1
|
Albert C, Moe B, Strøm H, Grémillet D, Brault-Favrou M, Tarroux A, Descamps S, Bråthen VS, Merkel B, Åström J, Amélineau F, Angelier F, Anker-Nilssen T, Chastel O, Christensen-Dalsgaard S, Danielsen J, Elliott K, Erikstad KE, Ezhov A, Fauchald P, Gabrielsen GW, Gavrilo M, Hanssen SA, Helgason HH, Johansen MK, Kolbeinsson Y, Krasnov Y, Langset M, Lemaire J, Lorentsen SH, Olsen B, Patterson A, Plumejeaud-Perreau C, Reiertsen TK, Systad GH, Thompson PM, Lindberg Thórarinsson T, Bustamante P, Fort J. Seabirds reveal mercury distribution across the North Atlantic. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2315513121. [PMID: 38739784 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2315513121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Mercury (Hg) is a heterogeneously distributed toxicant affecting wildlife and human health. Yet, the spatial distribution of Hg remains poorly documented, especially in food webs, even though this knowledge is essential to assess large-scale risk of toxicity for the biota and human populations. Here, we used seabirds to assess, at an unprecedented population and geographic magnitude and high resolution, the spatial distribution of Hg in North Atlantic marine food webs. To this end, we combined tracking data of 837 seabirds from seven different species and 27 breeding colonies located across the North Atlantic and Atlantic Arctic together with Hg analyses in feathers representing individual seabird contamination based on their winter distribution. Our results highlight an east-west gradient in Hg concentrations with hot spots around southern Greenland and the east coast of Canada and a cold spot in the Barents and Kara Seas. We hypothesize that those gradients are influenced by eastern (Norwegian Atlantic Current and West Spitsbergen Current) and western (East Greenland Current) oceanic currents and melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet. By tracking spatial Hg contamination in marine ecosystems and through the identification of areas at risk of Hg toxicity, this study provides essential knowledge for international decisions about where the regulation of pollutants should be prioritized.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Céline Albert
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle 17000, France
| | - Børge Moe
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Trondheim 7034, Norway
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Tromsø 9296, Norway
| | - David Grémillet
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, UMR5175, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier 34293, France
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
| | - Maud Brault-Favrou
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle 17000, France
| | - Arnaud Tarroux
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, Tromsø 9296, Norway
| | | | | | - Benjamin Merkel
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Tromsø 9296, Norway
- Akvaplan-niva, Fram Centre, Tromsø NO-9007, Norway
| | - Jens Åström
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Trondheim 7034, Norway
| | - Françoise Amélineau
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, UMR5175, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier 34293, France
| | - Frédéric Angelier
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS La Rochelle Université, Villiers-en-Bois 79360, France
| | | | - Olivier Chastel
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS La Rochelle Université, Villiers-en-Bois 79360, France
| | | | - Johannis Danielsen
- Seabird Ecology Department, Faroe Marine Research Institute, Tórshavn FO-100, Faroe Islands
| | - Kyle Elliott
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
| | | | - Alexey Ezhov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute, Murmansk 183010, Russia
| | - Per Fauchald
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, Tromsø 9296, Norway
| | | | - Maria Gavrilo
- Association Maritime Heritage, Icebreaker "Krassin", Saint-Petersburg RU-199106, Russia
- National Park Russian Arctic, Archangelsk RU-168000, Russia
| | - Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, Tromsø 9296, Norway
| | | | | | | | - Yuri Krasnov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute, Murmansk 183010, Russia
| | | | - Jérémy Lemaire
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle 17000, France
| | | | - Bergur Olsen
- Seabird Ecology Department, Faroe Marine Research Institute, Tórshavn FO-100, Faroe Islands
| | - Allison Patterson
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
| | | | - Tone K Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, Tromsø 9296, Norway
| | | | - Paul M Thompson
- University of Aberdeen, School of Biological Sciences, Lighthouse Field Station, Ross-shire, Cromarty IV11 8YJ, Scotland
| | | | - Paco Bustamante
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle 17000, France
- Institut Universitaire de France, Paris 75005, France
| | - Jérôme Fort
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle 17000, France
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Cruz-Flores M, Lemaire J, Brault-Favrou M, Christensen-Dalsgaard S, Churlaud C, Descamps S, Elliott K, Erikstad KE, Ezhov A, Gavrilo M, Grémillet D, Guillou G, Hatch S, Huffeldt NP, Kitaysky AS, Kolbeinsson Y, Krasnov Y, Langset M, Leclaire S, Linnebjerg JF, Lorentzen E, Mallory ML, Merkel FR, Montevecchi W, Mosbech A, Patterson A, Perret S, Provencher JF, Reiertsen TK, Renner H, Strøm H, Takahashi A, Thiebot JB, Thórarinsson TL, Will A, Bustamante P, Fort J. Spatial distribution of selenium-mercury in Arctic seabirds. Environ Pollut 2024; 343:123110. [PMID: 38086506 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.123110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 11/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
Mercury (Hg) is a metallic trace element toxic for humans and wildlife that can originate from natural and anthropic sources. Hg spatial gradients have been found in seabirds from the Arctic and other oceans, suggesting contrasting toxicity risks across regions. Selenium (Se) plays a protective role against Hg toxicity, but its spatial distribution has been much less investigated than that of Hg. From 2015 to 2017, we measured spatial co-exposure of Hg and Se in blood samples of two seabird species, the Brünnich's guillemot (Uria lomvia) and the black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) from 17 colonies in the Arctic and subarctic regions, and we calculated their molar ratios (Se:Hg), as a measure of Hg sequestration by Se and, therefore, of Hg exposure risk. We also evaluated concentration differences between species and ocean basins (Pacific-Arctic and Atlantic-Arctic), and examined the influence of trophic ecology on Hg and Se concentrations using nitrogen and carbon stable isotopes. In the Atlantic-Arctic ocean, we found a negative west-to-east gradient of Hg and Se for guillemots, and a positive west-to-east gradient of Se for kittiwakes, suggesting that these species are better protected from Hg toxicity in the European Arctic. Differences in Se gradients between species suggest that they do not follow environmental Se spatial variations. This, together with the absence of a general pattern for isotopes influence on trace element concentrations, could be due to foraging ecology differences between species. In both oceans, the two species showed similar Hg concentrations, but guillemots showed lower Se concentrations and Se:Hg than kittiwakes, suggesting a higher Hg toxicity risk in guillemots. Within species, neither Hg, nor Se or Se:Hg differed between both oceans. Our study highlights the importance of considering Se together with Hg, along with different species and regions, when evaluating Hg toxic effects on marine predators in international monitoring programs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marta Cruz-Flores
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France.
| | - Jérémy Lemaire
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France; Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Maud Brault-Favrou
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | | | - Carine Churlaud
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | | | - Kyle Elliott
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University. Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, Canada H9X 3V9
| | | | - Alexey Ezhov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute Russian Academy of Science, 183010 Vladimirskaya Str. 17, Murmansk, Russia
| | - Maria Gavrilo
- Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute. 199397 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - David Grémillet
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France; Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | - Gaël Guillou
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Scott Hatch
- U.S. Geological Survey, Alaska Science Center. Anchorage, AK 99508, USA
| | - Nicholas Per Huffeldt
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland; Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University. 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Alexander S Kitaysky
- University of Alaska Fairbanks, Institute of Arctic Biology, Department of Biology & Wildlife. Fairbanks, AK 99775-7000, USA
| | | | - Yuri Krasnov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute Russian Academy of Science, 183010 Vladimirskaya Str. 17, Murmansk, Russia
| | | | - Sarah Leclaire
- Laboratoire Evolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB), UMR 5174, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, IRD. 31062 Toulouse, France
| | | | | | - Mark L Mallory
- Biology, Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia B4P 2R6, Canada
| | - Flemming R Merkel
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland; Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University. 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - William Montevecchi
- Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador. St. John's, Newfoundland A1C 3X9, Canada
| | - Anders Mosbech
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University. 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Allison Patterson
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University. Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, Canada H9X 3V9
| | - Samuel Perret
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Jennifer F Provencher
- Ecotoxicology and Wildlife Health Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A 0H3
| | - Tone K Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, FRAM Centre. 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Heather Renner
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre. 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Akinori Takahashi
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3 Midori-cho, Tachikawa. Tokyo 190-8518, Japan
| | - Jean-Baptiste Thiebot
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3 Midori-cho, Tachikawa. Tokyo 190-8518, Japan; Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, 3-1-1 Minato-cho, Hakodate, Hokkaido 041-8611, Japan
| | | | - Alexis Will
- University of Alaska Fairbanks, Institute of Arctic Biology, Department of Biology & Wildlife. Fairbanks, AK 99775-7000, USA; World Wildlife Fund, US Arctic Program, 810 N Street, Suite 300, Anchorage AK 99501, USA
| | - Paco Bustamante
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Jérôme Fort
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Vriend SJG, Grøtan V, Gamelon M, Adriaensen F, Ahola MP, Álvarez E, Bailey LD, Barba E, Bouvier JC, Burgess MD, Bushuev A, Camacho C, Canal D, Charmantier A, Cole EF, Cusimano C, Doligez BF, Drobniak SM, Dubiec A, Eens M, Eeva T, Erikstad KE, Ferns PN, Goodenough AE, Hartley IR, Hinsley SA, Ivankina E, Juškaitis R, Kempenaers B, Kerimov AB, Kålås JA, Lavigne C, Leivits A, Mainwaring MC, Martínez-Padilla J, Matthysen E, van Oers K, Orell M, Pinxten R, Reiertsen TK, Rytkönen S, Senar JC, Sheldon BC, Sorace A, Török J, Vatka E, Visser ME, Saether BE. Temperature synchronizes temporal variation in laying dates across European hole-nesting passerines. Ecology 2023; 104:e3908. [PMID: 36314902 PMCID: PMC10078612 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2021] [Revised: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Identifying the environmental drivers of variation in fitness-related traits is a central objective in ecology and evolutionary biology. Temporal fluctuations of these environmental drivers are often synchronized at large spatial scales. Yet, whether synchronous environmental conditions can generate spatial synchrony in fitness-related trait values (i.e., correlated temporal trait fluctuations across populations) is poorly understood. Using data from long-term monitored populations of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus, n = 31), great tits (Parus major, n = 35), and pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca, n = 20) across Europe, we assessed the influence of two local climatic variables (mean temperature and mean precipitation in February-May) on spatial synchrony in three fitness-related traits: laying date, clutch size, and fledgling number. We found a high degree of spatial synchrony in laying date but a lower degree in clutch size and fledgling number for each species. Temperature strongly influenced spatial synchrony in laying date for resident blue tits and great tits but not for migratory pied flycatchers. This is a relevant finding in the context of environmental impacts on populations because spatial synchrony in fitness-related trait values among populations may influence fluctuations in vital rates or population abundances. If environmentally induced spatial synchrony in fitness-related traits increases the spatial synchrony in vital rates or population abundances, this will ultimately increase the risk of extinction for populations and species. Assessing how environmental conditions influence spatiotemporal variation in trait values improves our mechanistic understanding of environmental impacts on populations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stefan J G Vriend
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.,Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Vidar Grøtan
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Marlène Gamelon
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.,Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive UMR 5558, CNRS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Frank Adriaensen
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Markus P Ahola
- Environmental Research and Monitoring, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Elena Álvarez
- Ecology of Terrestrial Vertebrates, 'Cavanilles' Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Liam D Bailey
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) in the Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V, Berlin, Germany
| | - Emilio Barba
- Ecology of Terrestrial Vertebrates, 'Cavanilles' Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | | | - Malcolm D Burgess
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, Sandy, UK.,Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Andrey Bushuev
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Carlos Camacho
- Department of Biological Conservation and Ecosystem Restoration, Pyrenean Institute of Ecology (IPE-CSIC), Jaca, Spain
| | - David Canal
- Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research, Vácrátót, Hungary
| | | | - Ella F Cole
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Blandine F Doligez
- Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive UMR 5558, CNRS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Villeurbanne, France.,Department of Ecology and Genetics/Animal Ecology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Szymon M Drobniak
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland.,Evolution & Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Environmental and Earth Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Anna Dubiec
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Tapio Eeva
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.,Kevo Subarctic Research Institute, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Peter N Ferns
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Anne E Goodenough
- School of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, UK
