Ecological trap for seabirds due to the contamination caused by the Fundão dam collapse, Brazil

Nunes, Guilherme Tavares; Efe, Márcio Amorim; Barreto, Cindy Tavares; Gaiotto, Juliana Vallim; Silva, Aline Barbosa; Vilela, Fiorella; Roy, Amédée; Bertrand, Sophie; Costa, Patrícia Gomes; Bianchini, Adalto; Bugoni, Leandro

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151486

Cited by 19 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 75 publications

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“…Worldwide, rat eradication is the most effective management strategy on islands to restore seabird populations and their effects on land and water (Benkwitt et al, 2021; Jones et al, 2016). Since the Abrolhos region protects one of the largest and most diverse coral reefs in the South Atlantic (Leão & Kikuchi, 2001) and it is under strong external pressures, such as contamination from mining (Nunes et al, 2022) and predatory fishing (Giglio et al, 2020; Previero & Gasalla, 2020), management actions within the archipelago to eradicate rats and goats can be important to guarantee the protection of seabirds and their ecosystem‐wide ecological effects.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seabirds subsidize terrestrial food webs and coral reefs in a tropical rat‐invaded archipelago

Linhares

Bugoni

2022

Ecological Applications

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Allochthonous resource fluxes mediated by organisms crossing ecosystem boundaries may be essential for supporting the structure and function of resource‐limited environments, such as tropical islands and surrounding coral reefs. However, invasive species, such as black rats, thrive on tropical islands and disrupt the natural pathways of nutrient subsidies by reducing seabird colonies. Here, we used stable isotopes of nitrogen and carbon to examine the role of seabirds in subsidizing the terrestrial food webs and adjacent coral reefs in the Abrolhos Archipelago, Southwest Atlantic Ocean. By sampling invasive rats and multiple ecosystem compartments (soil, plants, grasshoppers, tarantulas, and lizards) within and outside seabird colonies, we showed that seabird subsidies led to an overall enrichment in 15N across the food web on islands. However, contrary to other studies, δ15N values were consistently lower within the seabird colonies, suggesting that a higher seabird presence might produce a localized depletion in 15N in small islands influenced by seabirds. In contrast, the nitrogen content (%N) in plants and soils was higher inside the colonies, corresponding to a higher effect of seabirds at the base of the trophic web. Among consumers, lizards and invasive rats seemed to obtain allochthonous resources from subsidized terrestrial organisms outside the colony. Inside the colony, however, they showed a more direct consumption of marine matter, suggesting that subsidies benefit these native and invasive animals both directly and indirectly. Nonetheless, in coral reefs, scleractinian corals assimilated seabird‐derived nitrogen only around the two smaller and lower‐elevation islands, as demonstrated by the substantially higher δ15N values in relation to the reference areas. This provides evidence that island morphology may influence the incorporation of seabird nutrients in coral reefs around rat‐invaded islands, likely because guano lixiviation toward seawater is facilitated in small and low‐elevation terrains. Overall, these results showed that seabirds affected small islands across all trophic levels within and outside colonies and that these effects spread outward to coral reefs, evidencing resiliency of seabird subsidies even within a rat‐invaded archipelago. Because rats are consumers of seabird chicks and eggs, however, rat eradication could potentially benefit the terrestrial and nearshore ecosystems through increased subsides carried by seabirds.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seabirds subsidize terrestrial food webs and coral reefs in a tropical rat‐invaded archipelago

Linhares

Bugoni

2022

Ecological Applications

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“…Finally, albatrosses (Procellariiformes: Diomedeidae) are among the birds with the largest wingspan, so they can cover large distances between two breeding cycles, or even on a foraging trip during the breeding period looking mainly for squids and shery discards (Carneiro et al 2020). Despite the differences regarding foraging strategies, all these groups can share the same foraging area and coexist during a given period, as observed around the Doce River mouth, in the eastern continental shelf of Brazil (Nunes et al 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…Seabirds breeding in Abrolhos include P. aethereus, S. leucogaster and S. dactylatra, which use most of the archipelago area for breeding and the surroundings as foraging area. During foraging trips in the breeding period, the three species explore the continental shelf for food and they overlap in space use (Nunes et al 2022). The same area is used by P. arminjoniana during the pre-laying period (Leal et al 2017) and by T. chlororhynchos during the non-breeding period (Gabani and Bugoni unpub.…”

Section: Study Area Sampling and Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of free-living seabirds from Brazil as potential hosts of Toxoplasma gondii and Leptospira spp

