1
|
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.
Collapse
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
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Johnson DL, Henderson MT, Franke A, Swan GJF, McDonald RA, Anderson DL, Booms TL, Williams CT. TDF CAM: A method for estimating stable isotope trophic discrimination in wild populations. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9709. [PMID: 36620422 PMCID: PMC9817186 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 12/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Stable isotope mixing models (SIMMs) are widely used for characterizing wild animal diets. Such models rely upon using accurate trophic discrimination factors (TDFs) to account for the digestion, incorporation, and assimilation of food. Existing methods to calculate TDFs rely on controlled feeding trials that are time-consuming, often impractical for the study taxon, and may not reflect natural variability of TDFs present in wild populations.We present TDFCAM as an alternative approach to estimating TDFs in wild populations, by using high-precision diet estimates from a secondary methodological source-in this case nest cameras-in lieu of controlled feeding trials, and provide a framework for how and when it should be applied.In this study, we evaluate the TDFCAM approach in three datasets gathered on wild raptor nestlings (gyrfalcons Falco rusticolus; peregrine falcons Falco perigrinus; common buzzards Buteo buteo) comprising contemporaneous δ13C & δ15N stable isotope data and high-quality nest camera dietary data. We formulate Bayesian SIMMs (BSIMMs) incorporating TDFs from TDFCAM and analyze their agreement with nest camera data, comparing model performance with those based on other relevant TDFs. Additionally, we perform sensitivity analyses to characterize TDFCAM variability, and identify ecological and physiological factors contributing to that variability in wild populations.Across species and tissue types, BSIMMs incorporating a TDFCAM outperformed any other TDF tested, producing reliable population-level estimates of diet composition. We demonstrate that applying this approach even with a relatively low sample size (n < 10 individuals) produced more accurate estimates of trophic discrimination than a controlled feeding study conducted on the same species. Between-individual variability in TDFCAM estimates for ∆13C & ∆15 N increased with analytical imprecision in the source dietary data (nest cameras) but was also explained by natural variables in the study population (e.g., nestling nutritional/growth status and dietary composition).TDFCAM is an effective method of estimating trophic discrimination in wild animal populations. Here, we use nest cameras as source dietary data, but this approach is applicable to any high-accuracy method of measuring diet, so long as diet can be monitored over an interval contemporaneous with a tissue's isotopic turnover rate.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Devin L. Johnson
- Department of Biology and WildlifeUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
| | | | | | - George J. F. Swan
- Instituto de Conservación, Biodiversidad y Territorio, Facultad de Ciencias Forestales y Recursos NaturalesUniversidad Austral de ChileValdiviaChile
| | | | | | | | - Cory T. Williams
- Department of BiologyColorado State UniversityFort CollinsColoradoUSA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Multiple lines of evidence of early goose domestication in a 7,000-y-old rice cultivation village in the lower Yangtze River, China. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2117064119. [PMID: 35254874 PMCID: PMC8944903 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2117064119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
We studied goose bones from Tianluoshan—a 7,000-y-old rice cultivation village in the lower Yangtze River valley, China—using histological, geochemical, biochemical, and morphological approaches. Our analyses reveal an early stage of goose domestication at Tianluoshan. The goose population seemed to have been maintained for several generations without the introduction of individuals from other populations and might have been fed cultivated paddy rice. These findings indicate that goose domestication dates back 7,000 y, making geese the oldest domesticated poultry species in history. Poultry are farmed globally, with chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) being the leading domesticated species. Although domestic chicken bones have been reported from some Early Holocene sites, their origin is controversial and there is no reliable domestic chicken bone older than the Middle Holocene. Here, we studied goose bones from Tianluoshan—a 7,000-y-old rice cultivation village in the lower Yangtze River valley, China—using histological, geochemical, biochemical, and morphological approaches. Histological analysis revealed that one of the bones was derived from a locally bred chick, although no wild goose species breed in southern China. The analysis of oxygen-stable isotope composition supported this observation and further revealed that some of the mature bones were also derived from locally bred individuals. The nitrogen-stable isotope composition showed that locally bred mature birds fed on foods different from those eaten by migrant individuals. Morphological analysis revealed that the locally bred mature birds were homogenous in size, whereas radiocarbon dating clearly demonstrated that the samples from locally bred individuals were ∼7,000 y old. The histological, geochemical, biochemical, morphological, and contextual evidence suggest that geese at Tianluoshan village were at an early stage of domestication. The goose population appears to have been maintained for several generations without the introduction of individuals from other populations and may have been fed cultivated paddy rice. These findings indicate that goose domestication dates back 7,000 y, making geese the oldest domesticated poultry species in history.
