Mortalidad de aves marinas producida por luces artificiales terrestres

Artificial lights at night cause high mortality of seabirds, one of the most endangered groups of birds globally. Fledglings of burrow-nesting seabirds, and to a lesser extent adults, are attracted to and then grounded (i.e., forced to land) by lights when they fly at night. We reviewed the current state of knowledge of seabird attraction to light to identify information gaps and propose measures to address the problem. Although species in families such as Alcidae and Anatidae can be grounded by artificial light, the most affected seabirds are petrels and shearwaters (Procellariiformes). At least 56 species of Procellariiformes, more than one-third of them (24) threatened, are subject to grounding by lights. Seabirds grounded by lights have been found worldwide, mainly on oceanic islands but also at some continental locations. Petrel breeding grounds confined to formerly uninhabited islands are particularly at risk from light pollution due to tourism and urban sprawl. Where it is impractical to ban external lights, rescue programs of grounded birds offer the most immediate and employed mitigation to reduce the rate of light-induced mortality and save thousands of birds every year. These programs also provide useful information for seabird management. However, these data are typically fragmentary, biased, and uncertain and can lead to inaccurate impact estimates and poor understanding of the phenomenon of seabird attraction to lights. We believe the most urgently needed actions to mitigate and understand light-induced mortality of seabirds are estimation of mortality and effects on populations; determination of threshold light levels and safe distances from light sources; documentation of the fate of rescued birds; improvement of rescue campaigns, particularly in terms of increasing recovery rates and level of care; and research on seabird-friendly lights to reduce attraction.RESUMEN: Las luces artificiales nocturnas causan una mortalidad alta de aves marinas, uno de los grupos de aves en mayor peligro de extinción a nivel mundial. Los polluelos de aves marinas que anidan en madrigueras, y en menor medida los adultos, son atraídos y forzados a aterrizar por las luces cuando vuelan de noche. Revisamos el estado actual del conocimiento sobre la atracción de las aves marinas por la luz para identificar vacíos de información y proponer medidas para resolver el problema. Aunque las especies de familias como Alcidae y Anatidae pueden ser forzadas a aterrizar por la luz artificial, las aves marinas más afectadas son los petreles y las pardelas (Procellariiformes). Por lo menos 56 especies de Procellariiformes, más de un tercio (24) de ellas amenazadas, son propensas al aterrizaje atraídas por las luces. Las aves marinas forzadas a aterrizar han sido halladas en todo el mundo, principalmente en islas oceánicas, pero también en algunas localidades continentales. Los sitios de anidación de los petreles confinados anteriormente a islas deshabitadas están particularmente en riesgo de sufrir contaminación lumínica debido al turismo y al crecimiento urbano. En donde no es práctico prohibir las luces externas, los programas de rescate de las aves accidentadas ofrecen la mitigación más inmediata y empleada para reducir la tasa de mortalidad inducida por la luz y salvar a miles de aves cada año. Estos programas también proporcionan información útil para el manejo de aves marinas. Sin embargo, estos datos están típicamente fragmentados, sesgados y son inciertos, y pueden llevar a estimaciones inexactas del impacto y a un entendimiento pobre del fenómeno de la atracción de las aves marinas por la luz. Creemos que las acciones necesarias de mayor urgencia para mitigar y entender la mortalidad de aves marinas producida por la luz son: la estimación de la mortalidad y los efectos sobre la población; la determinación de umbrales de niveles de luz y de distancias seguras a las fuentes de luz; el estudio del destino de las aves rescatadas; la mejora de las campañas de rescate, particularmente en términos de incrementar las tasas de recogida y el nivel de cuidado; y la investigación sobre las características de la luz para reducir la atracción de las aves marinas.This research was supported by a Marie Curie Intra European Fellowship within the 7th European Community Framework Programme (Project ID: 330655 FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IOF)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Seabird Modulations of Isotopic Nitrogen on Islands

