The Diet of an Endemic Subspecies of the Eurasian SpoonbillPlatalea leucorodia balsaci,Breeding at the Banc d'Arguin, Mauritania

Abstract

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Home Range, Habitat Selection, and Foraging Rhythm in Mauritanian Spoonbills (Platalea leucorodia balsaci): A Satellite Tracking Study

“…The selection probably reflects the distribution (Piersma 2012) and the mobility (Curio 1976) of their prey. Shrimps and prawns are known to be important prey for Mauritanian Spoonbills on Banc d'Arguin based on dropping analyses (Veen et al 2012). These prey items are much more abundant on seagrass-covered substrates than on bare sandy intertidal substrates.…”

“…Mauritanian Spoonbills are currently declining (Veen et al 2012). Breeding num-bers decreased from 1,943 breeding pairs in 2000 (Overdijk et al 2001) to 750 breeding pairs in 2007 (Triplet et al 2008).…”

“…Breeding num-bers decreased from 1,943 breeding pairs in 2000 (Overdijk et al 2001) to 750 breeding pairs in 2007 (Triplet et al 2008). The Mauritanian Spoonbill population exhibits low levels of recruitment that appear linked to the frequent occurrences of the colony-wide desertion of nests (Veen et al 2012). However, other contributing factors such as problematic feeding conditions and spatial aspects of foraging ecology have not been assessed.…”

“…Recent advances in satellite and GPS (Global Positioning System) tracking technology, coupled with finer resolution satellite imagery, have greatly enhanced our ability to assess use of habitats (Dickson and Beier 2002;Jiguet and Villarubias 2004;Willems et al 2009), especially in difficult to access regions. Data obtained through remote sensing have the added benefit of reducing disturbance to animals (at least after recovery from capture stress), which is likely important for Mauritanian Spoonbills given their propensity for nest desertion (Veen et al 2012).…”

Age-dependent shifts and spatial variation in the diet of endangered Black-faced Spoonbill (Platalea minor) chicks

“…These results were consistent with the high estimated diet proportion of freshwater invertebrates at the lowest trophic level at Gujido, while chicks at Chilsando were fed more freshwater and marine fish at higher trophic levels than youngs at Suhaam and Namdongji in the early chick-rearing period. Although δ 15 N values at Chilsando decreased with age between the early and late chick-growing periods, there was no significant and consistent change in δ 15 N values over time and the values varied among individuals at Gujido, Suhaam, and Namdongji (S3 Fig) . In other Platalea species that forage in freshwater or marine wetlands during the breeding season, the diet composition of fish and invertebrates shows high inter-and intra-annual and spatial variation with the availability of prey in foraging habitats [3,93]. Therefore, differences in the availability of prey around breeding colonies might lead to inconsistent variation in the proportion of fish and invertebrates or crustaceans in the diets of chicks within and among populations.…”