Further Notes on California Brown Pelicans at Point Lobos, California

Laidlaw Williams

doi:10.2307/1363311

Condition-dependent foraging strategies in a coastal seabird: evidence for the rich get richer hypothesis

Behavioral Ecology ◽

10.1093/beheco/ary173 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 30 (2) ◽

pp. 356-363 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Brock Geary ◽

Scott T Walter ◽

Paul L Leberg ◽

Jordan Karubian

Keyword(s):

Individual Variation ◽

Multiple Scales ◽

Foraging Ecology ◽

Population Level ◽

Foraging Strategies ◽

Significant Relationships ◽

Fitness Consequences ◽

Brown Pelicans ◽

The Rich ◽

Foraging Movements

Abstract The degree to which foraging individuals are able to appropriately modify their behaviors in response to dynamic environmental conditions and associated resource availability can have important fitness consequences. Despite an increasingly refined understanding of differences in foraging behavior between individuals, we still lack detailed characterizations of within-individual variation over space and time, and what factors may drive this variability. From 2014 to 2017, we used GPS transmitters and accelerometers to document foraging movements by breeding adult Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) in the northern Gulf of Mexico, where the prey landscape is patchy and dynamic at various scales. Assessments of traditional foraging metrics such as trip distance, linearity, or duration did not yield significant relationships between individuals. However, we did observe lower site fidelity and less variation in energy expenditure in birds of higher body condition, despite a population-level trend of increased fidelity as the breeding season progressed. These findings suggest that high-quality individuals are both more variable and more efficient in their foraging behaviors during a period of high energetic demand, consistent with a “rich get richer” scenario in which individuals in better condition are able to invest in more costly behaviors that provide higher returns. This work highlights the importance of considering behavioral variation at multiple scales, with particular reference to within-individual variation, to improve our understanding of foraging ecology in wild populations.

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Movement patterns of California brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) following oiling and rehabilitation

Marine Pollution Bulletin ◽

10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.03.043 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 131 ◽

pp. 22-31 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

J.S. Lamb ◽

C.V. Fiorello ◽

Y.G. Satgé ◽

K. Mills ◽

M. Ziccardi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Movement Patterns ◽

Brown Pelicans ◽

Pelecanus Occidentalis

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DDE in Eggs and Embryos of Brown Pelicans

Nature ◽

10.1038/242341a0 ◽

1973 ◽

Vol 242 (5396) ◽

pp. 341-342 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

I. C. T. NISBET

Keyword(s):

Brown Pelicans

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Long-Term Population and Colony Dynamics of Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) in Rapidly Changing Coastal Louisiana, USA

Waterbirds ◽

10.1675/063.039.0106 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 45-57 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Will Selman ◽

Thomas J. Hess ◽

Jeb Linscombe

Keyword(s):

Brown Pelicans ◽

Coastal Louisiana ◽

Pelecanus Occidentalis ◽

Colony Dynamics

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Host choice and success of gulls and terns kleptoparasitizing brown pelicans

Animal Behaviour ◽

10.1006/anbe.1996.0340 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 53 (3) ◽

pp. 655-665 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

DAVID A SHEALER ◽

TED FLOYD ◽

JOANNA BURGER

Keyword(s):

Host Choice ◽

Brown Pelicans

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POST-RELEASE MONITORING OF OILED BROWN PELICANS FROM THE 2015 REFUGIO OIL SPILL

International Oil Spill Conference Proceedings ◽

10.7901/2169-3358-2017.1.605 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 2017 (1) ◽

pp. 605-617 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Christine Fiorello ◽

Patrick Jodice ◽

Juliet Lamb ◽

Yvan Satge ◽

Kyra Mills-Parker ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oil Spill ◽

Late Summer ◽

Santa Barbara ◽

California Coast ◽

Tag Loss ◽

Brown Pelicans ◽

Early Fall ◽

Solar Powered ◽

Ultimate Fate ◽

And Control

ABSTRACT A great deal of effort and resources is expended on the cleaning and rehabilitation of oiled wildlife, but the ultimate fate of these animals is often unknown. Post-release monitoring is essential for improving methodology and directing resources to those animals most likely to survive after release. The Refugio oil spill occurred in May 2015, spilling approximately 100,000 gallons of oil on the California coast near Santa Barbara. Brown pelicans were the most common avian species affected. We instrumented 12 oiled pelicans with solar-powered satellite GPS tags at the time of their release following cleaning and rehabilitation. An additional 8 control (unoiled) pelicans from a nearby area were similarly instrumented and released immediately. All birds survived for at least 12 weeks. In the first 6 months after release, distance traveled and movements were similar between rehabilitated and control pelicans. Several individuals traveled >5000 km, migrating to northern California or central Oregon in the late summer and early fall. In the spring, most birds traveled south, some as far as southern Baja California. Mortality was documented among both rehabilitated and control birds; however, the majority of birds that stopped transmitting were never found. Lack of transmission could represent mortality, tag or battery failure, or tag loss. After at least 40 weeks of tracking, 5 birds (3 rehabilitated and 2 control) were still transmitting. Based on presence in breeding colonies, none of the birds appeared to breed. These results demonstrate that brown pelicans can survive and travel long distances following oiling and rehabilitation.

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