Diet of Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at Stranger Point (25 de Mayo/King George Island, Antarctica) over a 13-year period (2003-2015)

PERCHIVALE, PABLO J.; CORBALÁN, ALDO; SANTOS, M. MERCEDES; PEREIRA, G. ARIEL; CASAUX, RICARDO; CORIA, NÉSTOR R.; BLANCO, GABRIEL; JUARES, MARIANA A.

POLAR BIOLOGY

SPRINGER

Año: 2017 vol. 41 p. 303 - 311

0722-4060

Knowledge of the feeding ecology of a species at local level is fundamental to determine the relationship between the fluctuations in local marine resources and population dynamics of predators. In this study, we examined the diet of Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) during the crèche stage at the Stranger Point colony, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica, over a 13-year period (2002/2003?2014/2015). Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) was the dominant prey for Adélie penguins during the crèche period (contribution: 100% of occurrence and >99.7% by mass). The fish component in the diet represented a small proportion of the total prey (contribution: from 4 to 24% of occurrence but