Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic
International audience In the Atlantic Arctic, bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) were nearly exterminated by European whalers between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. The collapse of the East Greenland–Svalbard–Barents Sea population, from an estimated 50 000 to a few hundred individuals,...
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Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
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HAL CCSD
2024
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Online Access: | https://hal.science/hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982/document https://hal.science/hal-04674982/file/thepault-et-al-2024-food-chain-without-giants-modelling-the-trophic-impact-of-bowhead-whaling-on-little-auk-populations.pdf |
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ftsorbonneuniv:oai:HAL:hal-04674982v1 |
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openpolar |
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Open Polar |
collection |
HAL Sorbonne Université |
op_collection_id |
ftsorbonneuniv |
language |
English |
topic |
Deterministic modelling ecological baselines historical ecology seabirds trophic niche whales [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology [SDU.STU.OC]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Oceanography [SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology |
spellingShingle |
Deterministic modelling ecological baselines historical ecology seabirds trophic niche whales [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology [SDU.STU.OC]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Oceanography [SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology Thepault, Amaury Rodrigues, Ana, S. L. Drago, Laetitia Grémillet, David Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic |
topic_facet |
Deterministic modelling ecological baselines historical ecology seabirds trophic niche whales [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology [SDU.STU.OC]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Oceanography [SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology |
description |
International audience In the Atlantic Arctic, bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) were nearly exterminated by European whalers between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. The collapse of the East Greenland–Svalbard–Barents Sea population, from an estimated 50 000 to a few hundred individuals, drastically reduced predation on mesozooplankton. Here, we tested the hypothesis that this event strongly favoured the demography of the little auk (Alle alle), a zooplanktivorous feeder competitor of bowhead whales and the most abundant seabird in the Arctic. To estimate the effect of bowhead whaling on little auk abundance, we modelled the trophic niche overlap between the two species using deterministic simulations of mesozooplankton spatial distribution. We estimated that bowhead whaling could have led to a 70% increase in northeast Atlantic Arctic little auk populations, from 2.8 to 4.8 million breeding pairs. While corresponding to a major population increase, this is far less than predicted by previous studies. Our study illustrates how a trophic shift can result from the near extirpation of a marine megafauna species, and the methodological framework we developed opens up new opportunities for marine trophic modelling. |
author2 |
Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE) Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE) Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD France-Sud )-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-Institut Agro Montpellier Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Université de Montpellier (UM) Mécanismes Adaptatifs et Evolution (MECADEV) Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Laboratoire d'océanographie de Villefranche (LOV) Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de la Mer de Villefranche (IMEV) Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Processus et interactions de fine échelle océanique (PROTEO) Laboratoire d'Océanographie et du Climat : Expérimentations et Approches Numériques (LOCEAN) Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut Pierre-Simon-Laplace (IPSL (FR_636)) École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL) Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-École polytechnique (X) Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité)-École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL) Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-École polytechnique (X) Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité)-Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut Pierre-Simon-Laplace (IPSL (FR_636)) Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité) Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology University of Cape Town D.G. was supported by the French Polar Institute IPEV (ADACLIM programme No 388, co-led with Jérôme Fort at CNRS-LIENSs) and by the SEE-Life Program of CNRS Ecology and Environment. L.D. was funded by the Sorbonne University (through the doctoral school ED129) and by Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Actions (grant number 101081273, NECCTON project). European Project: 101081273,NECCTON |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Thepault, Amaury Rodrigues, Ana, S. L. Drago, Laetitia Grémillet, David |
author_facet |
Thepault, Amaury Rodrigues, Ana, S. L. Drago, Laetitia Grémillet, David |
author_sort |
Thepault, Amaury |
title |
Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic |
title_short |
Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic |
title_full |
Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic |
title_fullStr |
Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic |
title_full_unstemmed |
Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic |
title_sort |
food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the atlantic arctic |
publisher |
