Journal Article

Geographical variation in the foraging behaviour of the pantropical red-footed booby

Ecologie marine tropicale dans les Océans Pacifique et Indien (ENTROPIE [Réunion]) ; Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université de La Réunion (UR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Lallemand, Joëlle, Mendez, Loriane, Prudor, Aurélien, Ecologie marine tropicale des océans Pacifique et Indien (ENTROPIE [Nouvelle-Calédonie]) ; Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [Nouvelle-Calédonie])-Délégation Ifremer de Nouvelle-Calédonie ; Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Université de la Nouvelle-Calédonie (UNC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Cruz, Sebastian, Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé - UMR 7372 (CEBC) ; Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-La Rochelle Université (ULR)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Department of Migration and Immuno-ecology ; Max Planck Institute for Ornithology ; Max-Pla

2017

Overview

While interspecific differences in foraging behaviour have attracted much attention,less is known about how foraging behaviour differs between populations of the same species.Here we compared the foraging strategy of a pantropical seabird, the red-footed booby Sula sula,in 5 populations breeding in contrasted environmental conditions. The foraging strategy stronglydiffered between sites, from strictly diurnal short trips in Europa Island (Mozambique channel) tolong trips including up to 5 nights at sea in Genovesa Island (Galapagos archipelago). The ExpectationMaximisation binary Clustering (EMbC) algorithm was used to determine the differentbehaviours of individuals during their foraging trips (travelling, intensive foraging, resting andrelocating). During the day, the activity budget was similar for all the breeding colonies. Duringthe night, birds were primarily on the water, drifting with currents. At all sites, birds similarly performedintensive foraging in zones of area-restricted search (ARS), although the size and durationof ARS zones differed markedly. Red-footed boobies foraged over deep oceanic waters, withchlorophyll a concentrations varying between sites. Birds did not appear to target areas withhigher productivity. We suggest that range differences between populations may be linked toother factors such as intra- and interspecific competition.

• Publisher: Inter Research,CCSD,Inter-Research
• Subject: Environmental Sciences / Marine / Sula sula