The importance of oceanographic fronts to marine birds and mammals of the southern oceans

Bost, Charles‐André; Cotté, Cédric; Bailleul, Frédéric; Cherel, Yves; Charrassin, Jean‐Benoît; Guinet, Christophe; Ainley, David G.; Weimerskirch, Henri

doi:10.1016/j.jmarsys.2008.11.022

Cited by 418 publications

(352 citation statements)

References 118 publications

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“…Although we only have 4 years of data, we may speculate that the interfrontal zone is a safe bet for females: the observed positive correlation with current primary productivity may be interpreted as foraging success being more predictable there. Many top-predator species target fronts and mesoscale eddies to forage on mesopelagic fish whose spatial distribution is much more predictable close to frontal structures [45]. This decreased variability in resources of the interfrontal zone may also mean an increased competition, especially in bad years, such as in 2008 (figure 3).…”

Section: Results (A) Stable Isotopesmentioning

confidence: 99%

O' mother where wert thou? Maternal strategies in the southern elephant seal: a stable isotope investigation

et al. 2012

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Maternal effects are widespread in ecology and can alter the dynamics of a population. We investigated the impact of maternal foraging strategies on offspring weaning mass-a proxy of maternal foraging success and of offspring survival-in southern elephant seals on îles Kerguelen. Using 4 years of data, we modelled pup weaning mass as a two-component mixture and used blood stable isotope values to discriminate between maternal foraging strategies previously identified from bio-logging studies. Carbon isotope ratio was a strong predictor of weaning mass, but the relationship was non-monotonic in contrast to a priori expectations. Females foraging in the interfrontal zone weaned pups with a smaller mass compared with females foraging in Antarctic waters. Pup mass was positively correlated with a proxy of global primary production in the interfrontal zone for small weanlings. Maternal effects, via a poor foraging efficiency in the 1970s, may help explain the large population decrease observed at that time on îles Kerguelen because of an overall decrease in pup weaning mass, survival and subsequent recruitment.

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Section: Results (A) Stable Isotopesmentioning

confidence: 99%

O' mother where wert thou? Maternal strategies in the southern elephant seal: a stable isotope investigation

et al. 2012

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“…They have been the focus of comprehensive studies with respect to the oceanography of their foraging habitat [24 -27], feeding habits [28] and diving behaviour [29,30]. During summer, their foraging strategy is strongly influenced by hydrological features as their diet relies essentially on myctophid fish that are concentrated at the polar front [27,31]. These trophic and habitat specializations, together with life-history traits such as long life expectancy, long generation time and low reproductive output [32], make king penguins potentially more vulnerable to climate change in the long term than a generalist species with high reproductive output capable of rapid adaptive changes [33].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Projected poleward shift of king penguins' ( Aptenodytes patagonicus ) foraging range at the Crozet Islands, southern Indian Ocean

2012

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Seabird populations of the Southern Ocean have been responding to climate change for the last three decades and demographic models suggest that projected warming will cause dramatic population changes over the next century. Shift in species distribution is likely to be one of the major possible adaptations to changing environmental conditions. Habitat models based on a unique long-term tracking dataset of king penguin ( Aptenodytes patagonicus ) breeding on the Crozet Islands (southern Indian Ocean) revealed that despite a significant influence of primary productivity and mesoscale activity, sea surface temperature consistently drove penguins' foraging distribution. According to climate models of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the projected warming of surface waters would lead to a gradual southward shift of the more profitable foraging zones, ranging from 25 km per decade for the B1 IPCC scenario to 40 km per decade for the A1B and A2 scenarios. As a consequence, distances travelled by incubating and brooding birds to reach optimal foraging zones associated with the polar front would double by 2100. Such a shift is far beyond the usual foraging range of king penguins breeding and would negatively affect the Crozet population on the long term, unless penguins develop alternative foraging strategies.