Collapse
|
4
|
Cutting KA, Rotella JJ, Grusing E, Waxe JA, Nunlist E, Sowell BF. Nutrient sources for offspring formation: diet-mother and mother-offspring isotope discrimination in domesticated gallinaceous birds. ISOTOPES IN ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH STUDIES 2021; 57:553-562. [PMID: 34632885 DOI: 10.1080/10256016.2021.1984905] [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: 12/16/2020] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Stable isotope techniques can be used to assess nutrient acquisition and allocation strategies used to produce offspring. Before stable isotope techniques can be employed, researchers need reliable isotope discrimination values. In this context, isotope discrimination compares the difference in the isotope ratio between the maternal-offspring tissue that occurs during nutrient transfer prior to egg laying. Currently, isotope discrimination values are unknown between the maternal blood constituents - that reflect different temporal scales of integration - and downy feathers of their offspring. In this study, we experimentally derive isotope discrimination relationships between maternal diet-blood constituents for egg laying, and between maternal blood constituents-down feathers of offspring in an experiment with 3 types of domesticated gallinaceous birds raised on known diets. Our experiment is the first to report isotope discrimination values for maternal blood constituents-down of offspring in avian taxa and provides a new sampling technique that is less invasive than previously available as collecting down does not require sampling viable eggs or individuals. Future researchers can use these results to assist in identifying nutrient sources used by adult birds to produce young.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kyle A Cutting
- Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Lima, MT, USA
- Department of Ecology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Jay J Rotella
- Department of Ecology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Emma Grusing
- Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Lima, MT, USA
| | - James A Waxe
- The Centennial Sandhills Preserve, The Nature Conservancy, Lima, MT, USA
| | - Erika Nunlist
- Department of Animal and Range Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Bok F Sowell
- Department of Animal and Range Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Smith RA, Yurkowski DJ, Parkinson KJL, Fort J, Hennin HL, Gilchrist HG, Hobson KA, Mallory ML, Danielsen J, Garbus SE, Hanssen SA, Jónsson JE, Latty CJ, Magnúsdóttir E, Moe B, Parsons GJ, Sonne C, Tertitski G, Love OP. Environmental and life-history factors influence inter-colony multidimensional niche metrics of a breeding Arctic marine bird. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 796:148935. [PMID: 34274678 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2021] [Revised: 07/05/2021] [Accepted: 07/05/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Human industrialization has resulted in rapid climate change, leading to wide-scale environmental shifts. These shifts can modify food web dynamics by altering the abundance and distribution of primary producers (ice algae and phytoplankton), as well as animals at higher trophic levels. Methylmercury (MeHg) is a neuro-endocrine disrupting compound which biomagnifies in animals as a function of prey choice, and as such bioavailability is affected by altered food web dynamics and adds an important risk-based dimension in studies of foraging ecology. Multidimensional niche dynamics (MDND; δ13C, δ15N, THg; total mercury) were determined among breeding common eider (Somateria mollissima) ducks sampled from 10 breeding colonies distributed across the circumpolar Arctic and subarctic. Results showed high variation in MDND among colonies as indicated by niche size and ranges in δ13C, δ15N and THg values in relation to spatial differences in primary production inferred from sea-ice presence and colony migratory status. Colonies with higher sea-ice cover during the pre-incubation period had higher median colony THg, δ15N, and δ13C. Individuals at migratory colonies had relatively higher THg and δ15N, and lower δ13C, suggesting a higher trophic position and a greater reliance on phytoplankton-based prey. It was concluded that variation in MDND exists among eider colonies which influenced individual blood THg concentrations. Further exploration of spatial ecotoxicology and MDND at each individual site is important to examine the relationships between anthropogenic activities, foraging behaviour, and the related risks of contaminant exposure at even low, sub-lethal concentrations that may contribute to deleterious effects on population stability over time. Overall, multidimensional niche analysis that incorporates multiple isotopic and contaminant metrics could help identify those populations at risk to rapidly altered food web dynamics.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Reyd A Smith
- University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario N9B 3P4, Canada.
