The Adélie penguin, sentinel of the sea-ice : study of the foraging behaviour in response to environmental variations during the breeding season

• Main Author: Michelot, Candice
• Other Authors: Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé - UMR 7372 (CEBC), Université de La Rochelle (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Université de La Rochelle, Yan Ropert-Coudert
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: French
• Published: HAL CCSD 2020
• Subjects: Adélie penguins; Sea ice; Bio-logging; Foraging activity; Sentinel species; East Antarctica; MPA; Manchots Adélie; Glace de mer; Activité alimentaire; Espèce sentinelle; Antarctique de l’Est; AMP; [SDV.BA]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology; Antarctic; Arctic; Manchot; Manchots; Terre Adélie; Terre-Adélie; Antarc*; Antarctica; Antarctique*
• Online Access: https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-03327950; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-03327950/document; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-03327950/file/2020MICHELOT152538.pdf

A central question in ecology is the understanding of the environmental change effects on organisms and on the ecosystem functioning. The Arctic and Antarctic warm faster than any other region on Earth, which has consequences on the sea-ice state and by extent on polar species which depend on it for their breeding and feeding activities. The main objective of my PhD was to determine the behavioural responses of a bio-indicator species, the Adélie penguin, during its foraging activity facing variable sea-ice conditions, at different species levels : individual, population, inter-population. We use a foraging activity dataset (GPS data, diet) on Adélie penguins obtained collected each year since 2010 in Terre Adélie (East Antarctica), at each breeding season in several colonies. We highlight foraging behavioural variations in that species related to sea-ice conditions and dynamics, but similar responses between individuals and between colonies facing comparable environmental conditions. Our results highlight the importance of specific habitats and sea-ice conditions for an optimal foraging activity. We discuss about intrinsic and extrinsic factors at the origin of the observed variations, and of the implication of such variations on the reproductive behaviour of Adélie penguins. Those PhD results are replaced in a context of ecosystem conservation for the implementation of efficient protection measures based on the ecology of sentinel species. Une question centrale en écologie est la compréhension des effets des changements environnementaux sur les organismes et sur le fonctionnement des écosystèmes. L’Arctique et l’Antarctique se réchauffent plus rapidement que n’importe quelle autre région sur la planète, ce qui a des conséquences sur l’état de la glace de mer et par extension sur les espèces polaires qui en dépendent pour leur activité d’alimentation et de reproduction. L’objectif principal de cette thèse est de déterminer les réponses comportementales d’une espèce bio-indicatrice, le manchot Adélie, lors de ...