title: Global seabird response to forage fish depletion--one-third for the birds.
abstract: Determining the form of key predator-prey relationships is critical for understanding marine ecosystem dynamics. Using a comprehensive global database, we quantified the effect of fluctuations in food abundance on seabird breeding success. We identified a threshold in prey (fish and krill, termed "forage fish") abundance below which seabirds experience consistently reduced and more variable productivity. This response was common to all seven ecosystems and 14 bird species examined within the Atlantic, Pacific, and Southern Oceans. The threshold approximated one-third of the maximum prey biomass observed in long-term studies. This provides an indicator of the minimal forage fish biomass needed to sustain seabird productivity over the long term.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR EME-212, Centre de Recherche Halieutique Méditerranéenne et Tropicale, Avenue Jean Monnet, Sète Cedex, France. philippe.cury@ird.fr
authors.forename: Philippe M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Cury
authors.forename: Ian L
authors.initials: IL
authors.lastname: Boyd
authors.forename: Sylvain
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bonhommeau
authors.forename: Tycho
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Anker-Nilssen
authors.forename: Robert J M
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Crawford
authors.forename: Robert W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Furness
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Mills
authors.forename: Eugene J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: Henrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Osterblom
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Paleczny
authors.forename: John F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Piatt
authors.forename: Jean-Paul
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Roux
authors.forename: Lynne
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Shannon
authors.forename: William J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Sydeman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018533:Biomass; D001717:Birds / Q000502:physiology*; D046091:Charadriiformes / Q000502:physiology*; D017753:Ecosystem; D005260:Female; D005398:Fisheries; D005399:Fishes; D005502:Food; D020387:Food Chain; D008297:Male; D017711:Nonlinear Dynamics; D011156:Population Density; D011157:Population Dynamics; D011235:Predatory Behavior; D012098:Reproduction; D012623:Seawater; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric