| Summary: | A long term study of the Kittiwake colonies of Cap Sizun (Brittany, France) shows that, even though Kittiwakes usually recruit at the age of 4, the population growth rate from year to year is highly correlated with the breeding success of the previous year. This is due to a strong recruitment, a large proportion of breeders, and a high adult fidelity after years of high fecondity. Furthermore, for a given individual breeding performance (breeding success or failure), adult fidelity to the colony and the proportion of breeders in the following year increase with the breeding success of the colony in which they bred in the previous year. This leads us to propose a mechanism of population regulation through Attraction, Recruitment, Non-breeding, and Adult Fidelity, in which breeding success and social context―two characteristics which reflect environmental quality―play prominent roles
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