Diet segregation between two colonies of little penguins Eudyptula minor in southeast Australia

Austral Ecology

Volumn 37, Issue 5, 2012, Pages 610-619

  Chiaradia, André ^a   Forero, Manuela G ^b   Hobson, Keith A ^c   Swearer, Stephen E ^d   Hume, Fiona ^a,e   Renwick, Leanne ^a   Dann, Peter ^a  

^a Phillip Island Nature Park   (Australia)

^b DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION BIOLOGY   (Spain)

^c ENVIRONMENT CANADA   (Canada)

^d UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE   (Australia)

^e NONE   (Australia)

Author keywords

Diet; Engraulis australis; Eudyptula minor; Fish size class; Stable isotope

Indexed keywords

BODY SIZE; CARBON ISOTOPE; CLUPEOID; COLONY STRUCTURE; DIET; FEEDING GROUND; NICHE OVERLAP; NITROGEN ISOTOPE; NUTRITIVE VALUE; PREY AVAILABILITY; PREY SIZE; SEABIRD; STABLE ISOTOPE; STOMACH CONTENT; TROPHIC STATUS;

AUSTRALIA; MELBOURNE; PHILLIP ISLAND; SAINT KILDA [VICTORIA]; VICTORIA [AUSTRALIA];

ENGRAULIDAE; ENGRAULIS AUSTRALIS; EUDYPTULA MINOR; SPHENISCIDAE;

EID: 84859963041     PISSN: 14429985     EISSN: 14429993     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1442-9993.2011.02323.x     Document Type: Article

References (68)