| | - Ian R Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
| | | | - Elena Ivankina
- Zvenigorod Biological Station, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Bart Kempenaers
- Department of Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Anvar B Kerimov
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - John Atle Kålås
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Claire Lavigne
- INRAE, Plantes et Systèmes de culture Horticoles, Avignon, France
| | - Agu Leivits
- Department of Nature Conservation, Environmental Board, Saarde, Estonia
| | | | - Jesús Martínez-Padilla
- Department of Biological Conservation and Ecosystem Restoration, Pyrenean Institute of Ecology (IPE-CSIC), Jaca, Spain
| | - Erik Matthysen
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Markku Orell
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Research Group Didactica, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Tone Kristin Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Seppo Rytkönen
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Juan Carlos Senar
- Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecology Research Unit, Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ben C Sheldon
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Alberto Sorace
- Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, Rome, Italy
| | - János Török
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), Budapest, Hungary
| | - Emma Vatka
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.,Ecological Genetics Research Unit, Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Marcel E Visser
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Bernt-Erik Saether
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Hanssen SA, Erikstad KE, Sandvik H, Tveraa T, Bustnes JO. Eyes on the future: buffering increased costs of incubation by abandoning offspring. Behav Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arac116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Life history theory states that the resources invested in current reproduction must be traded off against resources needed for survival and future reproduction. Long-lived organisms have a higher residual reproductive value and are therefore expected to be sensitive to reproductive investments that may reduce survival and future reproduction. Individuals within a population may vary in phenotypic quality, experience, access to resources etc. This may affect their optimal reproductive investment level. In this study we manipulated reproductive costs by shortening and extending the incubation period in common eiders Somateria mollissima without altering clutch size. Females whose incubation time was prolonged experimentally, suffered higher mass loss and increased clutch loss/nest desertion. These females were also more prone to abandon their brood after hatching. Both clutch loss and brood abandonment decreased with clutch size in all treatment categories, indicating higher phenotypic quality and/or better access to resources for females producing more eggs. However, although females with prolonged incubation were lighter at hatching, their return rate and breeding performance in the following year were unaffected. These results show that individual quality as expressed through clutch size and body mass is affecting current reproductive investment level as well as future survival and breeding performance. The results also show that individual birds are sensitive to changes in their own condition, and when reproductive effort is approaching a level where survival or future survival may be compromised, they respond by terminating their current reproductive attempt.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Norwegian Institute of Nature Research, Dept. of Arctic Ecology, FRAM – High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment , P.O. Box 6606 Langnes, NO-9296 Tromsø , Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute of Nature Research, Dept. of Arctic Ecology, FRAM – High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment , P.O. Box 6606 Langnes, NO-9296 Tromsø , Norway
| | - Hanno Sandvik
- Norwegian Institute of Nature Research, Dept. of Aquatic Biodiversity , P.O. Box 5685 Torgarden, NO-7485 Trondheim , Norway
- Centre of Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) , NO-7491 Trondheim , Norway
| | - Torkild Tveraa
- Norwegian Institute of Nature Research, Dept. of Arctic Ecology, FRAM – High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment , P.O. Box 6606 Langnes, NO-9296 Tromsø , Norway
| | - Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute of Nature Research, Dept. of Arctic Ecology, FRAM – High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment , P.O. Box 6606 Langnes, NO-9296 Tromsø , Norway
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Chastel O, Fort J, Ackerman JT, Albert C, Angelier F, Basu N, Blévin P, Brault-Favrou M, Bustnes JO, Bustamante P, Danielsen J, Descamps S, Dietz R, Erikstad KE, Eulaers I, Ezhov A, Fleishman AB, Gabrielsen GW, Gavrilo M, Gilchrist G, Gilg O, Gíslason S, Golubova E, Goutte A, Grémillet D, Hallgrimsson GT, Hansen ES, Hanssen SA, Hatch S, Huffeldt NP, Jakubas D, Jónsson JE, Kitaysky AS, Kolbeinsson Y, Krasnov Y, Letcher RJ, Linnebjerg JF, Mallory M, Merkel FR, Moe B, Montevecchi WJ, Mosbech A, Olsen B, Orben RA, Provencher JF, Ragnarsdottir SB, Reiertsen TK, Rojek N, Romano M, Søndergaard J, Strøm H, Takahashi A, Tartu S, Thórarinsson TL, Thiebot JB, Will AP, Wilson S, Wojczulanis-Jakubas K, Yannic G. Mercury contamination and potential health risks to Arctic seabirds and shorebirds. Sci Total Environ 2022; 844:156944. [PMID: 35752241 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Since the last Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) effort to review biological effects of mercury (Hg) on Arctic biota in 2011 and 2018, there has been a considerable number of new Arctic bird studies. This review article provides contemporary Hg exposure and potential health risk for 36 Arctic seabird and shorebird species, representing a larger portion of the Arctic than during previous AMAP assessments now also including parts of the Russian Arctic. To assess risk to birds, we used Hg toxicity benchmarks established for blood and converted to egg, liver, and feather tissues. Several Arctic seabird populations showed Hg concentrations that exceeded toxicity benchmarks, with 50 % of individual birds exceeding the "no adverse health effect" level. In particular, 5 % of all studied birds were considered to be at moderate or higher risk to Hg toxicity. However, most seabirds (95 %) were generally at lower risk to Hg toxicity. The highest Hg contamination was observed in seabirds breeding in the western Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Most Arctic shorebirds exhibited low Hg concentrations, with approximately 45 % of individuals categorized at no risk, 2.5 % at high risk category, and no individual at severe risk. Although the majority Arctic-breeding seabirds and shorebirds appeared at lower risk to Hg toxicity, recent studies have reported deleterious effects of Hg on some pituitary hormones, genotoxicity, and reproductive performance. Adult survival appeared unaffected by Hg exposure, although long-term banding studies incorporating Hg are still limited. Although Hg contamination across the Arctic is considered low for most bird species, Hg in combination with other stressors, including other contaminants, diseases, parasites, and climate change, may still cause adverse effects. Future investigations on the global impact of Hg on Arctic birds should be conducted within a multi-stressor framework. This information helps to address Article 22 (Effectiveness Evaluation) of the Minamata Convention on Mercury as a global pollutant.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Chastel
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS- La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France.
| | - Jérôme Fort
- Littoral Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 17000 La Rochelle, France.
| | - Joshua T Ackerman
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Dixon Field Station, 800 Business Park Drive, Suite D, Dixon, CA 95620, United States.
| | - Céline Albert
- Littoral Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Frédéric Angelier
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS- La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Niladri Basu
- McGill University, Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Montreal, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
| | | | - Maud Brault-Favrou
- Littoral Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, FRAM Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Paco Bustamante
- Littoral Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 17000 La Rochelle, France; Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), 75005 Paris, France
| | | | | | - Rune Dietz
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | | | - Igor Eulaers
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram center, 9296 Tromsø, Norway; Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Alexey Ezhov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute Russian Academy of Science, 183010 Vladimirskaya str. 17 Murmansk, Russia
| | - Abram B Fleishman
- Conservation Metrics, Inc., Santa Cruz, CA, United States of America
| | | | - Maria Gavrilo
- Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, 199397 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Grant Gilchrist
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Raven Road, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont., Canada K1A 0H3
| | - Olivier Gilg
- Laboratoire Chrono-environnement, UMR 6249, Université de Bourgogne Franche Comté, 25000 Besançon, France; Groupe de Recherche en Ecologie Arctique, 16 rue de Vernot, F-21440 Francheville, France
| | - Sindri Gíslason
- Southwest Iceland Nature Research Centre, Gardvegur 1, 245 Sudurnesjabaer, Iceland
| | - Elena Golubova
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Institute of Biological Problems of the North, RU-685000 Magadan, Portovaya Str., 18, Russia
| | - Aurélie Goutte
- EPHE, PSL Research University, UMR 7619 METIS, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - David Grémillet
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), UMR 5175 Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France,; Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | - Gunnar T Hallgrimsson
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland, 102 Reykjavik, Iceland
| | - Erpur S Hansen
- South Iceland Nature Research Centre, Ægisgata 2, 900 Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland
| | | | - Scott Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, Anchorage, 99516-3185, AK, USA
| | - Nicholas P Huffeldt
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | - Dariusz Jakubas
- Department of Vertebrate Ecology and Zoology, University of Gdansk, 80-308 Gdansk, Poland
| | - Jón Einar Jónsson
- University of Iceland's Research Center at Snæfellsnes, 340 Stykkishólmur, Iceland
| | - Alexander S Kitaysky
- University of Alaska Fairbanks, Institute of Arctic Biology, Department of Biology & Wildlife, Fairbanks, AK 99775-7000, United States of America
| | | | - Yuri Krasnov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute Russian Academy of Science, 183010 Vladimirskaya str. 17 Murmansk, Russia
| | - Robert J Letcher
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Raven Road, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont., Canada K1A 0H3
| | | | - Mark Mallory
- Biology, Acadia University Wolfville, Nova Scotia B4P 2R6, Canada
| | - Flemming Ravn Merkel
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | - Børge Moe
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - William J Montevecchi
- Memorial Univerisity of Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, Newoundland A1C 3X9, Canada
| | - Anders Mosbech
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Bergur Olsen
- Faroe Marine Reseaqrch Institute, Nóatún 1, FO-110 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
| | - Rachael A Orben
- Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Sciences, Oregon State University, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Newport, OR, USA
| | - Jennifer F Provencher
- Science & Technology Branch, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 0H3
| | | | - Tone K Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, FRAM Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Nora Rojek
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA
| | - Marc Romano
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA
| | - Jens Søndergaard
- Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram center, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Akinori Takahashi
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3 Midori-cho, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan
| | - Sabrina Tartu
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS- La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | | | - Jean-Baptiste Thiebot
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3 Midori-cho, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan
| | - Alexis P Will
- University of Alaska Fairbanks, Institute of Arctic Biology, Department of Biology & Wildlife, Fairbanks, AK 99775-7000, United States of America; National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3 Midori-cho, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan
| | - Simon Wilson
- Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) Secretariat, The Fram Centre, Box 6606, Stakkevollan, 9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | | | - Glenn Yannic
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, 38000 Grenoble, France
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Patterson A, Gilchrist HG, Benjaminsen S, Bolton M, Bonnet-Lebrun AS, Davoren GK, Descamps S, Erikstad KE, Frederiksen M, Gaston AJ, Gulka J, Hentati-Sundberg J, Huffeldt NP, Johansen KL, Labansen AL, Linnebjerg JF, Love OP, Mallory ML, Merkel FR, Montevecchi WA, Mosbech A, Olsson O, Owen E, Ratcliffe N, Regular PM, Reiertsen TK, Ropert-Coudert Y, Strøm H, Thórarinsson TL, Elliott KH. Foraging range scales with colony size in high-latitude seabirds. Curr Biol 2022; 32:3800-3807.e3. [PMID: 35870447 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.06.084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Revised: 02/26/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Density-dependent prey depletion around breeding colonies has long been considered an important factor controlling the population dynamics of colonial animals.1-4 Ashmole proposed that as seabird colony size increases, intraspecific competition leads to declines in reproductive success, as breeding adults must spend more time and energy to find prey farther from the colony.1 Seabird colony size often varies over several orders of magnitude within the same species and can include millions of individuals per colony.5,6 As such, colony size likely plays an important role in determining the individual behavior of its members and how the colony interacts with the surrounding environment.6 Using tracking data from murres (Uria spp.), the world's most densely breeding seabirds, we show that the distribution of foraging-trip distances scales to colony size0.33 during the chick-rearing stage, consistent with Ashmole's halo theory.1,2 This pattern occurred across colonies varying in size over three orders of magnitude and distributed throughout the North Atlantic region. The strong relationship between colony size and foraging range means that the foraging areas of some colonial species can be estimated from colony sizes, which is more practical to measure over a large geographic scale. Two-thirds of the North Atlantic murre population breed at the 16 largest colonies; by extrapolating the predicted foraging ranges to sites without tracking data, we show that only two of these large colonies have significant coverage as marine protected areas. Our results are an important example of how theoretical models, in this case, Ashmole's version of central-place-foraging theory, can be applied to inform conservation and management in colonial breeding species.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Allison Patterson
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, 21111 Lakeshore Boulevard, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada.
