What's for dinner? Oceanographic drivers of Manx shearwater chick provisioning and growth
Lead Research Organisation:
Bangor University
Department Name: Sch of Natural Sciences
Abstract
Oceanographic features (e.g. fronts, gyres and eddies) are known to aggregate pelagic forage fish and
thereby shape the space use of marine predators1,2. These features are dynamic and changes in their
characteristics (e.g. strength, persistence, position) has consequences for prey availability, foraging effort
and breeding success3
. The NERC SHEAR project is currently quantifying how the association and
interaction between physical oceanographic features and prey availability impacts Manx shearwater
foraging energetics, a pelagic diving seabird known to forage in close association with oceanographic
features. However, there is a significant knowledge gap surrounding the diet composition of Manx
shearwaters4 which is partly because previous methods for studying the diet of these birds have been
invasive. DNA metabarcoding and less invasive sampling techniques are now transforming diet studies of
such species5
. Furthermore, less is known about how variation in oceanographic features drive the
availability of specific prey species (i.e., squid and small Clupeid fish) within key foraging areas. This is
important as prey species differ significantly in calorific value, and diets consisting predominantly of 'junk
food' have had significant consequences for the growth and survival of seabird offspring6
. This
multidisciplinary project will identify the fine-scale links between characteristics of oceanographic features
and species of forage fish as well as quantify the key drivers of shearwater chick growth using a
combination of biologging, eDNA analysis, morphometric measurements, and physical oceanography.
Specifically, this project has three core questions:
1. Does the characteristics of physical oceanographic features determine shearwater foraging depth
and effort?
2. Is meal size and diet determined by the characteristics of physical oceanographic features targeted
during foraging trips?
3. Is chick growth explained by Qs 1 & 2?
thereby shape the space use of marine predators1,2. These features are dynamic and changes in their
characteristics (e.g. strength, persistence, position) has consequences for prey availability, foraging effort
and breeding success3
. The NERC SHEAR project is currently quantifying how the association and
interaction between physical oceanographic features and prey availability impacts Manx shearwater
foraging energetics, a pelagic diving seabird known to forage in close association with oceanographic
features. However, there is a significant knowledge gap surrounding the diet composition of Manx
shearwaters4 which is partly because previous methods for studying the diet of these birds have been
invasive. DNA metabarcoding and less invasive sampling techniques are now transforming diet studies of
such species5
. Furthermore, less is known about how variation in oceanographic features drive the
availability of specific prey species (i.e., squid and small Clupeid fish) within key foraging areas. This is
important as prey species differ significantly in calorific value, and diets consisting predominantly of 'junk
food' have had significant consequences for the growth and survival of seabird offspring6
. This
multidisciplinary project will identify the fine-scale links between characteristics of oceanographic features
and species of forage fish as well as quantify the key drivers of shearwater chick growth using a
combination of biologging, eDNA analysis, morphometric measurements, and physical oceanography.
Specifically, this project has three core questions:
1. Does the characteristics of physical oceanographic features determine shearwater foraging depth
and effort?
2. Is meal size and diet determined by the characteristics of physical oceanographic features targeted
during foraging trips?
3. Is chick growth explained by Qs 1 & 2?
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Amy Ellison (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Lauren Evans (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NE/S007423/1 | 01/10/2019 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 2882494 | Studentship | NE/S007423/1 | 01/10/2023 | 31/03/2027 | Lauren Evans |