| | | | | | - Jérôme Fort
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle University, La Rochelle FR-17000, France
| | - Holly L Hennin
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K0A 1H0, Canada
| | - H Grant Gilchrist
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K0A 1H0, Canada
| | | | - Mark L Mallory
- cadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia B4P 2R6, Canada
| | | | | | | | - Jón Einar Jónsson
- University of Iceland's Research Centre at Snæfellsnes, Hafnargata 3, 340 Stykkishólmur, Iceland
| | - Christopher J Latty
- Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Fairbanks, AK 99701, United States
| | - Ellen Magnúsdóttir
- University of Iceland's Research Centre at Snæfellsnes, Hafnargata 3, 340 Stykkishólmur, Iceland
| | - Børge Moe
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tromsø N-9296, Norway
| | - Glen J Parsons
- Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry, Kentville, Nova Scotia B4N 4E5, Canada
| | | | - Grigori Tertitski
- Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 119017, Russia
| | - Oliver P Love
- University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario N9B 3P4, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Fernandez CN, Robe LJ, Bugoni L. Diet and trophic niche overlap among a native waterbird and two non-native herbivores in Pampas grasslands. FOOD WEBS 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.fooweb.2021.e00201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
|
7
|
Bosenbecker C, Bugoni L. Trophic niche similarities of sympatric Turdus thrushes determined by fecal contents, stable isotopes, and bipartite network approaches. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:9073-9084. [PMID: 32953047 PMCID: PMC7487231 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2020] [Revised: 05/12/2020] [Accepted: 05/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
An ecological niche has been defined as an n-dimensional hypervolume formed by conditions and resources that species need to survive, grow, and reproduce. In practice, such niche dimensions are measurable and describe how species share resources, which has been thought to be a crucial mechanism for coexistence and a major driver of broad biodiversity patterns. Here, we investigate resource partitioning and trophic interactions of three sympatric, phylogenetically related and morphologically similar species of thrushes (Turdus spp.). Based on one year of data collected in southern Brazil, we investigated niche partitioning using three approaches: diet and trophic niche assessed by fecal analysis, diet and niche estimated by stable isotopes in blood and mixing models, and bipartite network analysis derived from direct diet and mixing model outputs. Approaches revealed that the three sympatric thrushes are generalists that feed on similar diets, demonstrating high niche overlap. Fruits from C3 plants were one of the most important food items in their networks, with wide links connecting the three thrush species. Turdus amaurochalinus and T. albicollis had the greatest trophic and isotopic niche overlap, with 90% and 20% overlap, respectively. There was partitioning of key resources between these two species, with a shared preference for fig tree fruits-Ficus cestrifolia (T. amaurochalinus PSIRI% = 11.3 and T. albicollis = 11.5), which was not present in the diet of T. rufiventris. Results added a new approach to the network analysis based on values from the stable isotope mixing models, allowing comparisons between traditional dietary analysis and diet inferred by isotopic mixing models, which reflects food items effectively assimilated in consumer tissues. Both are visualized in bipartite networks and show food-consumers link strengths. This approach could be useful to other studies using stable isotopes coupled to network analysis, particularly useful in sympatric species with similar niches.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Camila Bosenbecker
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM)Instituto de Ciências Biológicas & Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Biologia de Ambientes Aquáticos ContinentaisUniversidade Federal do Rio Grande – FURGRio GrandeBrazil
| | - Leandro Bugoni
- Laboratório de Aves Aquáticas e Tartarugas Marinhas (LAATM)Instituto de Ciências Biológicas & Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Biologia de Ambientes Aquáticos ContinentaisUniversidade Federal do Rio Grande – FURGRio GrandeBrazil
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Guaraldo AC, Kelly JF, Marini MÂ. Independent trophic behavior and breeding success of a resident flycatcher and a coexisting migratory congener. AUSTRAL ECOL 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/aec.12660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- André C. Guaraldo
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia e Conservaçäo; Behavioral Ecology and Ornithology Lab; Universidade de Federal do Paraná; Curitiba 81530-900 Brazil
| | - Jeffrey F. Kelly
- Department of Biology; Oklahoma Biological Survey; University of Oklahoma; Norman Oklahoma USA
| | - Miguel Â. Marini