| | - H Grant Gilchrist
- National Wildlife Research Centre, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Sigurd Benjaminsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Mark Bolton
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Sandy, UK
| | | | - Gail K Davoren
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
| | - Sébastien Descamps
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway; Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Morten Frederiksen
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Anthony J Gaston
- Laskeek Bay Conservation Society, Queen Charlotte, PO Box 867, Queen Charlotte, BC V0T 1S0, Canada
| | - Julia Gulka
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
| | - Jonas Hentati-Sundberg
- Department of Aquatic Resources, Institute of Marine Research, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lysekil, Sweden
| | - Nicholas Per Huffeldt
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Kivioq 2, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | | | - Aili Lage Labansen
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Kivioq 2, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | | | - Oliver P Love
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Windsor, 401 Sunset Avenue, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada
| | - Mark L Mallory
- Biology, Acadia University, 15 University Avenue, Wolfville, NS B4P 2R6, Canada
| | - Flemming Ravn Merkel
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Department of Aquatic Resources, Institute of Marine Research, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lysekil, Sweden
| | - William A Montevecchi
- Psychology and Biology Departments, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL A1C 5S7, Canada
| | - Anders Mosbech
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Olof Olsson
- Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ellie Owen
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Sandy, UK
| | - Norman Ratcliffe
- British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, UK
| | - Paul M Regular
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, NL, Canada
| | | | - Yan Ropert-Coudert
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS - La Rochelle Université, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | | | - Kyle H Elliott
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, 21111 Lakeshore Boulevard, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Clairbaux M, Mathewson P, Porter W, Fort J, Strøm H, Moe B, Fauchald P, Descamps S, Helgason HH, Bråthen VS, Merkel B, Anker-Nilssen T, Bringsvor IS, Chastel O, Christensen-Dalsgaard S, Danielsen J, Daunt F, Dehnhard N, Erikstad KE, Ezhov A, Gavrilo M, Krasnov Y, Langset M, Lorentsen SH, Newell M, Olsen B, Reiertsen TK, Systad GH, Thórarinsson TL, Baran M, Diamond T, Fayet AL, Fitzsimmons MG, Frederiksen M, Gilchrist HG, Guilford T, Huffeldt NP, Jessopp M, Johansen KL, Kouwenberg AL, Linnebjerg JF, Major HL, Tranquilla LM, Mallory M, Merkel FR, Montevecchi W, Mosbech A, Petersen A, Grémillet D. North Atlantic winter cyclones starve seabirds. Curr Biol 2021; 31:3964-3971.e3. [PMID: 34520704 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.06.059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Each winter, the North Atlantic Ocean is the stage for numerous cyclones, the most severe ones leading to seabird mass-mortality events called "winter wrecks."1-3 During these, thousands of emaciated seabird carcasses are washed ashore along European and North American coasts. Winter cyclones can therefore shape seabird population dynamics4,5 by affecting survival rates as well as the body condition of surviving individuals and thus their future reproduction. However, most often the geographic origins of impacted seabirds and the causes of their deaths remain unclear.6 We performed the first ocean-basin scale assessment of cyclone exposure in a seabird community by coupling winter tracking data for ∼1,500 individuals of five key North Atlantic seabird species (Alle alle, Fratercula arctica, Uria aalge, Uria lomvia, and Rissa tridactyla) and cyclone locations. We then explored the energetic consequences of different cyclonic conditions using a mechanistic bioenergetics model7 and tested the hypothesis that cyclones dramatically increase seabird energy requirements. We demonstrated that cyclones of high intensity impacted birds from all studied species and breeding colonies during winter but especially those aggregating in the Labrador Sea, the Davis Strait, the surroundings of Iceland, and the Barents Sea. Our broad-scale analyses suggested that cyclonic conditions do not increase seabird energy requirements, implying that they die because of the unavailability of their prey and/or their inability to feed during cyclones. Our study provides essential information on seabird cyclone exposure in a context of marked cyclone regime changes due to global warming.8.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Manon Clairbaux
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, Montpellier, France.
| | - Paul Mathewson
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Warren Porter
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Jérôme Fort
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Børge Moe
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Per Fauchald
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Sebastien Descamps
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Hálfdán H Helgason
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Vegard S Bråthen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Benjamin Merkel
- Akvaplan-niva AS, Fram Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Tycho Anker-Nilssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Ingar S Bringsvor
- Norwegian Ornithological Society, Sandgata 30 B, 7012 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Olivier Chastel
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS/La Rochelle Univ, La Rochelle, France
| | | | - Jóhannis Danielsen
- Faroe Marine Research Institute, PO Box 3051, Nóatún 1, 110 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
| | - Francis Daunt
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik EH26 0QB, UK
| | - Nina Dehnhard
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway; Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Alexey Ezhov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute, 17 Vladimirskaya Street, 183010 Murmansk, Russia
| | - Maria Gavrilo
- Association Maritime Heritage, Saint Petersburg, Russia; National Park Russian Arctic, 57 Sovetskikh Kosmonavtove Avenue, Archangelsk, Russia
| | - Yuri Krasnov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute, 17 Vladimirskaya Street, 183010 Murmansk, Russia
| | - Magdalene Langset
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Svein-H Lorentsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Mark Newell
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik EH26 0QB, UK
| | - Bergur Olsen
- Faroe Marine Research Institute, PO Box 3051, Nóatún 1, 110 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
| | - Tone K Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Geir Helge Systad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research - NINA, PO Box 5685 Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | | | - Mark Baran
- Atlantic Laboratory for Avian Research, University of New Brunswick, PO Box 4400, Fredericton, NB E3B 5A3, Canada
| | - Tony Diamond
- Atlantic Laboratory for Avian Research, University of New Brunswick, PO Box 4400, Fredericton, NB E3B 5A3, Canada
| | - Annette L Fayet
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SZ, UK
| | - Michelle G Fitzsimmons
- Wildlife Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 6 Bruce Street, Mount Pearl, NL A1N 4T3, Canada
| | - Morten Frederiksen
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Hugh G Gilchrist
- National Wildlife Research Centre, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Tim Guilford
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SZ, UK
| | - Nicholas P Huffeldt
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Kivioq 2, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | - Mark Jessopp
- School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University College Cork, Distillery Field, North Mall, Cork, Ireland; MaREI Centre, Environmental Research Inst., Univ. College Cork, Cork, Ireland
| | - Kasper L Johansen
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | | | - Jannie F Linnebjerg
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Heather L Major
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Brunswick, PO Box 5050, Saint John, NB E2L 4L5, Canada
| | | | - Mark Mallory
- Biology, Acadia University, 15 University Avenue, Wolfville, NS B4P 2R6, Canada
| | - Flemming R Merkel
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - William Montevecchi
- Psychology and Biology Departments, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL A1C 5S7, Canada
| | - Anders Mosbech
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | | | - David Grémillet
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS/La Rochelle Univ, La Rochelle, France; Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST/NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Culina A, Adriaensen F, Bailey LD, Burgess MD, Charmantier A, Cole EF, Eeva T, Matthysen E, Nater CR, Sheldon BC, Sæther B, Vriend SJG, Zajkova Z, Adamík P, Aplin LM, Angulo E, Artemyev A, Barba E, Barišić S, Belda E, Bilgin CC, Bleu J, Both C, Bouwhuis S, Branston CJ, Broggi J, Burke T, Bushuev A, Camacho C, Campobello D, Canal D, Cantarero A, Caro SP, Cauchoix M, Chaine A, Cichoń M, Ćiković D, Cusimano CA, Deimel C, Dhondt AA, Dingemanse NJ, Doligez B, Dominoni DM, Doutrelant C, Drobniak SM, Dubiec A, Eens M, Einar Erikstad K, Espín S, Farine DR, Figuerola J, Kavak Gülbeyaz P, Grégoire A, Hartley IR, Hau M, Hegyi G, Hille S, Hinde CA, Holtmann B, Ilyina T, Isaksson C, Iserbyt A, Ivankina E, Kania W, Kempenaers B, Kerimov A, Komdeur J, Korsten P, Král M, Krist M, Lambrechts M, Lara CE, Leivits A, Liker A, Lodjak J, Mägi M, Mainwaring MC, Mänd R, Massa B, Massemin S, Martínez‐Padilla J, Mazgajski TD, Mennerat A, Moreno J, Mouchet A, Nakagawa S, Nilsson J, Nilsson JF, Cláudia Norte A, van Oers K, Orell M, Potti J, Quinn JL, Réale D, Kristin Reiertsen T, Rosivall B, Russell AF, Rytkönen S, Sánchez‐Virosta P, Santos ESA, Schroeder J, Senar JC, Seress G, Slagsvold T, Szulkin M, Teplitsky C, Tilgar V, Tolstoguzov A, Török J, Valcu M, Vatka E, Verhulst S, Watson H, Yuta T, Zamora‐Marín JM, Visser ME. Connecting the data landscape of long-term ecological studies: The SPI-Birds data hub. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:2147-2160. [PMID: 33205462 PMCID: PMC8518542 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 11/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
The integration and synthesis of the data in different areas of science is drastically slowed and hindered by a lack of standards and networking programmes. Long-term studies of individually marked animals are not an exception. These studies are especially important as instrumental for understanding evolutionary and ecological processes in the wild. Furthermore, their number and global distribution provides a unique opportunity to assess the generality of patterns and to address broad-scale global issues (e.g. climate change). To solve data integration issues and enable a new scale of ecological and evolutionary research based on long-term studies of birds, we have created the SPI-Birds Network and Database (www.spibirds.org)-a large-scale initiative that connects data from, and researchers working on, studies of wild populations of individually recognizable (usually ringed) birds. Within year and a half since the establishment, SPI-Birds has recruited over 120 members, and currently hosts data on almost 1.5 million individual birds collected in 80 populations over 2,000 cumulative years, and counting. SPI-Birds acts as a data hub and a catalogue of studied populations. It prevents data loss, secures easy data finding, use and integration and thus facilitates collaboration and synthesis. We provide community-derived data and meta-data standards and improve data integrity guided by the principles of Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable (FAIR), and aligned with the existing metadata languages (e.g. ecological meta-data language). The encouraging community involvement stems from SPI-Bird's decentralized approach: research groups retain full control over data use and their way of data management, while SPI-Birds creates tailored pipelines to convert each unique data format into a standard format. We outline the lessons learned, so that other communities (e.g. those working on other taxa) can adapt our successful model. Creating community-specific hubs (such as ours, COMADRE for animal demography, etc.) will aid much-needed large-scale ecological data integration.
