Breeding Biology of Brown Noddies Anous stolidus at Their Southern-Most Breeding Site, Gough Island, in Comparison to Other Sites

[摘要] WeinvestigatedthebreedingbiologyoftheBrownNoddyAnousstolidusatitssouthern-mostbreedinglocality,cold-temperateGoughIsland(40°S)intheSouthAtlanticOcean.Wemonitored19nestsoverthreeseasonsforbreedingschedules,andmeasuredthegrowthofeightchicksandsixfledglingsduringthe2005/06breedingseason.Acrossallseasons,egg-layingoccurredbetween2–12December,meanincubationwas37daysandmedianhatchdatewas15January.Threelatehatchdatessuggestthatreplacementclutchescanbelaidiffailureoccursearlyintheseason.Chicksfledgedafterameanof46days,butremainedinthevicinityofthenestandwereprovisionedbyadultsforupto11days.Hatchingsuccesswas88%,fledgingsuccess92%andbreedingsuccess81%,whichishigherthanatmostothersites.Thesize,chickgrowth-ratesandpre-fledgingfastdisplayedbyGough'sBrownNoddiesaresimilartothatofBrownNoddiesbreedingatothermid-latitudeAtlanticlocations.Thesesimilaritiesofthesemigratorynoddypopulations,aswellasmirroredbreedingschedulessuggestasinglemid-latitudeAtlanticmeta-population.

[学科分类] 动物科学

[关键词] Tropical Seabird