The transport of nutrients by migratory animals across ecosystem boundaries can significantly enrich recipient food webs, thereby shaping the ecosystems’ structure and function. To illustrate the potential role of islands in enabling the transfer of matter across ecosystem boundaries to be gauged, we investigated the influence of seabirds on nitrogen input on islands. Basing our study on four widely differing islands in terms of their biogeography and ecological characteristics, sampled at different spatial and temporal intervals, we analyzed the nitrogen isotopic values of the main terrestrial ecosystem compartments (vascular plants, arthropods, lizards and rodents) and their relationship to seabird values. For each island, the isotopic values of the ecosystem were driven by those of seabirds, which ultimately corresponded to changes in their marine prey. First, terrestrial compartments sampled within seabird colonies were the most enriched in δ15N compared with those collected at various distances outside colonies. Second, isotopic values of the whole terrestrial ecosystems changed over time, reflecting the values of seabirds and their prey, showing a fast turnover throughout the ecosystems. Our results demonstrate that seabird-derived nutrients not only spread across the terrestrial ecosystems and trophic webs, but also modulate their isotopic values locally and temporally on these islands. The wealth of experimental possibilities in insular ecosystems justifies greater use of these model systems to further our understanding of the modalities of trans-boundary nutrient transfers

Feral Cats Felis catus Threaten the Endangered Endemic Barau's Petrel Pterodroma baraui at Reunion Island (Western Indian Ocean)

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Protection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique Rattus exulans (Marquises)

Session : Conservation ecologyProtection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique [i]Rattus exulans[/i] (Marquises). 11. Pacific Science Inter-Congress. 2. Symposium on French Research in the Pacifi

Protection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique Rattus exulans (Marquises)

Session : Conservation ecologyProtection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique [i]Rattus exulans[/i] (Marquises). 11. Pacific Science Inter-Congress. 2. Symposium on French Research in the Pacifi

Protection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique Rattus exulans (Marquises)

Session : Conservation ecologyProtection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique [i]Rattus exulans[/i] (Marquises). 11. Pacific Science Inter-Congress. 2. Symposium on French Research in the Pacifi

Protection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique Rattus exulans (Marquises)

Session : Conservation ecologyProtection des oiseaux marins de l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka) par l'éradication du rat du Pacifique [i]Rattus exulans[/i] (Marquises). 11. Pacific Science Inter-Congress. 2. Symposium on French Research in the Pacifi

Eradication des rats sur l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka, Marquises)

Eradication des rats sur l'îlot Teuaua (Ua Huka, Marquises

Comparative foraging ecology of a tropical seabird community of the Seychelles, western Indian Ocean

http://www.int-res.com/abstracts/meps/v374/p259-272/We studied the foraging ecology of a tropical seabird community in 2 islands of the Seychelles from 2005 to 2007. Chick dietary samples were used to compare feeding habits among species and assess inter-annual and seasonal variations in diet. Fish prey dominated the diet of the community (68 to 100% of prey consumed), although cephalopods were present in 61.3, 40.0, 27.1 and 32.9% of the food samples from white-tailed tropicbirds, sooty terns, brown noddies and wedgetailed shearwaters, respectively. We found high diet overlap between species (Mullidae fish being the first prey consumed [30 to 90%] for all species except for the white-tailed tropicbird [<2%]) but some segregation in prey length. Other important prey were Exocoetidae, Carangidae, Scombridae and Clupeidae mainly for white-tailed tropicbirds, sooty terns and brown noddies, Hemiramphidae and Coryphaenidae for white-tailed tropicbirds, and Engraulidae and fish larvae for lesser noddies and Audubon’s shearwaters. Despite some inter-annual and seasonal variations in diet, these were not consistent within the community. Responses of the seabird community to an environmental perturbation that negatively affected chick growth and breeding success of lesser noddies emphasised the higher vulnerability of species with smaller foraging ranges and/or with lower ability to switch diet (lesser noddy, roseate tern) compared to less range-restricted and/or more opportunistic ones (white-tailed tropicbird, brown noddy, sooty tern, white tern). Although situated in a tropical region, the food availability in the Seychelles seems to be predictable at a large (annual) temporal scale, but highly unpredictable at a small intra-seasonal or daily) temporal scale.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (SFRH/BD/16706/2004); Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (Marine Science for Management Grant, MASMA/AG/2004/04); Agence National pour la Recherche (Programme REMIGE – ANR Biodiversité 2005-011)