scholarly journals Seabirds in Conditions of Local Chronic Oil Pollution, Davis Sea, Antarctica

Birds ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 275-284
Author(s):  
Sergey Golubev
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Pygoscelis Adeliae ◽  
Seabird Species ◽  
Eudyptes Chrysolophus ◽  
Adélie Penguins

Oil spills are rare in Antarctica. They threaten flying birds and penguins. This is the first report on the interactions of seabirds with oil in the area of the Mirny Station (East Antarctica). The purpose of the study is to determine the total number of seabird species interacting with oil in and around the Mirny Station, to assess the extent of pollution and to identify the most important sites of interactions. Oil pollution is found on the ground, on the continental ice and, on the seawater surface, both directly in the Mirny and beyond. Five species of seabirds were in contact with oil. Oil pollution threats have been identified for breeding and molting Adélie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) and vagrant Macaroni Penguins (Eudyptes chrysolophus). Less affected by oil pollution during the breeding season were tube-nosed bird species and skuas. The most important places of interaction of seabirds with oil are at Cape Mabus, on the islands of Zykov, Tokarev, and Stroiteley. Evidence of long-term oil pollution of the environment is indicative of the chronic nature of the impacts on the coastal ecosystem.

scholarly journals Oil Pollution Affects the Central Metabolism of Keystone Vachellia (Acacia) Trees

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6660
Author(s):  
Marco Ferrante ◽  
Anuma Dangol ◽  
Shoshana Didi-Cohen ◽  
Gidon Winters ◽  
Vered Tzin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Central Metabolism ◽  
Adult Trees ◽  
Metabolite Profiles ◽  
One Year

Vachellia (formerly Acacia) trees are native to arid environments in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, where they often support the local animal and plant communities acting as keystone species. The aim of this study was to examine whether oil pollution affected the central metabolism of the native keystone trees Vachellia tortilis (Forssk.) and V. raddiana (Savi), as either adults or seedlings. The study was conducted in the Evrona Nature Reserve, a desert ecosystem in southern Israel where two major oil spills occurred in 1975 and in 2014. Leaf samples were collected to analyze the central metabolite profiles from oil-polluted and unpolluted adult trees and from Vachellia seedlings growing in oil-polluted and unpolluted soils in an outdoor setup. We found that oil pollution had a stronger effect on one-year-old seedlings than on adult trees, reducing the levels of amino acids, sugars, and organic acids. While adult trees are mildly affected by oil pollution, the effects on young seedlings can cause a long-term reduction in the population of these keystone desert trees, ultimately threatening this entire ecosystem.

scholarly journals Seabirds of human settlements in Antarctica: A case study of the Mirny Station

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-113
Author(s):  
Sergey Golubev
Keyword(s):  
Bird Species ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Pygoscelis Adeliae ◽  
Human Settlements ◽  
Breeding Bird ◽  
Bird Population ◽  
Catharacta Maccormicki ◽  
South Polar ◽  
Adélie Penguins

Antarctica is free of urbanisation, however, 40 year-round and 32 seasonal Antarctic stations operate there. The effects of such human settlements on Antarctic wildlife are insufficiently studied. The main aim of this study was to determine the organization of the bird population of the Mirny Station. The birds were observed on the coast of the Davis Sea in the Mirny (East Antarctica) from January 8, 2012 to January 7, 2013 and from January 9, 2015 to January 9, 2016. The observations were carried out mainly on the Radio and Komsomolsky nunataks (an area of about 0.5 km). The duration of observations varied from 1 to 8 hours per day. From 1956 to 2016, 13 non-breeding bird species (orders Sphenisciformes, Procellariiformes, Charadriiformes) were recorded in the Mirny. The South polar skuas (Catharacta maccormicki) and Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) form the basis of the bird population. South polar skuas are most frequently recorded at the station. Less common are Brown skuas (Catharacta antarctica lonnbergi) and Adélie penguins. Adélie penguins, Wilson's storm petrels (Oceanites oceanicus), South polar and Brown skuas are seasonal residents, the other species are visitors. Adélie penguins, Emperor (Aptenodytes forsteri), Macaroni (Eudyptes chrysolophus) and Chinstrap penguins (Pygoscelis antarctica), Wilson's storm petrels, South polar and Brown skuas interacted with the station environment, using it for comfortable behavior, feeding, molting, shelter from bad weather conditions, and possible breeding. South polar and Brown skuas tend to be attracted to the station, while other Antarctic bird species are indifferent to humans. Birds spend part of the annual cycle at the station or visit it with different frequency, but they cannot meet their ecological needs there all year round. The study improves our understanding of the regularities of the phenomenon of urbanization of the avifauna in the polar regions of the planet Earth. 

scholarly journals Habitat use and sex-specific foraging behaviour of Adélie penguins throughout the breeding season in Adélie Land, East Antarctica