1. Arnould J. P. Y., Dann P. & Cullen J. M. (2004) Determining the sex of little penguins (Eudyptula minor) in northern Bass Strait using morphometric measurements. Emu 104, 261-5.
2. Ashmole N. P. (1971) Sea bird ecology and the marine environment. In: Avian Biology (eds D. S. Farner & J. R. King ) pp. 223-86. Academic Press, London.
3. Astheimer L. B. & Grau C. R. (1985) The timing and energetic consequences of egg formation in the Adélie penguin. Condor 87, 256-68.
4. Ballance L. T., Ainley D. G., Ballard G. & Barton K. (2009) An energetic correlate between colony size and foraging effort in seabirds, an example of the Adélie penguin Pygoscelis adeliae. J. Avian Biol. 40, 279-88.
5. Barrett R. T., Camphuysen K. C. J., Anker-Nilssen T. etal. (2007) Diet studies of seabirds: a review and recommendations. ICES J. Mar. Sci. 64, 1675-91.
6. Bates D. & Maechler M. (2009) lme4: linear mixed-effects models using S4 classes. R package version 0.999375-31.[Cited 7 November 2011.] Available from URL:
7. Bearhop S., Waldron S., Votier S. C. & Furness R. W. (2002) Factors that influence assimilation rates and fractionation of nitrogen and carbon stable isotopes in avian blood and feathers. Physiol. Biochem. Zool. 75, 451-8.
8. Blackburn M. (1950) A biological study of the anchovy, Engraulis australis (White), in Australian waters. Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res. 1, 3-84.
9. Bunce A. & Norman F. I. (2000) Changes in the diet of the Australian gannets Morus serrator in response to the 1998 mortality of pilchards Sardinops sagax. Mar. Freshwater Res. 51, 349-52.
10. Burnham K. P. & Anderson D. R. (2004) Multimodel inference: understanding AIC and BIC in Model Selection. Sociol. Methods Res. 33, 261-304.
11. Chiaradia A. & Nisbet I. C. T. (2006) Plasticity in parental provisioning and chick growth in little penguins Eudyptula minor in years of high and low breeding success. Ardea 94, 257-70.
12. Chiaradia A., Dann P., Jessop R. & Collins P. (2002) The diet of Crested Tern, Sterna bergii, chicks on Phillip Island, Victoria. Emu 102, 367-71.
13. Chiaradia A., Costalunga A. & Kerry K. (2003) The diet of little penguins Eudyptula minor at Phillip Island, Victoria, following the 1995 mass mortality of one of their main prey, the pilchard Sardinops sagax. Emu 103, 43-8.
14. Chiaradia A., Ropert-Coudert Y., Kato A., Mattern T. & Yorke J. (2007) Diving behaviour of little penguins from four colonies across their whole distribution range: bathymetry affecting diving effort and fledging success. Mar. Biol. 151, 1535-42.
15. Chiaradia A., Forero M. G., Hobson K. A. & Cullen J. M. (2010) Changes in diet and trophic position of a top predator ten years after a mass mortality of a key prey. ICES J. Mar. Sci. 67, 1710-20.
16. Chiaradia A. F. & Kerry K. R. (1999) Nest attendance and breeding success in the little penguins Eudyptula minor at Phillip Island, Australia. Mar. Ornithol. 27, 13-20.
17. Collins M., Cullen J. M. & Dann P. (1999) Seasonal and annual foraging movements of little penguins from Phillip Island, Victoria. Wildl. Res. 26, 705-21.
18. Coutin P. C. (2006) Australian anchovy Engraulis australis: a literature review. Marine and Freshwater Systems Report Series No 14. Primary Industry Research Victoria, Queenscliff.
19. Cullen J. M., Montague T. L. & Hull C. (1992) Food of little penguins Eudyptula minor in Victoria: comparison of three localities between 1985 and 1988. Emu 91, 318-41.
20. Cullen J. M., Chambers L. E., Dann P. & Coutin P. C. (2009) Predicting the onset and success of breeding of little penguins Eudyptula minor, on Phillip Island from ocean temperatures off south east Australia. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 378, 269-78.
21. Cullen M., Blake N. & Bickham M. (1996) Urban penguins. In: Nature Australia (ed. G. Hickey ) pp. 23-8. Australian Museum, Sydney.
22. Dann P. (1992) Distribution, population trends and factors influencing the population size of little penguins Eudyptula minor on Phillip Island, Victoria. Emu 91, 263-72.
23. Dann P. & Norman F. I. (2006) Population regulation in little penguins (Eudyptula minor): the role of intraspecific competition for nesting sites and food during breeding. Emu 106, 289-96.
24. Dawson R. D. & Bortolotti G. R. (1997) Total plasma protein level as an indicator of condition in wild American kestrels (Falco sparverius). Can. J. Zool. 75, 680-6.
25. Dimmlich W. F., Breed W. G., Geddes M. & Ward T. M. (2004) Relative importance of gulf and shelf waters for spawning and recruitment of Australian anchovy, Engraulis australis, in South Australia. Fisheries Oceanogr. 13, 310-23.
26. Fauchald P. (2009) Spatial interaction between seabirds and prey: review and synthesis. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 391, 139-51.
27. Forero M. G., González-Solís J., Hobson K. A. etal. (2005) Stable isotopes reveal trophic segretation by sex and age in the southern giant petrel in two different food webs. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 296, 107-13.
28. Forero M. G., Hobson K. A., Bortolotti G. R., Donázar J. A., Bertellotti M. & Blanco G. (2002a) Food resource utilisation by the Magellanic penguin evaluated through stable-isotope analysis: segregation by sex and age and influence on offspring quality. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 234, 289-99.
29. Forero M. G., Tella J. L., Hobson K. A., Bertellotti M. & Blanco G. (2002b) Conspecific food competition explains variability in colony size: a test in Magellanic penguins. Ecology 83, 3466-75.
30. France R. L. (1995) Carbon-13 enrichment in benthic compared to planktonic algae: foodweb implications. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 124, 307-12.
31. Fraser M. M. & Lalas C. (2004) Seasonal variation in the diet of blue penguins Eudyptula minor at Oamaru, New Zealand. Notornis 51, 7-15.
32. Fry B. (2006) Stable Isotope Ecology. Springer, New York.