Collapse
|
9
|
Hansen ES, Sandvik H, Erikstad KE, Yoccoz NG, Anker-Nilssen T, Bader J, Descamps S, Hodges K, Mesquita MDS, Reiertsen TK, Varpe Ø. Centennial relationships between ocean temperature and Atlantic puffin production reveal shifting decennial trends. Glob Chang Biol 2021; 27:3753-3764. [PMID: 34031960 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The current warming of the oceans has been shown to have detrimental effects for a number of species. An understanding of the underlying mechanisms may be hampered by the non-linearity and non-stationarity of the relationships between temperature and demography, and by the insufficient length of available time series. Most demographic time series are too short to study the effects of climate on wildlife in the classical sense of meteorological patterns over at least 30 years. Here we present a harvest time series of Atlantic puffins (Fratercula arctica) that goes back as far as 1880. It originates in the world's largest puffin colony, in southwest Iceland, which has recently experienced a strong decline. By estimating an annual chick production index for 128 years, we found prolonged periods of strong correlations between local sea surface temperature (SST) and chick production. The sign of decennial correlations switches three times during this period, where the phases of strong negative correlations between puffin productivity and SST correspond to the early 20th century Arctic warming period and to the most recent decades. Most of the variation (72%) in chick production is explained by a model in which productivity peaks at an SST of 7.1°C, clearly rejecting the assumption of a linear relationship. There is also evidence supporting non-stationarity: The SST at which puffins production peaked has increased by 0.24°C during the 20th century, although the increase in average SST during the same period has been more than three times faster. The best supported models indicate that the population's decline is at least partially caused by the increasing SST around Iceland.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erpur S Hansen
- South Iceland Nature Research Centre, Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland
| | - Hanno Sandvik
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Trondheim, Norway
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics (CBD), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics (CBD), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Tromsø, Norway
| | - Nigel G Yoccoz
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Tromsø, Norway
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Arctic University of Norway (UiT), Tromsø, Norway
| | | | - Jürgen Bader
- Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Hamburg, Germany
- Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research, NORCE, Bergen, Norway
| | | | - Kevin Hodges
- Department of Meteorology, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | | | | | - Øystein Varpe
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
- University Centre in Svalbard, Longyearbyen, Norway
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Bergen, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Sydeman WJ, Schoeman DS, Thompson SA, Hoover BA, García-Reyes M, Daunt F, Agnew P, Anker-Nilssen T, Barbraud C, Barrett R, Becker PH, Bell E, Boersma PD, Bouwhuis S, Cannell B, Crawford RJM, Dann P, Delord K, Elliott G, Erikstad KE, Flint E, Furness RW, Harris MP, Hatch S, Hilwig K, Hinke JT, Jahncke J, Mills JA, Reiertsen TK, Renner H, Sherley RB, Surman C, Taylor G, Thayer JA, Trathan PN, Velarde E, Walker K, Wanless S, Warzybok P, Watanuki Y. Hemispheric asymmetry in ocean change and the productivity of ecosystem sentinels. Science 2021; 372:980-983. [PMID: 34045354 DOI: 10.1126/science.abf1772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Climate change and other human activities are causing profound effects on marine ecosystem productivity. We show that the breeding success of seabirds is tracking hemispheric differences in ocean warming and human impacts, with the strongest effects on fish-eating, surface-foraging species in the north. Hemispheric asymmetry suggests the need for ocean management at hemispheric scales. For the north, tactical, climate-based recovery plans for forage fish resources are needed to recover seabird breeding productivity. In the south, lower-magnitude change in seabird productivity presents opportunities for strategic management approaches such as large marine protected areas to sustain food webs and maintain predator productivity. Global monitoring of seabird productivity enables the detection of ecosystem change in remote regions and contributes to our understanding of marine climate impacts on ecosystems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - D S Schoeman
- Global-Change Ecology Research Group, School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, Queensland, Australia.,Centre for African Conservation Ecology, Department of Zoology, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha, South Africa
| | | | | | | | - F Daunt
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, Midlothian, UK
| | - P Agnew
- Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony, Oamaru, New Zealand
| | - T Anker-Nilssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Trondheim, Norway
| | - C Barbraud
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - R Barrett
- UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - P H Becker
- Institute of Avian Research, Wilhelmshaven, Germany
| | - E Bell
- Wildlife Management International, Blenheim, New Zealand
| | - P D Boersma
- Center for Ecosystem Sentinels, Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - S Bouwhuis
- Institute of Avian Research, Wilhelmshaven, Germany
| | - B Cannell
- Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, and University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia
| | - R J M Crawford
- Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - P Dann
- Phillip Island Nature Parks, Cowes, Victoria, Australia
| | - K Delord
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS UMR7372, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - G Elliott
- New Zealand Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - K E Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM Centre, Tromsø, Norway and Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics (CBD), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - E Flint
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | - R W Furness
- University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
| | - M P Harris
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, Midlothian, UK
| | - S Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, Anchorage, AK, USA
| | - K Hilwig
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, AK, USA
| | - J T Hinke
- Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - J Jahncke
- Point Blue Conservation Science, Petaluma, CA, USA
| | | | - T K Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM Centre, Tromsø, Norway
| | - H Renner
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, AK, USA
| | - R B Sherley
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall, UK
| | - C Surman
- Halfmoon Biosciences, Ocean Beach, Western Australia, Australia
| | - G Taylor
- New Zealand Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand
| | | | | | - E Velarde
- Universidad Veracruzana, Veracruz, Mexico
| | - K Walker
- New Zealand Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - S Wanless
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, Midlothian, UK
| | - P Warzybok
- Point Blue Conservation Science, Petaluma, CA, USA
| | - Y Watanuki
- Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Huffeldt NP, Tigano A, Erikstad KE, Goymann W, Jenni-Eiermann S, Moum T, Reiertsen TK. The relationship between daily behavior, hormones, and a color dimorphism in a seabird under natural continuous light. Horm Behav 2021; 130:104930. [PMID: 33497708 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2021.104930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2020] [Revised: 11/19/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The predictable oscillation between the light of day and the dark of night across the diel cycle is a powerful selective force that has resulted in anticipatory mechanisms in nearly all taxa. At polar latitude, however, this oscillation becomes highly attenuated during the continuous light of polar day during summer. A general understanding of how animals keep time under these conditions is poorly understood. We tested the hypothesis that the common murre (a seabird, Uria aalge) can use melatonin and corticosterone, hormones associated with timekeeping, to track the diel cycle despite continuous light. We also tested the assumption that common murres breeding during polar summer schedule their colony attendance by time of day and sex, as they do at subpolar latitude. In the Atlantic population, common murres have a plumage color dimorphism associated with fitness-related traits, and we investigated the relationship of this dimorphism with colony attendance, melatonin, and corticosterone. The common murres did not schedule their attendance behavior by time of day or sex, yet they had higher concentrations of melatonin and, to a more limited extent, corticosterone during "night" than "day". Melatonin also linked to behavioral state. The two color morphs tended to have different colony-attendance behavior and melatonin concentrations, lending support for balancing selection maintaining the plumage dimorphism. In common murres, melatonin can signal time of day despite continuous light, and the limited diel variation of corticosterone contributes to the mounting evidence that polar-adapted birds and mammals require little or no diel variation in circulating glucocorticoids during polar day.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Per Huffeldt
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland; Arctic Ecosystem Ecology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA.
| | - Anna Tigano
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA; Hubbard Center for Genome Studies, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway; Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Wolfgang Goymann
- Abteilung für Verhaltensneurobiologie, Max-Planck-Institut für Ornithologie, 82319 Seewiesen, Germany
| | | | - Truls Moum
- Genomics Division, Faculty of Bioscience and Aquaculture, Nord University, 8049 Bodø, Norway
| | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
Albert C, Helgason HH, Brault-Favrou M, Robertson GJ, Descamps S, Amélineau F, Danielsen J, Dietz R, Elliott K, Erikstad KE, Eulaers I, Ezhov A, Fitzsimmons MG, Gavrilo M, Golubova E, Grémillet D, Hatch S, Huffeldt NP, Jakubas D, Kitaysky A, Kolbeinsson Y, Krasnov Y, Lorentsen SH, Lorentzen E, Mallory ML, Merkel B, Merkel FR, Montevecchi W, Mosbech A, Olsen B, Orben RA, Patterson A, Provencher J, Plumejeaud C, Pratte I, Reiertsen TK, Renner H, Rojek N, Romano M, Strøm H, Systad GH, Takahashi A, Thiebot JB, Thórarinsson TL, Will AP, Wojczulanis-Jakubas K, Bustamante P, Fort J. Seasonal variation of mercury contamination in Arctic seabirds: A pan-Arctic assessment. Sci Total Environ 2021; 750:142201. [PMID: 33182207 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2020] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 09/02/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Mercury (Hg) is a natural trace element found in high concentrations in top predators, including Arctic seabirds. Most current knowledge about Hg concentrations in Arctic seabirds relates to exposure during the summer breeding period when researchers can easily access seabirds at colonies. However, the few studies focused on winter have shown higher Hg concentrations during the non-breeding period than breeding period in several tissues. Hence, improving knowledge about Hg exposure during the non-breeding period is crucial to understanding the threats and risks encountered by these species year-round. We used feathers of nine migratory alcid species occurring at high latitudes to study bird Hg exposure during both the breeding and non-breeding periods. Overall, Hg concentrations during the non-breeding period were ~3 times higher than during the breeding period. In addition, spatial differences were apparent within and between the Atlantic and Pacific regions. While Hg concentrations during the non-breeding period were ~9 times and ~3 times higher than during the breeding period for the West and East Atlantic respectively, Hg concentrations in the Pacific during the non-breeding period were only ~1.7 times higher than during the breeding period. In addition, individual Hg concentrations during the non-breeding period for most of the seabird colonies were above 5 μg g-1 dry weight (dw), which is considered to be the threshold at which deleterious effects are observed, suggesting that some breeding populations might be vulnerable to non-breeding Hg exposure. Since wintering area locations, and migration routes may influence seasonal Hg concentrations, it is crucial to improve our knowledge about spatial ecotoxicology to fully understand the risks associated with Hg contamination in Arctic seabirds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Céline Albert
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France.
