Abstract
During the last 50 years, the western coast of the Antarctic Peninsula and adjacent archipelagos, also known as the maritime Antarctic, has experienced notable climate warming. As a result, expansion of the local distributions of the two native species of vascular plants, Deschampsia antarctica Desv. and Colobanthus quitensis (Kunth.) Bartl., over previously unoccupied ground has been noted. Birds have been suggested to be partially responsible for this spread. The focus of the present study was to document the use of vascular plants in nest building by the kelp gull (Larus dominicanus) in the Argentine Islands region. During the 2009/2010 season, samples from kelp gull nests were collected and analyzed. Besides nests, material lost by birds during transfer was also studied. We demonstrate that, in the Argentine Islands region, Deschampsia antarctica and some bryophytes contribute the majority of nest building material for the kelp gull. Other materials, including lichens, gull feathers, and limpet shells, are used less frequently. The plants can reestablish upon transfer via vegetative or generative means. It thus seems that the kelp gull may potentially serve as a dispersal agent for Deschampsia antarctica.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Convey P, Bindschadler RA, di Prisco G, Fahrbach E, Gutt J, Hodgson DA, Mayewski P, Summerhayes CP, Turner J (2009) Antarctic climate change and the environment. Antarctic Sci 21:541–563
D’Agostino RB, Belanger A, D’Agostino RB Jr (1990) A suggestion for using powerful and informative tests of normality. Am Stat 44:316–321
Fowbert JA, Lewis Smith RI (1994) Rapid population increases in native vascular plants in the Argentine Islands, Antarctic Peninsula. Arctic Alpine Res 3:290–296
Furness RW (1996) Family Stercorariidae Skuas. In: Handbook of the birds of the world. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, pp 556–571
Gianoli E, Inostoza P, Zuniga-Feest A, Reyes-Diaz M, Cavieres LA, Bravo LA, Corcuera LJ (2004) Ecotypic differentiation in morphology and cold resistance in populations of Colobanthus quitensis (Caryophyllaceae) from Andes of Central Chile and the Maritime Antarctic. AAAR 364:484–489
Hughes K, Ott S, Bölter M, Convey P (2006) Colonisation processes. Trends in Antarctic terrestrial and limnetic ecosystems. In: Bergstrom DM, Convey P, Huiskes A (eds) Antarctica as a global indicator. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 35–54
Longton RE (1979) Vegetation ecology and classification in the Antarctic Zone. Can J Bot 57:2264–2278
Ochyra R, Smith R, Bednarek-Ochyra H (2008) Illustrated moss flora of Antarctica. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Øvstedal DO, Smith RIL (2001) Lichens of Antarctica and South Georgia: a guide to their identification. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Parnikoza I, Inozemtseva DM, Tyschenko OV, Mustafa O, Kozeretska IA (2008a) Antarctic herb tundra colonization zones in the context of ecological gradient of glacial retreat. Ukrainian Bot J 65:504–511
Parnikoza I, Kozeretska O, Kozeretska I (2008b) Is a translocation of indigenous plant material successful in the Maritime Antarctic? Polarforschung 78:25–27
Parnikoza I, Convey P, Dykyy I, Trokhymets V, Milinevsky G, Inozemtseva D, Kozeretska I (2009a) Current status of the Antarctic herb tundra formation in the central Argentine Islands. Global Change Biol 15:1685–1693
Parnikoza I, Trokhymets V, Smykla J, Kunakh V, Kozeretska I (2009b) Comparative study on utilization of vascular plants by Antarctic birds. Electronic Conference on Interactions between Antarctic Life and Environmental Factors, October 22–23, pp 43–47
Peklo AM (2007) The birds of Argentine Islands and Petermann Island. Mineral Publishers, Kryvyi Rih
Rosner B (1983) Percentage points for a generalized ESD many-outlier procedure. Technometrics 25:165–172
Smith RIL (1994) Vascular plants as bioindicators of regional warming in Antarctica. Oecologia 88:322–328
Smith RIL, Corner RWM (1973) Vegetation of the Arthur Harbour–Argentine Islands region of the Antarctic Peninsula. Br Antarct Surv Bull 33–34:89–122
Turner J, Colwell SR, Marshall GJ, Lachlan-Cope TA, Carleton AM, Jones PD, Lagun V, Reid PA, Iagovkina S (2005) Antarctic climate change during the last 50 years. Int J Climatol 25:279–294
Acknowledgments
We express our gratitude to the National Antarctic Scientific Center of the State Agency for Science, Innovation, and Informatization of Ukraine for assistance in this project. This study was done under the contract between the National Antarctic Scientific Center of the State Agency for Science, Innovation and Informatization of Ukraine and the Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics NAS of Ukraine # H/3-2011 “Development of a bioindicator system of climate change in coastal Antarctica based on the dynamics of terrestrial plant cenoses” (2011–2012), as well as a joint project between the NAS of Ukraine and Polisch Academy of Scienses: “Ecological and genetic basis of plants adaptation to extreme environments” (2012–2014).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Parnikoza, I., Dykyy, I., Ivanets, V. et al. Use of Deschampsia antarctica for nest building by the kelp gull in the Argentine Islands area (maritime Antarctica) and its possible role in plant dispersal. Polar Biol 35, 1753–1758 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-012-1212-5
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-012-1212-5