Central place foraging drives niche partitioning in seabirds

Jessopp, Mark; Arneill, Gavin E.; Nykänen, Milaja; Bennison, Ashley; Rogan, Emer

doi:10.1111/oik.07509

Cited by 14 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 66 publications

(76 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…On the species level, Gouldian finches were not only food neophobic but also hesitated to incorporate novel food into their diet, demonstrating dietary conservatism confirming the second part of prediction 5. This foraging response can be attributed to their food specialism (Brazill-Boast et al, 2011) and does not seem to be the response to interspecific competition (Jessopp et al, 2020). Similar dietary conservatism has been found in the specialized snail kite (Beissinger et al, 1994).…”

Section: Incorporation Of Novel Food Into the Dietsupporting

confidence: 54%

Individual Variation in Dietary Wariness Is Predicted by Head Color in a Specialist Feeder, the Gouldian Finch

Eccles

Bethell

Greggor³

et al. 2021

Front. Ecol. Evol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Shifts in resource availability due to environmental change are increasingly confronting animals with unfamiliar food types. Species that can rapidly accept new food types may be better adapted to ecological change. Intuitively, dietary generalists are expected to accept new food types when resources change, while dietary specialists would be more averse to adopting novel food. However, most studies investigating changes in dietary breadth focus on generalist species and do not delve into potential individual predictors of dietary wariness and the social factors modulating these responses. We investigated dietary wariness in the Gouldian finch, a dietary specialist, that is expected to avoid novel food. This species occurs in two main head colors (red, black), which signal personality in other contexts. We measured their initial neophobic responses (approach attempts before first feed and latency to first feed) and willingness to incorporate novel food into their diet (frequency of feeding on novel food after first feed). Birds were tested in same-sex pairs in same and different head color pairings balanced across experiments 1 and 2. Familiar and novel food (familiar food dyed) were presented simultaneously across 5 days for 3 h, each. Gouldian finches fed on the familiar food first demonstrating food neophobia, and these latencies were repeatable. Birds made more approach attempts before feeding on novel than familiar food, particularly red-headed birds in experiment 1 and when partnered with a black-headed bird. Individuals consistently differed in their rate of incorporation of novel food, with clear differences between head colors; red-headed birds increased their feeding visits to novel food across experimentation equaling their familiar food intake by day five, while black-headed birds continually favored familiar food. Results suggest consistent among individual differences in response to novel food with red-headed birds being adventurous consumers and black-headed birds dietary conservatives. The differences in food acceptance aligned with responses to novel environments on the individual level (found in an earlier study) providing individuals with an adaptive combination of novelty responses across contexts in line with potential differences in movement patterns. Taken together, these novelty responses could aid in population persistence when faced with environmental changes.

show abstract

Section: Incorporation Of Novel Food Into the Dietsupporting

confidence: 54%

Individual Variation in Dietary Wariness Is Predicted by Head Color in a Specialist Feeder, the Gouldian Finch

Eccles

Bethell

Greggor³

et al. 2021

Front. Ecol. Evol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Species can segregate along both the spatial and temporal dimensions of their ecological niche (e.g. Jessopp et al, 2020;Watabe et al, 2022), but those belonging to the same guild can pursue specific microhabitats and foods as the principal factors that regulate the structure of the community (Ross, 1986;Moreno & Castro, 1995;Brandl et al, 2020;Colloca et al, 2010). The feeding and foraging preferences of different taxa were potentially driven by specific feeding capabilities and behavioural traits (see below), supported by evidence that species followed by genus were the most important drivers of niche partitioning within the community.…”

Section: Drivers Of Niche Partitioningmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent studies have demonstrated that both spatial (e.g. Jessopp et al, 2020) and temporal (e.g. Watabe et al, 2022) variations drive niche partitioning in natural populations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drivers of niche partitioning in a community of mid-trophic level epipelagic species in the North Atlantic

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

According to the principles of community ecology, sympatric species may suffer a selective pressure to decrease their niche overlap through mechanisms of niche partitioning. However, there is still a gap in knowledge of the main drivers influencing niche differentiation, particularly in communities composed by small-sized and inconspicuous species. The coastal epipelagic community structure of mid-trophic level species in the Northeast Atlantic was examined using stable isotope analysis to (1) decipher intrinsic and extrinsic factors promoting niche partitioning and (2) examine species divergence in the use of resources. A total of 474 individuals from a guild of 11 species were sampled during three years, and the influence of potential drivers of isotopic divergence was assessed. The niche partitioning was mainly determined by the taxonomic group in accordance with the fundamental principles of niche theory, which was consistent for both δ13C (i.e. habitat) and δ15N (i.e. prey). Body size was highly important in driving niche partitioning within species. Our results show that the predominant species in the guild were the most generalist, when compared with more specialised species with which they coexist. This study reveals that the intrinsic factors are determinant to decrease inter- and intra-specific niche overlap at the community level.

show abstract

“…Under the principle of competitive exclusion, spatial and temporal resource partitioning is a key mechanism to reduce competitive pressure for shared resources in sympatric species (Schoener, 1974). For colonial breeding seabirds that function as central place foragers when breeding, competition for resources near colonies may influence habitat use, prey selection, energetic expenditure, and ultimately population sizes (Furness and Birkhead, 1984;Lewis et al, 2001;Wakefield et al, 2013;Oppel et al, 2015;Jessopp et al, 2020;Weber et al, 2021). Habitat segregation in seabirds is well documented and occurs not just between sympatrically breeding species (Kappes et al, 2010;Young et al, 2010Young et al, , 2015Linnebjerg et al, 2013;Robertson et al, 2014;Barger et al, 2016), but also between age classes (Pettex et al, 2019), sexes (Lewis et al, 2002;Phillips R.A. et al, 2004;Camphuysen et al, 2015), and nearby populations of the same species (Rayner et al, 2011;Wiley et al, 2012;Ceia et al, 2015;Shaffer et al, 2017;Bolton et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Divergent post-breeding spatial habitat use of Laysan and black-footed albatross

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Understanding the at-sea movements of wide-ranging seabird species throughout their annual cycle is essential for their conservation and management. Habitat use and resource partitioning of Laysan (Phoebastria immutabilis) and black-footed (Phoebastria nigripes) albatross are well-described during the breeding period but are less understood during the post-breeding period, which represents ~40% of their annual cycle. Resource partitioning may be reduced during post-breeding, when birds are not constrained to return to the nest site regularly and can disperse to reduce competitive pressure. We assessed the degree of spatial segregation in the post-breeding distributions of Laysan (n = 82) and black-footed albatrosses (n = 61) using geolocator tags between 2008 and 2012 from two large breeding colonies in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Midway Atoll, and Tern Island. We characterized the species-and colony-specific foraging and focal distributions (represented by the 95 and 50th density contours, respectively) and quantified segregation in at-sea habitat use between species and colonies. Laysan and black-footed albatross showed consistent and significant at-sea segregation in focal areas across colonies, indicating that resource partitioning persists during post-breeding. Within breeding colonies, segregation of foraging areas between the two species was more evident for birds breeding at Tern Island. Spatial segregation decreased as the post-breeding season progressed, when spatial distributions of both species became more dispersed. In contrast to studies conducted on breeding Laysan and black-footed albatross, we found that sea surface temperature distinguished post-breeding habitats of black-footed albatrosses between colonies, with black-footed albatrosses from Midway Atoll occurring in cooler waters (3.6°C cooler on average). Our results reveal marked at-sea segregation between Laysan and black-footed albatross breeding at two colonies during a critical but understudied phase in their annual cycle. The observed variation in species-environment relationships underscores the importance of sampling multiple colonies and temporal periods to more thoroughly understand the spatial distributions of pelagic seabirds.

show abstract

Central place foraging drives niche partitioning in seabirds

Cited by 14 publications

References 66 publications

Individual Variation in Dietary Wariness Is Predicted by Head Color in a Specialist Feeder, the Gouldian Finch

Individual Variation in Dietary Wariness Is Predicted by Head Color in a Specialist Feeder, the Gouldian Finch

Drivers of niche partitioning in a community of mid-trophic level epipelagic species in the North Atlantic

Divergent post-breeding spatial habitat use of Laysan and black-footed albatross

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About