CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Sexual segregation in habitat use occurs when sexes differ in their use of the physicalenvironment and is widely reported among seabirds. The Black-browed Albatross(Thalassarche melanophris) is one of the most abundant seabird species in the south-westAtlantic, but whether the sexes differ in their habitat selection during winter remains unknown.Here, we tested for sexual segregation in adult and immature Black-browed Albatrosses duringwinter. Movement data from 21 satellite-tracked Black-browed Albatrosses across the southwestAtlantic Ocean between 2011 and 2015 were used to determine suitable foraging habitatfor males (n = 7) and females (n = 14) using habitat selection models. Sexual segregation wasthen assessed using an index of niche overlap for immature and adult age classes. Variableswith the highest importance in habitat selection models across all groups were depth and seasurface temperature. The highest probabilities of occurrence were in shallow waters andintermediate surface temperatures. No sexual segregation was found which may be becauseof the large abundance of prey in the region and moderate energy requirements during thenon-breeding season. These results are relevant for spatially explicit conservation managementin this region, including the designation of marine protected areas. Indeed, bycatch in fisheriesis a major threat to seabirds in this area, and foraging behaviour and performance in winter ofthis keystone species will influence their future reproductive performance.

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