Breeding biology of a winter-breeding procellariiform in the North Atlantic, the Macaronesian shearwater Puffinus lherminieri baroli

Abstract

Breeding biology of a winter-breeding procellariiform in the North Atlantic, the Macaronesian shearwater Puffinus lherminieri baroli.Zoology http://dx.doi.org/10. 1016/j.zool.2016.05.014 This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.  Climatic stochasticity events have an effect on foraging and breeding success. ABSTRACTThe breeding success of burrow-nesting seabirds may be influenced by both nest site characteristics and oceanographic conditions influencing food availability at sea. In this study we describe the breeding biology of the winter-breeding Macaronesian shearwater (Puffinus lherminieri baroli), including nest site characteristics and interspecific competition. We also evaluate the possible effects of changing oceanographic conditions on breeding phenology and breeding success. The study was carried out over two breeding seasons on two islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, Cima Islet and Selvagem Grande. Oceanographic characteristics differed between years. On a regional scale, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index was low and negative in 2011, and on a local scale, birds used areas with significantly lower values of chlorophyll a concentration and significantly higher values of sea surface temperature anomalies.Hatching success was higher in 2012 than in 2011. At both colonies, egg cracking was the main cause of hatching failure, but in 2011 several eggs on Selvagem Grande were deserted. In 2012 birds laid earlier and chicks had longer wings and were heavier. At both colonies, nests that were deeper, were sheltered from prevailing winds and had small chambers and a soil substrate had a higher probability of being used successfully by the birds. Nests occupied solely by Macaronesian shearwaters were much deeper and had less volume than nests shared with other species. Our study suggests that the breeding success of Macaronesian shearwaters is strongly related to nest site characteristics and that at-sea environmental conditions exert a strong influence on reproductive parameters, with birds breeding in a poor year (evaluated in terms of lower marine productivity) laying much later and their chicks growing at a slower rate than in a good year. The influence of nest site characteristics and environmental conditions may be very important for understanding the breeding ecology of Procellariiformes and may help explain the negative population trend of Macaronesian shearwaters.

Annual global mean temperature explains reproductive success in a marine vertebrate from 1955 to 2010

“…While the effect of rising SST on seabird reproduction has been well studied, less attention has been paid to the effect of air temperature (AT) on seabird reproduction (Fagundes, Ramos, Ramos, Medeiros, & Paiva, 2016;Sydeman et al, 2012) although terrestrial systems' response to such warming is well documented (e.g., Lebreton, 2011;Santisteban et al, 2012). Rising air temperatures impose direct thermal effects on marine vertebrates that breed on land and forage at sea (Croxall, Trathan, & Murphy, 2002).…”

Extreme Weather and the Reproductive Success of a Long-lived Pelagic Seabird.

“…Research has shown that some seabirds show a preference for burrows that are orientated away from the prevailing wind direction (Fagundes et al 2016;Fricke et al 2015). This study did not take burrow orientation into account, but it is likely that 64 Manx Shearwaters also favour burrows face away from prevailing wind to reduce the effect of wind chill and rainfall.…”

“…However, in extreme cases burrows can be a disadvantage, during periods of heavy precipitation burrows can become flooded and heat waves can lead to heat stress (Chambers et al 2011). Burrow flooding, and its impact on chick thermoregulation, has been documented as a cause of chick and egg mortality in many species, including penguins, shearwaters and storm-petrels (Bancroft et al 2005;Boersma and Rebstock 2014;Chambers et al 2011;Huntington et al 1996;Fagundes et al 2016;Serventy and Curry 1984).…”

“…Burrow flooding has been proven as a cause of egg failure in many seabird species, including Manx Shearwaters (Fagundes et al 2016;Huntington et al 1996;Thompson and Furness 1991). Hatching success on Skomer is highly variable between years, yet at the colony-level there was no significant relationship between hatching success and rainfall, even at the extreme level.…”

“…The inclusion of other factors such as burrow identity and burrow-specific features may increase the explanatory power of these models. Multiple studies have shown that burrow quality, aspect and depth have implication for reproductive success in shearwaters and petrels (Fagundes et al 2016;Fricke et al 2015;Thompson and Furness 1991).…”