Direct evidence of a prey depletion "halo" surrounding a pelagic predator colony.

ABSTRACT: Colonially breeding birds and mammals form some of the largest gatherings of apex predators in the natural world and have provided model systems for studying mechanisms of population regulation in animals. According to one influential hypothesis, intense competition for food among large numbers of spatially constrained foragers should result in a zone of prey depletion surrounding such colonies, ultimately limiting their size. However, while indirect and theoretical support for this phenomenon, known as "Ashmole's halo," has steadily accumulated, direct evidence remains exceptionally scarce. Using a combination of vessel-based surveys and Global Positioning System tracking, we show that pelagic seabirds breeding at the tropical island that first inspired Ashmole's hypothesis do indeed depl

SUBMITTER: Weber SB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8285945 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature