Seasonal changes in the diet and feeding behaviour of a top predator indicate a flexible response to deteriorating oceanographic conditions

Xavier, J. C. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9621-6660; Louzao, M.; Thorpe, S. E. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5193-6955; Ward, P.; Hill, C.; Roberts, D.; Croxall, J. P.; Phillips, R. A.. 2013 Seasonal changes in the diet and feeding behaviour of a top predator indicate a flexible response to deteriorating oceanographic conditions. Marine Biology, 160 (7). 1597-1606. 10.1007/s00227-013-2212-x

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Abstract/Summary

Shifts in the diet of top predators can be linked to changes in environmental conditions. In this study, we tested relationships between environmental variation and seasonal changes in diet of a top predator, the grey-headed albatross Thalassarche chrysostoma, breeding at Bird Island, South Georgia in an austral summer of 1999/2000. Oceanographic conditions in that year around South Georgia were abnormal (i.e. anomalously high sea surface temperature to a relative 19-year long-term mean). The diet of grey-headed albatrosses showed high seasonal variation, shifting from cephalopods (42.9 % by mass) in late February to Antarctic krill Euphausia superba (58.3 %) in late April, and grey-headed albatrosses breeding performance was low (16.8 %). This study shows these albatrosses did not manage to find sufficient alternative prey and highlight the risk to top predators if there is an increase in the frequency or severity of food shortages in Antarctic waters

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.1007/s00227-013-2212-x
Programmes:	BAS Programmes > Polar Science for Planet Earth (2009 - ) > Ecosystems
ISSN:	0025-3162
Date made live:	14 Aug 2013 09:38 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/502952

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

10.1007/s00227-013-2212-x

Programmes:

BAS Programmes > Polar Science for Planet Earth (2009 - ) > Ecosystems

ISSN:

0025-3162

Date made live:

14 Aug 2013 09:38 +0 (UTC)

URI:

https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/502952