Ecosystem change and population declines in gulls: Shifting baseline considerations for assessing ecological integrity of protected areas

Laurich, Bruce; Drake, Christine; Gorman, Owen T.; Irvine, Courtney; MacLaurin, Jenna; Chartrand, Chloé; Hebert, Craig E.

doi:10.1016/j.jglr.2019.08.009

Cited by 19 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 47 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Herring gulls nesting in colonies along the shoreline of Pukaskwa National Park, (PNP) Lake Superior (Figure ), are known to vary in their foraging behavior. , However, there is some consistency in diet composition geographically within the park boundaries: birds nesting in southern colonies tend to consume a variety of natural food types with a focus on an aquatic-based diet (e.g., fish), and birds nesting in northern colonies have a mixed diet including terrestrial foods (e.g., human refuse, songbirds, rodents, invertebrates). , Herring gull eggs were collected from colonies in both north and south PNP to investigate diet as a potential source of TBBPA-BDBPE. A total of 58 individual eggs collected in 2015 ( n = 28) and 2016 ( n = 30) were analyzed.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tetrabromobisphenol-A-Bis(dibromopropyl ether) Flame Retardant in Eggs, Regurgitates, and Feces of Herring Gulls from Multiple North American Great Lakes Locations

Gauthier

Laurich

Hebert

et al. 2019

Environ. Sci. Technol.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The occurrence of tetrabromobisphenol-A-bis(2,3,-dibromopropyl ether) (TBBPA-BDBPE) flame retardant is generally unknown in wildlife. A highly sensitive, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-based method was developed for TBBPA-BDBPE with optimized parameters for large volume injection. We report on TBBPA-BDBPE and temporal and spatial trends in herring gull egg pools and individuals from 14 colony sites across the Laurentian Great Lakes of North America. TBBPA-BDBPE identification was confirmed using liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry and quantification with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry analysis. TBBPA-BDBPE was quantifiable in 95% of egg pools from all colonies sampled in 2013–2017, and retrospective analysis of archived eggs (2001–2017) at 3 of the 14 colonies indicated that TBBPA-BDBPE concentrations were greater in pools from eggs collected in more recent years (

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tetrabromobisphenol-A-Bis(dibromopropyl ether) Flame Retardant in Eggs, Regurgitates, and Feces of Herring Gulls from Multiple North American Great Lakes Locations

Gauthier

Laurich

Hebert

et al. 2019

Environ. Sci. Technol.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Section: Chapter One General Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Management of protected areas such as PNP is challenging given the complex nature of ecosystems and colonial waterbird population trends have provided insights into ecosystem change in the park (Laurich et al, 2019). For example, PNP's breeding herring gull population has decreased by 70% over the last 40 years possibly due to declines in aquatic food availability (Laurich et al, 2019). The declines observed in the breeding herring gull population appears to be serious for the species, however the interpretation of trends in this population must be placed into the context of the changing environment.…”

Section: Chapter One General Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rainbow smelt populations in Lake Superior have since demonstrated steady declines over the past 40 years (Figure 1.1) (Gorman, 2007;Bunnell et al, 2014) which could be an important factor contributing to declining trends in the PNP herring gull population. The degree to which aquatic versus terrestrial food is being utilized by PNP herring gulls may be a critical factor influencing their breeding success (Laurich et al, 2019). Herring gull populations have suffered declines in both the northern and southern parts of the park, however declines appeared to be less severe in the northern population (Laurich et al, 2019).…”

Section: Chapter One General Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The degree to which aquatic versus terrestrial food is being utilized by PNP herring gulls may be a critical factor influencing their breeding success (Laurich et al, 2019). Herring gull populations have suffered declines in both the northern and southern parts of the park, however declines appeared to be less severe in the northern population (Laurich et al, 2019). The northern population has access to landfills whereas the southern population rely to a much greater extent on dwindling aquatic food resources (Laurich et al, 2019).…”

Section: Chapter One General Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The Effects of Diet and Predation on Nesting Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) in Pukaskwa National Park

