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Reijers VC, van Rees F, van der Heide T, Oost AP, Ruessink G, Koffijberg K, Camphuysen KCJ, Penning E, Hijner N, Govers LL. Birds influence vegetation coverage and structure on sandy biogeomorphic islands in the Dutch Wadden Sea. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 950:175254. [PMID: 39111441 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2024] [Revised: 08/01/2024] [Accepted: 08/01/2024] [Indexed: 08/10/2024]
Abstract
Small uninhabited islands form important roosting and breeding habitats for many coastal birds. Previous studies have demonstrated that guano can promote ecosystem productivity and functionality on island ecosystems. Here, we assess the role of external nutrient input by coastal birds on the vegetation structure and coverage on sandy biogeomorphic islands, where island-forming processes depend on vegetation-sedimentation feedbacks. As a first step, we investigated whether breeding birds affect vegetation productivity on sandy back-barrier islands in the Wadden Sea. Using a combination of bird observations and plant stable isotope (δ15N) analyses, we demonstrate that (i) breeding birds transport large quantities of nutrients via their faecal outputs to these islands annually and that (ii) this external nitrogen source influences vegetation development on these sandy, nutrient-limited, islands. Based on these results we discuss how this avian nutrient pump could impact island development and habitat suitability for coastal birds and discuss future directions for research. In general, we conclude that avian subsidies have the potential to affect both the ecological and biogeomorphic functioning of coastal soft-sediment systems. However, the strength and scale of especially these biogeomorphic interactions are not fully understood. For the conservation of both threatened coastal birds and sandy back-barrier islands and the design of appropriate management strategies, we argue that three-way interactions between birds, vegetation and sandy island morphodynamics need to be further elucidated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valérie C Reijers
- Department of Physical Geography, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, 3508 TC Utrecht, the Netherlands; Department Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, the Netherlands; Department of Aquatic Ecology & Environmental Biology, Institute for Water and Wetland Research, Radboud University, Faculty of Science, P.O. Box 9010, 6500 GL Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | - Floris van Rees
- Department of Physical Geography, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, 3508 TC Utrecht, the Netherlands; Department Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, the Netherlands
| | - Tjisse van der Heide
- Department Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, the Netherlands; Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9700 CC Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Albert P Oost
- Staatsbosbeheer, P.O. Box 2, 3800 AA Amersfoort, the Netherlands
| | - Gerben Ruessink
- Department of Physical Geography, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, 3508 TC Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Kees Koffijberg
- Sovon Dutch Centre for Field Ornithology, PO Box 6521, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Kees C J Camphuysen
- Department Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, the Netherlands
| | - Emma Penning
- Department Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, the Netherlands; BirdEyes, Centre for Global Ecological Change at the Faculties of Science & Engineering and Campus Fryslân, University of Groningen, Zaailand 110, 8911 BN Leeuwarden, the Netherlands
| | - Nadia Hijner
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9700 CC Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Laura L Govers
- Department Coastal Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, the Netherlands; Department of Aquatic Ecology & Environmental Biology, Institute for Water and Wetland Research, Radboud University, Faculty of Science, P.O. Box 9010, 6500 GL Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9700 CC Groningen, the Netherlands
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Linhares BDA, Nunes GT, Bianchini A, Bertolini L, Vilela F, Efe MA, Rodrigues FL, Lanco S, Zebral YD, Costa PG, Bugoni L. Resource partitioning influences levels of toxic trace elements in sympatric tropical seabirds. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 949:175102. [PMID: 39074745 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2024] [Revised: 07/25/2024] [Accepted: 07/26/2024] [Indexed: 07/31/2024]
Abstract
Morphologically similar species that occupy resource-limited environments tend to differ in their ecological traits in order to coexist, which may result in differential exposure to environmental threats. For instance, partitioning of feeding resources may influence contaminant exposure and bioaccumulation in marine predators through different diets or foraging habitats. Here, we sampled three tropical seabird species breeding in sympatry in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean for blood and feather trace element concentrations (As, Hg, Cd, Pb), and assessed their foraging ecology with bio-logging (GPS tracks and time-depth recorders), analysis of regurgitated prey, and carbon and nitrogen stable isotope mixing models. Red-billed tropicbirds (Phaethon aethereus), brown (Sula leucogaster) and masked (S. dactylatra) boobies differed in their preferred foraging locations, the range of foraging trips, diving parameters and diets. In addition, interspecific differences were detected in blood or feathers for all trace elements analyzed, suggesting influence of the differences observed in diet and space use. Red-billed tropicbirds had the largest foraging range over the continental shelf and over the slope, suggesting lower exposure to continental sources of metals. Brown and masked boobies had higher Hg concentrations than tropicbirds, higher δ15N values (a proxy for trophic level), and δ15N correlated with Hg levels, suggesting biomagnification of Hg along the food chain. Nonetheless, red-billed tropicbirds showed comparable levels of As and Cd in blood or feathers, and higher levels of Pb in both tissues in comparison to boobies, which may suggest overall exposure of seabirds in the region, through their diets and foraging areas. Resource partitioning is critical for allowing coexistence of different seabird species in shared breeding sites where they act as central-place foragers. Nonetheless, in scenarios of environmental pollution, these species-specific strategies lead to differential bioaccumulation, and thus distinct effects of pollution on populations are expected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno de Andrade Linhares
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Oceanografia Biológica, Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil; Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil.
