A. M. Cox, D. J. Khor, M. L. Elrod, A. Lescroël, G. Ballard, A. E. Schmidt
{"title":"I need some space: solitary nesting Adélie penguins demonstrate an alternative breeding strategy at Cape Crozier","authors":"A. M. Cox, D. J. Khor, M. L. Elrod, A. Lescroël, G. Ballard, A. E. Schmidt","doi":"10.1007/s00300-024-03246-9","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>According to the ‘selfish herd’ hypothesis, most seabird species breed colonially so that individuals can decrease their risk of predation by forming compact groups. However, costs and benefits associated with colonial breeding may not be evenly distributed among individuals within a colony. At Adélie penguin colonies, individuals nesting on the periphery of subcolonies (distinct groups of nests) may experience higher rates of nest predation by south polar skuas, and thus the optimal aggregation pattern for Adélie penguins may be within groups that minimize the proportion of edge nests. Nevertheless, some penguins choose to nest solitarily, at significant distances from conspecifics. We tracked 50 of these “solitary-nesting” Adélie penguins at Cape Crozier, a large colony on Ross Island, during the 2021 nesting season and compared their breeding success to individuals nesting within subcolony boundaries. We found that both solitary and subcolony nests successfully raised chicks large enough to join crèches and left unattended by adults. However, chicks from solitary nests exhibited a rate of mortality more than six times higher during the transition from nest brooding/guarding to crèche stage. In the 2022 nesting season, we found that solitary nests which had previously hosted actively breeding penguins were more likely to be re-occupied. Solitary nesting therefore appears to be a less-successful alternative to breeding within subcolonies, but enough individuals could be successful with this approach to maintain the apparently disadvantageous behavior and effectively pioneer previously unused locations, possibly including eventual new colony locations.</p>","PeriodicalId":20362,"journal":{"name":"Polar Biology","volume":"78 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5000,"publicationDate":"2024-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Polar Biology","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-024-03246-9","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
According to the ‘selfish herd’ hypothesis, most seabird species breed colonially so that individuals can decrease their risk of predation by forming compact groups. However, costs and benefits associated with colonial breeding may not be evenly distributed among individuals within a colony. At Adélie penguin colonies, individuals nesting on the periphery of subcolonies (distinct groups of nests) may experience higher rates of nest predation by south polar skuas, and thus the optimal aggregation pattern for Adélie penguins may be within groups that minimize the proportion of edge nests. Nevertheless, some penguins choose to nest solitarily, at significant distances from conspecifics. We tracked 50 of these “solitary-nesting” Adélie penguins at Cape Crozier, a large colony on Ross Island, during the 2021 nesting season and compared their breeding success to individuals nesting within subcolony boundaries. We found that both solitary and subcolony nests successfully raised chicks large enough to join crèches and left unattended by adults. However, chicks from solitary nests exhibited a rate of mortality more than six times higher during the transition from nest brooding/guarding to crèche stage. In the 2022 nesting season, we found that solitary nests which had previously hosted actively breeding penguins were more likely to be re-occupied. Solitary nesting therefore appears to be a less-successful alternative to breeding within subcolonies, but enough individuals could be successful with this approach to maintain the apparently disadvantageous behavior and effectively pioneer previously unused locations, possibly including eventual new colony locations.
期刊介绍:
Polar Biology publishes Original Papers, Reviews, and Short Notes and is the focal point for biologists working in polar regions. It is also of interest to scientists working in biology in general, ecology and physiology, as well as in oceanography and climatology related to polar life. Polar Biology presents results of studies in plants, animals, and micro-organisms of marine, limnic and terrestrial habitats in polar and subpolar regions of both hemispheres.
Taxonomy/ Biogeography
Life History
Spatio-temporal Patterns in Abundance and Diversity
Ecological Interactions
Trophic Ecology
Ecophysiology/ Biochemistry of Adaptation
Biogeochemical Pathways and Cycles
Ecological Models
Human Impact/ Climate Change/ Conservation