Foraging movements of breeding Kelp Gulls in South Africa.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Kelp Gulls Larus dominicanus are one of the most abundant gulls in the Southern Hemisphere and can play an important role in their ecosystem. Understanding their foraging ecology is therefore important, especially in the context of anthropogenic changes of the environment. Over 35,000 Kelp Gulls breed in South Africa but little is known about their habitat use. It has been hypothesised that foraging mainly occurs in natural habitats while provisioning chicks to ensure high quality food, but knowledge on their foraging ecology during the incubation period remains poor.

Methods

We tracked incubating Kelp Gulls from six colonies distributed along the coast of South Africa, varying in their distance to urban areas and landfills, and compared foraging trip patte

SUBMITTER: Reusch K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7469291 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature