Ecological Drivers of Brown Pelican Movement Patterns, Health, and Reproductive Success in the Gulf of Mexico
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OCS Study BOEM 2020-036 Ecological Drivers of Brown Pelican Movement Patterns, Health, and Reproductive Success in the Gulf of Mexico US Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management New Orleans Office OCS Study BOEM 2020-036 Ecological Drivers of Brown Pelican Movement Patterns, Health, and Reproductive Success in the Gulf of Mexico Authors Juliet S. Lamb Yvan G. Satgé Rochelle A. Streker Patrick G.R. Jodice Prepared under BOEM Contract M12PG00014 by US Geological Survey South Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Unit 260 Lehotsky Hall Clemson University Clemson, SC 29634 Published by US Department of the Interior New Orleans, LA Bureau of Ocean Energy Management June 2020 New Orleans Office DISCLAIMER This study was funded, in part, by the US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Environmental Studies Program, Washington, DC, through Interagency Agreement Number M12PG00014 with the US Geological Survey South Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. This report has been technically reviewed by BOEM, and it has been approved for publication. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the opinions or policies of BOEM. This report has been peer reviewed and approved for publication consistent with USGS Fundamental Science Practices (https://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/1367/). REPORT AVAILABILITY To download a PDF file of this report, go to the US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Data and Information Systems webpage (http://www.boem.gov/Environmental-Studies- EnvData/), click on the link for the Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS), and search on 2020-036. The report is also available at the National Technical Reports Library at https://ntrl.ntis.gov/NTRL/. CITATION Lamb JS, Satgé YG, Streker RA, Jodice PGR. 2020. Ecological drivers of brown pelican movement patterns, health, and reproductive success in the Gulf of Mexico. New Orleans (LA): US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. 234 p. Report No.: BOEM 2020-036. Contract No.: M12PG00014. ABOUT THE COVER An Eastern brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis carolinensis) returns to its nest on Raccoon Island, Louisiana. Photo credit: S. Desaivre 2014. Contents List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................................. iv List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................................. viii List of Abbreviations and Acronyms .......................................................................................................................... x 1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................... 13 1.1 Baseline Habitat Use .................................................................................................................................. 14 1.2 Risk Exposure ............................................................................................................................................ 15 1.3 Ecology and Physiology of Reproduction ................................................................................................... 16 1.4 Foraging Ecology ........................................................................................................................................ 18 2 Methods ............................................................................................................................................................. 20 2.1 Study Area .................................................................................................................................................. 20 2.1.1 Colony Selection .................................................................................................................................... 20 2.1.2 Data Collection Schedule ....................................................................................................................... 21 2.2 Individual Tracking ...................................................................................................................................... 21 2.2.1 Capture Technique ................................................................................................................................. 21 2.2.2 Measurements and Sampling ................................................................................................................. 21 2.2.3 Tracking Devices .................................................................................................................................... 22 2.3 Annual Habitat Use by Adults ..................................................................................................................... 23 2.3.1 Data Screening and Interpolation ........................................................................................................... 23 2.3.2 Habitat Variables .................................................................................................................................... 24 2.3.3 Habitat Selection .................................................................................................................................... 24 2.3.4 Movement States ................................................................................................................................... 25 2.3.5 Statistical Analyses ................................................................................................................................ 25 2.4 Risk Exposure ............................................................................................................................................ 25 2.4.1 Surface Pollutant Data Layer ................................................................................................................. 25 2.4.2 Individual Risk Exposure ........................................................................................................................ 26 2.5 Ecology and Physiology of Reproduction ................................................................................................... 26 2.5.1 Nest Monitoring ...................................................................................................................................... 26 2.5.2 Nestling Health ....................................................................................................................................... 27 2.5.3 Nest and Fledging Success .................................................................................................................... 28 2.5.4 Post-fledging Survival ............................................................................................................................. 29 2.5.5 Statistical Analysis .................................................................................................................................. 29 2.6 Nestling Diet ............................................................................................................................................... 30 2.6.1 Diet Sampling ......................................................................................................................................... 30 2.6.2 Diet Composition .................................................................................................................................... 30 2.6.3 Provisioning Rates ................................................................................................................................. 31 2.6.4 Proximate Composition and Energy Density .......................................................................................... 31 2.6.5 Energy Provisioning Rates ..................................................................................................................... 32 2.7 Health and Physiological Parameters ......................................................................................................... 33 2.7.1 Blood Analytes ....................................................................................................................................... 33 2.7.2 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons ......................................................................................................... 35 3 Individual Tracking............................................................................................................................................ 46 3.1 Tag Effects ................................................................................................................................................. 46 3.1.1 Behavioral Effects .................................................................................................................................. 46 i 3.1.2 Effects on Nesting Success .................................................................................................................... 46 3.2 Foraging Movements and Home Range during the Breeding Period ......................................................... 49 3.3 Non-breeding Movements and Migratory Strategy ..................................................................................... 51 3.3.1 Influence