title: Incubation energetics of the Laysan Albatross.
abstract: The energy expenditure of incubating and foraging Laysan Albatross (Diomedea immutabilis, mean body weight 3.07 kg) was estimated by means of the doubly-labelled water technique. During incubation, the energy expenditure was similar to that of resting birds that were not incubating an egg. The energy expenditure of foraging albatross (2072 kJ/day) was 2.6 times that of resting birds. It was concluded that the energy expenditure of the tropical Laysan Albatross was not less than that of species foraging over cold, high-latitude oceans. An energy budget compiled for an incubating pair of albatross revealed that the energy expenditure of the female was greater than that of the male bird, during the incubation period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, 1960 East West Road, 96822, Honolulu, HI, USA.
authors.forename: T N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Pettit
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biomedical and Environmental Sciences, University of California, 900 Veteran Avenue, 90024, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Nagy
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of San Diego, 92110, San Diego, CA, USA.
authors.forename: H I
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Ellis
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, 1960 East West Road, 96822, Honolulu, HI, USA.
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Whittow
keywords: Albatross; Energetics; Foraging; Incubation; Seabirds