| | - Hálfdán Helgi Helgason
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Framcentre, Hjalmar Johansens Gate 14, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Maud Brault-Favrou
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Gregory J Robertson
- Wildlife Research Division, Environment Climate Change Canada, 6 Bruce Street, Mount Pearl, NL A1N 4T3, Canada
| | - Sébastien Descamps
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Framcentre, Hjalmar Johansens Gate 14, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Françoise Amélineau
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE) UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier, France
| | - Jóhannis Danielsen
- The Faroese Marine Research Institute, Nóatún 1, FO-100 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
| | - Rune Dietz
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Kyle Elliott
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM - High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, PO Box 6606, Langnes, NO-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Igor Eulaers
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Alexey Ezhov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute, 17 Vladimirskaya street, 183010 Murmansk, Russia
| | - Michelle G Fitzsimmons
- Wildlife Research Division, Environment Climate Change Canada, 6 Bruce Street, Mount Pearl, NL A1N 4T3, Canada
| | - Maria Gavrilo
- Association Maritime Heritage, RU - 199106, Icebreaker "Krassin", The Lieutenant Schmidt emb., 23 Line, Saint-Petersburg, Russia; National Park Russian Arctic, RU-168000, Sovetskikh kosmonavtov ave., 57, Archangelsk, Russia
| | - Elena Golubova
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Institute of Biological Problems of the North, RU-685000 Magadan, Portovaya Str., 18, Russia
| | - David Grémillet
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE) UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier, France; FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, UCT, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa; Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372-CNRS, La Rochelle Université, France
| | - Scott Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, Anchorage 99516-3185, AK, USA
| | - Nicholas P Huffeldt
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Dariusz Jakubas
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Biology, Dept. of Vertebrate Ecology and Zoology, Wita Stwosza 59, PL-80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Alexander Kitaysky
- Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
| | - Yann Kolbeinsson
- Northeast Iceland Nature Research Centre, Hafnarstétt 3, 640 Húsavík, Iceland
| | - Yuri Krasnov
- Murmansk Marine Biological Institute, 17 Vladimirskaya street, 183010 Murmansk, Russia
| | - Svein-Håkon Lorentsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Høgskoleringen 9, NO-7034 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Erlend Lorentzen
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Framcentre, Hjalmar Johansens Gate 14, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Mark L Mallory
- Acadia University, 33 Westwood Avenue, Wolfville B4P 2R6, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Benjamin Merkel
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Framcentre, Hjalmar Johansens Gate 14, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Flemming Ravn Merkel
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, P.O. Box 570, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | - William Montevecchi
- Psychology Department, Memorial University, St. John's, Newfoundland A1M 2Y8, Canada
| | - Anders Mosbech
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Bergur Olsen
- The Faroese Marine Research Institute, Nóatún 1, FO-100 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
| | - Rachael A Orben
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Hatfield Marine Science Center, 2030 SE Marine Science Dr., Newport, OR 97365, USA
| | - Allison Patterson
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
| | - Jennifer Provencher
- Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Place Vincent Massey, 351 St. Joseph Blvd, Hull, Quebec K1A 0H3, Canada
| | - Christine Plumejeaud
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Isabeau Pratte
- Acadia University, 33 Westwood Avenue, Wolfville B4P 2R6, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Tone Kristin Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM - High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, PO Box 6606, Langnes, NO-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Heather Renner
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA
| | - Nora Rojek
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA
| | - Marc Romano
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Framcentre, Hjalmar Johansens Gate 14, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Geir Helge Systad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Thormøhlensgate 55, N0-5006 Bergen, Norway
| | - Akinori Takahashi
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3, Midori-cho, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan
| | - Jean-Baptiste Thiebot
- National Institute of Polar Research, 10-3, Midori-cho, Tachikawa, Tokyo 190-8518, Japan
| | | | - Alexis P Will
- Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
| | - Katarzyna Wojczulanis-Jakubas
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Biology, Dept. of Vertebrate Ecology and Zoology, Wita Stwosza 59, PL-80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Paco Bustamante
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France; Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), 1 rue Descartes, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Jérôme Fort
- Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Dietz R, Fort J, Sonne C, Albert C, Bustnes JO, Christensen TK, Ciesielski TM, Danielsen J, Dastnai S, Eens M, Erikstad KE, Galatius A, Garbus SE, Gilg O, Hanssen SA, Helander B, Helberg M, Jaspers VLB, Jenssen BM, Jónsson JE, Kauhala K, Kolbeinsson Y, Kyhn LA, Labansen AL, Larsen MM, Lindstøm U, Reiertsen TK, Rigét FF, Roos A, Strand J, Strøm H, Sveegaard S, Søndergaard J, Sun J, Teilmann J, Therkildsen OR, Thórarinsson TL, Tjørnløv RS, Wilson S, Eulaers I. A risk assessment of the effects of mercury on Baltic Sea, Greater North Sea and North Atlantic wildlife, fish and bivalves. Environ Int 2021; 146:106178. [PMID: 33246245 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2020.106178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2020] [Revised: 09/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/30/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
A wide range of species, including marine mammals, seabirds, birds of prey, fish and bivalves, were investigated for potential population health risks resulting from contemporary (post 2000) mercury (Hg) exposure, using novel risk thresholds based on literature and de novo contamination data. The main geographic focus is on the Baltic Sea, while data from the same species in adjacent waters, such as the Greater North Sea and North Atlantic, were included for comparative purposes. For marine mammals, 23% of the groups, each composing individuals of a specific sex and maturity from the same species in a specific study region, showed Hg-concentrations within the High Risk Category (HRC) and Severe Risk Category (SRC). The corresponding percentages for seabirds, fish and bivalves were 2.7%, 25% and 8.0%, respectively, although fish and bivalves were not represented in the SRC. Juveniles from all species showed to be at no or low risk. In comparison to the same species in the adjacent waters, i.e. the Greater North Sea and the North Atlantic, the estimated risk for Baltic populations is not considerably higher. These findings suggest that over the past few decades the Baltic Sea has improved considerably with respect to presenting Hg exposure to its local species, while it does still carry a legacy of elevated Hg levels resulting from high neighbouring industrial and agricultural activity and slow water turnover regime.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rune Dietz
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark.
| | - Jérôme Fort
- LIENSs, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Christian Sonne
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Céline Albert
- LIENSs, UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | | | - Tomasz Maciej Ciesielski
- Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Høgskoleringen 5, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Jóhannis Danielsen
- The Faroese Marine Research Institute, Nóatún 1, 100 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
| | - Sam Dastnai
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Anders Galatius
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Svend-Erik Garbus
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Olivier Gilg
- UMR 6249 Chrono-environnement, Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 16 route de Gray, 25000 Besançon, France; Groupe de Recherche en Ecologie Arctique, 16 rue de Vernot, 21440 Francheville, France
| | - Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Björn Helander
- Swedish Museum of Natural History, Department of Contaminant Research, Frescativägen 40, PO Box 50007, 104 18 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Morten Helberg
- CEES, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, PO Box 1066, 0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Veerle L B Jaspers
- Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Høgskoleringen 5, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Bjørn Munro Jenssen
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Høgskoleringen 5, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Jón Einar Jónsson
- Northeast Iceland Nature Research Centre, Hafnarstétt 3, 640 Húsavík, Iceland
| | - Kaarina Kauhala
- Natural Resources Institute Finland, LUKE, Itäinen Pitkäkatu 4A, 20520 Turku, Finland
| | - Yann Kolbeinsson
- Northeast Iceland Nature Research Centre, Hafnarstétt 3, 640 Húsavík, Iceland
| | - Line Anker Kyhn
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Aili Lage Labansen
- Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Kivioq 2, PO Box 570, 3900 Nuuk, Greenland
| | - Martin Mørk Larsen
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Ulf Lindstøm
- Institute of Marine Research, FRAM Centre, 9007 Tromsø, Norway; UiT Norwegian Arctic University, Institute of Arctic and Marine Biology, Dramsveien 201, 9037 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Tone K Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM Centre, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Frank F Rigét
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Anna Roos
- Swedish Museum of Natural History, Department of Contaminant Research, Frescativägen 40, PO Box 50007, 104 18 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Jakob Strand
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, FRAM Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Signe Sveegaard
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Jens Søndergaard
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Jiachen Sun
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; School of Environment, Jinan University, West Huangpu Avenue 601, 510632 Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Jonas Teilmann
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | | | | | - Rune Skjold Tjørnløv
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Simon Wilson
- Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) Secretariat, FRAM Centre, PO Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Igor Eulaers
- Aarhus University, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
St. John Glew K, Wanless S, Harris MP, Daunt F, Erikstad KE, Strøm H, Speakman JR, Kürten B, Trueman CN. Sympatric Atlantic puffins and razorbills show contrasting responses to adverse marine conditions during winter foraging within the North Sea. Mov Ecol 2019; 7:33. [PMID: 31695919 PMCID: PMC6824136 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-019-0174-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2019] [Accepted: 09/20/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Natural environments are dynamic systems with conditions varying across years. Higher trophic level consumers may respond to changes in the distribution and quality of available prey by moving to locate new resources or by switching diets. In order to persist, sympatric species with similar ecological niches may show contrasting foraging responses to changes in environmental conditions. However, in marine environments this assertion remains largely untested for highly mobile predators outside the breeding season because of the challenges of quantifying foraging location and trophic position under contrasting conditions. METHOD Differences in overwinter survival rates of two populations of North Sea seabirds (Atlantic puffins (Fratercula arctica) and razorbills (Alca torda)) indicated that environmental conditions differed between 2007/08 (low survival and thus poor conditions) and 2014/15 (higher survival, favourable conditions). We used a combination of bird-borne data loggers and stable isotope analyses to test 1) whether these sympatric species showed consistent responses with respect to foraging location and trophic position to these contrasting winter conditions during periods when body and cheek feathers were being grown (moult) and 2) whether any observed changes in moult locations and diet could be related to the abundance and distribution of potential prey species of differing energetic quality. RESULTS Puffins and razorbills showed divergent foraging responses to contrasting winter conditions. Puffins foraging in the North Sea used broadly similar foraging locations during moult in both winters. However, puffin diet significantly differed, with a lower average trophic position in the winter characterised by lower survival rates. By contrast, razorbills' trophic position increased in the poor survival winter and the population foraged in more distant southerly waters of the North Sea. CONCLUSIONS Populations of North Sea puffins and razorbills showed contrasting foraging responses when environmental conditions, as indicated by overwinter survival differed. Conservation of mobile predators, many of which are in sharp decline, may benefit from dynamic spatial based management approaches focusing on behavioural changes in response to changing environmental conditions, particularly during life history stages associated with increased mortality.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Katie St. John Glew
- Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, Waterfront Campus, Southampton, SO143ZH UK
| | - Sarah Wanless
- Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, EH26 0QB UK
| | | | - Francis Daunt
- Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, EH26 0QB UK
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fram Centre, N-9296 Tromsø, Norway
- Norwegian University of Science &Technology (NTNU), Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, N-7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, Postbox 6606, Langnes, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - John R. Speakman
- Institute of Genetics and developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Institute of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland, UK
| | - Benjamin Kürten
- School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, University of Newcastle, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 7RU UK
- Present address: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Biological and Environmental Sciences & Engineering Division (BESE), Thuwal, 23955-6900 Saudi Arabia
| | - Clive N. Trueman
- Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, Waterfront Campus, Southampton, SO143ZH UK
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Hanssen SA, Sonne C, Bustnes JO, Schnug L, Bourgeon S, Ballesteros M, Eulaers I, Moum T, Johnsen TV, Kjelgaard-Hansen M, Herzke D, Jaspers VL, Covaci A, Eens M, Halley DJ, Erikstad KE, Ims RA. Anti-parasite treatment and blood biochemistry in raptor nestlings. CAN J ZOOL 2017. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2016-0040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
We investigated the effects of parasite removal on various blood clinical–chemical variables (BCCVs). BCCVs are indicators of health, reflecting, e.g., homeostasis of liver, kidney function, and bone metabolism. The study was conducted in Norway on chicks of two predatory birds: White-tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla (L., 1758)) and Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis (L., 1758)). Chicks were treated against both endoparasites (internal parasites) and ectoparasites (external parasites). We treated against ectoparasites by spraying nests with pyrethrins. Within nests, chicks were randomly treated with either an anti-helminthic medication (fenbendazole) or sterile water (controls). Treatment against either ectoparasites or endoparasites led to higher levels of the bone and liver enzyme alkaline phosphatase. Bilirubin levels were lower when treated against ectoparasites, whereas bile acids were higher. Anti-endoparasite treatment led to higher creatinine levels. In Northern Goshawks, treating against endoparasites led to higher urea levels and lower potassium levels. Treatment against ectoparasites increased uric acid and urea levels and reduced bilirubin levels and protein:creatinine ratios. In conclusion, anti-parasite treatments led to changes in several BCCVs, suggesting differences in nutrient absorption and physiological state of chicks that are possibly related to the costs of parasitism, but maybe also to the parasite treatment itself.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Christian Sonne
- Århus University, Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, P.O. Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Lisbeth Schnug
- Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Soil, Water and Environment Division, Fr. A. Dahlsvei 20, NO-1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Sophie Bourgeon
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Manuel Ballesteros
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Igor Eulaers
- Århus University, Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre (ARC), Frederiksborgvej 399, P.O. Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark
- Ethology Research Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, BE-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Truls Moum
- University of Nordland, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, NO-8049 Bodø, Norway
| | - Trond Vidar Johnsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Mads Kjelgaard-Hansen
- University of Copenhagen, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Department of Veterinary Clinical and Animal Sciences, Frederiksberg, Denmark
| | - Dorte Herzke
- Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Veerle L.B. Jaspers
- Ethology Research Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, BE-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Department of Biology, NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Adrian Covaci
- Toxicological Centre, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, BE-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Ethology Research Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, BE-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Duncan J. Halley
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Terrestrial Ecology, Postboks 5685 Sluppen, NO-7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Rolf Anker Ims
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Guéry L, Descamps S, Pradel R, Hanssen SA, Erikstad KE, Gabrielsen GW, Gilchrist HG, Bêty J. Hidden survival heterogeneity of three Common eider populations in response to climate fluctuations. J Anim Ecol 2017; 86:683-693. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2016] [Accepted: 01/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Loreleï Guéry
- Département de Biologie Chimie et Géographie Université du Québec à Rimouski Rimouski QC Canada
- Centre d'études nordiques Université Laval Québec, QC Canada
| | | | - Roger Pradel
- CEFE UMR 5175 CNRS – Université de Montpellier – Université Paul‐Valéry Montpellier – EPHE Montpellier France
| | - Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Arctic Ecology Department Fram Centre Tromsø Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Arctic Ecology Department Fram Centre Tromsø Norway
- Department of Biology Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim Norway
| | | | | | - Joël Bêty
- Département de Biologie Chimie et Géographie Université du Québec à Rimouski Rimouski QC Canada
- Centre d'études nordiques Université Laval Québec, QC Canada
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Burr ZM, Varpe Ø, Anker‐Nilssen T, Erikstad KE, Descamps S, Barrett RT, Bech C, Christensen‐Dalsgaard S, Lorentsen S, Moe B, Reiertsen TK, Strøm H. Later at higher latitudes: large‐scale variability in seabird breeding timing and synchronicity. Ecosphere 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.1283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Zofia M. Burr
- The University Centre in Svalbard 9171 Longyearbyen Norway
- Department of Biology University of Bergen 5020 Bergen Norway
| | - Øystein Varpe
- The University Centre in Svalbard 9171 Longyearbyen Norway
- Akvaplan‐niva Fram Centre 9296 Tromsø Norway
| | | | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Fram Centre 9296 Tromsø Norway
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology 7491 Trondheim Norway
| | | | - Robert T. Barrett
- Department of Natural Sciences Tromsø University Museum 9037 Tromsø Norway
| | - Claus Bech
- Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology 7491 Trondheim Norway
| | - Signe Christensen‐Dalsgaard
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research 7485 Trondheim Norway
- Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology 7491 Trondheim Norway
| | | | - Børge Moe
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research 7485 Trondheim Norway
| | | | - Hallvard Strøm
- Norwegian Polar Institute Fram Centre 9296 Tromsø Norway
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Kristensen DL, Erikstad KE, Reiertsen TK, Moum T. Differential breeding investment in bridled and non-bridled common guillemots (Uria aalge): morph of the partner matters. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-014-1794-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
|
19
|
Hanssen SA, Bustnes JO, Schnug L, Bourgeon S, Johnsen TV, Ballesteros M, Sonne C, Herzke D, Eulaers I, Jaspers VLB, Covaci A, Eens M, Halley DJ, Moum T, Ims RA, Erikstad KE. Antiparasite treatments reduce humoral immunity and impact oxidative status in raptor nestlings. Ecol Evol 2013; 3:5157-66. [PMID: 24455145 PMCID: PMC3892325 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2013] [Revised: 10/23/2013] [Accepted: 10/25/2013] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Parasites are natural stressors that may have multiple negative effects on their host as they usurp energy and nutrients and may lead to costly immune responses that may cause oxidative stress. At early stages, animals may be more sensitive to infectious organisms because of their rapid growth and partly immature immune system. The objective of this study was to explore effects of parasites by treating chicks of two raptor species (northern goshawk Accipiter gentilis and white-tailed sea eagle Haliaeetus albicilla) against both endoparasites (internal parasites) and ectoparasites (external parasites). Nests were either treated against ectoparasites by spraying with pyrethrin or left unsprayed as control nests. Within each nest, chicks were randomly orally treated with either an antihelminthic medication (fenbendazole) or sterile water as control treatment. We investigated treatment effects on plasma (1) total antioxidant capacity TAC (an index of nonenzymatic circulating antioxidant defenses), (2) total oxidant status TOS (a measure of plasmatic oxidants), and (3) immunoglobulin levels (a measure of humoral immune function). Treatment against ectoparasites led to a reduction in circulating immunoglobulin plasma levels in male chicks. TOS was higher when not receiving any parasite reduction treatment and when receiving both endo- and ectoparasitic reduction treatment compared with receiving only one treatment. TAC was higher in all treatment groups, when compared to controls. Despite the relatively low sample size, this experimental study suggests complex but similar relationships between treatment groups and oxidative status and immunoglobulin levels in two raptor species.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Lisbeth Schnug
- Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Soil, Water and Environment Division Fr. A. Dahlsvei 20, N-1432, Ås, Norway
| | - Sophie Bourgeon
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Trond Vidar Johnsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Manuel Ballesteros
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Christian Sonne
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Dorte Herzke
- Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Igor Eulaers
- Ethology Research Group, Department of Biology and Toxicological Centre, University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Veerle L B Jaspers
- Ethology Research Group, Department of Biology and Toxicological Centre, University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium ; Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) 7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Adrian Covaci
- Ethology Research Group, Department of Biology and Toxicological Centre, University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Ethology Research Group, Department of Biology and Toxicological Centre, University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Duncan J Halley
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Tungasletta 2, N-7485, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Truls Moum
- Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, Marine Genomics group, University of Nordland N-8049, Bodø, Norway
| | - Rolf Anker Ims
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Unit for Arctic Ecology, Fram Centre N-9296, Tromsø, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Erikstad KE, Sandvik H, Reiertsen TK, Bustnes JO, Strøm H. Persistent organic pollution in a high-Arctic top predator: sex-dependent thresholds in adult survival. Proc Biol Sci 2013; 280:20131483. [PMID: 23966640 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2013.1483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In long-lived species, any negative effect of pollution on adult survival may pose serious hazards to breeding populations. In this study, we measured concentrations of various organochlorines (OCs) (polychlorinated biphenyl and OC pesticides) in the blood of a large number of adult glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus) breeding on Bjørnøya (Bear Island) in the Norwegian Arctic, and modelled their local survival using capture-recapture analysis. Survival was negatively associated with concentrations of OCs in the blood. The effect of OCs was nonlinear and evident only among birds with the highest concentrations (the uppermost deciles of contamination). The threshold for depressed survival differed between the sexes, with females being more sensitive to contamination. For birds with lower OC concentration, survival was very high, i.e. at the upper range of survival rates reported from glaucous and other large gull species in other, presumably less contaminated populations. We propose two non-exclusive explanations. First, at some threshold of OC concentration, parents (especially males) may abandon reproduction to maximize their own survival. Second, high contamination of OC may eliminate the most sensitive individuals from the population (especially among females), inducing a strong selection towards high-quality and less sensitive phenotypes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, FRAM-High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, 9296 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
21
|
|
22
|