- Departamento de Zoologia; Universidade de Brasília; Brasília DF Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Williams CT, Klaassen M, Barnes BM, Buck CL, Arnold W, Giroud S, Vetter SG, Ruf T. Seasonal reproductive tactics: annual timing and the capital-to-income breeder continuum. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 372:rstb.2016.0250. [PMID: 28993494 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Tactics of resource use for reproduction are an important feature of life-history strategies. A distinction is made between 'capital' breeders, which finance reproduction using stored energy, and 'income' breeders, which pay for reproduction using concurrent energy intake. In reality, vertebrates use a continuum of capital-to-income tactics, and, for many species, the allocation of capital towards reproduction is a plastic trait. Here, we review how trophic interactions and the timing of life-history events are influenced by tactics of resource use in birds and mammals. We first examine how plasticity in the allocation of capital towards reproduction is linked to phenological flexibility via interactions between endocrine/neuroendocrine control systems and the sensory circuits that detect changes in endogenous state, and environmental cues. We then describe the ecological drivers of reproductive timing in species that vary in the degree to which they finance reproduction using capital. Capital can be used either as a mechanism to facilitate temporal synchrony between energy supply and demand or as a means of lessening the need for synchrony. Within many species, an individual's ability to cope with environmental change may be more tightly linked to plasticity in resource allocation than to absolute position on the capital-to-income breeder continuum.This article is part of the themed issue 'Wild clocks: integrating chronobiology and ecology to understand timekeeping in free-living animals'.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cory T Williams
- Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
| | - Marcel Klaassen
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, 75 Pigdons Road, Geelong, Victoria 3216, Australia
| | - Brian M Barnes
- Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
| | - C Loren Buck
- Center for Bioengineering Innovation & Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA
| | - Walter Arnold
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1160 Vienna, Austria
| | - Sylvain Giroud
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1160 Vienna, Austria
| | - Sebastian G Vetter
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1160 Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Ruf
- Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1160 Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Jouta J, de Goeij P, Lok T, Velilla E, Camphuysen CJ, Leopold M, van der Veer HW, Olff H, Overdijk O, Piersma T. Unexpected dietary preferences of Eurasian Spoonbills in the Dutch Wadden Sea: spoonbills mainly feed on small fish not shrimp. JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGY 2018; 159:839-849. [PMID: 30997317 PMCID: PMC6435024 DOI: 10.1007/s10336-018-1551-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2017] [Revised: 02/26/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
After an historical absence, over the last decades Eurasian Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia leucorodia have returned to breed on the barrier islands of the Wadden Sea. The area offers an abundance of predator-free nesting habitat, low degrees of disturbance, and an extensive intertidal feeding area with increasing stocks of brown shrimp Crangon crangon, the assumed main prey of P. leucorodia leucorodia. Nevertheless, newly established and expanding colonies of spoonbills have surprisingly quickly reached plateau levels. Here we tested the often stated assertion that spoonbills mainly rely on brown shrimp as food, by quantifying the diet of chicks on the basis of regurgitates and by analysis of blood isotopes using stable isotope Bayesian mixing models. Both methods showed that, rather than brown shrimp being the staple food of spoonbill chicks, small flatfish (especially plaice Pleuronectes platessa) and gobies (Pomatoschistus spp.) were their main prey. Unlike shrimp, small flatfish have been reported to be rather scarce in the Wadden Sea in recent years, which may explain the rapid saturation of colony size due to food-related density-dependent recruitment declines of growing colonies. By way of their diet and colony growth characteristics, spoonbills may thus indicate the availability of small fish in the Wadden Sea. We predict that the recovery to former densities of young flatfish and other juvenile/small fish in the Wadden Sea will be tracked by changing diets (more fish) and an increase in the size of Eurasian Spoonbill colonies across the Wadden Sea.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jeltje Jouta
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
| | - Petra de Goeij
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
- Werkgroep Lepelaar, Visserspad 10, 9142 VN Moddergat, The Netherlands
| | - Tamar Lok
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
- Biostatistics and Population Biology, Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, UMR 5175, Montpellier, France
| | - Estefania Velilla
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
- Department of Ecological Science, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1085, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Cornelis J. Camphuysen
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
| | - Mardik Leopold
- Present Address: Ecosystems, Wageningen IMARES, P.O. Box 57, 1780 AB Den Helder, The Netherlands
| | - Henk W. van der Veer
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
| | - Han Olff
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Otto Overdijk
- Werkgroep Lepelaar, Visserspad 10, 9142 VN Moddergat, The Netherlands
| | - Theunis Piersma