| | - Guilherme Tavares Nunes
- Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, 95625-000 Imbé, RS, Brazil
| | - Adalto Bianchini
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Oceanografia Biológica, Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil; Laboratório de Determinações 2, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
| | - Luísa Bertolini
- Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, 95625-000 Imbé, RS, Brazil
| | - Fiorella Vilela
- Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, 95625-000 Imbé, RS, Brazil; Programa de Pós Graduação em Biologia Animal, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Márcio Amorim Efe
- Laboratório de Bioecologia e Conservação de Aves Neotropicais, Universidade Federal de Alagoas - UFAL, 57072-900 Maceió, AL, Brazil
| | - Fábio Lameiro Rodrigues
- Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, 95625-000 Imbé, RS, Brazil; Programa de Pós Graduação em Biologia Animal, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Sophie Lanco
- Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, MARBEC (Univ. Montpellier, Ifremer, CNRS, IRD), Centre de Recherche Halieutique Méditerranéenne et Tropicale, 34203 Sète Cedex, France
| | - Yuri Dornelles Zebral
- Laboratório de Determinações 2, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
| | - Patrícia Gomes Costa
- Laboratório de Determinações 2, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
| | - Leandro Bugoni
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Oceanografia Biológica, Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil; Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
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Mocellin RR, Toigo AL, Dos Santos CC, Frazzon J, Nunes GT, Bugoni L, Prichula J, Frazzon APG. Metal tolerance in enterococci isolated from seabirds in Abrolhos Archipelago, Brazil: Evaluating their role as bioindicators of marine pollution. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 207:116866. [PMID: 39216259 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2024] [Revised: 08/06/2024] [Accepted: 08/15/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
Microbiota exposed to pollution provide insights into host physiology and ecosystem disruption. This study evaluated Enterococcus spp. tolerant to arsenic (As), copper (Cu), and mercury (Hg) from red-billed tropicbirds (Phaethon aethereus) and brown boobies (Sula leucogaster), which previously showed these metals in their blood and feathers, and their potential use as bioindicators of metal contamination. Enterococcus casseliflavus (47.9 %), E. faecalis (34.1 %), E. hirae (11.7 %), and E. faecium (5.3 %) were identified. Both seabird species had a high incidence of As-tolerant bacteria (84.0 %), with 40.4 % of these strains containing As efflux system genes (arsA_I and arsA_II). Cu efflux pump gene (tcrB) was detected in 30.9 % of strains, while Hg reductase genes (mer) were not found. As- and Cu-tolerance in enterococci observed in this study underlines their potential as bioindicators in metal-polluted marine environments. Further research may elucidate the role of these metal-tolerant enterococci in seabird gut and their adaptability to polluted environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raquel Rita Mocellin
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Microbiologia Agrícola e do Ambiente, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Rua Ramiro Barcelos, 2600, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Amanda Ladeira Toigo
- Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Rua Ramiro Barcelos, 2600, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Camila Coutinho Dos Santos
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Microbiologia Agrícola e do Ambiente, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Rua Ramiro Barcelos, 2600, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Jeverson Frazzon
- Departamento de Ciência de Alimentos, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9500, 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Guilherme Tavares Nunes
- Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Avenida Tramandaí, 976, 95625-000 Imbé, RS, Brazil
| | - Leandro Bugoni
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, Av. Itália, s/n, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
| | - Janira Prichula
- Department of Ophthalmology, Mass Eye and Ear, Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ana Paula Guedes Frazzon
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Microbiologia Agrícola e do Ambiente, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Rua Ramiro Barcelos, 2600, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Rua Ramiro Barcelos, 2600, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
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Cumming GS, James NL, Chua CM, Huertas V. A framework and review of evidence of the importance of coral reefs for marine birds in tropical ecosystems. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e70165. [PMID: 39170051 PMCID: PMC11336204 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2024] [Revised: 07/15/2024] [Accepted: 07/21/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
As global heating and other anthropogenic influences alter tropical marine environments, it is unclear how marine bird populations will be impacted and whether their current roles in tropical marine ecosystems will change. Although marine birds roost and breed on tropical islands in large numbers, the direct trophic interactions between these birds and their prey across the tropics are poorly documented. We present a first framework for evaluating the dependence on and contributions of marine birds to tropical coral reef ecosystems and use it to examine the evidence for different kinds of interaction, focusing primarily on avian diets. We found 34 publications between 1967 and 2023 that presented a total of 111 data sets with enough detail for quantitative dietary analysis of tropical marine birds. Only two bird species out of 37 (5.4%) had diets of >50% coral reef fishes and only one, the Pacific Reef Egret, appeared to depend almost entirely on reef-based production. Marine birds are also prey for other marine organisms, but insufficient data are available for quantitative analysis. Evidence for indirect effects of birds in tropical marine environments is stronger than for direct dependence on coral reefs, particularly in relation to nutrient concentration and the fertilisation impacts of guano on corals. Dispersal of propagules (e.g. seeds, spores, invertebrate eggs) by bathing, drinking, resting or foraging birds is under-studied and poorly documented. Although the degradation of coral reefs appears unlikely to have a significant direct impact on food availability for most marine bird populations, indirect effects involving marine birds may be disrupted by global environmental change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graeme S. Cumming