Müller MS, Roelofs Y, Erikstad KE, Groothuis TGG. Maternal androgens increase sibling aggression, dominance, and competitive ability in the siblicidal black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla). PLoS One 2012; 7:e47763. [PMID: 23112843 PMCID: PMC3480423 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0047763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2012] [Accepted: 09/19/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals and plants routinely produce more offspring than they can afford to rear. Mothers can favour certain young by conferring on them competitive advantages such as a leading position in the birth sequence, more resources or hormones. Avian mothers create hatching asynchrony within a clutch and at the same time bestow the eggs with different concentrations of androgens that may enhance or counteract the competitive advantage experienced by early-hatching “core” young. In siblicidal birds, core young assume a dominant social position in the nest due to their size advantage and when threatened with starvation fatally attack subdominant later-hatching “marginal” young. A role for maternal androgens in siblicidal aggression has frequently been suggested but never tested. We studied this in the facultatively siblicidal black-headed kittiwake. We found that marginal eggs contain higher instead of lower concentrations of androgens than core eggs. Surprisingly, exposure to experimentally elevated yolk androgens increased sibling aggression and dominance, even though in nature marginal eggs never produce dominant chicks. We propose the “adoption facilitation hypothesis” to explain this paradox. This cliff-nesting colonial species has a high adoption rate: ejected marginal kittiwake chicks frequently fall into other nests containing chicks of similar or smaller size and exposure to yolk androgens might help them integrate themselves into a foster nest.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martina S Müller
- Centre of Behavioural Neurosciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
23
|
Kristensen DL, Erikstad KE, Reiertsen TK, Moum T, Barrett RT, Jenni-Eiermann S. Are female offspring from a single-egg seabird more costly to raise? Behav Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
|
24
|
Reiertsen TK, Erikstad KE, Barrett RT, Sandvik H, Yoccoz NG. Climate fluctuations and differential survival of bridled and non-bridled Common GuillemotsUria aalge. Ecosphere 2012. [DOI: 10.1890/es12-00031r] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
|
25
|
Erikstad KE, Moum T, Bustnes JO, Reiertsen TK. High levels of organochlorines may affect hatching sex ratio and hatchling body mass in arctic glaucous gulls. Funct Ecol 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2435.2010.01771.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Department of Arctic Ecology, The Polar Environmental Centre, N‐9286 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Truls Moum
- Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, Bodø University College, N‐8049 Bodø, Norway
| | - Jan O. Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Department of Arctic Ecology, The Polar Environmental Centre, N‐9286 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Tone K. Reiertsen
- Department of Natural Sciences, Tromsø University Museum, 9037 Tromsø, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Descamps S, Yoccoz NG, Gaillard JM, Gilchrist HG, Erikstad KE, Hanssen SA, Cazelles B, Forbes MR, Bêty J. Detecting population heterogeneity in effects of North Atlantic Oscillations on seabird body condition: get into the rhythm. OIKOS 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18508.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
|
27
|
Boulinier T, Yoccoz NG, McCoy KD, Erikstad KE, Tveraa T. Testing the effect of conspecific reproductive success on dispersal and recruitment decisions in a colonial bird: Design issues. J Appl Stat 2010. [DOI: 10.1080/02664760120108566] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
|
28
|
Sonne C, Bustnes JO, Herzke D, Jaspers VLB, Covaci A, Halley DJ, Moum T, Eulaers I, Eens M, Ims RA, Hanssen SA, Einar Erikstad K, Johnsen T, Schnug L, Rigét FF, Jensen AL. Relationships between organohalogen contaminants and blood plasma clinical-chemical parameters in chicks of three raptor species from Northern Norway. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 2010; 73:7-17. [PMID: 19800686 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2009.08.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2009] [Revised: 08/25/2009] [Accepted: 08/29/2009] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Organohalogen contaminants (OHCs) may affect various physiological parameters in birds including blood chemistry. We therefore examined blood plasma clinical-chemical parameters and OHCs in golden eagle, white-tailed eagle and goshawk chicks from Northern Norway. Correlation analyses on pooled data showed that alkaline phosphatase (ALKP), glucose and creatinine were significantly negatively correlated to various OHCs (all: p<0.05; r: -0.43 to -0.55; n=23), while alanine aminotransferase (ALAT), total protein, cholesterol, uric acid, total bilirubin, ratios protein:creatinine and uric acid:creatinine were significantly positively correlated to various OHCs (all: p<0.05; r: 0.43-0.96). Based on these relationships, we suggest that the OHC concentrations found in certain raptor chicks of Northern Scandinavia may impact blood plasma biochemistry in a way that indicates impacts on liver, kidney, bone, endocrinology and metabolism. In order to elaborate further on these relationships and mechanisms, we recommend that a larger study should take place in the near future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christian Sonne
- Arhus University, National Environmental Research Institute, Department of Arctic Environment, Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
29
|
Erikstad KE, Sandvik H, Fauchald P, Tveraa T. Short- and long-term consequences of reproductive decisions: an experimental study in the puffin. Ecology 2009; 90:3197-208. [DOI: 10.1890/08-1778.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
|
30
|
Bustnes JO, Erikstad KE, Lorentsen SH, Herzke D. Perfluorinated and chlorinated pollutants as predictors of demographic parameters in an endangered seabird. Environ Pollut 2008; 156:417-424. [PMID: 18329768 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2008.01.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2007] [Revised: 01/15/2008] [Accepted: 01/24/2008] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Despite global occurrence of several perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) the potential ecological effects of such substances on natural populations are not known. In endangered lesser black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus fuscus) on the Norwegian Coast, the blood concentrations of PFCs were as high as legacy organochlorines (OCs), and here we examined whether PFCs show associations similar to those of OCs to factors potentially affecting population growth, by evaluating relationships between contaminant concentrations and demographic parameters (reproductive performance and the probability of adults returning between breeding seasons). PFCs were not adversely associated with demographic parameters, while the most persistent OCs; notably PCB and p,p'-DDE, were adversely associated with early chick survival, and adult return rate. This study thus suggests that when the concentrations of PFCs and OCs are of similar magnitude in a gull population, OCs are more likely to cause adverse ecological effects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Department of Arctic Ecology, The Polar Environmental Centre, N-9296 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
31
|
|
32
|
Janssen K, Erikstad KE, Bensch S. Offspring sex ratio allocation in the parasitic jaeger: selection for pale females and melanic males? Behav Ecol 2005. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arj015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
|
33
|
Hanssen SA, Hasselquist D, Folstad I, Erikstad KE. Cost of reproduction in a long-lived bird: incubation effort reduces immune function and future reproduction. Proc Biol Sci 2005; 272:1039-46. [PMID: 16024362 PMCID: PMC1599870 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2005.3057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 205] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Life-history theory predicts that increased current reproductive effort should lead to a fitness cost. This cost of reproduction may be observed as reduced survival or future reproduction, and may be caused by temporal suppression of immune function in stressed or hard-working individuals. In birds, consideration of the costs of incubating eggs has largely been neglected in favour of the costs of brood rearing. We manipulated incubation demand in two breeding seasons (2000 and 2001) in female common eiders (Somateria mollissima) by creating clutches of three and six eggs (natural range 3-6 eggs). The common eider is a long-lived sea-duck where females do not eat during the incubation period. Mass loss increased and immune function (lymphocyte levels and specific antibody response to the non-pathogenic antigens diphtheria and tetanus toxoid) was reduced in females incubating large clutches. The increased incubation effort among females assigned to large incubation demand did not lead to adverse effects on current reproduction or return rate in the next breeding season. However, large incubation demand resulted in long-term fitness costs through reduced fecundity the year after manipulation. Our data show that in eiders, a long-lived species, the cost of high incubation demand is paid in the currency of reduced future fecundity, possibly mediated by reduced immune function.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Department of Animal Ecology, Lund University, Ecology Building, 223 62 Lund, Sweden.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
34
|
Bustnes JO, Miland O, Fjeld M, Erikstad KE, Skaare JU. Relationships between ecological variables and four organochlorine pollutants in an artic glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus) population. Environ Pollut 2005; 136:175-185. [PMID: 15809119 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2004.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2004] [Accepted: 09/17/2004] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
The Arctic has become a sink for organochlorine contaminants (OCs) from lower latitudes, and relatively high levels have been found in different biota. Recent studies of the glaucous gull, Larus hyperboreus, a top predator in the arctic food web, have documented that high blood residues of various OCs are related to lower reproductive performance and reduced adult survival. Here we provide additional evidence that OCs are having ecological effects in the glaucous gull population at Bear Island in the Norwegian Arctic, and compare the effects of the four major OCs found in the glaucous gulls: HCB, oxychlordane, DDE and PCBs, which made up >95% of measured OCs. Firstly; it has previously been shown that gulls with high levels of PCBs in their blood spent more time away from the nest site during incubation than gulls with low levels. Here we reanalyzed the data and found that PCBs (P<0.02) and oxychlordane (P<0.05) were positive and significantly related to time away from the nest site, while DDE and HCB were not related to this trait. Secondly, among females which bred in an area where fish dominated the diet, and thus had high flight costs during feeding, early chick growth was negatively related to maternal levels of all four OCs, especially HCB and DDE (P<0.01). On the contrary, among females breeding in an area where the diet was dominated by eggs and young from nearby seabird colonies, and thus feeding costs were low, there were no effects of OC levels on early chick growth. This indicates that additional stress may be fundamental in causing reproductive effects of OCs in this population. Finally, during three breeding seasons we examined the probability of adults returning to the breeding grounds in the subsequent season, as a function of blood concentration of the four OCs. Overall, return rate from one year to the next was negatively related to blood residues of oxychlordane (P=0.02), but not significantly related to the other three compounds. Further support for the importance of oxychlordane was that a 60% drop in the blood levels between 1997 and 2000 led to a significant increase in return rate between these two years.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Division for Arctic Ecology, The Polar Environmental Centre, N-9296 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
35
|
Helberg M, Bustnes JO, Erikstad KE, Kristiansen KO, Skaare JU. Relationships between reproductive performance and organochlorine contaminants in great black-backed gulls (Larus marinus). Environ Pollut 2005; 134:475-483. [PMID: 15620593 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2004.09.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2004] [Accepted: 09/08/2004] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
The great black-backed gull Larus marinus is a top predator in subarctic and temperate marine ecosystems, and the aim of this study was to investigate if organochlorines (OCs) were related to reproductive performance in this species at the subarctic parts of the Norwegian Coast. We measured blood levels of various OCs in 53 breeding birds. The OC levels were relatively low compared to levels found in nearby arctic areas. In females, however, there was a significant positive relationship between blood concentrations of OCs, especially hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and, p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), and egg laying date, and a positive relationship between the probability of nest predation and blood concentration of beta-hexachlorocyclohexane (beta-HCH), oxychlordane, and DDE. In females with high levels of OCs, especially persistent polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), there was also a decline in egg volume as egg laying progressed; i.e. the second and third laid egg were relatively smaller, compared to females with low OC levels. No relationships between reproductive parameters and OC levels were found in males.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Morten Helberg
- Faculty of Science, Department of Biology, University of Tromsø, 9037 Tromsø, Norway
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
36
|
