Between- and within- individual variation in the migration of a tropical seabird, the Round Island petrel

• Main Authors: 3rd World Seabird Conference 2021, Franklin, Kirsty
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Underline Science Inc. 2021
• Subjects: Animal Science; Ornithology; Emerging Technologies; Antarctic; Durrell; Indian; Pacific; Round Island; Alfred Wegener Institute; Antarc*; British Antarctic Survey
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.48448/ekp6-zc51; https://underline.io/lecture/34772-between--and-within--individual-variation-in-the-migration-of-a-tropical-seabird,-the-round-island-petrel

Abstract: Tracking individuals on repeated migratory journeys is proving key to understanding the evolutionary forces shaping migratory systems. The extent of between- and within- individual variation in migratory routes, timings, and stopovers of various species has important implications for the understanding of how migratory systems may alter in response to environmental changes. However, this approach has received little attention for seabirds wintering in the tropics, where individuals are often thought to perform less consistent migrations due to the lack of seasonally predictable food resources. Using a 10-year light level geolocator tracking dataset, comprised of 70 individuals with multiple consecutive non-breeding migrations, we will examine the between- and within- individual variation in migratory routes and timings of a tropical seabird, the Round Island petrel. This population of petrels in the Indian Ocean is a three-way hybrid complex consisting of one species from the Atlantic (Pterodroma arminjoniana), two species from the Pacific (P. heraldica and P. neglecta), and inter-specific hybrids. These tracking data reveal extraordinary levels of individual variation in ocean movements, with petrels undertaking non-breeding migrations to different areas across much of the Indian Ocean. Preliminary analysis on a small number of individuals has shown consistent individual differences in the start and end dates of petrel migration, and the routes taken. This, together with the fact that birds can be found breeding on Round Island all year round, means that individuals are potentially exposed to a very wide range of environmental conditions and human-associated impacts, with potentially important consequences for breeding success, survival and, ultimately, the status of this population. Authors: Kirsty Franklin¹, Ken Norris², Jennifer Gill¹, Norman Ratcliffe³, Simon Butler¹, Nik Cole⁴, Carl Jones⁴, Simeon Lisovski⁵, Kevin Ruhomaun⁶, Vikash Tatayah⁷, Malcolm Nicoll² ¹University of East Anglia, ²Zoological Society of London, ³British Antarctic Survey, ⁴Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, ⁵Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, ⁶National Parks and Conservation Service, ⁷Mauritian Wildlife Foundation