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef StudiesJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
- Marine Biology and Aquaculture, College of Science and EngineeringJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
- Oceans InstituteUniversity of Western AustraliaPerthWestern AustraliaAustralia
| | - Nicholas L. James
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef StudiesJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
- Marine Biology and Aquaculture, College of Science and EngineeringJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
| | - Chia Miin Chua
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef StudiesJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
- O2 MarineSouth TownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
| | - Victor Huertas
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef StudiesJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
- Marine Biology and Aquaculture, College of Science and EngineeringJames Cook UniversityTownsvilleQueenslandAustralia
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Espíndola WD, Carlo TA. Seabird guano inputs increase impacts from introduced mammals on the native plants and animals of an oceanic island. Oecologia 2024; 204:975-984. [PMID: 38597960 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-024-05546-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Seabirds create fluxes of nutrients from marine to terrestrial ecosystems that influence the food webs of small islands. We investigated how guano inputs shape terrestrial food webs by comparing species of selected plant and animal species in a red-footed booby colony in Mona Island (Puerto Rico, Caribbean Sea), to sites of the island lacking guano inputs. We quantified guano deposition and its relationship to plant biomass production, fecundity and density, as well as the activity of native and introduced animal species. In general, guano inputs increased the gross primary plant productivity, size, and fecundity by twofold. Guano inputs were also associated with twofold increases in density of Anole lizards, but also to increases in the activity of introduced pigs (> 500%), goats (> 30%), and cats (> 500%), which negatively impact native species. In particular, elevated pig and cat activity within the booby colony was correlated with lower activity of endemic ground lizards and of introduced rats. Our results also suggest that severe droughts associated with climate change exacerbate the negative effects that introduced species have on vegetation and reduce the positive effects of seabird guano inputs. Our findings underscore the importance of allochthonous guano inputs in subsidizing plant productivity and native and endemic species in small oceanic islands, but also in increasing the negative impacts of introduced mammals. Management and conservation efforts should focus on the exclusion (or eradication) of introduced mammals, particularly pigs and goats, from remnant seabird colonies in Mona Island.
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Affiliation(s)
- Walter D Espíndola
- Biology Department and Ecology Program, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Tomás A Carlo
- Biology Department and Ecology Program, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
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Caseiro-Silva F, Faria FA, Barreto CT, Fernandez CN, Bugoni L. Colonial waterbirds provide persistent subsidies to swamp forests along an estuarine island food chain. Oecologia 2023; 202:113-127. [PMID: 37148379 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-023-05377-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2022] [Accepted: 04/23/2023] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Birds are excellent vectors of allochthonous matter and energy due to their high mobility, with more intense flow when waterbirds congregate in breeding colonies, feeding in surrounding aquatic and terrestrial areas, and promoting nutritional pulses to nutrient-poor environments. In southern Brazil, a swamp forest on an estuarine island is used by waterbirds for breeding, providing an opportunity to investigate the potential effects of transport of matter between nutrient-rich environments. Soil, plants, invertebrates, and blood from terrestrial birds were collected and stable isotopes compared to similar organisms in a control site without heronries. Values of δ15N and δ13C from waterbirds were higher in the colony in comparison to the control site (spatial effect). The enrichment of 15N and 13C provided during the active colony period persisted after the breeding period, especially for δ15N, which was higher in all compartments (temporal effect). Moreover, the enrichment of 15N occurred along the entire trophic chain (vertical effect) in the colony environment, including different guilds of invertebrates and land birds. The enrichment in 13C seems to lose strength and was mostly explained by factors such as trophic guild rather than site, especially in birds. Bayesian mixture models with terrestrial vs. estuarine endpoints demonstrated that all organisms from both colony and control environments had assimilated estuarine matter. Finally, detritivorous invertebrates showed greater assimilation when compared to other guilds. This study demonstrates that adjacent nutrient-rich environments, such as palustrine forests and estuaries, are nutritionally enriched in several dimensions from nearby autochthonous subsidies that are maintained throughout the year.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felipe Caseiro-Silva
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM-FURG), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande-FURG, Rio Grande, Brazil.
| | - Fernando Azevedo Faria
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM-FURG), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande-FURG, Rio Grande, Brazil
| | - Cindy Tavares Barreto
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM-FURG), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande-FURG, Rio Grande, Brazil
| | - Cínthia Negrine Fernandez
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM-FURG), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande-FURG, Rio Grande, Brazil
| | - Leandro Bugoni
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM-FURG), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande-FURG, Rio Grande, Brazil
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The foraging ecology of invasive black rats (Rattus rattus) differs in two nearby islands in a dry tropical archipelago in Brazil. Biol Invasions 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s10530-022-02975-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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