Data presented in the paper: Is summer growth reduction related to feeding guild? A test for a benthic juvenile flatfish sole (Solea solea) in a temperate coastal area, the western Wadden Sea

Growth performance was analyzed by combining information on individual growth based on otolith daily ring analysis with predictions of maximum growth (= under optimal food conditions) based on a Dynamic Energy Budget model. This research is a combination of collected field data, otolith microstructure analysis and the theoretical growth was calculated by means of four DEB model equations based on the Von Bertalanffy growth model. The enclosed data consist of the collected field data, calculated theoretical growth over time, and calculated realized growth (RG, dimensionless), defined as the ratio between observed size and DEB-predicted maximum size under optimal food conditions

Data from: Accounting for heterogeneity when estimating stopover duration, timing and population size of red knots along the Luannan Coast of Bohai Bay, China

1. To successfully perform their long-distance migrations, migratory birds require sites along their migratory routes to rest and refuel. Monitoring the use of so-called stopover and staging sites provides insights into (1) the timing of migration and (2) the importance of a site for migratory bird populations. A recently developed Bayesian superpopulation model that integrates mark-recapture data and ring density data enabled the estimation of stopover timing, duration and population size. Yet, this model did not account for heterogeneity in encounter (p) and staying (ϕ) probabilities. 2. Here we extended the integrated superpopulation model by implementing finite mixtures to account for heterogeneity in p and ϕ. We used simulations and real data on red knots Calidris canutus staging in Bohai Bay, China, during spring migration to (1) show the importance of accounting for heterogeneity in encounter and staying probabilities to get unbiased estimates of stopover timing, duration and numbers of migratory birds at staging sites and (2) get accurate stopover parameter estimates for a migratory bird species at a key staging site that is threatened by habitat destruction. 3. Our simulations confirmed that heterogeneity in p affected stopover parameter estimates more than heterogeneity in ϕ. Bias was particularly severe when most birds had both low ϕ and p. Bias was largest for population size, intermediate for stopover duration and negligible for stopover timing. 4. 50,000-100,000 red knots were estimated to annually stop for 5-9 days in Bohai Bay between 10 and 30 May. This shows the key importance of this staging site for this declining species. There were no clear changes in stopover parameters over time. 5. Our study shows the importance of accounting for heterogeneity in both encounter and staying probabilities for accurately estimating stopover duration and population size and provides an appropriate modelling framework.,Individual_encounter_historiesDaily field observations of colour-marked red knots (marked in Northwest Australia) along the Luannan Coast of Bohai Bay, China during spring migration between 2009 and 2016, in matrix format. Column names represent day of the year, ranging from 130 (10 May) until 150 (30 May) and row names represent the year of observation. Each row represents the daily encounter history of one individual in a particular year, where a "0" implies that the individual was not observed during that particular day, and a "1" implies that the individual was observed at least once.Ring density dataData file of ring density scans of marked and unmarked red knots, with the columns "Year", "Yearday" (from 130 (10 May) to 150 (30 May)), "K" (total number of birds checked for marks during a scan) and "m" (the number of marked birds in the scan). Scans have been performed with replacement.Ring_density_data.txt

Appendix A. Figures showing the study area and the allometric relations between cockle length and body composition, and a table showing the mixed-modeling results for the effects of predation on a cockle’s relative body composition.

Figures showing the study area and the allometric relations between cockle length and body composition, and a table showing the mixed-modeling results for the effects of predation on a cockle’s relative body composition

Data from: Evolutionary design of a flexible, seasonally migratory, avian phenotype: why trade gizzard mass against pectoral muscle mass?