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Coastal Systems, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Cherel Y, Parenteau C, Bustamante P, Bost C. Stable isotopes document the winter foraging ecology of king penguins and highlight connectivity between subantarctic and Antarctic ecosystems. Ecol Evol 2018; 8:2752-2765. [PMID: 29531692 PMCID: PMC5838085 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2017] [Revised: 12/11/2017] [Accepted: 01/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The poorly known winter foraging ecology of the king penguin, a major Southern Ocean consumer, was investigated at the subantarctic Crozet Islands where the largest global population breeds. Blood δ13C and δ15N values were used as proxies of the birds' foraging habitat and diet, respectively, and circulating prolactin levels helped in determining the birds' reproductive status. Plasma prolactin concentrations showed that king penguin adults of unknown breeding status (n = 52) that were present at the colony in winter were in fact breeders and failed breeders, but were not non -breeders. Circulating prolactin was neither related to δ13C nor δ15N values, thus suggesting that both breeders and failed breeders used the same foraging habitats and fed on the same prey. Plasma and blood cell isotopic values depicted four new relevant biological features on the feeding strategies of king penguins during the critical winter period: (1) 42% of the birds foraged in the distant Antarctic Zone, but 58% fed primarily in subantarctic waters (δ13C), (2) they preyed upon myctophids in both zones (δ15N), (3) individuals were consistent in their foraging strategies over the winter months (δ13C and δ15N), and (4) a higher proportion of females (77%-80%) than males (27%-31%) favored feeding in distant Antarctic waters (δ13C). This study highlights trophic connectivity between subantarctic and Antarctic ecosystems and hence the key role of energy export from Antarctic waters to sustain breeding populations of subantarctic predators, including during the Austral winter.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yves Cherel
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 du CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 du CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| | - Paco Bustamante
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs)UMR 7266 du CNRS‐Université de la RochelleLa RochelleFrance
| | - Charles‐André Bost
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 du CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Frederiksen M, Korner-Nievergelt F, Marion L, Bregnballe T. Where do wintering cormorants come from? Long-term changes in the geographical origin of a migratory bird on a continental scale. J Appl Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Loïc Marion
- UMR CNRS ECOBIO; Rennes1 University; Rennes cedex France
| | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
Boggie MA, Carleton SA, Collins DP, Vradenburg J, Sroka CJ. Using stable isotopes to estimate reliance on agricultural food subsidies and migration timing for a migratory bird. Ecosphere 2018. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.2083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew A. Boggie
- Department of Biology; New Mexico State University; Las Cruces New Mexico 88003 USA
| | - Scott A. Carleton
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Migratory Bird Office, Region 2; Albuquerque New Mexico 87103 USA
| | - Daniel P. Collins
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Migratory Bird Office, Region 2; Albuquerque New Mexico 87103 USA
| | - John Vradenburg
- Kalamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex; Tulelake California 96134 USA
| | - Christopher J. Sroka
- Department of Economics, Applied Statistics, & International Business; College of Business; New Mexico State University; Las Cruces New Mexico 88003 USA
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Steenweg RJ, Crossin GT, Kyser TK, Merkel FR, Gilchrist HG, Hennin HL, Robertson GJ, Provencher JF, Mills Flemming J, Love OP. Stable isotopes can be used to infer the overwintering locations of prebreeding marine birds in the Canadian Arctic. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:8742-8752. [PMID: 29177032 PMCID: PMC5689493 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2017] [Revised: 07/28/2017] [Accepted: 08/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Although assessments of winter carryover effects on fitness‐related breeding parameters are vital for determining the links between environmental variation and fitness, direct methods of determining overwintering distributions (e.g., electronic tracking) can be expensive, limiting the number of individuals studied. Alternatively, stable isotope analysis in specific tissues can be used as an indirect means of determining individual overwintering areas of residency. Although increasingly used to infer the overwintering distributions of terrestrial birds, stable isotopes have been used less often to infer overwintering areas of marine birds. Using Arctic‐breeding common eiders, we test the effectiveness of an integrated stable isotope approach (13‐carbon, 15‐nitrogen, and 2‐hydrogen) to infer overwintering locations. Knowing the overwinter destinations of eiders from tracking studies at our study colony at East Bay Island, Nunavut, we sampled claw and blood tissues at two known overwintering locations, Nuuk, Greenland, and Newfoundland, Canada. These two locations yielded distinct tissue‐specific isotopic profiles. We then compared the isotope profiles of tissues collected from eiders upon their arrival at our breeding colony, and used a k‐means cluster analysis approach to match arriving eiders to an overwintering group. Samples from the claws of eiders were most effective for determining overwinter origin, due to this tissue's slow growth rate relative to the 40‐day turnover rate of blood. Despite taking an integrative approach using multiple isotopes, k‐means cluster analysis was most effective when using 13‐carbon alone to assign eiders to an overwintering group. Our research demonstrates that it is possible to use stable isotope analysis to assign an overwintering location to a marine bird. There are few examples of the effective use of this technique on a marine bird at this scale; we provide a framework for applying this technique to detect changes in the migration phenology of birds' responses to rapid changes in the Arctic.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Glenn T Crossin