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michel Widmann ◽  
Akiko Kato ◽  
Ben Raymond ◽  
Frédéric Angelier ◽  
Benjamin Arthur ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Foraging Behaviour ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Adélie Penguins

Number and distribution of Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) breeding sites in the Robinson Group of islands, Mac.Robertson Land coast, east Antarctica

Polar Record ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 225-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Low ◽  
Lisa Meyer ◽  
Colin Southwell
Keyword(s):  
East Antarctica ◽  
Adélie Penguin ◽  
Pygoscelis Adeliae ◽  
Adelie Penguin ◽  
Breeding Sites ◽  
Comprehensive Survey ◽  
Spatial Coordinates ◽  
Adélie Penguins

ABSTRACTIn November 2005, the first comprehensive survey for Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) breeding sites in the Robinson Group of islands, situated 25 to 55 km east of Australia's Mawson station (67.602°S, 62.879°E) was conducted. Breeding Adélie penguins were found on 30 of the 149 islands, with the number of nests on each island ranging from fewer than 10 to several thousand. With the exception of those islands in the southeast, nesting Adélie penguins were found throughout the Robinson Group. In this paper, the spatial coordinates and presence/absence of breeding penguins for all 149 islands are reported so that researchers may interpret the results in relation to possible future survey work. All locations reported in this paper are in decimal degrees.

Breeding behaviour of colour-aberrant Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at Cape Crozier, Ross Island, Antarctica

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Parker M. Levinson ◽  
Annie E. Schmidt ◽  
Virginia Morandini ◽  
Megan Elrod ◽  
Dennis Jongsomjit ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mate Selection ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Adélie Penguin ◽  
Pygoscelis Adeliae ◽  
Frequency Condition ◽  
Adelie Penguin ◽  
Individual Fitness ◽  
Adélie Penguins

Abstract Plumage colour variation occurs widely among bird species and is often associated with individual fitness. More specifically, colouration can affect thermoregulatory ability, mate selection and conspicuousness during foraging. Colour aberrations can be caused by genetic mutations, dietary imbalances, environmental conditions or disease and are rare. Plumage variations have previously been noted in Adélie penguins, although without any follow-up to measure implications for behaviour or fitness. To assess how this low-frequency condition affects breeding in Adélie penguins, we monitored the breeding of several colour-aberrant Adélie penguins during the 2019–2020 nesting season at the large Cape Crozier, Ross Island colony (> 300,000 pairs). In total, we found 12 individuals with unusual plumage for a frequency of 1:50,000 breeding penguins. There were seven dark brown Adélie penguins, three progressive greying Adélie penguins, one dilute Adélie penguin and one brown Adélie penguin, of which five were female, three male and four of unknown sex. Six colour aberrants initiated breeding with a normal-coloured mate, and five raised at least one chick to crèche. The likelihood of breeding and breeding success of colour aberrants were similar to those of normal-coloured Adélie penguins, suggesting that colour aberrations do not negatively affect breeding.

scholarly journals Monitoring Breeding Bird Populations in Grand Teton National Park: 1995-1997

1997 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
pp. 13-25
Author(s):  
Martin Cody ◽  
Stephen Cain
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
National Park ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Breeding Bird ◽  
Grand Teton National Park ◽  
Bird Populations ◽  
The Impact

In summer 1997 our NPS-funded project # CA-1460-5-0010, covering a 3-y period from summer 1995 through summer 1997, was completed. The immediate goals of the project were to instigate a system for monitoring the densities of breeding bird species, by establishment of flxed sites as a basis for a long term monitoring plan and of census protocols that can detect changes of breeding species and their densities over successive years. The monitoring scheme is conducted largely within Grand Teton National Park (GTNP), but covers habitats and an avifauna representative of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) and the central-northern Rocky Mountains in general. The project emphasizes the need for long­term and on-going studies on breeding bird species and densities and their importance as a tool for evaluating the impact of both local and distant influences on breeding bird populations. For residents, species that remain all year in or near the breeding habitat, local effects include those operating on-site during the non-breeding season as well as during the breeding season. For migrant species, those that breed on-site but leave to spend the non-breeding season in other locations, often distant and usually of quite different habitat composition, there are both on-site influences on breeding population densities, such as inter-year changes in vegetation structure and productivity, and off-site or distant influences, including factors that affect over-wintering success in the non­breeding habitat and others that influence a successful transit between wintering and breeding grounds. The assessment of long-term trends in bird densities may be used as a form of bioassay of the state of the local environments. Information from such studies can provide region-wide indicators that, given a sufficiently comprehensive data base, can segregate local from distant influences on populations. Such indicators can be incorporated into management strategies to aid in determining which local strategies may be necessary (and feasible) to help maintain the biota.

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