Assessing the impact of urban landfills as feeding sites on physiological parameters of a generalist seabird species

ADAMI MIGUEL; BERTELLOTTI MARCELO; AGÜERO MARÍA LAURA; MARTÍN FRIXIONE; D'AMICO VERÓNICA

Marine Pollution Bulletin

Elsevier Ltd

Año: 2024 vol. 202

focused on the Kelp gull (Larus dominicanus), known for opportunistic feeding in anthropogenic areas, particularlyurban landfills. We assessed the physiological status of Kelp gulls at a landfill and compared it with gullsfrom a protected natural site. Results indicate that gulls from the anthropogenic site exhibited lower levels of keyphysiological parameters linked to diet, including triglycerides, total proteins, uric acid, plasmatic enzyme activity,body condition index, and leukocyte count, in comparison to their counterparts from the natural site.These findings suggest that Kelp gulls experience inferior physical and nutritional conditions when utilizinganthropogenic sites like landfills governmentally managed.