Show simple item record

dc.contributor.authorCox, SL
dc.contributor.authorMiller, PI
dc.contributor.authorEmbling, CB
dc.contributor.authorScales, KL
dc.contributor.authorBicknell, AWJ
dc.contributor.authorHosegood, PJ
dc.contributor.authorMorgan, G
dc.contributor.authorIngram, SN
dc.contributor.authorVotier, SC
dc.date.accessioned2016-08-31T13:31:46Z
dc.date.issued2016
dc.description.abstractOceanic fronts are key habitats for a diverse range of marine predators, yet how they influence fine-scale foraging behaviour is poorly understood. Here, we investigated the dive behaviour of northern gannets Morus bassanus in relation to shelf-sea fronts. We GPS tracked 53 breeding birds and examined the relationship between 1901 foraging dives (from time-depth recorders) and thermal fronts (identified via Earth Observation composite front mapping) in the Celtic Sea, North-East Atlantic. We (1) used a habitat use-availability analysis to determine whether gannets preferentially dived at fronts, and (2) compared dive characteristics in relation to fronts to investigate the functional significance of these oceanographic features. We found that relationships between gannet dive probabilities and fronts varied by frontal metric and sex. Whilst both sexes were more likely to dive in the presence of seasonally persistent fronts, links to more ephemeral features were less clear. Here, males were positively correlated with distance to front and cross-front gradient strength, with the reverse for females. Both sexes performed two dive strategies: shallow V-shaped plunge dives with little or no active swim phase (92% of dives), and deeper U-shaped dives with an active pursuit phase of at least three seconds (8% of dives). When foraging around fronts, gannets were half as likely to engage in U-shaped dives compared with V-shaped dives, independent of sex. Moreover, V-shaped dive durations were significantly shortened around fronts. These behavioural responses support the assertion that fronts are important foraging habitats for marine predators, and suggest a possible mechanistic link between the two in terms of dive behaviour. This research also emphasises the importance of cross-disciplinary research when attempting to understand marine ecosystems.en_GB
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work was funded by a PhD studentship to SLC by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC; NE/J500380/1), Natural Resources Wales (Seabirds Cymru) and a NERC grant (NE/H007466/1).en_GB
dc.identifier.citationVol 3: 160317en_GB
dc.identifier.doi10.1098/rsos.160317
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10871/23233
dc.language.isoenen_GB
dc.publisherRoyal Societyen_GB
dc.rightsCopyright: 2016 The Authors. Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.
dc.subjectSeabirden_GB
dc.subjectMarine predatoren_GB
dc.subjectOceanographyen_GB
dc.subjectFronten_GB
dc.subjectDiving behaviouren_GB
dc.subjectForaging ecologyen_GB
dc.subjectNorthern ganneten_GB
dc.subjectMorus bassanusen_GB
dc.titleSeabird diving behaviour reveals the functional significance of shelf-sea fronts as foraging hotspotsen_GB
dc.typeArticleen_GB
dc.identifier.issn2054-5703
dc.descriptionThis is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.en_GB
dc.identifier.journalRoyal Society Open Scienceen_GB


Files in this item

This item appears in the following Collection(s)

Show simple item record