33. Furness R. W. & Birkhead T. R. (1984) Seabird colony distributions suggest competition for food supplies during the breeding season. Nature 311, 655-6.
34. Gales R. P. (1987) Validation of the stomach-flushing technique for obtaining stomach contents of penguins. Ibis 129, 335-43.
35. Gales R. P. (1988a) The use of otoliths as indicators of little penguin Eudyptula minor diet. Ibis 130, 418-26.
36. Gales R. P. (1988b) Water, sodium and energy turnover in free-living little penguins, Eudyptula minor. Aust. J. Zool. 36, 429-40.
37. Gales R. P. & Pemberton D. (1990) Seasonal and local variation in the diet of the little penguin, Eudyptula minor, in Tasmania. Aust. J. Wildl. Res. 17, 231-59.
38. Gormley A. M. & Dann P. (2009) Examination of little penguin winter movements from satellite tracking data. Report: Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria.
39. Harrigan K. E. (1992) Causes of mortality of little penguins Eudyptula minor in Victoria. Emu 91, 273-7.
40. Hobday D. K. (1992) Abundance and distribution of pilchard and Australian anchovy as prey species for the little penguin Eudyptula minor at Phillip Island, Victoria. Emu 91, 342-54.
41. Hobson K. A. (2005) Stable isotopes and the determination of avian migratory connectivity and seasonal interactions. Auk 122, 1037-48.
42. Hobson K. A. & Welch H. E. (1992) Determination of trophic relationships within a high Arctic marine food web using 13C and 15N analysis. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 84, 9-18.
43. Hoedt F. E. & Dimmlich W. F. (1994) Diet of subadult Australian salmon, Arripis truttaceus, in Western Port, Victoria. Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res. 45, 617-23.
44. Hulsman K. (1977) Daily attendance of terns and gulls at One Tree Island. Sunbird 8, 9-19.
45. Jones J. B., Hyatt A. D., Hine P. M., Whittington R. J., Griffin D. A. & Bax N. J. (1997) Special topic review: Australasian pilchard mortalities. World J. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 13, 383-92.
46. Kailola P. J., Williams M. J., Stewart P. C., Reichelt R. E., McNee A. & Grieve C. (1993) Australian Fisheries Resources. Fisheries Research and Development Corporation, Canberra.
47. Kimmerer W. J. (2006) Response of anchovies dampens effects of the invasive bivalve Corbula amurensis on the San Francisco Estuary foodweb. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 324, 207-18.
48. Klasing K. C. (1998) Comparative Avian Nutrition. CAB International, Wallingford.
49. Klomp N. I. & Wooller R. D. (1988) Diet of little penguin, Eudyptula minor, from Penguin Island, Western Australia. Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res. 39, 633-9.
50. Lack D. (1968) Ecological Adaptations for Breeding in Birds. Methuen & Co Ltd, London.
51. McCutcheon C., Dann P., Salton M. etal. (2011) The foraging range of little penguins (Eudyptula minor) during winter. Emu doi: 10.1071/MU10078.
52. Mketsu Q. K. (2008) Comparative dietary analysis of small pelagic fishes from presumed mixed shoals off Souht Africa's East Coast (MSc Thesis). University of Cape Town, Cape Town.
53. Montague T. L. & Cullen J. M. (1988) The diet of the little penguin Eudyptula minor at Phillip Island, Victoria. Emu 88, 139-49.
54. Mortimer L. & Lill A. (2007) Activity-related variation in blood parameters associated with oxygen transport and chronic stress in little penguins. Aust. J. Zool. 55, 249-56.
55. Navarro J., Forero M. G., González-Solís J., Igual J. M., Bécares J. & Hobson K. A. (2009) Foraging segregation between two closely related shearwaters breeding in sympatry. Biol. Lett. 5, 545-8.
56. Newman S. H., Piatt J. F. & White J. (1997) Hematological and plasma biochemical reference ranges of Alaskan seabirds: their ecological significance and clinical importance. Colon Waterbirds 20, 492-504.
57. Preston T. J. (2011) Relationships between foraging behaviour, diet and reproductive success at an urban colony of little penguins (Eudyptula minor), St Kilda, Australia. School of Biological Sciences, Monash Universtiy, Melbourne.
58. Preston T. J., Ropert-Coudert Y., Kato A. etal. (2008) Foraging behaviour of little penguins Eudyptula minor in an artificially modified environment. Endangered Species Res. 4, 95-103.
59. Preston T. J., Chiaradia A., Caarels S. A. & Reina R. D. (2010) Fine scale biologging of an inshore marine animal. J. Exp. Mar. Bio. Ecol. 390, 196-202.
60. R Development Core Team (2009) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. [Cited 7 November 2011.] Available from URL:
61. Schreiber E. A. & Burger J. (2001) Seabird in the marine environment. In: Biology of Marine Birds (eds E. A. Schreiber & J. Burger ) pp. 1-15. CRC Press, Boca Raton.
62. Shealer D. A. (2001) Foraging behavior and food of seabirds. In: Biology of Marine Birds (eds E. A. Schreiber & J. Burger ) pp. 137-77. CRC Press, Boca Raton.
63. van der Lingen C. D., Bertrand A., Bode A. etal. (2009) Trophic dynamics. In: Climate Change and Small Pelagic Fish (eds D. Checkley, J. Alheit, Y. Oozeki & C. Roy ) pp. 112-57. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
64. Ward T. M., Kinloch M., Jones G. K. & Neira F. J. (1998) A collaborative investigation of the usage and stock assessment of baitfish and eastern Australian waters, with special reference to Pilchards Sardinops sagax. South Australian Research and Development Institute.
65. Weavers B. W. (1992) Seasonal foraging ranges and travels at sea of little penguins, determined by radio-tracking. Emu 91, 302-17.
66. Weller D. (2007) Inter-colony movements of the crested tern (Thalasseus bergii) as result of food resource quality and availability (Honour Thesis). Zoology Department, University of Melbourne, Melbourne.
67. Work T. M. (1996) Weights, hematology, and serum chemistry of seven species of free-ranging tropical pelagic seabirds. J. Wildl. Dis. 32, 643-57.
68. Zuur A. F., Ieno E. N., Walker N. J., Saveliev A. A. & Smith G. M. (2009) Mixed Effects Models and Extensions in Ecology with R. Springer, New York.