HAL CCSD |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://hal.science/hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982/document https://hal.science/hal-04674982/file/thepault-et-al-2024-food-chain-without-giants-modelling-the-trophic-impact-of-bowhead-whaling-on-little-auk-populations.pdf |
genre |
Alle alle Atlantic Arctic Atlantic-Arctic Balaena mysticetus Barents Sea East Greenland Greenland little auk Northeast Atlantic Svalbard |
genre_facet |
Alle alle Atlantic Arctic Atlantic-Arctic Balaena mysticetus Barents Sea East Greenland Greenland little auk Northeast Atlantic Svalbard |
op_source |
ISSN: 0962-8452 EISSN: 1471-2954 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences https://hal.science/hal-04674982 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2024, 291 (2029), pp.20241183 |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement//101081273/EU/New Copernicus Capability for Trophic Ocean Networks/NECCTON hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982/document https://hal.science/hal-04674982/file/thepault-et-al-2024-food-chain-without-giants-modelling-the-trophic-impact-of-bowhead-whaling-on-little-auk-populations.pdf |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess |
_version_ |
1810492666279886848 |
spelling |
ftsorbonneuniv:oai:HAL:hal-04674982v1 2024-09-15T17:36:52+00:00 Food chain without giants: modelling the trophic impact of bowhead whaling on little auk populations in the Atlantic Arctic Thepault, Amaury Rodrigues, Ana, S. L. Drago, Laetitia Grémillet, David Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE) Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE) Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD France-Sud )-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-Institut Agro Montpellier Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Université de Montpellier (UM) Mécanismes Adaptatifs et Evolution (MECADEV) Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Laboratoire d'océanographie de Villefranche (LOV) Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de la Mer de Villefranche (IMEV) Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Processus et interactions de fine échelle océanique (PROTEO) Laboratoire d'Océanographie et du Climat : Expérimentations et Approches Numériques (LOCEAN) Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut Pierre-Simon-Laplace (IPSL (FR_636)) École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL) Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-École polytechnique (X) Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité)-École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL) Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-École polytechnique (X) Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité)-Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut Pierre-Simon-Laplace (IPSL (FR_636)) Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Institut Polytechnique de Paris (IP Paris)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris Cité (UPCité) Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology University of Cape Town D.G. was supported by the French Polar Institute IPEV (ADACLIM programme No 388, co-led with Jérôme Fort at CNRS-LIENSs) and by the SEE-Life Program of CNRS Ecology and Environment. L.D. was funded by the Sorbonne University (through the doctoral school ED129) and by Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Actions (grant number 101081273, NECCTON project). European Project: 101081273,NECCTON 2024 https://hal.science/hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982/document https://hal.science/hal-04674982/file/thepault-et-al-2024-food-chain-without-giants-modelling-the-trophic-impact-of-bowhead-whaling-on-little-auk-populations.pdf en eng HAL CCSD Royal Society, The info:eu-repo/grantAgreement//101081273/EU/New Copernicus Capability for Trophic Ocean Networks/NECCTON hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982 https://hal.science/hal-04674982/document https://hal.science/hal-04674982/file/thepault-et-al-2024-food-chain-without-giants-modelling-the-trophic-impact-of-bowhead-whaling-on-little-auk-populations.pdf info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess ISSN: 0962-8452 EISSN: 1471-2954 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences https://hal.science/hal-04674982 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2024, 291 (2029), pp.20241183 Deterministic modelling ecological baselines historical ecology seabirds trophic niche whales [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology [SDU.STU.OC]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Oceanography [SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology info:eu-repo/semantics/article Journal articles 2024 ftsorbonneuniv 2024-08-30T00:00:52Z International audience In the Atlantic Arctic, bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) were nearly exterminated by European whalers between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. The collapse of the East Greenland–Svalbard–Barents Sea population, from an estimated 50 000 to a few hundred individuals, drastically reduced predation on mesozooplankton. Here, we tested the hypothesis that this event strongly favoured the demography of the little auk (Alle alle), a zooplanktivorous feeder competitor of bowhead whales and the most abundant seabird in the Arctic. To estimate the effect of bowhead whaling on little auk abundance, we modelled the trophic niche overlap between the two species using deterministic simulations of mesozooplankton spatial distribution. We estimated that bowhead whaling could have led to a 70% increase in northeast Atlantic Arctic little auk populations, from 2.8 to 4.8 million breeding pairs. While corresponding to a major population increase, this is far less than predicted by previous studies. Our study illustrates how a trophic shift can result from the near extirpation of a marine megafauna species, and the methodological framework we developed opens up new opportunities for marine trophic modelling. Article in Journal/Newspaper Alle alle Atlantic Arctic Atlantic-Arctic Balaena mysticetus Barents Sea East Greenland Greenland little auk Northeast Atlantic Svalbard HAL Sorbonne Université |