On the Feeding Ecology of the Herring Gull<i>Larus argentatus</i>Pont. in the Northern Part of the Netherlands

Spaans, Arie L.

doi:10.5253/arde.v59.p73

Cited by 77 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…In Argentina, urban and fishery waste-tips were used by incubating Kelp Gulls and by birds of all age-classes throughout the year (Bertellotti et al 2001;Giaccardi and Yorio 2004). In the Netherlands, Herring Gull chicks fed on garbage and natural food grew faster than those fed only on natural food (Spaans 1971). Gulls also benefit from ploughing of farmland, which brings invertebrates, particularly worms, to the surface.…”

Section: Population Changementioning

confidence: 96%

Status, distribution and conservation implications of the Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus vetula) within the Eastern Cape region of South Africa

Whittington

Martín²,

Klages

2006

Emu - Austral Ornithology

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Section: Population Changementioning

confidence: 96%

Status, distribution and conservation implications of the Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus vetula) within the Eastern Cape region of South Africa

Whittington

Martín²,

Klages

2006

Emu - Austral Ornithology

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“…In New England and throughout the North Atlantic, seabird populations have fluctuated dramatically during the 20 th century. Several species declined in the late 1800s in response to increased hunting pressure (Kadlec & Drury 1968; Spaans 1971). Legal protection and increases in anthropogenic food subsidies led to substantial increases in great black‐backed gulls Larus marinus L. and double‐crested cormorants Phalacrocorax auritus Lesson during the past several decades (Krohn et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutrient transfer from sea to land: the case of gulls and cormorants in the Gulf of Maine

Ellis

Fariña

Witman

2006

Journal of Animal Ecology

120

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Summary1. The structure of communities is influenced by the transport of resources across ecosystem boundaries. Seabirds are capable of introducing large amounts of marinederived nutrients to land, thereby modifying resource availability to terrestrial species. 2. In this study we investigated the hypothesis that variation in nesting densities of great black-backed gulls Larus marinus and double-crested cormorants Phalacrocorax auritus would modify the effect of these species on soil nutrients and plant species composition on offshore islands in the Gulf of Maine, USA. 3. Our results showed a significant positive correlation between nest density and concentrations of ammonia and nitrate in soils, but no significant relationship between nest density and phosphate. Ammonia and phosphate concentrations were good predictors of plant species composition; there were more annual forbs than perennial grasses in the abandoned cormorant colony compared with the gull colonies. Extremely high concentrations of ammonia in the highest density colony (active cormorant) may have been the main factor inhibiting plant germination at this site. All of the plant species in gull and cormorant colonies showed enriched δ 15 N signatures, indicating substantial input of marine-derived nitrogen from seabirds. 4. Our study demonstrated that gulls and cormorants are effective vectors for the transport of marine nutrients to terrestrial ecosystems. However, transported nutrients occurred in particularly high concentrations in areas with nesting cormorants. Nesting densities and species-specific variation in resource transport should be considered when predicting the effects of seabirds and other biogenic vectors of allochthonous resources.

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“…This has been interpreted as a way to overcome problems posed by hyperosmotic marine prey to younger seabird chicks ( Ricklefs et al, 1978). Other studies have reported this kind of prey in the food composition of young gulls (Spaans, 1971;Mudge and Ferns, 1982;Fox et al, 1990;Hillström et al, 1994).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in diet between the two largest breeding colonies of Audouin's gulls: the effects of fishery activities

Pedrocchi¹,

Oró²,

González‐Solís³

et al. 2002

Sci. Mar.

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SUMMARY: We analysed and compared the diet of Audouin's gulls Larus audouinii between their two largest breeding sites in the world: the Ebro Delta and the Chafarinas Islands (western Mediterranean). These two localities showed marked differences in the features of the commercial fishing fleet: in the Ebro Delta area a large fishing fleet produced large amounts of discards, while in the Chafarinas the fleet discarded smaller amounts of fish and marine invertebrates, due to the smaller number of vessels. It is also likely that the percentage of discards from total catches is also lower around the Chafarinas than at the Ebro Delta. We distinguished two types of fishing to compare diet compositions: diurnal (only trawling activity) and diurnal and nocturnal (trawling and purse-seine activity, respectively). We also differentiated regurgitates from young nestlings (up to 20 days old) and from older nestlings or adult birds. At the two localities, fish was the main food of Audouin's gulls, with epipelagic prey (mainly clupeoids) being more important when both diurnal and nocturnal fisheries were operating. This confirms that epipelagic prey either caught actively by the gulls or linked to fisheries was particularly important in the feeding habits of Audouin's gulls. Nevertheless, differences between the two colonies appear mainly when only trawlers operated: while at the Ebro Delta gulls showed higher consumption of benthic-mesopelagic prey (probably linked to a higher trawler discard availability), gulls from the Chafarinas Islands consumed higher biomass of epipelagic prey probably caught actively at night. When both fleets operated around the two colonies, the average biomass of prey in a regurgitate of younger chicks was significantly higher at the Ebro Delta than at Chafarinas, and the opposite trend was recorded for older nestlings and adults. Niche width was broader in Chafarinas than in the Ebro Delta for both age classes and for any fishing fleet schedule, suggesting again that the exploitation of discards was higher at the Ebro Delta than at the Chafarinas, where gulls showed a more varied diet. Despite the fact that availability of discards was probably higher at the Ebro Delta than at Chafarinas, the per capita availability was not so different at both localities due to the increasing seabird community population at the Ebro Delta, which ca. doubled that at Chafarinas in the last decade.Key words: Larus audouinii, fishery discards, abundance, diet composition. RESUMEN: DIFERENCIAS EN LA DIETA ENTRE LAS DOS MAYORES COLONIAS DEL MUNDO DE GAVIOTA DE AUDOUIN: EFECTOS DELAS ACTIVIDADES PESQUERAS. -En el presente trabajo analizamos y comparamos la dieta de la gaviota de Audouin Larus audouinii entre sus dos colonias de cría más grandes del mundo: la del delta del Ebro y la de las islas Chafarinas (Mediterráneo occidental). Las dos localidades mostraron diferencias marcadas en las características de la flota pesquera comercial: en el delta del Ebro una flota muy importante genera grandes cantidades de descartes,...

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On the Feeding Ecology of the Herring GullLarus argentatusPont. in the Northern Part of the Netherlands

Cited by 77 publications

References 46 publications

Status, distribution and conservation implications of the Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus vetula) within the Eastern Cape region of South Africa

Status, distribution and conservation implications of the Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus vetula) within the Eastern Cape region of South Africa

Nutrient transfer from sea to land: the case of gulls and cormorants in the Gulf of Maine

Differences in diet between the two largest breeding colonies of Audouin's gulls: the effects of fishery activities

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