Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina
In the Mediterranean sea tides oscillate only a few meters and water displacement is mainly due to the influence of winds and changes in atmospheric pressure. This makes Mediterranean estuaries an unpredictable system for shorebirds. The causal mechanisms on habitat selection of Dunlin was studied i...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Journal of Coastal Research
2012
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://journals.fcla.edu/jcr/article/view/80277 |
id |
ftfloridaclaojs:oai:ojs.journals.fcla.edu:article/80277 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftfloridaclaojs:oai:ojs.journals.fcla.edu:article/80277 2023-05-15T15:48:16+02:00 Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina Barbosa, Andres 2012-10-25 application/pdf http://journals.fcla.edu/jcr/article/view/80277 eng eng Journal of Coastal Research http://journals.fcla.edu/jcr/article/view/80277/77524 Journal of Coastal Research; Vol 12, No 4 (1996): Journal of Coastal Research 0749-0208 Geoscience; Geography; Ocean Science; Oceanography; Marine Science; Coastal Geology; Earth and Environmental Sciences Habitat selection; mud flats; rice fields; shorebirds; Spain info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Peer-reviewed Article 2012 ftfloridaclaojs 2016-11-23T12:11:35Z In the Mediterranean sea tides oscillate only a few meters and water displacement is mainly due to the influence of winds and changes in atmospheric pressure. This makes Mediterranean estuaries an unpredictable system for shorebirds. The causal mechanisms on habitat selection of Dunlin was studied in such system at Ebro Delta, where littoral and rice field habitats were available for shorebirds. Dunlins choose to forage littoral habitats where prey are more abundant showing higher intake rate in this habitat, however, this species also uses rice fields. No differences in microhabitat use and foraging technique was found between habitats, Intake rate and searching speed were lower when high bird density was present in littoral but not in rice fields. Therefore, the use of both habitats can be explained by a combination of density-dependent effects following the "ideal free distribution" model and the unpredictability of water movements that reinforce that effect. The study suggests the importance of rice fields as alternative habitats and that the availability of these alternative habitats could contribute significantly to the maintenance of wintering populations of shorebirds in Mediterranean estuaries. Article in Journal/Newspaper Calidris alpina Dunlin Florida Online Journals (FloridaOJ) |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Florida Online Journals (FloridaOJ) |
op_collection_id |
ftfloridaclaojs |
language |
English |
topic |
Geoscience; Geography; Ocean Science; Oceanography; Marine Science; Coastal Geology; Earth and Environmental Sciences Habitat selection; mud flats; rice fields; shorebirds; Spain |
spellingShingle |
Geoscience; Geography; Ocean Science; Oceanography; Marine Science; Coastal Geology; Earth and Environmental Sciences Habitat selection; mud flats; rice fields; shorebirds; Spain Barbosa, Andres Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina |
topic_facet |
Geoscience; Geography; Ocean Science; Oceanography; Marine Science; Coastal Geology; Earth and Environmental Sciences Habitat selection; mud flats; rice fields; shorebirds; Spain |
description |
In the Mediterranean sea tides oscillate only a few meters and water displacement is mainly due to the influence of winds and changes in atmospheric pressure. This makes Mediterranean estuaries an unpredictable system for shorebirds. The causal mechanisms on habitat selection of Dunlin was studied in such system at Ebro Delta, where littoral and rice field habitats were available for shorebirds. Dunlins choose to forage littoral habitats where prey are more abundant showing higher intake rate in this habitat, however, this species also uses rice fields. No differences in microhabitat use and foraging technique was found between habitats, Intake rate and searching speed were lower when high bird density was present in littoral but not in rice fields. Therefore, the use of both habitats can be explained by a combination of density-dependent effects following the "ideal free distribution" model and the unpredictability of water movements that reinforce that effect. The study suggests the importance of rice fields as alternative habitats and that the availability of these alternative habitats could contribute significantly to the maintenance of wintering populations of shorebirds in Mediterranean estuaries. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Barbosa, Andres |
author_facet |
Barbosa, Andres |
author_sort |
Barbosa, Andres |
title |
Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina |
title_short |
Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina |
title_full |
Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina |
title_fullStr |
Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina |
title_full_unstemmed |
Foraging Habitat Use in a Mediterranean Estuary by Dunlin, Calidris alpina |
title_sort |
foraging habitat use in a mediterranean estuary by dunlin, calidris alpina |
publisher |
Journal of Coastal Research |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
http://journals.fcla.edu/jcr/article/view/80277 |
genre |
Calidris alpina Dunlin |
genre_facet |
Calidris alpina Dunlin |
op_source |
Journal of Coastal Research; Vol 12, No 4 (1996): Journal of Coastal Research 0749-0208 |
op_relation |
http://journals.fcla.edu/jcr/article/view/80277/77524 |
_version_ |
1766383263539003392 |