High spatial fidelity among foraging trips of Masked Boobies from Pedro Cays, Jamaica.

ABSTRACT: In marine environments, tropical and subtropical habitats are considered to be inherently less productive than more temperate systems. As such, foraging site fidelity among vertebrate predators occupying low-latitude marine systems is generally low as a response to an increased unpredictability of resources. We investigated the foraging movements of Masked Boobies breeding on Middle Cay, Jamaica using GPS loggers to examine if the presence of a nearby bathymetric feature influenced foraging site fidelity in a tropical system, the Caribbean Sea. According to the movements of tracked individuals, this population of boobies shows a high degree of spatial fidelity in foraging site selection, concentrated on the northern edge of Pedro Bank. We suggest this feature as an important location for m

SUBMITTER: Wilkinson BP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7186003 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature