Foraging specificity and prey utilization: evaluating social and memory-based strategies in seabirds

This study explores the capacity for seabirds to exhibit behavioral plasticity in response to the predictability of resources. Using direct species-comparisons, I tested the hypothesis that roseate terns (Sterna dougallii), dietary specialists, rely more heavily on foraging site-fidelity to pursue persistent prey, whereas common terns (S. hirundo), prey generalists, depend more on local enhancement by exploiting mixed-species assemblages. I analysed chick-provisioning observations and the bearings of commuting trajectories between the shared breeding colony, foraging areas, and feeding flocks. Foraging route patterns in roseate terns were consistent with a strategy based more heavily on spatial memory than social cues, in contrast to common terns, which associated more readily with nearby feeding aggregations, in line with social facilitation. Only during years of high prey abundance did roseate terns outperform common terns in nest productivity and the quality of prey delivered to chicks, suggesting that opportunistic tactics support resilience to sparse prey availability.

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Foraging site fidelity and stable isotope values of loggerhead turtles tracked in the Gulf of Mexico and northwest Caribbean

Marine Ecology Progress Series ◽

10.3354/meps10655 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 502 ◽

pp. 267-279 ◽

Cited By ~ 34

Author(s):

AD Tucker ◽

BD MacDonald ◽

JA Seminoff

Keyword(s):

Stable Isotope ◽

Gulf Of Mexico ◽

Site Fidelity ◽

Loggerhead Turtles ◽

Foraging Site

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Nest Site Selection: Comparison of Roseate and Common Terns (Sterna dougallii and S. hirundo) in a Long Island, New York Colony

Bird Behavior ◽

10.3727/015613887791918060 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

pp. 58-66 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Michael Gochfeld ◽

Joanna Burger

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Site Selection ◽

Nest Site ◽

Long Island ◽

Nest Site Selection ◽

Common Terns ◽

Sterna Dougallii

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Long-term individual foraging site fidelity—why some gannets don't change their spots

Ecology ◽

10.1890/14-1300.1 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 96 (11) ◽

pp. 3058-3074 ◽

Cited By ~ 72

Author(s):

Ewan D. Wakefield ◽

Ian R. Cleasby ◽

Stuart Bearhop ◽

Thomas W. Bodey ◽

Rachel D. Davies ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Site Fidelity ◽

Foraging Site

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Aggressive Behaviour of Black Skimmers (Rynchops Niger)

Behaviour ◽

10.1163/156853981x00086 ◽

1981 ◽

Vol 76 (3-4) ◽

pp. 207-222 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Joanna Burger

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Reproductive Cycle ◽

Aggressive Behaviour ◽

Sandy Beach ◽

Time Of Day ◽

Intraspecific Aggression ◽

Mixed Species ◽

The Real ◽

Common Terns ◽

Rynchops Niger

AbstractThe aggressive behaviour of skimmers was studied in a mixed species colony of black skimmers and common terns located on a sandy beach in New York. The levels and intensity of intraspecific aggression varied according to sex, season, and time of day. Males engaged in more intraspecific aggression, whereas females engaged in more interspecific defense. These differences suggest that interspecific defense is an appropriate response to the real threat of chick loss due to other birds (of both species). In general, females were defending space and their chicks, whereas males seemed to defend space, their chicks, and females. The aggression observed at any point in the reproductive cycle correlates with the magnitude of the threat.

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Short-term prey field lability constrains individual specialisation in resource selection and foraging site fidelity in a marine predator

Ecology Letters ◽

10.1111/ele.12970 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 21 (7) ◽

pp. 1043-1054 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Nicolas Courbin ◽

Aurélien Besnard ◽

Clara Péron ◽

Claire Saraux ◽

Jérôme Fort ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Resource Selection ◽

Site Fidelity ◽

Short Term ◽

Marine Predator ◽

Foraging Site ◽

Individual Specialisation

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Foraging site fidelity shapes the spatial organisation of a population of female western barbastelle bats

Biological Conservation ◽

10.1016/j.biocon.2008.12.017 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 142 (4) ◽

pp. 817-823 ◽

Cited By ~ 36

Author(s):

Jessica Hillen ◽

Andreas Kiefer ◽

Michael Veith

Keyword(s):

Site Fidelity ◽

Spatial Organisation ◽

Foraging Site

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Individual foraging site fidelity in lactating New Zealand fur seals: Continental shelf vs. oceanic habitats

Marine Mammal Science ◽

10.1111/j.1748-7692.2011.00487.x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 28 (2) ◽

pp. 276-294 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Alastair M. M. Baylis ◽

Brad Page ◽

Jane McKenzie ◽

Simon D. Goldsworthy

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Continental Shelf ◽

Site Fidelity ◽

Fur Seals ◽

Foraging Site

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Novel feeding and mating behaviors of a population of nautiluses, Nautilus belauensis, in Palau

10.1101/622456 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Gregory J. Barord ◽

Rebecca L. Swanson ◽

Peter D. Ward

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Plasticity ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Prey Availability ◽

Habitat Type ◽

Conservation Practices ◽

Behavioral Differences ◽

Behavioral Observations ◽

Mating Behaviors ◽

Large Living ◽

Abnormal Behaviors

AbstractThe nautiloid lineage extends back nearly 500 million years but today, is represented by only two living genera, Nautilus and Allonautilus. Behavioral observations of these living nautiluses have improved our understanding of how nautiloids, and ammonoids, behaved and interacted in their environment. These behaviors may also help to inform conservation practices. Here, we describe feeding and mating behaviors in wild nautiluses not reported from any other population. In Palau, Nautilus belauensis was observed actively preying on a large, living crab (Chaceon sp.) and performing courtship-like behaviors prior to mating. These behaviors occurred across multiple nights and from different nautiluses, suggesting that the behaviors are characteristic of at least a subset of the population, if not the entire population. Perhaps the behaviors exhibited by the Palauan nautiluses are an outlier and simply a localized characteristic of a far-removed population. Or, perhaps these apparent abnormal behaviors of Palauan nautiluses are what all nautiluses across the Indo-Pacific should be exhibiting. If the latter explanation is correct, we can start to address the potential causes of the behavioral differences, such as population size, habitat type, and prey availability. In either case, this apparent behavioral plasticity may have also been a reason that the nautiloid lineage has been able to survive throughout millions of years of environmental changes. Today, these behavioral observations could prove to be a valuable conservation tool to protect species and environments, especially in the deep-sea ecosystem the nautiluses inhabit.

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Humpback whale song recordings suggest common feeding ground occupation by multiple populations

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-98295-z ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Elena Schall ◽

Karolin Thomisch ◽

Olaf Boebel ◽

Gabriele Gerlach ◽

Sari Mangia Woods ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Southern Ocean ◽

Behavioral Plasticity ◽

Prey Availability ◽

Humpback Whale ◽

Sea Ice Concentration ◽

Atlantic Sector ◽

Feeding Ground ◽

Breeding Grounds ◽

Spatio Temporal ◽

Feeding Grounds

AbstractHumpback whale males are known to sing on their low-latitude breeding grounds, but it is well established that songs are also commonly produced ‘off-season’ on the feeding grounds or during migration. This opens exciting opportunities to investigate migratory aggregations, study humpback whale behavioral plasticity and potentially even assign individual singers to specific breeding grounds. In this study, we analyzed passive acoustic data from 13 recording positions and multiple years (2011–2018) within the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean (ASSO). Humpback whale song was detected at nine recording positions in five years. Most songs were recorded in May, austral fall, coinciding with the rapid increase in sea ice concentration at most recording positions. The spatio-temporal pattern in humpback whale singing activity on Southern Ocean feeding grounds is most likely shaped by local prey availability and humpback whale migratory strategies. Furthermore, the comparative analyses of song structures clearly show a differentiation of two song groups, of which one was solely recorded at the western edge of the ASSO and the other song group was recorded throughout the ASSO. This new finding suggests a common feeding ground occupation by multiple humpback whale populations in the ASSO, allowing for cultural and potentially even genetic exchange among populations.

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