- Department of Biology Dalhousie University Halifax NS Canada
| | - T Kurt Kyser
- Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering Queen's University Kingston ON Canada
| | - Flemming R Merkel
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources Nuuk Greenland.,Department of Bioscience Aarhus University Roskilde Denmark
| | - H Grant Gilchrist
- Environment and Climate Change Canada National Wildlife Research Centre Carleton University Ottawa ON Canada
| | - Holly L Hennin
- Department of Biological Sciences Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research University of Windsor Windsor ON Canada
| | - Gregory J Robertson
- Environment and Climate Change Canada Wildlife Research Division Mount Pearl NL Canada
| | | | | | - Oliver P Love
- Department of Biological Sciences Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research University of Windsor Windsor ON Canada
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Jouta J, Dietz MW, Reneerkens J, Piersma T, Rakhimberdiev E, Hallgrímsson GT, Pen I. Ecological forensics: using single point stable isotope values to infer seasonal schedules of animals after two diet switches. Methods Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.12695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jeltje Jouta
- Department of Coastal Systems and Utrecht University NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg Texel The Netherlands
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES) University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103 9700 CC Groningen The Netherlands
| | - Maurine W. Dietz
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES) University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103 9700 CC Groningen The Netherlands
| | - Jeroen Reneerkens
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES) University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103 9700 CC Groningen The Netherlands
| | - Theunis Piersma
- Department of Coastal Systems and Utrecht University NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg Texel The Netherlands
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES) University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103 9700 CC Groningen The Netherlands
| | - Eldar Rakhimberdiev
- Department of Coastal Systems and Utrecht University NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg Texel The Netherlands
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology Lomonosov Moscow State University 119991 Moscow Russia
| | | | - Ido Pen
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES) University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103 9700 CC Groningen The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Bridge ES, Kelly JF, Xiao X, Batbayar N, Natsagdorj T, Hill NJ, Takekawa JY, Hawkes LA, Bishop CM, Butler PJ, Newman SH. Stable Isotopes Suggest Low Site Fidelity in Bar-headed Geese ( Anser indicus) in Mongolia: Implications for Disease Transmission. WATERBIRDS 2015; 38:123-132. [PMID: 27695389 PMCID: PMC5042147 DOI: 10.1675/063.038.0201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Population connectivity is an important consideration in studies of disease transmission and biological conservation, especially with regard to migratory species. Determining how and when different subpopulations intermingle during different phases of the annual cycle can help identify important geographical regions or features as targets for conservation efforts and can help inform our understanding of continental-scale disease transmission. In this study, stable isotopes of hydrogen and carbon in contour feathers were used to assess the degree of molt-site fidelity among Bar-headed Geese (Anser indicus) captured in north-central Mongolia. Samples were collected from actively molting Bar-headed Geese (n = 61), and some individual samples included both a newly grown feather (still in sheath) and an old, worn feather from the bird's previous molt (n = 21). Although there was no difference in mean hydrogen isotope ratios for the old and new feathers, the isotopic variance in old feathers was approximately three times higher than that of the new feathers, which suggests that these birds use different and geographically distant molting locations from year to year. To further test this conclusion, online data and modeling tools from the isoMAP website were used to generate probability landscapes for the origin of each feather. Likely molting locations were much more widespread for old feathers than for new feathers, which supports the prospect of low molt-site fidelity. This finding indicates that population connectivity would be greater than expected based on data from a single annual cycle, and that disease spread can be rapid even in areas like Mongolia where Bar-headed Geese generally breed in small isolated groups.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eli S. Bridge
- Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma, 111 East Chesapeake Street, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Jeffrey F. Kelly
- Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma, 111 East Chesapeake Street, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Xiangming Xiao
- Center for Spatial Analysis, University of Oklahoma, 101 David L. Boren Boulevard, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, 136 George Lynn Cross Hall, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Nyambayar Batbayar
