Data from: Climate oscillation and alien species invasion influences oceanic seabird distribution ...

• Main Authors: Perez-Correa, Julian, Carr, Peter, Meeuwig, Jessica, Koldewey, Heather, Letessier, Tom B.
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2020
• Subjects: Chagos Archipelago; British Indian Ocean Territory; Marine protected areas; ship rat; island invasive species; Rattus rattus; Boosted regression tree; Carr; Indian
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.sxksn0311; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.sxksn0311

Spatial and temporal distribution of seabird transiting and foraging at sea is an important consideration for marine conservation planning. Using at-sea observations of seabirds (n = 317), collected during the breeding season from 2012 to 2016, we built boosted regression tree (BRT) models to identify relationships between numerically dominant seabird species (red-footed booby, brown noddy, white tern and wedge-tailed shearwater), geomorphology, oceanographic variability, and climate oscillation in the Chagos Archipelago. We documented positive relationships between red-footed booby and wedge-tailed shearwater abundance with the strength in the Indian Ocean Dipole, as represented by the Dipole Mode Index (6.7% and 23.7% contribution respectively). The abundance of red-footed boobies, brown noddies and white terns declined abruptly with greater distance to island (17.6%, 34.1% and 41.1% contribution respectively). We further quantified the effects of proximity to rat-free and rat-invaded islands on seabird ... : Data was collected by Peter Carr and one or two assistants between 2012-2016 in the Chagos Archipelago using transects with a duration of 30 minutes. During each transect, the vessel typically steamed at 12 knots and travelled ca. 11 km. Sightings were annotated within a 180 arc from the vessel out to ca. 300 m. Any detail of how environmental variables were collected, please see the main manuscript. ...