Peregrine Falcon Scavenges Adult Herring Gull at Nest Site on Lake Superior, Ontario, Canada

Lockhart, Katie; Irvine, Courtney; MacLaurin, Jenna; Dolgova, Svetlana; Hebert, Craig E.

doi:10.3356/0892-1016-54.4.470

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 8 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Although anthropogenic foods appear beneficial, birds feeding on such foods may experience detrimental effects through increased exposure to chemical contaminants (Gauthier et al, 2019;Tanaka et al, 2013), although this is not always the case (see Hebert et al, 2022), Use of anthropogenic foods may decrease availability of essential nutrients such as n-3 fatty acids (Hixson et al, 2015) while increasing exposure to pathogens (Collins and Kennedy, 1992;Hatch, 1996;Matejczyk et al, 2011). During my research, one adult herring gull died while incubating (see Lockhart et al, 2020). Although the cause of death could not be determined, symptoms exhibited by this bird were consistent with a disease etiology.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…Gull presence/absence was determined for ~315,000 images in total over the nine nests. Intra-and interspecific predation of eggs and young (see Chapter 3), as well as scavenging of an adult carcass (see Lockhart et al, 2020), were also documented.…”

Section: Incubation Attentivenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These data demonstrate significant increases in Ontario populations compared to the 1970s when zero peregrine territories were reported (Holroyd and Banasch, 2012). Peregrines are known to scavenge adult herring gulls (Lockhart et al, 2020) and likely predate adults as well as young. Great Lakes region increased in thickness to levels comparable to those that occurred during the pre-DDT period (Best et al, 2010).…”

Section: Chapter One General Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The Effects of Diet and Predation on Nesting Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) in Pukaskwa National Park

Serre¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are used as ecological indicators of the coastal Lake Superior ecosystem in Pukaskwa National Park. Their populations have declined by 70% over the last 40 years, suggesting changes in the park ecosystem. Previous studies highlighted declining prey abundance as a possible contributing factor to population declines. Populations of avian predators that prey on herring gulls have simultaneously increased which could be a significant factor impacting gull population trends. Here, I assessed herring gull diets via stable isotope (nitrogen, carbon) and fatty acid indicators to investigate how diet may influence population trends through effects on physiological (stress-associated hormones), reproductive (egg size), and behavioural (nest attentiveness) endpoints. I additionally investigated the degree to which predation is affecting herring gull reproductive success by examining gull nest attentiveness during the day and night. Gulls utilizing anthropogenic food sources exhibited reduced levels of stress-associated hormones, increased egg size, and increased day-time nest attentiveness. Anthropogenic food sources are likely buffering the impacts of declines in aquatic food availability; however, gull populations are still declining. Use of camera traps to monitor herring gull nests revealed that gulls were significantly more attentive to their nests during the day compared to the night. Of the nine nests monitored with camera traps, five produced chicks. However, at three of these nests chicks were predated shortly after hatch. Nocturnal predation by great horned owls accounted for these predation events which were the most significant predation-related factor affecting herring gull nest success. Predation of chicks at night and of eggs during the day (by conspecifics and corvids) is likely contributing to declines in PNP herring gull populations. Understanding factors contributing to population trends in ecological indicator species is critical for species management and for identifying stressors that are likely

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Incubation Attentivenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Chapter One General Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Effects of Diet and Predation on Nesting Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) in Pukaskwa National Park

Serre¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Lake Superior herring gulls benefit from anthropogenic food subsidies in a prey–impoverished aquatic environment

Serré

Irvine

Williams

et al. 2022

Journal of Great Lakes Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Carrion ecology in inland aquatic ecosystems: a systematic review

Orihuela‐Torres,

Morales‐Reyes,

Hermoso

et al. 2024

Biological Reviews

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Carrion ecology, i.e. the decomposition and recycling of dead animals, has traditionally been neglected as a key process in ecosystem functioning. Similarly, despite the large threats that inland aquatic ecosystems (hereafter, aquatic ecosystems) face, the scientific literature is still largely biased towards terrestrial ecosystems. However, there has been an increasing number of studies on carrion ecology in aquatic ecosystems in the last two decades, highlighting their key role in nutrient recirculation and disease control. Thus, a global assessment of the ecological role of scavengers and carrion in aquatic ecosystems is timely. Here, we systematically reviewed scientific articles on carrion ecology in aquatic ecosystems to describe current knowledge, identify research gaps, and promote future studies that will deepen our understanding in this field. We found 206 relevant studies, which were highly biased towards North America, especially in lotic ecosystems, covering short time periods, and overlooking seasonality, a crucial factor in scavenging dynamics. Despite the low number of studies on scavenger assemblages, we recorded 55 orders of invertebrates from 179 families, with Diptera and Coleoptera being the most frequent orders. For vertebrates, we recorded 114 species from 40 families, with birds and mammals being the most common. Our results emphasise the significance of scavengers in stabilising food webs and facilitating nutrient cycling within aquatic ecosystems. Studies were strongly biased towards the assessment of the ecosystem effects of carrion, particularly of salmon carcasses in North America. The second most common research topic was the foraging ecology of vertebrates, which was mostly evaluated through sporadic observations of carrion in the diet. Articles assessing scavenger assemblages were scarce, and only a limited number of these studies evaluated carrion consumption patterns, which serve as a proxy for the role of scavengers in the ecosystem. The ecological functions performed by carrion and scavengers in aquatic ecosystems were diverse. The main ecological functions were carrion as food source and the role of scavengers in nutrient cycling, which appeared in 52.4% (N = 108) and 46.1% (N = 95) of publications, respectively. Ecosystem threats associated with carrion ecology were also identified, the most common being water eutrophication and carrion as source of pathogens (2.4%; N = 5 each). Regarding the effects of carrion on ecosystems, we found studies spanning all ecosystem components (N = 85), from soil or the water column to terrestrial vertebrates, with a particular focus on aquatic invertebrates and fish. Most of these articles found positive effects of carrion on ecosystems (e.g. higher species richness, abundance or fitness; 84.7%; N = 72), while a minority found negative effects, changes in community composition, or even no effects. Enhancing our understanding of scavengers and carrion in aquatic ecosystems is crucial to assessing their current and future roles amidst global change, mainly for water–land nutrient transport, due to changes in the amount and speed of nutrient movement, and for disease control and impact mitigation, due to the predicted increase in occurrence and magnitude of mortality events in aquatic ecosystems.

show abstract

Peregrine Falcon Scavenges Adult Herring Gull at Nest Site on Lake Superior, Ontario, Canada

Cited by 4 publications

References 8 publications

The Effects of Diet and Predation on Nesting Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) in Pukaskwa National Park

The Effects of Diet and Predation on Nesting Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) in Pukaskwa National Park

Lake Superior herring gulls benefit from anthropogenic food subsidies in a prey–impoverished aquatic environment

Carrion ecology in inland aquatic ecosystems: a systematic review

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About