Serre¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are used as ecological indicators of the coastal Lake Superior ecosystem in Pukaskwa National Park. Their populations have declined by 70% over the last 40 years, suggesting changes in the park ecosystem. Previous studies highlighted declining prey abundance as a possible contributing factor to population declines. Populations of avian predators that prey on herring gulls have simultaneously increased which could be a significant factor impacting gull population trends. Here, I assessed herring gull diets via stable isotope (nitrogen, carbon) and fatty acid indicators to investigate how diet may influence population trends through effects on physiological (stress-associated hormones), reproductive (egg size), and behavioural (nest attentiveness) endpoints. I additionally investigated the degree to which predation is affecting herring gull reproductive success by examining gull nest attentiveness during the day and night. Gulls utilizing anthropogenic food sources exhibited reduced levels of stress-associated hormones, increased egg size, and increased day-time nest attentiveness. Anthropogenic food sources are likely buffering the impacts of declines in aquatic food availability; however, gull populations are still declining. Use of camera traps to monitor herring gull nests revealed that gulls were significantly more attentive to their nests during the day compared to the night. Of the nine nests monitored with camera traps, five produced chicks. However, at three of these nests chicks were predated shortly after hatch. Nocturnal predation by great horned owls accounted for these predation events which were the most significant predation-related factor affecting herring gull nest success. Predation of chicks at night and of eggs during the day (by conspecifics and corvids) is likely contributing to declines in PNP herring gull populations. Understanding factors contributing to population trends in ecological indicator species is critical for species management and for identifying stressors that are likely

show abstract

Differences in Trophic Level, Contaminant Load, and DNA Damage in an Urban and a Remote Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) Breeding Colony in Coastal Norway

Keilen

Borgå

Thorstensen

et al. 2022

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are opportunistic feeders, resulting in contaminant exposure depending on area and habitat. We compared contaminant concentrations and dietary markers between two herring gull breeding colonies with different distances to extensive human activity and presumed contaminant exposure from the local marine diet. Furthermore, we investigated the integrity of DNA in white blood cells and sensitivity to oxidative stress. We analyzed blood from 15 herring gulls from each colony—the urban Oslofjord near the Norwegian capital Oslo in the temperate region and the remote Hornøya island in northern Norway, on the Barents Sea coast. Based on d13C and d34S, the dietary sources of urban gulls differed, with some individuals having a marine and others a more terrestrial dietary signal. All remote gulls had a marine dietary signal and higher relative trophic level than the urban marine feeding gulls. Concentrations (mean ± standard deviation [SD]) of most persistent organic pollutants, such as polychlorinated biphenyl ethers (PCBs) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), were higher in urban marine (PCB153 17 ± 17 ng/g wet weight, PFOS 25 ± 21 ng/g wet wt) than urban terrestrial feeders (PCB153 3.7 ± 2.4 ng/g wet wt, PFOS 6.7 ± 10 ng/g wet wt). Despite feeding at a higher trophic level (d15N), the remote gulls (PCB153 17 ± 1221 ng/g wet wt, PFOS 19 ± 1421 ng/g wet wt) were similar to the urban marine feeders. Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes were detected in only a few gulls, except for decamethylcyclopentasiloxane in the urban colony, which was found in 12 of 13 gulls. Only hexachlorobenzene was present in higher concentrations in the remote (2.6 ± 0.42 ng/g wet wt) compared with the urban colony (0.34 ± 0.33 ng/g wet wt). Baseline and induced DNA damage (doublestreak breaks) was higher in urban than in remote gulls for both terrestrial and marine feeders. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:2466–2478. © 2022 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.

show abstract

Ecosystem change and population declines in gulls: Shifting baseline considerations for assessing ecological integrity of protected areas

Cited by 19 publications

References 47 publications

Tetrabromobisphenol-A-Bis(dibromopropyl ether) Flame Retardant in Eggs, Regurgitates, and Feces of Herring Gulls from Multiple North American Great Lakes Locations

Tetrabromobisphenol-A-Bis(dibromopropyl ether) Flame Retardant in Eggs, Regurgitates, and Feces of Herring Gulls from Multiple North American Great Lakes Locations

The Effects of Diet and Predation on Nesting Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) in Pukaskwa National Park

Differences in Trophic Level, Contaminant Load, and DNA Damage in an Urban and a Remote Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) Breeding Colony in Coastal Norway

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About