Migratory birds undergo impressive body remodelling over the course of an annual cycle. Prior to long-distance flights, red knots (Calidris canutus islandica) reduce gizzard mass while increasing body mass and pectoral muscle mass. Although body mass and pectoral muscle mass are functionally linked via their joint effects on flight performance, gizzard and pectoral muscle mass are thought to be independently regulated. Current hypotheses for observed negative within-individual covariation between gizzard and pectoral muscle mass in free-living knots are based on a common factor (e.g., migration) simultaneously affecting both traits, and/or protein limitation forcing allocation decisions. We used diet manipulations to generate within-individual variation in gizzard mass and test for independence between gizzard and pectoral muscle mass within-individuals outside the period of migration and under conditions of high protein availability. Contrary to our prediction, we observed a negative within-individual covariation between gizzard and pectoral muscle mass. We discuss this result as a potential outcome of an evolved mechanism underlying body remodelling associated with migration. Although our proposed mechanism requires empirical testing, this study echoes earlier calls for greater integration of studies of function and mechanism, and in particular, the need for more explicit consideration of the evolution of mechanisms underlying phenotypic design

Data from: Individual diet differences in a molluscivore shorebird are associated with the size of body instruments for internal processing rather than for feeding

Especially in birds, it is widely found that the size of individual prey items follows the size of the instruments of prey capture, handling and processing, i.e. bill size. In fact, this is the natural history basis of major discoveries on adaptative evolution in the face of changing food resources. In some birds, e.g. the molluscivore shorebirds ingesting hard-shelled prey, most of the prey processing process takes place within the digestive tract. This study of a salvaged sample of actively feeding great knots Calidris tenuirostris accidentally drowned in fishing nets in northern China, is the first documentation of diet selection at the level of the individual in previously well-studied molluscivore shorebirds. Diet composition was not associated with the length of the bill, but with the mass of the muscular gizzard. Gizzard mass, which unlike bill length is a phenotypically flexible trait, enables great knots to adjust to changing food resources as an individual, i.e. instantly responding to the food on offer. For migratory species like great knots which rely on seasonal sequences of inter distant feeding areas offering prey with a variety of characteristics, the capacity to individually adjust appears a key adaptation.,gizzard determines great knot's diet

Scripts & model output underlying the publication: Increasing spatial dispersion in ecosystem restoration mitigates risk in disturbance-driven environments

This archived dataset contains the scripts used to run simulations of the model that appears in the publication: 'Increasing spatial dispersion in ecosystem restoration mitigates risk in disturbance-driven environments' (Journal of Applied Ecology, 2022). It also includes: (1) the model output produced by our simluations, (2) the scripts used to produces the figures that appear in the manuscript, as well as (3) a set of functions that can be used to create randomized vegetation patterns (a key feature of the study). See 'README.txt' for a full description

Data from: Within-individual canalization contributes to age-related increases in trait repeatability: a longitudinal experiment in red knots

Abstract: Age-related increases in the repeatable expression of labile phenotypic traits are often assumed to arise from an increase in among-individual variance due to differences in developmental plasticity or by means of state-behaviour feedbacks. However, age-related increases in repeatability could also arise from a decrease in within-individual variance as a result of stabilizing trait expression, i.e. canalization. Here we describe age-related changes in within- and among-individual variance components in two correlated traits, gizzard mass and exploration behavior, in a medium-sized shorebird, the red knot (Calidris canutus). Increased repeatability of gizzard mass came about due to an increase in among-individual variance, unrelated to differences in developmental plasticity, together with decreases in within-individual variance, consistent with canalization. We also found canalization of exploration, but no age-related increase in overall repeatability, which suggests that showing predictable expression of exploration behaviour may be advantageous from a very young age onward. Contrasts between juveniles and adults in the first year after their capture provide support for the idea that environmental conditions play a key role in generating among-individual variation in both gizzard mass and exploration behavior. Our study shows that stabilization of traits occurs under constant conditions: with increased exposure to predictable cues, individuals may become more certain in their assessment of the environment allowing traits to become canalized.,kok et al2019_AmNat data within-indiv canalization datafileData filekok et al2019_AmNat data within-indiv canalization.txtkok et al2019_AmNat within-indiv canalization_RscriptR scriptkok et al2019_AmNat within-indiv canalization.R

Linking the morphology and ecology of subtidal soft-bottom marine benthic habitats: A novel multiscale approach. Brown Bank 2017 - Biological and geomorphological data

22 stations on and around the Brown Bank were selected to study local ecological variation and to link ecological with geomorphological data. Macrobenthos was collected with a box corer and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level, in three replicates per station. Sediment characteristics (grain size, TOC, chlorophyll α etc.) were measured for each replicate. Geomorphological data (bathymetry, backscatter, BPI etc.) were derived from multibeam echosounding at each station