Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine
A variety of seabird species migrate annually from wintering grounds in the Southern Hemisphere to the Gulf of Maine, USA to breed and raise their young. Post-migration, adult seabirds depend on the spatio-temporal match of reliable food resources to replenish energy reserves before breeding. Howeve...
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Resilience Alliance
2022
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:775384c4fed44f32a569382e745cd8bf 2023-05-15T15:08:52+02:00 Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine Rachel M. Bratton Henry D. Legett Paula Shannon Keenan C. Yakola Alexander R. Gerson Michelle D. Staudinger 2022-06-01T00:00:00Z https://doaj.org/article/775384c4fed44f32a569382e745cd8bf EN eng Resilience Alliance https://www.ace-eco.org/vol17/iss1/art19/ https://doaj.org/toc/1712-6568 1712-6568 https://doaj.org/article/775384c4fed44f32a569382e745cd8bf Avian Conservation and Ecology, Vol 17, Iss 1, p 19 (2022) eggshells foraging ecology gulf of maine stable isotopes sterna sp terns trophic niche breadth Plant culture SB1-1110 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Plant ecology QK900-989 article 2022 ftdoajarticles 2022-12-30T19:53:37Z A variety of seabird species migrate annually from wintering grounds in the Southern Hemisphere to the Gulf of Maine, USA to breed and raise their young. Post-migration, adult seabirds depend on the spatio-temporal match of reliable food resources to replenish energy reserves before breeding. However, the conditions during this critical window of time are becoming increasingly uncertain given the magnitude and pace at which climate change is impacting the Gulf of Maine region. We investigated the pre-breeding foraging ecology of Arctic Terns (Sterna paradisaea), Common Terns (S. hirundo), and the federally endangered Roseate Tern (S. dougallii) by analyzing stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes in eggshell tissues collected from seven islands in the Gulf of Maine from 2016 to 2018. Results show at the interspecific level, adult foraging patterns are consistent with expectations based on chick diets. At interisland and interannual scales, variation in isotopic values and niche breadths suggest foraging habits are highly localized. Although uncertainty remains, interannual trends also suggest warmer ocean conditions are either affecting tern foraging behaviors and/or prey resource availability during the late spring and early summer. Overall, results provide new information on adult tern foraging ecology in an important breeding area experiencing rapid environmental change. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Climate change Sterna paradisaea Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
eggshells foraging ecology gulf of maine stable isotopes sterna sp terns trophic niche breadth Plant culture SB1-1110 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Plant ecology QK900-989 |
spellingShingle |
eggshells foraging ecology gulf of maine stable isotopes sterna sp terns trophic niche breadth Plant culture SB1-1110 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Plant ecology QK900-989 Rachel M. Bratton Henry D. Legett Paula Shannon Keenan C. Yakola Alexander R. Gerson Michelle D. Staudinger Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine |
topic_facet |
eggshells foraging ecology gulf of maine stable isotopes sterna sp terns trophic niche breadth Plant culture SB1-1110 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Plant ecology QK900-989 |
description |
A variety of seabird species migrate annually from wintering grounds in the Southern Hemisphere to the Gulf of Maine, USA to breed and raise their young. Post-migration, adult seabirds depend on the spatio-temporal match of reliable food resources to replenish energy reserves before breeding. However, the conditions during this critical window of time are becoming increasingly uncertain given the magnitude and pace at which climate change is impacting the Gulf of Maine region. We investigated the pre-breeding foraging ecology of Arctic Terns (Sterna paradisaea), Common Terns (S. hirundo), and the federally endangered Roseate Tern (S. dougallii) by analyzing stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes in eggshell tissues collected from seven islands in the Gulf of Maine from 2016 to 2018. Results show at the interspecific level, adult foraging patterns are consistent with expectations based on chick diets. At interisland and interannual scales, variation in isotopic values and niche breadths suggest foraging habits are highly localized. Although uncertainty remains, interannual trends also suggest warmer ocean conditions are either affecting tern foraging behaviors and/or prey resource availability during the late spring and early summer. Overall, results provide new information on adult tern foraging ecology in an important breeding area experiencing rapid environmental change. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Rachel M. Bratton Henry D. Legett Paula Shannon Keenan C. Yakola Alexander R. Gerson Michelle D. Staudinger |
author_facet |
Rachel M. Bratton Henry D. Legett Paula Shannon Keenan C. Yakola Alexander R. Gerson Michelle D. Staudinger |
author_sort |
Rachel M. Bratton |
title |
Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine |
title_short |
Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine |
title_full |
Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine |
title_fullStr |
Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine |
title_full_unstemmed |
Pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the Gulf of Maine |
title_sort |
pre-breeding foraging ecology of three tern species nesting in the gulf of maine |
publisher |
Resilience Alliance |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doaj.org/article/775384c4fed44f32a569382e745cd8bf |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic Climate change Sterna paradisaea |
genre_facet |
Arctic Climate change Sterna paradisaea |
op_source |
Avian Conservation and Ecology, Vol 17, Iss 1, p 19 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://www.ace-eco.org/vol17/iss1/art19/ https://doaj.org/toc/1712-6568 1712-6568 https://doaj.org/article/775384c4fed44f32a569382e745cd8bf |
_version_ |
1766340149779628032 |