An Experimental Study of the At-Sea Movement of a Small, Diving Seabird, and the Biological and Ethical Implications of Wildlif
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AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF THE AT-SEA MOVEMENT OF A SMALL DIVING SEABIRD AND THE BIOLOGICAL AND ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF WILDLIFE TRACKING RESEARCH By Jill L. Robinson© A thesis submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Department of Biology Memorial University of Newfoundland October 2015 St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada i ABSTRACT Year-round ecology and behaviour of seabirds is poorly understood due to difficulties associated with measuring at-sea activity during the non-breeding season. Lightweight biologging devices permit the tracking of individual movement across seasons and periods of the breeding cycle. To examine at-sea distribution of small diving seabirds, I deployed tarsus-mounted geolocators (<1.1 % body mass) on 31 Crested Auklets (Aethia cristatella) in 2011, at a breeding site at Buldir Island, Alaska. I recovered ten of these geolocators in 2012 (three provided usable data), revealing for the first time, an unexpected long-distance migration with substantial habitat overlap among individuals. I also experimentally quantified effects of devices on individuals’ behaviour to evaluate biological and ethical relevance of research. Deleterious effects were detected on chick condition, provisioning rates and social activity, with greatest impacts on return rates. To maintain the rigor required by basic scientific principles, wildlife tracking studies must quantify effects of attached devices and consider the biological relevance of the resulting measurement data concerning the behaviour of interest. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to take the opportunity to thank my supervisor, Dr. Ian L. Jones. His unwavering academic support, boundless encouragement and enthusiasm for my project have helped make this experience overwhelmingly positive. Under the advisement of Ian, I have gained endless skills as a developing scientist and conservationist and throughout this learning process I’ve reaffirmed my passion for wildlife biology. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend three amazing summers in the Aleutian Islands; an experience I will forever cherish. My study was made possible by the incredible support of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, who’s Refuge Manager Steve Delehanty and Biologists Heather Renner and Jeff Williams grant us permission to conduct research on the refuge and always made us feel very welcome there. Research conducted in such a remote field site in the Aleutian Islands would not have been made possible without the efforts of a large team of hardworking, passionate individuals. The employees of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge played an integral part in safely delivering field members and equipment to and from the field site, creating unforgettable memories aboard the research vessel, the Tiglax. Jeff Williams, Lisa Spitler, Billy Pepper and the entire boat crew were invaluable resources, providing necessary logistical support for my project, while instilling enthusiasm, good-natured humour, and professionalism into everything they do. A very special thanks goes out to a select group of people including iii those previously mentioned, as well as Alex Bond and Gary Drew, who went above and beyond to help ensure the success of my project during my first year in the field when I was met with immense technical challenges. Such an intensive project, located at one of the most remote islands in the world, requires support from generous grants and financial aid to make this important research possible. Financial support was provided by a Discovery Grant to ILJ from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, a Challenge Cost Share grant through the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge and student travel was subsidized by the Northern Scientific Training Program of the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development of Canada. My incredible field assistants, Michelle Valiant and Michelle Goh, both contributed endless time and energy into my project, and I cannot thank them enough for their field assistance and friendship. Additionally, members of the Buldir field crew in both years greatly enriched my summer research experience, making camp life on Buldir Island truly amazing. This includes John Warzybok, David Cockerill, Jamie Neil, Matt Henschen, Ronan Dugan, and Carley Schacter. Throughout the learning process of my research involving geolocator deployment, recovery and analysis, and within the constantly changing and developing field of wildlife tracking research, continual technical support was provided by Mike VandenTillart, from Lotek Wireless Inc. Academic support and encouragement from my supervisory committee members, Ian Jones, Yolanda Wiersma and Evan Edinger, was critical in the iv completion of my project. As a member of the Seabird Ecology Research Group, I have received endless academic and most valuable moral support, without which I couldn’t have completed this project. Assistance from all staff and faculty in the biology department of Memorial University of Newfoundland has been incredibly helpful throughout my time at St. John’s campus, and their hard work never went unnoticed. A special thank you goes to my fantastic lab mates, Shanti Davis, Mark Maftei, and Carley Schacter who were there for me during all stages of this master’s experience, offering not only technical, and statistical help, but a strong network of moral support and above all else, friendship. Lastly, I would like to thank the endless support of my family and close friends who were there for me throughout the many challenges I faced throughout my degree. My community of friends, in St. John’s, at home in Shanty Bay, and across the globe have provided continuous emotional support and encouragement that has been paramount to my success in this project. Most importantly, my parents and two sisters have motivated me to no end and I owe much of my success to their unconditional love and support. Thank you so much for helping me to pursue my passion and for encouraging me to never give up on my dreams. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................. iii LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................. xii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... xiii LIST OF APPENDICES .................................................................................................... xvi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................ xvii CO-AUTHORSHIP STATEMENT ...................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 2 1.1 BACKGROUND AND OVERVIEW ......................................................................... 2 1.1.1 Migration .................................................................................................................. 2 1.1.2 Migration and birds .................................................................................................. 3 1.1.3 Migration and seabirds ............................................................................................. 5 1.1.4 Tracking technology applied to seabirds .................................................................. 6 1.1.4.1 Ground-based surveys .............................................................................................. 7 1.1.4.2 Individual-based tracking ........................................................................................ 9 vi 1.1.5 Effects of tracking devices on seabirds .................................................................. 14 1.1.6 Seabird distribution ................................................................................................ 16 1.1.7 Focal Species: Crested Auklet (Aethia cristatella) ................................................ 17 1.1.8 Breeding biology .................................................................................................... 18 1.1.9 Non-breeding biology ............................................................................................ 23 1.2 THESIS FRAMEWORK ............................................................................................... 24 1.2.1 Purpose ................................................................................................................... 24 1.2.2 Objectives............................................................................................................... 24 1.3 STUDY AREA .............................................................................................................. 26 1.4 REFERENCES .............................................................................................................. 30 CHAPTER TWO: ............................................................................................................... 45 AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY MEASURING THE EFFECTS OF A TARSUS- MOUNTED TRACKING DEVICE ON THE BEHAVIOUR OF A SMALL, PURSUIT- DIVING SEABIRD ............................................................................................................