ProjectsMarine Science 202313Sooty Terns on Parasol Island © Malcolm NicollSeabird ConnectivityLead Investigators: Dr. Malcolm Nicoll, Zoological Societyof London, Dr. Matthieu le Corre, Université de la Réunionand Dr. Steve Votier, Heriot-Watt UniversityThis multi-team project is working to understandconnectivity among seabird communities at the scale ofthe Western Indian Ocean, and at a finer scale within theChagos Archipelago. The region is globally significantfor breeding seabirds with 30 seabird species from 54breeding colonies spread across the islands betweenthe Mascarene channel and the Chagos Archipelago.This project team focuses their research on five keyspecies: red-footed booby (Sula sula), sooty tern(Onychoprion fuscatus), wedge-tailed shearwater(Ardenna pacifica), tropical shearwater (Puffinnusbailloni), and greater frigatebird (Fregata minor).In 2023 the team conducted fieldwork in NewCaledonia, Tromelin Island, Round Island, Reunion,Rodrigues and Madagascar working with partnersfrom the Mauritius Wildlife Foundation Rodrigues,Forestry Rodrigues and The Mauritian NationalParks and Conservation Service. Other partnershave contributed samples for analysis from Aldabra,Australia, and Hawaii.Data on red-footed booby ecology were submitted tothe Seychelles Conservation and Climate AdaptationTrust (SeyCCAT) for the Seychelles Marine Spatial Plan,a national planning tool.Using the tropical shearwater as a case study, theteam have been trying to quantify the level of geneflow among seabird colonies to understand how thatrelates to the distribution of several sub-species acrossthe region. The genetic grouping of populations andsub-species into clusters provide useful data for makinginformed decisions about units of conservation acrosslarge spatial areas.In the Chagos Archipelago, the team are using the redfooted booby as a case study to identify mechanismsthat facilitate seabird dispersal. Fieldwork done froma camp on Nelson Island in 2023 adds to a substantialdata set that is starting to explain what factors driveseabird movement, and how and where the birdsdisperse. Tracking data of bird movements whenforaging at sea shows a high degree of segregationof foraging grounds between the different colonies.It also suggests little to no migratory connection withcolonies outside of the protected area around thearchipelago, with birds largely resident. Within theislands, however, dispersal is key to connectivity andrecovery, particularly after any rehabilitation of nativehabitats such as broad-leaved woodland.
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