were Electrona antarctica, Pleuragramma antarcticum, and Notolepis coatsi, which together gave two-thirds of the 110 otoliths recovered. In summer, 457 otoliths were retrieved; the most frequent and abundant species were Gymnoscopelus nicholsi, E. antarctica, and P. antarcticum, which represented over 80% of the otoliths recovered. A substantial increase in the amount of fish ingested by fur seals occurred from spring to summer concomitant with a change in the relative proportion of fish taxa. Most fish species identified are pelagic and feed on krill. During the study period, commercial fishing in the area was not based upon any of the fish species identified.

The present status of the Antarctic Fur Seal Arctocephalus gazella at South Shetland Islands

Polar Record ◽  
1978 ◽  
Vol 19 (119) ◽  
pp. 167-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anelio Aguayo L.
Keyword(s):  
Present Status ◽  
Previous History ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Arctocephalus Gazella ◽  
Antarctic Fur Seal ◽  
Shetland Islands ◽  
Fur Seals ◽  
Fur Seal ◽  
The Antarctic

The purpose of this paper is to report on the present status of the small but growing population of the Antarctic Fur Seal Arctocephalus gazella in the South Shetland Islands (Fig 1). The previous history of the sealing of this species is well documented by O'Gorman (1961, 1963), Bonner and Laws (1964) and Bonner (1964,1968). The current status of this and other species of fur seals, and the species of sea lions and true seals in the Southern Hemisphere, has been summarized by Laws (1973a). Bonner (1968) has made natural history and population studies on Antarctic Fur Seals in South Georgia, and present research here is being carried out by Dr M. R. Payne and two other colleagues of the British Antarctic Survey (Laws, 1973b).

scholarly journals Comparative analysis of the diet of Arctocephalus gazella (Pinnipedia), at two localities of the South Shetland Islands, with emphasis on the fish component

2021 ◽  
Vol 111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana Descalzo ◽  
Gustavo A. Daneri ◽  
Javier Negrete ◽  
Aldo Corbalán ◽  
Esteban Barrera-Oro
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Feeding Habits ◽  
Euphausia Superba ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Arctocephalus Gazella ◽  
The South ◽  
Scotia Sea ◽  
Shetland Islands ◽  
Important Prey ◽  
Fur Seals

ABSTRACT We studied the diet of non-breeding male Antarctic fur Seals Arctocephalus gazella (Peters, 1875) at two different localities of the South Shetland Islands: Stranger Point, King George Island/Isla 25 de Mayo and Duthoit Point, Nelson Island, by the analysis of 65 faecal samples collected in February 2012. Overall, Antarctic krill Euphausia superba (Dana, 1850) and fish were the main prey taxa followed by penguins and cephalopods. Myctophids were dominant among fish; Gymnoscopelus nicholsi (Gilbert, 1911) was the most important prey species at both sampling sites, followed by Electrona antarctica (Gunther, 1878) at Stranger Point and by the nototheniid Pleuragramma antarctica (Boulenger, 1902) at Duthoit Point. The relative similarity found in the dietary composition of fur seals from both locations suggest they might have been sharing common feeding areas. Our results were compared with those reported in the literature for different localities of the South Shetland Islands and the Scotia Sea region. The absence of formerly harvested demersal notothenioid species in the diet of fur seals may reflect the negative impact that commercial fisheries had on some fish populations and supports the importance of implementing long-term monitoring studies on the feeding habits of A. gazella in the area.

The summer diet of demersal fish at the South Shetland Islands

1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 407-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masanori Takahashi ◽  
Tetsuo Iwami
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Demersal Fish ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Fish Prey ◽  
Shetland Islands ◽  
Antarctic Marine ◽  
Dietary Component ◽  
Gobionotothen Gibberifrons ◽  
The Antarctic

The stomach contents of demersal fish in late January 1982 were analysed. Samples were taken at 100, 300 and 500 m depth south of Elephant Island, Bransfield Strait and north of Livingston Island, and at 800 m to the east of Smith Island. Fifty four taxa of fish belonging to 11 families were collected. The diets of 2101 fish representing 38 taxa were examined. These were classified into three categories, fish feeders, krill feeders and benthos feeders. Fish prey species fed on krill and/or benthos. Krill was a major dietary component for 32 (84.2%) out of 38 taxa. Gobionotothen gibberifrons was distributed at all 10 stations (100–800 m in depth) and its diet comprised krill and benthos. The present findings verify the importance of krill in the Antarctic marine ecosystem and indicate that krill is consumed by benthic fish at greater depths than previously reported.

Components of the energy balance of the ground surface and their effect on the thermics of the substrata of the vegetation oasis at Henryk Arctowski Station, King George Island, South Shetland Islands

Polar Record ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 36 (196) ◽  
pp. 3-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Prosek ◽  
M. Janouch ◽  
K. Láska
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flux ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Soil Temperature ◽  
Sensible Heat Flux ◽  
Ground Surface ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Radiation Balance ◽  
Sensible Heat ◽  
King George Island ◽  
Shetland Islands

AbstractThis article presents the results of measurements of the components of ground-surface energy balance (radiation balance, sensible heat flux, latent heat flux, and ground heat flux) taken during the 1994/95 summer season at Poland's Henryk Arctowski Station, King George Island, South Shetland Islands (62°09'42”S, 58°28'10”W). This was the first time that these complex measurements had been taken in the central part of the South Shetlands archipelago. The results are evaluated at the level of daily and seasonal fluctuations. The consequences of energy balance on the temperature conditions of the soil substrata are highlighted. The verification of the degree of influence of a subset of energy-balance components on soil temperature allowed analysis of the relationships among soil temperature, radiation balance, and sensible heat flux. This analysis leads to the conclusion that there is a rapid reaction of the soil temperature to the radiation balance and sensible heat flux to a depth of 5 cm. The boundary atmosphere and soil substrate represent the basic components of the ecotops of the Antarctic vegetation oasis, so these results are interpreted in pedological or botanical studies in the search for environmental influences on the vegetation.

A new Antarctic foraminiferal species for detecting climate change in sub-Recent glacier-proximal sediments

2009 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 439-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wojciech Majewski ◽  
Andrzej Tatur
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Warming ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
King George Island ◽  
Tidewater Glaciers ◽  
Admiralty Bay ◽  
Shetland Islands ◽  
Foraminiferal Species ◽  
Water Depths

AbstractCribroelphidium webbi sp. nov. is the only adequately described sub-Recent elphidiid foraminifer from Antarctica. In Admiralty Bay (King George Island, South Shetland Islands), it is found at several locations within inner fiord setting at water depths between 33 and 165 m, but most commonly shallower than 100 m. In outer basins this foraminifer is absent. In the cores analysed, C. webbi sp. nov. is present in well-constrained sub-Recent horizons that are clearly related to climate warming and deglaciation. These horizons represent a diachronous facies marker rather than a single stratigraphic layer. Cribroelphidium webbi sp. nov. shows clear association with retreating tidewater glaciers, therefore it is an important sensitive glacier-proximal indicator. It appears that it shares similar ecologic affinities with Cribroelphidium excavatum clavatum, which is widely distributed throughout the Arctic.

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