Examining the behavioural mechanisms of pair coordination in long-lived, pelagic seabirds

Reproduction is costly, and consequently individuals are limited in the time and resources they can devote to breeding. Therefore, to maximise the number of surviving offspring produced over their reproductive lifespan, individuals must carefully balance their investment in current and future reproduction. In species that exhibit biparental care, the costs and investments associated with breeding are borne by two parents who are expected to share these in such a way that maximises the number of offspring produced, while minimising the costs to their own reproductive potential as well as, in the case of long-term monogamous species, that of their partner. Achieving this goal requires careful coordination between both members of the pair, empirical evidence for which is widespread. However, the exact mechanisms by which it is achieved remain largely unknown. As long-lived, monogamous seabirds, shearwaters are under especially strong selection to coordinate the division of these costs effectively in a highly unpredictable environment, and so represent a unique opportunity to investigate the mechanisms of joint decision making in a setting where the resolution of these trade-offs is of paramount importance. Biotelemetry is emerging as an incredibly powerful tool for understanding the ecology of animals. The ethoinformatic approach sees individuals fitted with miniaturised data loggers capable of recording a wealth of information, including location, acceleration, dive depth and salt water immersion. Through this project, I will make use of precision telemetry devices, including GPS trackers, geolocators and accelerometers, to elucidate the at-sea behaviour of shearwater species, and combine this with traditional fieldwork techniques and observational analyses to relate this to the decisions made by parents during reproduction. Through a comprehensive examination of how parents manage the fundamental problems of coordination in an extreme environment, this project should reveal the mechanisms underlying decision making and communication in a range of taxa.

BBSRC priority areas
This project will address several BBSRC research priorities. The primary questions asked in this study will explore the fundamentals of decision making and hence address a central aspect of animal behaviour. To collect the data necessary to answer these questions, a key aim of the project will be the refinement and development of miniaturised technology for remote at-sea observations, and this goal will be pursued with our collaborators at Swansea University. The enhancement of these technologies should reduce the impact of device attachment by increasing their informative power, hence refining experimental techniques, a key principle of the 3Rs. Finally, the use of a conservationally pertinent seabird species should facilitate the implementation of effective policies for species survival.

WUB, ENWW