Seasonal variations in prey selection by estuarine black-headed gulls (Larus ridibundus)     

D.J. Curtis  C.G. Galbraith  J.C. Smyth  D.B.A. Thompson 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》1985,21(1):75-90

The number of black-headed gulls (Larus ridibundus) in the Clyde Estuary is large. In summer the average density has reached 1350 gulls km^?2 and in winter 180 gulls km^?2. This paper compares prey selection and feeding efficiency in gulls during summer and winter on tidal flats, and considers how seasonal differences may be adaptations to cope with seasonal changes in prey availability.Gross and net rates of energy intake were highest in summer because gulls captured more of the polychaete N. diversicolor than the amphipod C. volutator. In winter, gulls selected for C. volutator and therefore an energetically less profitable diet. Throughout the year gulls selected more C. volutator relative to N. diversicolor than expected on energetic grounds and so apparently did not maximize potential net rate of energy intake.Gulls used three techniques to capture prey and made most intensive use of the ‘crouch’ technique. Crouching gulls attained a much higher net rate of energy intake than ‘upright’ or ‘paddling’ gulls.A log-linear model showed that (a) season, water depth and gull density determined feeding technique and (b) feeding technique and season independently determined foraging success and prey selection. Thus gull density and water depth acted on prey selection through imposed variations in feeding technique.Reasons for gulls selecting energetically unprofitable C. volutator and for the use of several distinct feeding techniques are discussed.  相似文献   

Oceanographic influences on seabirds and cetaceans of the eastern tropical Pacific: A review     

Lisa T. Ballance  Robert L. Pitman  Paul C. Fiedler 《Progress in Oceanography》2006,69(2-4):360

This paper is part of a comprehensive review of the oceanography of the eastern tropical Pacific, the oceanic region centered on the eastern Pacific warm pool, but also including the equatorial cold tongue and equatorial current system, and summarizes what is known about oceanographic influences on seabirds and cetaceans there. The eastern tropical Pacific supports on the order of 50 species of seabirds and 30 species of cetaceans as regular residents; these include four endemic species, the world’s largest populations for several others, three endemic sub-species, and a multi-species community that is relatively unique to this ecosystem. Three of the meso-scale physical features of the region are particularly significant to seabirds and cetaceans: the Costa Rica Dome for blue whales and short-beaked common dolphins, the Equatorial Front for planktivorous seabirds, and the countercurrent thermocline ridge for flocking seabirds that associate with mixed-species schools of spotted and spinner dolphins and yellowfin tuna. A few qualitative studies of meso- to macro-scale distribution patterns have indicated that some seabirds and cetaceans have species-specific preferences for surface currents. More common are associations with distinct water masses; these relationships have been quantified for a number of species using several different analytical methods. The mechanisms underlying tropical species–habitat relationships are not well understood, in contrast to a number of higher-latitude systems. This may be due to the fact that physical variables have been used as proxies for prey abundance and distribution in species–habitat research in the eastern tropical Pacific.Though seasonal and interannual patterns tend to be complex, species–habitat relationships appear to remain relatively stable over time, and distribution patterns co-vary with patterns of preferred habitat for a number of species. The interactions between seasonal and interannual variation in oceanographic conditions with seasonal patterns in the biology of seabirds and cetaceans may account for some of the complexity in species–habitat relationship patterns.Little work has been done to investigate effects of El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycles on cetaceans, and results of the few studies focusing on oceanic seabirds are complex and not easy to interpret. Although much has been made of the detrimental effects of El Niño events on apex predators, more research is needed to understand the magnitude, and even direction, of these effects on seabirds and cetaceans in space and time.  相似文献   

A New Genus and Species of Sapeornithidae from Lower Cretaceous in Western Liaoning, China     

YUAN Chongxi 《《地质学报》英文版》2008,82(1):48-55

Sapeornithidae is a basal pygostylian family of Early Cretaceous primitive birds, in which only one genus and species, Sapeornis chaoyangensis, was reported before. This paper deals with a new genus and species of this family, Didactylornis jii gen. et sp. nov., which was unearthed from the Early Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation in western Liaoning. According to our phylogenetic analyses, both Didactylornis gen. nov. and Sapeornis form a sister group, which is basal to the clade formed by Confuciusornis and all the more derived birds, and more closely related to the short-tailed pygostylian birds than to the long-tailed avialian birds. The early history of pygostylian birds is poorly documented except for the studies of Confuciusornis and Sapeornis. The discovery ofDidactylornisjii gen. et sp. nov. adds the new material for the study on the early evolution of birds.  相似文献   

Pesticide residues in birds at Lake Nakuru,Kenya     

J. K. Kairu 《International Journal of Salt Lake Research》1994,3(1):31-48

Specimens of three species of birds were collected from Lake Nakuru, Kenya, between September and October 1990. Samples of liver, kidney, muscle, fat and brain tissue were removed and analyzed for organochlorine pesticide residues. Fat was extracted and the content of three lindane (BHC/HCH) isomers (, and ), aldrin, heptachlor, heptachlorepoxide, endrin, dieldrin, DDD, DDE and DDT was determined. The samples contained varying residue levels of 12 organochlorine pesticides. No residues of 0, p'-DDD were detected. The most prevalent compounds were DDE and -BHC, found in 95.5 per cent and 66.4 per cent of the samples, respectively. The highest median residue concentration was 207 mg kg^–1×10^–3 of DDE in pelican fat tissue. White pelicanPelecanus onocrotalus, and the white-necked cormorant,Phalacrocorax carbo, showed greater concentrations of organochlorine residues than the lesser flamingo,Phoenicopterus minor. The mean DDE concentrations in pelican liver samples in 1970 and 1990 were 64 mg kg^–1×10^–3 and 274 mg kg^–1×10^–3, respectively. In cormorant liver samples the mean DDE concentration was 15 mg kg^–1×10^–3 in 1970 and 52 mg kg^–1×10^–3 in 1990. The mean DDE concentration in flamingo liver remained more or less similar at 2 mg kg^–1×10^–3 in 1970 and 1990.  相似文献   