Acosta,

Chiebao,

Serafini

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Dispersal patterns of zoonotic pathogens can be strongly influenced by mobility and contact among hosts. Toxoplasmosis has been documented in many avian species, however, there is few information regarding free-living seabird populations. Leptospira can infect domestic and wild animals, with birds being potential carriers of the bacteria. The continental shelf of the southwestern Atlantic Ocean is a foraging area for seabirds breed locally, as well as migratory seabirds wintering in the area, which may come into contact with each other in prey aggregation areas and contribute to Leptospira spread. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence of important zoonotic pathogens in free-living seabirds, encompassing species that nest on islands as well as migratory visitors sampled at sea. Blood samples were collected from 322 birds of three local breeders (Phaethon aethereus, Sula leucogaster and S. dactylatra) in the eastern coast of Brazil (Abrolhos archipelago), and two migratory species using the area during the pre-laying (Pterodroma arminjoniana) and the non-breeding periods (Thalassarche chlororhynchos). Serological agglutination tests for detection of anti-Toxoplasma gondii and anti-Leptospira spp. antibodies were performed. None of the seabirds in this study was reagent to anti-Leptospira spp., whereas 34.5% (n = 111) of the animals presented antibodies against T. gondii. Antibody titers in seropositive birds ranged from 10 to 640. There were seropositive birds in all sampled localities. This study provides the first records for P. arminjoniana and T. chlororhynchos as seropositive to T. gondii, suggesting their potential role as sentinels for the disease. These findings indicate the circulation of the parasite in the Brazilian coastal and oceanic regions, suggesting the influence of anthropogenic activities over the studied regions that could lead to the ingestion of T. gondii oocysts by the birds. The epidemiological involvement of migratory birds as hosts of pathogens, as well as the role of the historical introduction of invasive vertebrates on Brazilian islands. Therefore, seabird colonies need to be better understood to be included in the risk analysis of the wildlife cycle of toxoplasmosis.

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“…An increasing number of studies have reported problems related to climate change, the exploitation of natural resources, and the release of pollutants into the ocean (e.g. Doney et al, 2012;Kühn et al, 2020;Hatje et al, 2021;Belhabib and Le Billon, 2022;Nunes et al, 2022), reinforcing the importance of detecting and monitoring their potential effects on marine ecosystems.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Anthropic activities such as pollution and longline, gillnet, and trawl fishing are high-impact threats to birds, causing mortality of different species (Wiese and Ryan, 2003;Branco et al, 2014;Dias et al, 2019;Nunes et al, 2022). Among others, metals, persistent organic pollutants, solid waste, and oil spills can affect seabirds, with effects ranging from lethal to chronic sublethal to individuals and population decline (Wiese and Robertson, 2004;Matcott et al, 2019;Wang et al, 2021;Lees et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An overview of seabirds in the Santos Basin, Brazil: species, threats, and current trends in studies

et al. 2023

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Ocean and Coastal ResearchThe Santos Basin in eastern Brazil is adjacent to the largest human populations in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean, with several potential threats to marine vertebrates. In this study, we provided a systematic bibliographic review and integrated unpublished primary datasets to provide an overview on species, research topics and gaps, and threats to seabirds in the Santos Basin. Bibliographical sources were used for species recorded within the limits of the basin, while species census data were obtained through research and monitoring projects. We analyzed 156 studies from 1914 to 2021. An increase in the number of publications was observed from the 2000s onward (> 80%), with the state of Santa Catarina showing the highest number of publications (56%) on seabirds. Notes and Records (27%), Population and Community Structure (22%), and Fishing (11%) were the main subjects studied. Among the 76 seabird species reported in the Santos Basin (~2/3 of the species reported in Brazil), Procellariiformes was the most prevalent order (51%), including 14 species listed as threatened, either globally or nationally. Resident (28%) and long-distance migratory species, such as visitors from the Southern (39%) and Northern (17%) Hemispheres and Europe (12%), were widely recorded in the region, as well as vagrant species. The inclusion of different data sources allowed broadening the geographic cover used by species to consider both coastal (predominating in previous studies) and offshore areas. The association of seabird distribution with oceanographic and meteorological features should be addressed in future studies, as should studies on the impact of fishing and pollution on a range of common species.

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Ecological trap for seabirds due to the contamination caused by the Fundão dam collapse, Brazil

Cited by 19 publications

References 75 publications

Seabirds subsidize terrestrial food webs and coral reefs in a tropical rat‐invaded archipelago

Seabirds subsidize terrestrial food webs and coral reefs in a tropical rat‐invaded archipelago

Analysis of free-living seabirds from Brazil as potential hosts of Toxoplasma gondii and Leptospira spp

An overview of seabirds in the Santos Basin, Brazil: species, threats, and current trends in studies

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