Divergent post-breeding spatial habitat use of Laysan and black-footed albatross

Type Article
Date 2022-12
Language English
Author(s) Jordan Fredrick Dallas1, Shaffer Scott A.2, Conners Melinda G.1, Stepanuk Julia E. F.3, Gilmour Morgan E.4, Clatterbuck Corey A.2, Hazen Elliott L.5, Palacios Daniel M.6, Tremblay Yann7, Antolos Michelle8, Foley David G.5, Bograd Steven J.5, Costa Daniel P.9, Thorne Lesley H.1
Affiliation(s) 1 : School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States
2 : Biological Sciences, San Jose State University, San Jose, CA, United States
3 : Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States
4 : Ocean Sciences Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, United States
5 : Environmental Research Division, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Monterey, CA, United States
6 : Marine Mammal Institute and Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, Oregon State University, Newport, OR, United States
7 : MARBEC Research Unit (IRD, IFREMER, CNRS, Univ. Montpellier), Sète, France
8 : College of Agricultural Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, United States
9 : Long Marine Laboratory Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, United States
Source Frontiers In Ecology And Evolution (2296-701X) (Frontiers Media SA), 2022-12 , Vol. 10 , P. 1028317 (18p.)
DOI 10.3389/fevo.2022.1028317
WOS© Times Cited 3
Keyword(s) habitat, overlap, distribution, loggers, movement ecology, spatial ecology, post-breeding, segregation
Abstract

Understanding the at-sea movements of wide-ranging seabird species throughout their annual cycle is essential for their conservation and management. Habitat use and resource partitioning of Laysan (Phoebastria immutabilis) and black-footed (Phoebastria nigripes) albatross are well-described during the breeding period but are less understood during the post-breeding period, which represents ~40% of their annual cycle. Resource partitioning may be reduced during post-breeding, when birds are not constrained to return to the nest site regularly and can disperse to reduce competitive pressure. We assessed the degree of spatial segregation in the post-breeding distributions of Laysan (n = 82) and black-footed albatrosses (n = 61) using geolocator tags between 2008 and 2012 from two large breeding colonies in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Midway Atoll, and Tern Island. We characterized the species-and colony-specific foraging and focal distributions (represented by the 95 and 50th density contours, respectively) and quantified segregation in at-sea habitat use between species and colonies. Laysan and black-footed albatross showed consistent and significant at-sea segregation in focal areas across colonies, indicating that resource partitioning persists during post-breeding. Within breeding colonies, segregation of foraging areas between the two species was more evident for birds breeding at Tern Island. Spatial segregation decreased as the post-breeding season progressed, when spatial distributions of both species became more dispersed. In contrast to studies conducted on breeding Laysan and black-footed albatross, we found that sea surface temperature distinguished post-breeding habitats of black-footed albatrosses between colonies, with black-footed albatrosses from Midway Atoll occurring in cooler waters (3.6°C cooler on average). Our results reveal marked at-sea segregation between Laysan and black-footed albatross breeding at two colonies during a critical but understudied phase in their annual cycle. The observed variation in species-environment relationships underscores the importance of sampling multiple colonies and temporal periods to more thoroughly understand the spatial distributions of pelagic seabirds.

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Jordan Fredrick Dallas, Shaffer Scott A., Conners Melinda G., Stepanuk Julia E. F., Gilmour Morgan E., Clatterbuck Corey A., Hazen Elliott L., Palacios Daniel M., Tremblay Yann, Antolos Michelle, Foley David G., Bograd Steven J., Costa Daniel P., Thorne Lesley H. (2022). Divergent post-breeding spatial habitat use of Laysan and black-footed albatross. Frontiers In Ecology And Evolution, 10, 1028317 (18p.). Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.1028317 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00810/92203/