Dataset Information

Effects of urbanization on the foraging ecology and microbiota of the generalist seabird Larus argentatus.

ABSTRACT: Larus gull species have proven adaptable to urbanization and due to their generalist feeding behaviors, they provide useful opportunities to study how urban environments impact foraging behavior and host-associated microbiota. We evaluated how urbanization influenced the foraging behavior and microbiome characteristics of breeding herring gulls (Larus argentatus) at three different colonies on the east coast of the United States. Study colonies represented high, medium and low degrees of urbanization, respectively. At all colonies, gulls frequently foraged at landfills and in other urban environments, but both the use of urban environments and gull foraging metrics differed with the degree of urbanization. Gulls at the more urban colonies used urban environments more frequently, showed higher rates of site fidelity and took shorter trips. Gulls at less urban colonies used a greater diversity of habitat types and foraged offshore. We observed high microbial diversity at all colonies, though microbial diversity was highest at the least urban colony where gulls used a wider variety of foraging habitats. This suggests that gulls may acquire a wider range of bacteria when visiting a higher variety of foraging sites. Our findings highlight the influence of urban habitats on gull movements and microbiome composition and diversity during the breeding season and represent the first application of amplicon sequence variants, an objective and repeatable method of bacterial classification, to study the microbiota of a seabird species.

SUBMITTER: Fuirst M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6298667 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Effects of urbanization on the foraging ecology and microbiota of the generalist seabird Larus argentatus.

Fuirst Matthew M Veit Richard R RR Hahn Megan M Dheilly Nolwenn N Thorne Lesley H LH

PloS one 20181218 12

Larus gull species have proven adaptable to urbanization and due to their generalist feeding behaviors, they provide useful opportunities to study how urban environments impact foraging behavior and host-associated microbiota. We evaluated how urbanization influenced the foraging behavior and microbiome characteristics of breeding herring gulls (Larus argentatus) at three different colonies on the east coast of the United States. Study colonies represented high, medium and low degrees of urbaniz ...[more]

PMID: 30562368

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Project description:Plasticity in foraging behavior among individuals, or across populations may reduce competition. As a generalist carnivore, western gulls (Larus occidentalis) consume a wide range of marine and terrestrial foods. However, the foraging patterns and habitat selection (ocean or land) of western gulls is not well understood, despite their ubiquity in coastal California. Here, we used GPS loggers to compare the foraging behavior and habitat use of western gulls breeding at two island colonies in central California.Gulls from offshore Southeast Farallon Island (SFI; n?=?41 gulls) conducted more oceanic trips (n?=?90) of shorter duration (3.8 ± 3.3 SD hours) and distance (27.1 ± 20.3 km) than trips to the mainland (n?=?41) which were nearly 4 times longer and 2 times farther away. In contrast, gulls from coastal Año Nuevo Island (ANI; n?=?20 gulls) foraged at sites on land more frequently (n?=?103) but trip durations (3.6 ± 2.4 h) and distances (20.8 ± 9.4 km) did not differ significantly from oceanic trips (n?=?42) where trip durations were only slightly shorter (2.9 ± 2.7 h) and equidistant (20.6 ± 12.1 km). Gulls from both colonies visited more sites while foraging at sea but spent significantly longer (3-5 times) durations at each site visited on land. Foraging at sea was also more random compared to foraging trips over land where gulls from both colonies visited the same sites on multiple trips. The total home range of gulls from SFI (14,230 km2) was 4.5 times larger than that of gulls from ANI, consistent with greater resource competition resulting from a larger abundance of seabirds at SFI.Population-level plasticity in foraging behavior was evident and dependent on habitat type. In addition, gulls from SFI were away foraging longer than gulls from ANI (22% vs. 7.5%, respectively), which impacts the defense of territories and attempts at nest predation by conspecifics. Our results can be used to explain lower chick productivity at SFI, and can provide insight into increased gull activity in urban areas.

Dataset Information

Effects of urbanization on the foraging ecology and microbiota of the generalist seabird Larus argentatus.

Publications

Effects of urbanization on the foraging ecology and microbiota of the generalist seabird Larus argentatus.

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