Bustnes JO, Hanssen SA, Folstad I, Erikstad KE, Hasselquist D, Skaare JU. Immune function and organochlorine pollutants in Arctic breeding glaucous gulls. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 2004; 47:530-541. [PMID: 15499504 DOI: 10.1007/s00244-003-3203-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Organochlorine contaminants (OCs) are known to affect the immune systems of wildlife, and in this study we assessed the relationship between blood concentration of different OCs and measurements relevant to immune status and function in arctic breeding glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus). In 1997 and 2001, we counted white blood cells (heterophils and lymphocytes) from blood smears, and in 2000 and 2001 we injected two novel nonpathogenic antigens (diphtheria and tetanus toxoids) into the pectoral muscle of gulls and measured the primary antibody responses. We then related these measurements to the blood concentrations of three pesticides (hexachlorobenzene [HCB], oxychlordane, and p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene) and seven different polychlorinated biphenyl congeners (PCB 101, 99, 118, 153, 138, 180, and 170). There were significant or near significant positive relationships (0.1 > p > 0.001) between most persistent OCs and the levels of heterophils in the blood for both sexes in 1997 and for male gulls in 2001. Similarly, levels of all persistent OCs and lymphocytes were positively related (0.1 > p > 0.001) in both sexes in 1997. This suggests that OCs are causing alterations to immune systems, which may decrease their efficiency and make the birds more susceptible to parasites and diseases. In female gulls, the antibody response to the diphtheria toxoid was significant and negative for HCB (p < 0.01) and weaker, but significant, for oxychlordane (p < 0.05), suggesting that OCs were causing an impairment of the humoral immunity. Various OCs have been linked to negative effects in our study population, including decreased survival and reproduction, and this study suggests that such compounds also affect immune status and function.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J O Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Division of Arctic Ecology, The Polar Environmental Centre, N-9296 Tromsø.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
37
|
Abstract
Immune defences are undoubtedly of great benefit to the host, reducing the impact of infectious organisms. However, mounting immune responses also entails costs, which may be measured by inducing immune responses against artificial infections. We injected common eider (Somateria mollissima) females with three different non-pathogenic antigens, sheep red blood cells (SRBC), diphtheria toxoid and tetanus toxoid, early in their incubation period. In the group of females that mounted a humoral immune response against SRBC, the return rate was only 27%, whereas the group of females that did not mount a response against SRBC had a return rate of 72%. Moreover, responding against diphtheria toxoid when also responding against SRBC led to a further reduction in return rate. These results are repeatable, as the same effect occurred independently in two study years. The severely reduced return rate of females producing antibodies against SRBC and diphtheria toxoid implies that these birds experienced considerably impaired long-term survival. This study thus documents severe costs of mounting humoral immune responses in a vertebrate. Such costs may explain why many organisms suppress immunity when under stress or when malnourished, and why infections may sometimes be tolerated without eliciting immune responses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Biology Department, Faculty of Science, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
38
|
Bustnes JO, Bakken V, Skaare JU, Erikstad KE. Age and accumulation of persistent organochlorines: a study of Arctic-breeding glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus). Environ Toxicol Chem 2003; 22:2173-2179. [PMID: 12959547 DOI: 10.1897/02-456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
We studied the relationship between increasing age and blood concentrations of four persistent organochlorines (OCs), hexachlorbenzene (HCB), oxychlordane, p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), and 2,2',4,4',5,5'-hexachlorbiphenyl (PCB-153), in arctic-breeding glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus). We measured OC concentrations in 31 individuals of known age and took repeated blood samples of 64 individuals in different years, either one year apart or three or four years apart. The age of individuals was not related to the blood concentrations for any of the four compounds, and in birds whose values were measured repeatedly, there was no effect of the length of time (number of years) between sampling events on the relative change in OC concentration. This indicates that steady-state levels were reached before the age of first breeding. However, breeding area significantly influenced the changes in OC concentration between sampling events. In areas in which birds fed on prey from higher trophic levels, the OC concentrations showed large increases between sampling events; in areas in which birds fed at lower trophic levels, OC concentrations increased relatively little or not at all. This indicates that individual birds had different equilibrium concentrations, which are reached at different ages depending on the intake of OCs through the food. It also indicates that some individuals had not reached steady-state concentrations at the onset of reproduction. Changes in body condition and amount of blood lipids were of lesser importance than trophic level and influenced the concentrations of HCB and oxychlordane more strongly than DDE and PCB-153. In conclusion, this study indicates that steady-state concentrations of persistent OCs are reached early in life in most glaucous gulls, considering the long life span of the species.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jan Ove Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Division of Arctic Ecology, The Polar Environmental Center, N-9296 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
39
|
Abstract
Immunocompetence may be especially important in long-lived species where infectious organisms may have detrimental effects upon future reproductive value of hosts. The resource demand for immunocompetence may reduce resource availability for reproduction and a trade-off between these traits has therefore been proposed. Capital breeders, such as the common eider (Somateria mollissima), rely upon accumulated body reserves during reproduction. Eiders lose more than 40% of pre-breeding body mass during egglaying and incubation and many females abandon their ducklings to other females after hatching. Results from our observational study show that levels of leukocytes (i.e., lymphocytes, heterophils and heterophil/lymphocyte ratio) are not related to body mass early in the incubation period. However, eider females with low initial body mass showed signs of immunosuppression (i.e., decreased late levels of lymphocytes) and increased response towards stressors (i.e., increased heterophil/lymphocyte ratio) later in the incubation period. Moreover, females with low lymphocyte levels more frequently abandoned their brood, and females abandoning young had an increased return rate to the next breeding season. However, among brood abandoning females return rate was lower for the females with low lymphocyte levels. These results suggest that immunosuppression, as indicated by low lymphocyte levels, is a reproductive cost that may be partly compensated for by abandoning young.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Biology Department, Faculty of Science, University of Tromsø, 9037 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
40
|
|
41
|
Hanssen SA, Erikstad KE, Johnsen V, Bustnes JO. Differential investment and costs during avian incubation determined by individual quality: an experimental study of the common eider (Somateria mollissima). Proc Biol Sci 2003; 270:531-7. [PMID: 12641909 PMCID: PMC1691264 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2002.2262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Individuals of different quality may have different investment strategies, shaping responses to experimental manipulations, thereby rendering the detection of such patterns difficult. However, previous clutch-size manipulation studies have infrequently incorporated individual differences in quality. To examine costs of incubation and reproductive investment in relation to changes in clutch size, we enlarged and reduced natural clutch sizes of four and five eggs by one egg early in the incubation period in female common eiders (Somateria mollissima), a sea duck with an anorectic incubation period. Females that had produced four eggs (lower quality) responded to clutch reductions by deserting the nest more frequently but did not increase incubation effort in response to clutch enlargement, at the cost of reduced hatch success of eggs. Among birds with an original clutch size of five (higher quality), reducing and enlarging clutch size reduced and increased relative body mass loss respectively without affecting hatch success. In common eiders many females abandon their own ducklings to the care of other females. Enlarging five-egg clutches led to increased brood care rate despite the higher effort spent incubating these clutches, indicating that the higher fitness value of a large brood is increasing adult brood investment. This study shows that the ability to respond to clutch-size manipulations depends on original clutch size, reflecting differences in female quality. Females of low quality were reluctant to increase investment at the cost of lower hatch success, whereas females of higher quality apparently have a larger capacity both to increase incubation effort and brood care investment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sveinn Are Hanssen
- Biology Department, Faculty of Science, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
42
|
Fauchald P, Erikstad KE, Systad GH. Seabirds and marine oil incidents: is it possible to predict the spatial distribution of pelagic seabirds? J Appl Ecol 2002. [DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2664.2002.00717.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
|
43
|
Tveraa T, Sether B, Aanes R, Erikstad KE. Regulation of food provisioning in the Antarctic petrel; the importance of parental body condition and chick body mass. J Anim Ecol 2001. [DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2656.1998.00234.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Torkild Tveraa
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Department of Arctic Ecology, Storgata 25, N‐9005 Tromsø, Norway, and Biology Department, Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, University of Tromsø, N‐9037 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Bernt‐Erik Sether
- Department of Zoology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, N‐7034 Trondheim, Norway, and Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tungasletta 2, N‐7005 Trondheim, Norway; and
| | - Ronny Aanes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tungasletta 2, N‐7005 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Department of Arctic Ecology, Storgata 25, N‐9005 Tromsø, Norway, and Biology Department, Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, University of Tromsø, N‐9037 Tromsø, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Bustnes JO, Skaare JU, Erikstad KE, Bakken V, Mehlum F. Whole blood concentrations of organochlorines as a dose metric for studies of the glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus). Environ Toxicol Chem 2001; 20:1046-1052. [PMID: 11337867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
In order to examine if whole blood concentrations of organochlorines (OCs) is an appropriate dosimetric parameter for use in ecotoxicological studies of free-living birds, a number of incubating glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus) were repeatedly sampled within and between subsequent breeding seasons. The wet weight concentrations of selected OCs, differing in persistence and fat solubility, were compared and it was assessed to what extent present concentrations could be predicted from concentrations previously measured in the individuals. There were only a few significant differences in the blood concentrations of the selected OCs within and between seasons. The most persistent compound, polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-153, showed a low interindividual variability, and between seasons, 70% of the variance could be explained by the level in the previous year, while changes in body condition and blood lipid percentage were of less importance. For PCB-101, the predictability of the present blood concentration from the previous concentration was lower than for PCB-153, and changes in body condition and blood lipid percentage explained a higher proportion of the variance. The present level of alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) could not be predicted from the previous level. Sex did not explain any significant proportion of the variance in OC concentrations when previous level and changes in body mass and blood lipid were included in the statistical models. Thus, for the most persistent OCs, concentration in the blood of incubating glaucous gulls is representative for the interindividual differences over time and whole blood concentrations of OCs appear adequate as a dose metric in ecotoxicological studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J O Bustnes
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Division of Arctic Ecology, Polar Environmental Centre, N-9296 Tromsø, Norway.
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
45
|
|
46
|
Fauchald P, Erikstad KE, Skarsfjord H. Scale-Dependent Predator-Prey Interactions: The Hierarchical Spatial Distribution of Seabirds and Prey. Ecology 2000. [DOI: 10.2307/177376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
|
47
|
Tveraa T, Sæther BE, Aanes R, Erikstad KE. Body mass and parental decisions in the Antarctic petrel Thalassoica antarctica : how long should the parents guard the chick? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 1998. [DOI: 10.1007/s002650050468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
48
|
|
49
|
|
50
|
Anker-Nilssen T, Erikstad KE, Lorentsen SH. Aims and effort in seabird monitoring: an assessment based on Norwegian data. Wildlife Biology 1996. [DOI: 10.2981/wlb.1996.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tycho Anker-Nilssen
- Tycho Anker-Nilssen & Svein-Håkon Lorentsen, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tungasletta 2, N-7005 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Kjell E. Erikstad, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Storgaten 25, N-9005 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Svein-Håkon Lorentsen
- Tycho Anker-Nilssen & Svein-Håkon Lorentsen, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tungasletta 2, N-7005 Trondheim, Norway
| |
Collapse
|