Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation?
In capital-breeding marine mammals, prey acquisition during the foraging trip coinciding with gestation must provide energy to meet the immediate needs of the growing fetus and also a store to meet the subsequent demands of lactation. Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) that give birth following...
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ftcdlib:oai:escholarship.org:ark:/13030/qt4sr7g23b 2023-09-05T13:22:50+02:00 Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? Shero, Michelle R Goetz, Kimberly T Costa, Daniel P Burns, Jennifer M 11857 - 11874 2018-12-01 application/pdf https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4sr7g23b unknown eScholarship, University of California qt4sr7g23b https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4sr7g23b public Ecology and Evolution, vol 8, iss 23 Basic Behavioral and Social Science Behavioral and Social Science Reproductive health and childbirth aerobic capacity aerobic dive limit dive behavior gestation marine mammals pinniped pregnancy reproduction Ecology Evolutionary Biology article 2018 ftcdlib 2023-08-21T18:07:59Z In capital-breeding marine mammals, prey acquisition during the foraging trip coinciding with gestation must provide energy to meet the immediate needs of the growing fetus and also a store to meet the subsequent demands of lactation. Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) that give birth following the gestational (winter) foraging period gain similar proportions of mass and lipid as compared to females that fail to give birth. Therefore, any changes in foraging behavior can be attributed to gestational costs. To investigate differences in foraging effort associated with successful reproduction, twenty-three satellite tags were deployed on post-molt female Weddell seals in the Ross Sea. Of the 20 females that returned to the area the following year, 12 females gave birth and eight did not. Females that gave birth the following year began the winter foraging period with significantly longer and deeper dives, as compared to non-reproductive seals. Mid- to late winter, reproductive females spent a significantly greater proportion of the day diving, and either depressed their diving metabolic rates (DMR), or exceeded their calculated aerobic dive limit (cADL) more frequently than females that returned without a pup. Moreover, non-reproductive females organized their dives into 2-3 short bouts per day on average (BOUTshort; 7.06±1.29hr; mean ± 95% CI), whereas reproductive females made 1-2 BOUTshort per day (10.9±2.84hr), comprising one long daily foraging bout without rest. The magnitude of the increase in dive activity budgets and depression in calculated DMR closely matched the estimated energetic requirements of supporting a fetus. This study is one of the first to identify increases in foraging effort that are associated with successful reproduction in a top predator and indicates that reproductive females must operate closer to their physiological limits to support gestational costs. Article in Journal/Newspaper Ross Sea Weddell Seal Weddell Seals University of California: eScholarship Ross Sea Weddell |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of California: eScholarship |
op_collection_id |
ftcdlib |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Basic Behavioral and Social Science Behavioral and Social Science Reproductive health and childbirth aerobic capacity aerobic dive limit dive behavior gestation marine mammals pinniped pregnancy reproduction Ecology Evolutionary Biology |
spellingShingle |
Basic Behavioral and Social Science Behavioral and Social Science Reproductive health and childbirth aerobic capacity aerobic dive limit dive behavior gestation marine mammals pinniped pregnancy reproduction Ecology Evolutionary Biology Shero, Michelle R Goetz, Kimberly T Costa, Daniel P Burns, Jennifer M Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
topic_facet |
Basic Behavioral and Social Science Behavioral and Social Science Reproductive health and childbirth aerobic capacity aerobic dive limit dive behavior gestation marine mammals pinniped pregnancy reproduction Ecology Evolutionary Biology |
description |
In capital-breeding marine mammals, prey acquisition during the foraging trip coinciding with gestation must provide energy to meet the immediate needs of the growing fetus and also a store to meet the subsequent demands of lactation. Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) that give birth following the gestational (winter) foraging period gain similar proportions of mass and lipid as compared to females that fail to give birth. Therefore, any changes in foraging behavior can be attributed to gestational costs. To investigate differences in foraging effort associated with successful reproduction, twenty-three satellite tags were deployed on post-molt female Weddell seals in the Ross Sea. Of the 20 females that returned to the area the following year, 12 females gave birth and eight did not. Females that gave birth the following year began the winter foraging period with significantly longer and deeper dives, as compared to non-reproductive seals. Mid- to late winter, reproductive females spent a significantly greater proportion of the day diving, and either depressed their diving metabolic rates (DMR), or exceeded their calculated aerobic dive limit (cADL) more frequently than females that returned without a pup. Moreover, non-reproductive females organized their dives into 2-3 short bouts per day on average (BOUTshort; 7.06±1.29hr; mean ± 95% CI), whereas reproductive females made 1-2 BOUTshort per day (10.9±2.84hr), comprising one long daily foraging bout without rest. The magnitude of the increase in dive activity budgets and depression in calculated DMR closely matched the estimated energetic requirements of supporting a fetus. This study is one of the first to identify increases in foraging effort that are associated with successful reproduction in a top predator and indicates that reproductive females must operate closer to their physiological limits to support gestational costs. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Shero, Michelle R Goetz, Kimberly T Costa, Daniel P Burns, Jennifer M |
author_facet |
Shero, Michelle R Goetz, Kimberly T Costa, Daniel P Burns, Jennifer M |
author_sort |
Shero, Michelle R |
title |
Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
title_short |
Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
title_full |
Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
title_fullStr |
Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
title_full_unstemmed |
Temporal changes in Weddell seal dive behavior over winter: Are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
title_sort |
temporal changes in weddell seal dive behavior over winter: are females increasing foraging effort to support gestation? |
publisher |
eScholarship, University of California |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4sr7g23b |
op_coverage |
11857 - 11874 |
geographic |
Ross Sea Weddell |
geographic_facet |
Ross Sea Weddell |
genre |
Ross Sea Weddell Seal Weddell Seals |
genre_facet |
Ross Sea Weddell Seal Weddell Seals |
op_source |
Ecology and Evolution, vol 8, iss 23 |
op_relation |
qt4sr7g23b https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4sr7g23b |
op_rights |
public |
_version_ |
1776203387581235200 |