Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies
Abstract Seabirds are among the most endangered avian groups, with populations declining worldwide because of various threats, including invasive nest predators. Similar decreasing trends are occurring in the Southern Grenadines; however, the causes of decline remain uncertain, although non‐native r...
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crwiley:10.1002/ece3.7313 2024-06-02T08:13:43+00:00 Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies Smart, Wayne A. Collier, Natalia Rolland, Virginie National Geographic Society 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7313 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.7313 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ece3.7313 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ecology and Evolution volume 11, issue 9, page 4172-4181 ISSN 2045-7758 2045-7758 journal-article 2021 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7313 2024-05-03T11:05:22Z Abstract Seabirds are among the most endangered avian groups, with populations declining worldwide because of various threats, including invasive nest predators. Similar decreasing trends are occurring in the Southern Grenadines; however, the causes of decline remain uncertain, although non‐native rats have been suspected. Therefore, our objective was to determine whether non‐native rats are present on five Southern Grenadine islands that harbor seabird colonies, during May–July 2014–2017, using four methods (chew cards, tunnels, cameras, and questionnaires). Les Tantes East and Lee Rocks were the only two islands where cameras detected black rats ( Rattus rattus ). Although rat occupancy was low (0.125 ± 0.061) and the number of individuals and nesting attempts increased (except in 2017) for most species, the low detection probability and small number of nests prevented any inference about rat impact on seabirds. Rats might have affected seabird colonies, but other factors, such as seabird harvest, prey availability, or climatic fluctuations, could have also driven previous seabird population declines in the Southern Grenadines. However, non‐native rats are present and future research should focus on estimating their density and distribution on these and other islands of the region before an appropriate rat eradication program can be implemented. Article in Journal/Newspaper Rattus rattus Wiley Online Library Ecology and Evolution 11 9 4172 4181 |
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Abstract Seabirds are among the most endangered avian groups, with populations declining worldwide because of various threats, including invasive nest predators. Similar decreasing trends are occurring in the Southern Grenadines; however, the causes of decline remain uncertain, although non‐native rats have been suspected. Therefore, our objective was to determine whether non‐native rats are present on five Southern Grenadine islands that harbor seabird colonies, during May–July 2014–2017, using four methods (chew cards, tunnels, cameras, and questionnaires). Les Tantes East and Lee Rocks were the only two islands where cameras detected black rats ( Rattus rattus ). Although rat occupancy was low (0.125 ± 0.061) and the number of individuals and nesting attempts increased (except in 2017) for most species, the low detection probability and small number of nests prevented any inference about rat impact on seabirds. Rats might have affected seabird colonies, but other factors, such as seabird harvest, prey availability, or climatic fluctuations, could have also driven previous seabird population declines in the Southern Grenadines. However, non‐native rats are present and future research should focus on estimating their density and distribution on these and other islands of the region before an appropriate rat eradication program can be implemented. |
author2 |
National Geographic Society |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Smart, Wayne A. Collier, Natalia Rolland, Virginie |
spellingShingle |
Smart, Wayne A. Collier, Natalia Rolland, Virginie Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
author_facet |
Smart, Wayne A. Collier, Natalia Rolland, Virginie |
author_sort |
Smart, Wayne A. |
title |
Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
title_short |
Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
title_full |
Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
title_fullStr |
Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
title_full_unstemmed |
Non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern Grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
title_sort |
non‐native rats detected on uninhabited southern grenadine islands with seabird colonies |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7313 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.7313 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ece3.7313 |
genre |
Rattus rattus |
genre_facet |
Rattus rattus |
op_source |
Ecology and Evolution volume 11, issue 9, page 4172-4181 ISSN 2045-7758 2045-7758 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7313 |
container_title |
Ecology and Evolution |
container_volume |
11 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
4172 |
op_container_end_page |
4181 |
_version_ |
1800737316975673344 |