Sea ice and local weather affect reproductive phenology of a polar seabird with breeding consequences

• Published in: Ornithological Applications
• Main Authors: Sauser, Christophe, Delord, Karine, Barbraud, Christophe
• Other Authors: Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé - UMR 7372 (CEBC), La Rochelle Université (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2021
• Subjects: changement climatique; succès à l’envol; date d’éclosion; date de ponte; oiseau marin; glace de mer; chute de neige; vent; Pétrel des neiges; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; Nivea; Sea ice; Snow Petrel; Snow Petrels
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-03330772; https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithapp/duab032

International audience Abstract Breeding at the right time is essential for animals living in seasonal environments to ensure that energy requirements for reproduction, especially the nutritional needs for rearing offspring, coincide with peak food availability. Climate change is likely to cause modifications in the timing of maximum food availability, and organisms living in polar environments where the breeding period is heavily contracted may be particularly affected. Here we used a 26-year dataset to study the phenological response of a pagophilic species, the Snow Petrel (Pagodroma nivea), to climate change and its demographic impact. First, we investigated the trends and relationships between climate variables and hatching dates measured in three neighboring colonies. In a second step, we examined the impact of the hatching date and environmental covariates on the fledging probability. Our results showed that sea ice, a climate-related variable, showed a positive temporal trend. We found that hatching date was delayed when sea ice concentration was greater and local weather conditions were worse (i.e., increase in the number of windy days or the number of snow days). Hatching date had a negative effect on fledging probability, and fledging probability showed a bell-shaped temporal trend. We suggest that Snow Petrels can delay breeding phenology in response to environmental conditions. However, this plasticity may be limited as fledging success decreased with delayed hatching, potentially making the Snow Petrel vulnerable to a mismatch between resource availability and nutritional needs. La reproduction au bon moment est essentielle pour les animaux vivant dans des environnements saisonniers afin queles besoins énergétiques pour la reproduction, et surtout les besoins nutritionnels pour l’élevage, coïncident avec le picde disponibilité alimentaire. Le changement climatique est susceptible d’entraîner des modifications dans le calendrierde la disponibilité maximale de la ressource, et les organismes ...