title: Long-term species, sexual and individual variations in foraging strategies of fur seals revealed by stable isotopes in whiskers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Individual variations in the use of the species niche are an important component of diversity in trophic interactions. A challenge in testing consistency of individual foraging strategy is the repeated collection of information on the same individuals.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The foraging strategies of sympatric fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella and A. tropicalis) were examined using the stable isotope signature of serially sampled whiskers. Most whiskers exhibited synchronous δ(13)C and δ(15)N oscillations that correspond to the seal annual movements over the long term (up to 8 years). δ(13)C and δ(15)N values were spread over large ranges, with differences between species, sexes and individuals. The main segregating mechanism operates at the spatial scale. Most seals favored foraging in subantarctic waters (where the Crozet Islands are located) where they fed on myctophids. However, A. gazella dispersed in the Antarctic Zone and A. tropicalis more in the subtropics. Gender differences in annual time budget shape the seal movements. Males that do not perform any parental care exhibited large isotopic oscillations reflecting broad annual migrations, while isotopic values of females confined to a limited foraging range during lactation exhibited smaller changes. Limited inter-individual isotopic variations occurred in female seals and in male A. tropicalis. In contrast, male A. gazella showed large inter-individual variations, with some males migrating repeatedly to high-Antarctic waters where they fed on krill, thus meaning that individual specialization occurred over years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Whisker isotopic signature yields unique long-term information on individual behaviour that integrates the spatial, trophic and temporal dimensions of the ecological niche. The method allows depicting the entire realized niche of the species, including some of its less well-known components such as age-, sex-, individual- and migration-related changes. It highlights intrapopulation heterogeneity in foraging strategies that could have important implications for likely demographic responses to environmental variability.
authors.affiliation: Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Villiers-en-Bois, France.
authors.forename: Laëtitia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kernaléguen
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cazelles
authors.forename: John P Y
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Arnould
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Richard
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guinet
authors.forename: Yves
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cherel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000864:Antarctic Regions; D002247:Carbon Isotopes; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D046069:Fur Seals / Q000502:physiology*; D005843:Geography; D007553:Isotope Labeling / Q000379:methods*; D007774:Lactation / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D009587:Nitrogen Isotopes; D010507:Periodicity; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013045:Species Specificity; D013997:Time Factors; D014738:Vibrissae / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D058067:Wavelet Analysis
chemical_list: D002247:Carbon Isotopes; D009587:Nitrogen Isotopes