Abstract
Anti-predatory behaviour is widespread among a broad range of animal taxa, including birds. Nest defence is not without risk, however, and parent birds face a trade-off between the survival of their offspring and the risk of injury or mortality to themselves. This study focused on the anti-predator behaviour of the Sabine’s gull (Xema sabini), a ground-nesting, Arctic breeder. Specifically, we quantified the gulls’ behavioural response towards natural predators, a human intruder, experimental predator decoys, and a non-predatory decoy. Neither the distance at which nesting Sabine’s gulls first reacted to natural predators, nor the relative intensity of their response, differed with incubation stage or predator type. However, response behaviour was highly variable among pairs. In response to decoys, Sabine’s gulls responded strongly towards predatory species, compared with a non-predatory species. The distance at which they first swooped at a human intruder was also variable, and there was no seasonal trend. Sabine’s gulls were often joined in nest defence by conspecifics, Arctic terns, and shorebirds nesting nearby, although the number of conspecifics involved in attacks was not related to the proximity of neighbouring nests.
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Acknowledgements
We are grateful to the community of Coral Harbour for permission to work in East Bay, Southampton Island, Nunavut. We are deeply indebted to Rachel Bryant for her dedication and assistance in the field, and to all members of the East Bay field crews for their assistance, encouragement and companionship over the years of this study. We thank Greg Robertson for statistical advice, and two anonymous referees for their insightful comments on an earlier draft. Research was supported by the Northern Conservation Division of the Canadian Wildlife Service (HGG), NSERC (via a Discovery Grant to WAM), Memorial University of Newfoundland (via a graduate fellowship and the Hatcher Scholarship to IJS), and The Seabird Group (via a research grant to IJS).
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Stenhouse, I.J., Gilchrist, H.G. & Montevecchi, W.A. An experimental study examining the anti-predator behaviour of Sabine’s gulls (Xema sabini) during breeding. J Ethol 23, 103–108 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-004-0135-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-004-0135-1