A Comparison of Public Lands and Farmlands for Grassland Bird Conservation     

Mary Ann Cunningham 《The Professional geographer》2005,57(1):51-65

Midwestern states have invested extensively in grasslands for wildlife conservation, yet these public lands make up a minority of grassland habitat. How effective are public grasslands, relative to private lands, for conserving native songbird populations? I compare private and public lands in southern Minnesota using bird survey data from Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) fields and public lands and assessing fragmentation in a GIS. Bird abundance and diversity were greater on CRP lands. Vegetation composition, field isolation, and field size appear to explain differences in bird counts. Land cover data show that grassland habitat on public lands is scarce and widely scattered. The CRP provides more, and here better, habitat for grassland birds. Funding partly explains this disparity. Trends in farm set‐aside program rules and distribution, which can be vary greatly over time, will strongly influence the success or failure of biodiversity conservation in this region.  相似文献   

广州市大学城湾咀头湿地公园“引鸟入城”方案浅析     

历军  张大达  丁晓龙 《湿地科学与管理》2016,(4):13-16

广州市大学城湾咀头湿地公园"引鸟入城"项目是引鸟设计的一次探索与实践。项目通过鸟类栖息环境的改造、鸟类人工饲养与自然招引、鸟类监测与保护等方法的研究与实践,成功达到了引鸟效果,同时提出了规划和管理等方面的一些建议,希望对鸟类招引项目提供参考。  相似文献   

宁德市东湖湿地鸟类资源调查与保护     

陈文杰 《湿地科学与管理》2007,3(1):58-59

2003年3月-2004年4月,在宁德三都湾东湖湿地及其周边地区进行了10次湿地鸟类资源连续调查。调查表明:宁德东湖湿地生物多样性丰富,特别是湿地水禽种类繁多,数量巨大,发现鸟类12目26科80种,计20119只。宁德东湖湿地是福建省鸟类资源的重要分布区,是各类水禽的理想栖息地、越冬地和迁徙地,但存在因开发建设湖面缩小、市区大量生活污水污染水质、湖体淤积、陆地化过快等问题。为此,保护和恢复东湖湿地、建立湿地公园已是势在必行。  相似文献   

迁入性亚洲飞蝗与气象因子关系的研究   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

王磊  徐光青  刘大锋  韩晓玲 《沙漠与绿洲气象(新疆气象)》2006,29(5):25-27

通过对吉木乃1994—2004年7、8月份02、08、14、20时地面风向、风速的分析,以及对下列气象资料的分析,如(1)飞蝗迁飞时段的风向、风速;(2)1971—2004年吉木乃站冬季、春季、夏季的月平均气温、月降水量;(3)后冬≤3cm积雪深度初日日期;(4)近10a4—8月的月平均相对湿度等,初步探讨了对亚洲飞蝗迁飞、蝗卵安全越冬、孵化繁衍监测有指导意义的气象因子,结果表明:进入90年代以来,吉木乃的气候变化适于亚洲飞蝗的孵化繁衍。  相似文献   

Influence of environmental and prey variables on low tide shorebird habitat use within the Robbins Passage wetlands,Northwest Tasmania   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Fiona L. Spruzen  Alastair M.M. RichardsonEric J. Woehler 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2008

Shorebirds feed primarily on tidal flats, and their distribution over these flats is influenced by their prey and abiotic factors. These factors act by influencing the distribution and abundance of the prey, or the shorebirds ability to exploit it. The aims of this study were to investigate the low tide foraging distribution of shorebirds at four sites within the Robbins Passage wetlands, and the environmental and invertebrate factors that may influence their distribution. The greatest densities and number of shorebirds were found at Shipwreck Point and East Inlet. The shorebirds within-site distribution was also non-random, with the shorebirds present in greatest densities at the water's edge and low intertidal stratum, although this varied among species. Generally, on a small spatial scale, invertebrate diversity was positively correlated, and seagrass leaf mass was negatively correlated, with shorebird feeding density. On a large spatial scale, invertebrate biomass and seagrass root mass were positively correlated with shorebird feeding density. Invertebrate biomass and seagrass root mass explained 71% of the variance in total shorebird feeding density on the tidal flats. The variation in shorebird feeding density and diversity was therefore partly explained by invertebrate diversity and biomass, as well as the environmental factors seagrass roots and leaf mass and tidal flat area, although the strength of these relationships was influenced by the two different spatial scales of the study. The strength of the relationships between shorebird feeding density and the invertebrate and environmental variables was stronger on a large spatial scale. The presence of seagrass may have influenced shorebird-feeding density by affecting the invertebrate abundance and composition or the shorebirds ability to detect and capture their prey. The area of the tidal flat had opposing effects on the shorebird species. These results can be used to assist in the development of management plans for the Robbins Passage wetlands and the conservation of important shorebird areas.  相似文献   

Food supply and dispersal in the determination of wintering population levels of oystercatchers, Haematopus ostralegus     

William J. Sutherland 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》1982,14(2):223-229

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