Conventional and Modern Approaches to Study Seabird Trophic Ecology and Diet

Ceia, Filipe R.; Xavier, José C.; Carreiro, Ana R.; Santos, Ivo dos; Cherel, Yves

doi:10.1201/9781003047520-3

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…However, their trophic relationships within the communities and niche occupancy from an ecological point of view are less understood (Bode et al, 2007;da Silva et al, 2020da Silva et al, , 2022. In this context, recent biochemical methods, such as analyses of stable isotopes, are relevant tools to investigate the trophic relationships of co-occurring species with a high degree of ecological similarity (da Silva et al, 2020(da Silva et al, , 2022Golikov et al, 2020), thus presenting great potential for deciphering food web structure and function in marine systems (Ceia et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Stable isotope analysis bypassed some limitations of the conventional approaches to investigate niche segregation. This method is used routinely at low costs, allowing the analysis of a large number of samples and it has a great potential to study the trophic ecology of populations and interactions within communities (Newsome et al, 2007;Ceia et al, 2022). This method also has the advantage of investigating the feeding ecology of organisms over the short-to the long-term, depending on the tissue sampled (Ceia et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, stable isotopes rarely provide diet information at a high taxonomic resolution, i.e. to the species level (Ceia et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2023

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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.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2023

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Inter-colony and inter-annual variation in discard use by albatross chicks revealed using isotopes and regurgitates

Kuepfer

Catry²,

Bearhop

et al. 2023

Mar Biol

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Effective marine ecosystem monitoring is critical for sustainable management. Monitoring seabird diets can convey important information on ecosystem health and seabird–fishery interactions. The diet of breeding black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophris) has previously been assessed using stomach content analysis (SCA) or stable isotope analysis (SIA), but not both methods together. Combining dietary sampling approaches reduces biases associated with using single methods. This study combines SCA and SIA to study the diet of black-browed albatross chicks, with a specific focus on fishery discard consumption, at two Falkland Islands colonies (New Island 51°43′S, 61°18′W and Steeple Jason Island 51°01′S, 61°13′W) during two consecutive breeding seasons (2019 and 2020). SCA provided high taxonomic resolution of short-term diet and priors for stable isotope mixing models, with multiple measures of dietary items (e.g. numeric frequency N%, frequency of occurrence FO%). By contrast, SIA of down feathers provided a single and more integrated dietary signal from throughout chick development. Although the two methods disagreed on the dominant prey group (SCA—crustacean; SIA—pelagic fish), the complementary information suggested a chick diet dominated by natural prey (SCA: 74%–93% [FO], 44%–98% [N]; SIA: minimum 87%–95% contribution). Nonetheless, SCA revealed that a high proportion of breeding adults do take discards. We detected consistent colony-specific diets in relation to prey species, but not in relation to higher discard use. Overall, discard consumption was highest in 2020, the year characterised by the poorest foraging conditions. Our results have implications for fisheries management and future dietary studies assessing discard use.

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Similar breeding performance despite inter-annual differences in diet composition of seabirds inhabiting a tropical environment

dos Santos,

Gonçalves,

Carreiro

et al. 2023

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Amidst unprecedented anthropogenic pressure on marine ecosystems, seabirds can serve as sentinels for shifts in marine prey availability. We examined the diet and foraging ecology of 2 sympatric Procellariiformes, the Cape Verde shearwater Calonectris edwardsii and Bulwer’s petrel Bulweria bulwerii, during their breeding period in Cabo Verde, West Africa. By analysing fatty acids (FAs), δ15N and δ13C values, and using GPS loggers, we quantitatively assessed the diet of both adults and chicks, estimated the isotopic niche of adult birds, and identified their main foraging regions. Our findings revealed annual variations in the diet of both adults and chicks, supported by quantitative prey estimates and FA signatures. Adult Cape Verde shearwaters consistently displayed a diet enriched in commercial fishes (>40%), with varying proportions of squid or non-commercial fishes across different years. Bulwer’s petrel displayed greater diet variability, consuming higher proportions of squid (54%), mesopelagic fishes (81%), and commercial fishes (29%) in 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively. Chicks of both species exhibited varying diets across years. However, chick growth and fledging parameters remained fairly consistent among years. The isotopic niche, GPS tracking, and oceanographic conditions within foraging regions provided partial support for the annual variations observed in the diet of adults, especially for Cape Verde shearwaters. However, the diet differences for Bulwer’s petrels were less straightforward, likely due to the equitable distribution of their main prey. Notably, both species exhibited resilience in coping with unfavourable foraging conditions, enabling adult breeders to exploit a wide variety of prey resources without compromising breeding outcomes.

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Conventional and Modern Approaches to Study Seabird Trophic Ecology and Diet

Cited by 3 publications

References 0 publications

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

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

Inter-colony and inter-annual variation in discard use by albatross chicks revealed using isotopes and regurgitates

Similar breeding performance despite inter-annual differences in diet composition of seabirds inhabiting a tropical environment

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