Abstract:
Gaining a clear understanding of how ecological communities will respond to global climate change in the future is of paramount importance. Marine predators can serve as an indicator of ecosystem health as their behaviour, specifically foraging, reflect lower down changes in the food chain. King penguins, Aptenodytes patagonicus, are one of the key predatory consumers in the Southern Ocean and the species also makes up a significant portion of the total seabird mass at the Prince Edward Islands. Much work has been done on King penguins at other islands in the Southern Ocean, however, very little is known about their foraging behaviour during the breeding season at the Prince Edward Islands. Marine top predators often feed at the highly productive Antarctic Polar Front and climate change projections suggest that this front is and will continue to move southwards due to rising sea temperatures. As a result, marine predators are having to travel increasing distances from breeding islands for foraging and feeding their offspring, which potentially results in lower breeding success. This study investigates the spatial foraging patterns of King penguins using tracking data collected at Marion Island over a three year period. It furthermore investigates trophic segregation between King penguins and other myctophid specialists, particularly sympatric sub-Antarctic and Antarctic fur seals. It is important to understand the foraging ecology of king penguins so that we are able to more accurately predict what future impacts climate change may have on the species. - Abstract as displayed in the - Abstract booklet. The presentation on the day may differ from the - Abstract.