- Wildlife Science and Conservation Center of Mongolia, Undram Plaza, 33 toot, Bayanzurkh Duureg, Ulaanbaatar, 210349, Mongolia
| | - Tseveenmyadag Natsagdorj
- Ornithological Laboratory, Institute of Biology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Jukov Avenue, Ulaanbaatar, 210351, Mongolia
| | - Nichola J. Hill
- Division of Comparative Medicine, Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Building 16-719, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02139, USA
| | - John Y. Takekawa
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, San Francisco Bay Estuary Field Station, 505 Azuar Drive, Vallejo, California, 94592, USA
| | - Lucy A. Hawkes
- University of Exeter, Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, England, U.K
| | - Charles M. Bishop
- Bangor University, School of Biosciences, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2UW, England, U.K
| | - Patrick J. Butler
- School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT, England, U.K
| | - Scott H. Newman
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases, No. 3 Nguyen Gia Thieu Street, Hanoi, Viet Nam
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Navedo JG, Hahn S, Parejo M, Abad-Gómez JM, Gutiérrez JS, Villegas A, Sánchez-Guzmán JM, Masero JA. Unravelling trophic subsidies of agroecosystems for biodiversity conservation: food consumption and nutrient recycling by waterbirds in Mediterranean rice fields. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2015; 511:288-297. [PMID: 25553543 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.12.068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2014] [Revised: 12/19/2014] [Accepted: 12/21/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Waterbirds can reallocate a considerable amount of nutrients within agricultural fields and between agriculture sites and wetlands. However their effects on biogeochemical cycles have rarely been quantified. We estimated bird numbers, diet (from stable isotope analysis), food supply, and the food consumption on rice fields by overwintering waterbirds in one of the most important areas for rice production in southwestern Europe and a key area for various migrating and resident waterbird species. Herein, we modelled the nutrient (N and P) recycling in rice fields, and their transport to reservoirs. The energy consumption by waterbirds (96,605±18,311 individuals) on rice fields during winter averaged at 89.9±39.0 kJ·m(-2), with its majority (89.9%) belonging to foraging on rice seeds. Thus, the birds removed about 26% of rice seeds leftover after harvest (estimated in 932.5±504.7 seeds·m(-2) in early winter) wherein common cranes and dabbling ducks (four species) were the most important consumers. Waterbirds foraging and roosting in the rice fields recycled more than 24.1 (1.0 kg·ha(-1)) of N and an additional 5.0 tons (0.2 kg·ha(-1)) of P in the Extremadura's rice fields during winter. Additionally, we estimated that 2.3 tons of N and 550 kg of P were removed from rice fields and transported to reservoirs. The seasonal foraging of wildlife should result in a direct benefit for rice farmers by improving nutrient recycling through defecation by waterbirds with respect to artificial fertilisation. Additionally, rice fields located in the cranes' core wintering areas can provide sufficient food supply to induce habitat shift from their traditional wintering habitat in 'dehesas' to rice fields, which causes indirect socioeconomic benefit through reduced acorn consumption by cranes. Our modelling approach may thus be especially helpful for management decisions regarding rice agroecosystems in areas which are also important for the conservation of migratory waterbirds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Juan G Navedo
- Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Limnológicas, Universidad Austral de Chile, Facultad de Ciencias, Campus Isla Teja, 5090000 Valdivia, Chile; Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain.
| | - Steffen Hahn
- Department Bird Migration, Swiss Ornithological Institute, Seerose 1, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland
| | - Manuel Parejo
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain
| | - José M Abad-Gómez
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Jorge S Gutiérrez
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain; Department of Marine Ecology, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), PO Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel, The Netherlands
| | - Auxiliadora Villegas
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Juan M Sánchez-Guzmán
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain
| | - José A Masero
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Elvas s/n, 06002 Badajoz, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Caron-Beaudoin É, Gentes ML, Patenaude-Monette M, Hélie JF, Giroux JF, Verreault J. Combined usage of stable isotopes and GPS-based telemetry to understand the feeding ecology of an omnivorous bird, the Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis). CAN J ZOOL 2013. