Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk
The growth of seabird chicks is affected by various environmental conditions. Although species nesting in burrows may thereby reduce the effects of environmental conditions, they are still dependent on the nest microclimate. We investigated the influence of nest microclimate on chick growth in the l...
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Norwegian Polar Institute
2018
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:65f938bd88cf41f88da943a8754b30ce 2023-05-15T13:16:15+02:00 Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk Izabela Kulaszewicz Dariusz Jakubas 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 https://doaj.org/article/65f938bd88cf41f88da943a8754b30ce EN eng Norwegian Polar Institute http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 https://doaj.org/toc/1751-8369 1751-8369 doi:10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 https://doaj.org/article/65f938bd88cf41f88da943a8754b30ce Polar Research, Vol 37, Iss 1 (2018) Nest temperature Svalbard dovekie Alle alle Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 article 2018 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 2022-12-31T11:53:08Z The growth of seabird chicks is affected by various environmental conditions. Although species nesting in burrows may thereby reduce the effects of environmental conditions, they are still dependent on the nest microclimate. We investigated the influence of nest microclimate on chick growth in the little auk (Alle alle), a colonial High-Arctic seabird breeding in Hornsund (south-west Spitsbergen). We recorded air temperature inside and outside 10 active nests during two phases of breeding and during post-breeding period (no birds inside). We found that temperatures differed significantly among the nests. Air temperatures in nests located at higher altitudes were significantly higher, which can be attributed to the absorption of the Sun’s rays at a higher angle, resulting in a greater heat flux. Nest chamber temperatures were significantly higher (by 0.46°C) than ambient ones. During the post-breeding period, 24 hr cycle nest temperatures were more stable than ambient temperatures, indicating the important insulating function of nest burrows. Little auk chicks grew faster in nests with higher mean temperatures. In the first phase of chick growth (15th to 18th day of life), a 1°C difference in the nest temperature resulted in differences in head–bill length and body mass growth of 0.80 mm and 0.76 g per day, respectively. Our study demonstrates the importance of the thermal nest environment in determining chick growth in a species breeding in harsh High-Arctic conditions. Article in Journal/Newspaper Alle alle Arctic Dovekie Hornsund little auk Polar Research Svalbard Spitsbergen Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Svalbard Hornsund ENVELOPE(15.865,15.865,76.979,76.979) Burrows ENVELOPE(163.650,163.650,-74.300,-74.300) Polar Research 37 1 1547044 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Nest temperature Svalbard dovekie Alle alle Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
spellingShingle |
Nest temperature Svalbard dovekie Alle alle Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 Izabela Kulaszewicz Dariusz Jakubas Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk |
topic_facet |
Nest temperature Svalbard dovekie Alle alle Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
description |
The growth of seabird chicks is affected by various environmental conditions. Although species nesting in burrows may thereby reduce the effects of environmental conditions, they are still dependent on the nest microclimate. We investigated the influence of nest microclimate on chick growth in the little auk (Alle alle), a colonial High-Arctic seabird breeding in Hornsund (south-west Spitsbergen). We recorded air temperature inside and outside 10 active nests during two phases of breeding and during post-breeding period (no birds inside). We found that temperatures differed significantly among the nests. Air temperatures in nests located at higher altitudes were significantly higher, which can be attributed to the absorption of the Sun’s rays at a higher angle, resulting in a greater heat flux. Nest chamber temperatures were significantly higher (by 0.46°C) than ambient ones. During the post-breeding period, 24 hr cycle nest temperatures were more stable than ambient temperatures, indicating the important insulating function of nest burrows. Little auk chicks grew faster in nests with higher mean temperatures. In the first phase of chick growth (15th to 18th day of life), a 1°C difference in the nest temperature resulted in differences in head–bill length and body mass growth of 0.80 mm and 0.76 g per day, respectively. Our study demonstrates the importance of the thermal nest environment in determining chick growth in a species breeding in harsh High-Arctic conditions. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Izabela Kulaszewicz Dariusz Jakubas |
author_facet |
Izabela Kulaszewicz Dariusz Jakubas |
author_sort |
Izabela Kulaszewicz |
title |
Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk |
title_short |
Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk |
title_full |
Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk |
title_fullStr |
Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk |
title_full_unstemmed |
Influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial High-Arctic seabird, the little auk |
title_sort |
influence of nest burrow microclimate on chick growth in a colonial high-arctic seabird, the little auk |
publisher |
Norwegian Polar Institute |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 https://doaj.org/article/65f938bd88cf41f88da943a8754b30ce |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(15.865,15.865,76.979,76.979) ENVELOPE(163.650,163.650,-74.300,-74.300) |
geographic |
Arctic Svalbard Hornsund Burrows |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Svalbard Hornsund Burrows |
genre |
Alle alle Arctic Dovekie Hornsund little auk Polar Research Svalbard Spitsbergen |
genre_facet |
Alle alle Arctic Dovekie Hornsund little auk Polar Research Svalbard Spitsbergen |
op_source |
Polar Research, Vol 37, Iss 1 (2018) |
op_relation |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 https://doaj.org/toc/1751-8369 1751-8369 doi:10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 https://doaj.org/article/65f938bd88cf41f88da943a8754b30ce |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1547044 |
container_title |
Polar Research |
container_volume |
37 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
1547044 |
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1766273201143283712 |