Seabird life history and climate variation on the Great Barrier Reef, 2001 - 2010 (MTSRF 2.5i.2, JCU)

To date the seabird research program has:

1. Quantified how increases in El-Nino intensity and sea-surface temperatures (SST) result in decreased breeding participation, increased foraging effort, reduced food availability, poor chick growth and/or reproductive failure across multiple seabird species in both the northern and southern GBR.
2. Identified important seabird foraging areas/regions that the lie both within and outside the GBR region
3. Identified physiochemical and oceanographic correlates associated with both the important foraging areas and El-Nino/SST impacts
4. Examined the relative impacts of other anthropogenic and non-anthropogenic stressors such as cyclone frequency and tourist visitation rates at a key breeding site
5. Examined the ability of multiple pelagic foraging seabird species to copy with climate related changes in food availability via behavioural and/or developmental plasticity.

References:

• Devney et al. 2009 Sensitivity of tropical seabirds to El Niño precursors Ecology 90:1175-1183
• Congdon et al. 2007 Vulnerability of seabirds on the Great Barrier Reef to climate change In: Johnson J. & Marshall P. (eds) Climate change and the Great Barrier Reef. GBRMPA, Canberra
• Erwin & Congdon 2007 Day-to-day variation in sea-surface temperature reduces sooty tern foraging success on the GBR. MEPS 331:255-266
• Congdon et al. 2005 Dual-foraging and co-ordinated provisioning in a tropical Procellariiform MEPS 301:293-301
• Peck et al. 2004 Sea-surface temperature constrains wedge-tailed shearwater foraging success within breeding seasons MEPS 281:259-266
• Smithers et al. 2003 Elevated sea-surface temperature reduced provisioning and reproductive failure of wedge-tailed shearwaters in the Southern GBR. Marine & Freshwater Research 55:973-977