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Marine mammal mass stranding events (MSEs) are complex phenomena that require detailed investigation into their causes and behavioural precursors. In July 2023, Scotland experienced a large MSE involving 55 long-finned pilot whales ( Globicephala melas ), offering a rare opportunity to examine their pre-stranding feeding ecology and, by extension, habitat use using stable isotopes. We analysed carbon ( δ 13 C) and nitrogen ( δ...
A quarter of all marine methane, a potent greenhouse gas, is estimated to be hosted in Southern Ocean sediments. Climate change-induced ocean warming and ice shelf melting risk the stability of sedimentary gas hydrates, resulting in potential degassing and establishment of marine methane seeps. While methane seeps can originate from various sources, the destabilisation of gas hydrates may contribute to the formation and persis...
Comparative Population Genomic Diversity and Differentiation in Trapdoor Spiders and Relatives (Araneae, Mygalomorphae)NARA Subscribed
Although patterns of population genomic variation are well‐studied in animals, there remains room for studies that focus on non‐model taxa with unique biologies. Here we characterise and attempt to explain such patterns in mygalomorph spiders, which are generally sedentary, often occur as spatially clustered demes and show remarkable longevity. Genome‐wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data were collected for 500 indivi...
Diet of non-breeding leach’s storm-petrels (Hydrobates leucorhous) in the sub-polar frontal zone of the North AtlanticNARA Subscribed
In order to understand the drivers of the distribution and abundance of pelagic seabirds it is necessary to know what they eat, yet there remains little detailed, geo-referenced information on the diets of pelagic seabird. In particular, due to sampling difficulties, information is lacking for non-breeding stages, smaller species, such as storm-petrels, and remote oceanic areas, which may include important diversity hotspots....
Human habitat modification, not apex scavenger decline, drives isotopic niche variation in a carnivore communityNARA Subscribed
Top carnivores can influence the structure of ecological communities, primarily through competition and predation; however, communities are also influenced by bottom-up forces such as anthropogenic habitat disturbance. Top carnivore declines will likely alter competitive dynamics within and amongst sympatric carnivore species. Increasing intraspecific competition is generally predicted to drive niche expansion and/or individua...
Inter-colony and inter-annual variation in discard use by albatross chicks revealed using isotopes and regurgitatesNARA Subscribed
Effective marine ecosystem monitoring is critical for sustainable management. Monitoring seabird diets can convey important information on ecosystem health and seabird–fishery interactions. The diet of breeding black-browed albatross ( Thalassarche melanophris ) has previously been assessed using stomach content analysis (SCA) or stable isotope analysis (SIA), but not both methods together. Combining dietary sampling approache...
Air pollution and poor air quality is impacting human health globally and is a major cause of respiratory and cardiovascular disease and damage to human organ systems. Automated air quality monitoring stations continuously record airborne pollutant concentrations, but are restricted in number, costly to maintain and cannot document all spatial variability of airborne pollutants. Biomonitors, such as lichens, are commonly used...
Prolonging survival in good health is a fundamental societal goal. However, the leading determinants of disability-free survival in healthy older people have not been well established. Data from ASPREE, a bi-national placebo-controlled trial of aspirin with 4.7 years median follow-up, was analysed. At enrolment, participants were healthy and without prior cardiovascular events, dementia or persistent physical disability. Disab...
Stable Isotope Values in South American Fur Seal Pup Whiskers as Proxies of Year-round Maternal Foraging EcologyNARA Subscribed
Natural selection should favour strategies that maximise reproductive success. Females may use different resources during progressive stages of reproduction according to energetic demands, behavioural constraints and prey availability. We used South American fur seal, Arctocephalus australis australis , pup whisker isotope values as proxies for maternal diet and habitat use to determine how resource use (1) changes throughout...
Although species delimitation can be highly contentious, the development of reliable methods to accurately ascertain species boundaries is an imperative step in cataloguing and describing Earth's quickly disappearing biodiversity. Spider species delimitation remains largely based on morphological characters; however, many mygalomorph spider populations are morphologically indistinguishable from each other yet have considerable...
Carbon burial over the last four millennia is regulated by both climatic and land use changeNARA Subscribed
Carbon sequestration by sediments and vegetated marine systems contributes to atmospheric carbon drawdown, but little empirical evidence is available to help separate the effects of climate change and other anthropogenic activities on carbon burial over centennial timescales. We used marine sediment organic carbon to determine the role of historic climate variability and human habitation in carbon burial over the past 5,071 ye...
Motivation The BioTIME database contains raw data on species identities and abundances in ecological assemblages through time. These data enable users to calculate temporal trends in biodiversity within and amongst assemblages using a broad range of metrics. BioTIME is being developed as a community‐led open‐source database of biodiversity time series. Our goal is to accelerate and facilitate quantitative analysis of temporal...
Long‐term individual foraging site fidelity—why some gannets don't change their spotsNARA Subscribed
Many established models of animal foraging assume that individuals are ecologically equivalent. However, it is increasingly recognized that populations may comprise individuals who differ consistently in their diets and foraging behaviors. For example, recent studies have shown that individual foraging site fidelity (IFSF, when individuals consistently forage in only a small part of their population's home range) occurs in som...
Epidermal skin samples from eastern North Atlantic killer whales, Orcinus orca , were analyzed for carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios. From those, comparisons within a data set of 17 samples collected from Tysfjord, Norway, in November suggested that diet is relatively specialized during this time period at this location. There were significant differences between a small set of samples from Iceland and those collected...