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2013-0008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate the feeding ecology of an omnivorous bird, the Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis Ord, 1815), breeding in a highly urbanized and heterogeneous landscape (Montréal area, Quebec, Canada). We used gastrointestinal (G.I.) tract content analysis, GPS-based tracking information, and stable isotope profiles of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) in selected tissues and major food items. Based on GPS tracking data (1–3 days), Ring-billed Gulls were categorized according to their use of three main foraging habitats: agricultural, St. Lawrence River, and anthropogenic (comprising urban areas, landfills, and wastewater treatment plant basins). Ring-billed Gulls that foraged predominantly in anthropogenic habitats exhibited significantly lower δ15N in blood cells and higher total C to N ratios (C:N) in liver. These lower δ15N and higher C:N ratios were characteristic of profiles determined in food items consumed by Ring-billed Gulls at these urbanized sites (e.g., processed foods). The strong positive correlations between δ13C and δ15N in Ring-billed Gull tissues (plasma, blood cells, and liver) that differed in isotopic turnover times, as well as the strong positive correlations in both δ13C and δ15N between tissue pairs, indicated that Ring-billed Gulls exhibited conserved dietary habits throughout the nesting period. This study demonstrates that combining conventional dietary examination, tissue stable isotope analysis, and fine-scale GPS tracking information may improve our understanding of the large intrapopulation variations in foraging behaviour (and isotopic profiles) commonly observed in omnivorous birds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- É. Caron-Beaudoin
- Centre de recherche en toxicologie de l’environnement (TOXEN), Département des sciences biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
| | - M.-L. Gentes
- Centre de recherche en toxicologie de l’environnement (TOXEN), Département des sciences biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
| | - M. Patenaude-Monette
- Groupe de recherche en écologie comportementale et animale (GRECA), Département des sciences biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
| | - J.-F. Hélie
- Centre de recherche en géochimie et géodynamique (GEOTOP), Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
| | - J.-F. Giroux
- Groupe de recherche en écologie comportementale et animale (GRECA), Département des sciences biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
| | - J. Verreault
- Centre de recherche en toxicologie de l’environnement (TOXEN), Département des sciences biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Dietz MW, Piersma T, Dekinga A, Korthals H, Klaassen M. Unusual patterns in ¹⁵N blood values after a diet switch in red knot shorebirds. ISOTOPES IN ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH STUDIES 2013; 49:283-292. [PMID: 23656233 DOI: 10.1080/10256016.2013.776045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
When a diet switch results in a change in dietary isotopic values, isotope ratios of the consumer's tissues will change until a new equilibrium is reached. This change is generally best described by an exponential decay curve. Indeed, after a diet switch in captive red knot shorebirds (Calidris canutus islandica), the depletion of (13)C in both blood cells and plasma followed an exponential decay curve. Surprisingly, the diet switch with a dietary (15)N/(14)N ratio (δ(15)N) change from 11.4 to 8.8 ‰ had little effect on δ(15)N in the same tissues. The diet-plasma and diet-cellular discrimination factors of (15)N with the initial diet were very low (0.5 and 0.2 ‰, respectively). δ(15)N in blood cells and plasma decreased linearly with increasing body mass, explaining about 40 % of the variation in δ(15)N. δ(15)N in plasma also decreased with increasing body-mass change (r (2)=.07). This suggests that the unusual variation in δ(15)N with time after the diet switch was due to interferences with simultaneous changes in body-protein turnover.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maurine W Dietz
- Animal Ecology Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
20
|
Eichhorn G, Meijer HAJ, Oosterbeek K, Klaassen M. Does agricultural food provide a good alternative to a natural diet for body store deposition in geese? Ecosphere 2012. [DOI: 10.1890/es11-00316.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
|
21
|
Hoye BJ, Fouchier RAM, Klaassen M. Host behaviour and physiology underpin individual variation in avian influenza virus infection in migratory Bewick's swans. Proc Biol Sci 2011; 279:529-34. [PMID: 21733894 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.0958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Individual variation in infection modulates both the dynamics of pathogens and their impact on host populations. It is therefore crucial to identify differential patterns of infection and understand the mechanisms responsible. Yet our understanding of infection heterogeneity in wildlife is limited, even for important zoonotic host-pathogen systems, owing to the intractability of host status prior to infection. Using novel applications of stable isotope ecology and eco-immunology, we distinguish antecedent behavioural and physiological traits associated with avian influenza virus (AIV) infection in free-living Bewick's swans (Cygnus columbianus bewickii). Swans infected with AIV exhibited higher serum δ13C (-25.3±0.4) than their non-infected counterparts (-26.3±0.2). Thus, individuals preferentially foraging in aquatic rather than terrestrial habitats experienced a higher risk of infection, suggesting that the abiotic requirements of AIV give rise to heterogeneity in pathogen exposure. Juveniles were more likely to be infected (30.8% compared with 11.3% for adults), shed approximately 15-fold higher quantity of virus and exhibited a lower specific immune response than adults. Together, these results demonstrate the potential for heterogeneity in infection to have a profound influence on the dynamics of pathogens, with concomitant impacts on host habitat selection and fitness.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bethany J Hoye
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Droevendaalsesteeg 10, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.
| | | | | |
Collapse
|