Hight-throughput sequencing reveals prey diversity overlap between sympatric Sulids in the tropical Atlantic

ABSTRACT: Seabirds breeding at tropical latitudes suffer an increased pressure to forage efficiently, because oligotrophic waters have less abundant and more patchily distributed prey. In related species living in sympatry, trophic or spatial niche partitioning may emerge as a strategy to mitigate increased competition. However, studies using molecular methodologies such as high-throughput sequencing (HTS) to test for these strategies are still scarce. In this study we used HTS to assess prey diversity partitioning on two sulid species living sympatrically in the tropical Raso Islet (Cabo Verde). Brown boobies (Sula leucogaster) breed in Raso Islet throughout the year while Red-footed boobies (Sula sula) occur during moult, from June to October. We compared Brown boobies diet prey diversity between

ORGANISM(S): Sula leucogaster Sula sula

SUBMITTER:  

PROVIDER: S-BSST802 | biostudies-other |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other