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“…These provide the physical structure in which phytoplankton and food webs will develop (mann et al, 1996). More important is the variability and heterogeneity of the physical processes at mesoscale level (lima et al, 2002), this being applied particularly to the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific sectors of the Southern Ocean subdivided into different regions well marked by fronts (BoSt et al, 2009).…”

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Cephalopoda as prey of juvenile Southern elephant seals at Isla 25 de Mayo/King George, South Shetland Islands

Burdman

Daneri

Negrete³

et al. 2015

Iheringia, Sér. Zool.

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ABSTRACT. The aim of the present study was to enhance the knowledge of the feeding habits of the juvenile component of the population of Southern elephant seals [Mirounga leonina (Linnaeus, 1758)] from Isla 25 de Mayo, South Shetland Islands, age class whose diet information is scarce. A total of 60 individuals were stomach lavaged in the spring -summer seasons of three consecutive years (2003, 2004 and 2005) of which 53.3 % (n = 32) presented food remnants. The Antarctic glacial squid Psychroteuthis glacialis Thiele, 1921 was the dominant prey taxon in terms of frequency of occurrence (68.7%), numerical abundance (60.1%) and biomass (51.5%), contributing 84.1% to the total relative importance index. Other squid prey species of importance were Slosarczykovia circumantartica Lipinski, 2001 in terms of occurrence (37.5%) and numerical abundance (14%) and Moroteuthis knipovitchi Filippova, 1972 in terms of biomass (16%). All identified cephalopod prey taxa are distributed south of the Antarctic Polar Front, except for the squid Martialia hyadesi Rochebrune & Mabille, 1889 which has a circumpolar distribution associated to the Polar Frontal Zone. No significant differences in the sizes of P. glacialis preyed upon by elephant seals were found between sexes and years. However, significant interannual differences were found in the taxonomical composition of their diet. This would be associated with temporal changes in food availability at the foraging areas of seals, which in turn may have been influenced by changes in oceanographic conditions as a result of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon that occurred during part of the study period. Furthermore, a differential response of males and females to this temporal variation was observed, with the former being also associated to a predation on octopods. This would suggest a sexual segregation in foraging habits of this species from the early stages of its life cycle. KEYWORDS. Mirounga, diet, Antarctica.RESUMEN. Cephalopoda como presa de juveniles de elefantes marinos del sur en la Isla 25 de Mayo/King George, Islas Shetland del Sur. El objetivo del presente estudio fue el de incrementar el conocimiento de los hábitos alimentarios del componente juvenil de la población de elefantes marinos del sur [Mirounga leonina (Linnaeus, 1758)] de Isla 25 de Mayo, Islas Shetland del Sur, clase de edad cuya dieta es poco conocida . Un total de 60 ejemplares fueron sometidos a técnicas de lavaje estomacal durante primavera -verano de tres años consecutivos (2003, 2004 y 2005) de los cuales el 53,3 % (n = 32) presentaba restos alimentarios. El calamar antártico Psychroteuthis glacialis Thiele, 1921 fue el taxón presa dominante en términos de frecuencia de ocurrencia (68,7%), abundancia numérica (60,1%) y biomasa (51,5%), contribuyendo en un 84,1% al índice de importancia relativa total. Otros calamares presa de importancia fueron Slosarczykovia circumantartica Lipinski, 2001, en términos de ocurrencia (37,5%) y de abundancia numérica (14%), y Moroteuthis knipovitchi F...

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The importance of oceanographic fronts to marine birds and mammals of the southern oceans

Cited by 418 publications

References 118 publications

O' mother where wert thou? Maternal strategies in the southern elephant seal: a stable isotope investigation

O' mother where wert thou? Maternal strategies in the southern elephant seal: a stable isotope investigation

Projected poleward shift of king penguins' ( Aptenodytes patagonicus ) foraging range at the Crozet Islands, southern Indian Ocean

Cephalopoda as prey of juvenile Southern elephant seals at Isla 25 de Mayo/King George, South Shetland Islands

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