TY - JOUR
T1 - The influence of seabirds on their breeding, roosting and nesting grounds
T2 - A systematic review and meta-analysis
AU - Grant, Megan L.
AU - Bond, Alexander L.
AU - Lavers, Jennifer L.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands where this research was completed. They thank the numerous researchers whose papers have been included in this review and for focusing their efforts on this important and growing topic and everyone from Adrift Lab for being so supportive throughout this process. They extend their special thanks to H. Charlton-Howard, K. Montanaro, E, Styles and A. Teo for reading papers. They also thank two anonymous reviewers, the associate editor and the editor for providing their thoughts. Open access publishing facilitated by University of Tasmania, as part of the Wiley - University of Tasmania agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians. [Correction added on 14-May-22, after first online publication: CAUL funding statement has been added.]
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Animal Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Ecological Society.
PY - 2022/6
Y1 - 2022/6
N2 - Seabird species world-wide are integral to both marine and terrestrial environments, connecting the two systems by transporting vast quantities of marine-derived nutrients and pollutants to terrestrial breeding, roosting and nesting grounds via the deposition of guano and other allochthonous inputs (e.g. eggs, feathers). We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis and provide insight into what types of nutrients and pollutants seabirds are transporting, the influence these subsidies are having on recipient environments, with a particular focus on soil, and what may happen if seabird populations decline. The addition of guano to colony soils increased nutrient levels compared to control soils for all seabirds studied, with cascading positive effects observed across a range of habitats. Deposited guano sometimes led to negative impacts, such as guanotrophication, or guano-induced eutrophication, which was often observed where there was an excess of guano or in areas with high seabird densities. While the literature describing nutrients transported by seabirds is extensive, literature regarding pollutant transfer is comparatively limited, with a focus on toxic and bioaccumulative metals. Research on persistent organic pollutants and plastics transported by seabirds is likely to increase in coming years. Studies were limited geographically, with hotspots of research activity in a few locations, but data were lacking from large regions around the world. Studies were also limited to seabird species listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. As seabird populations are impacted by multiple threats and steep declines have been observed for many species world-wide, gaps in the literature are particularly concerning. The loss of seabirds will impact nutrient cycling at localized levels and potentially on a global scale as well, yet it is unknown what may truly happen to areas that rely on seabirds if these populations disappear.
AB - Seabird species world-wide are integral to both marine and terrestrial environments, connecting the two systems by transporting vast quantities of marine-derived nutrients and pollutants to terrestrial breeding, roosting and nesting grounds via the deposition of guano and other allochthonous inputs (e.g. eggs, feathers). We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis and provide insight into what types of nutrients and pollutants seabirds are transporting, the influence these subsidies are having on recipient environments, with a particular focus on soil, and what may happen if seabird populations decline. The addition of guano to colony soils increased nutrient levels compared to control soils for all seabirds studied, with cascading positive effects observed across a range of habitats. Deposited guano sometimes led to negative impacts, such as guanotrophication, or guano-induced eutrophication, which was often observed where there was an excess of guano or in areas with high seabird densities. While the literature describing nutrients transported by seabirds is extensive, literature regarding pollutant transfer is comparatively limited, with a focus on toxic and bioaccumulative metals. Research on persistent organic pollutants and plastics transported by seabirds is likely to increase in coming years. Studies were limited geographically, with hotspots of research activity in a few locations, but data were lacking from large regions around the world. Studies were also limited to seabird species listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. As seabird populations are impacted by multiple threats and steep declines have been observed for many species world-wide, gaps in the literature are particularly concerning. The loss of seabirds will impact nutrient cycling at localized levels and potentially on a global scale as well, yet it is unknown what may truly happen to areas that rely on seabirds if these populations disappear.
KW - enrichment
KW - guano
KW - marine-derived
KW - mobile link
KW - vector
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85128197992
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85128197992#tab=citedBy
U2 - 10.1111/1365-2656.13699
DO - 10.1111/1365-2656.13699
M3 - Article
C2 - 35395097
AN - SCOPUS:85128197992
SN - 0021-8790
VL - 91
SP - 1266
EP - 1289
JO - Journal of Animal Ecology
JF - Journal of Animal Ecology
IS - 6
ER -
Life below water
Life on land