Prey of the Antarctic fur seal Arctocephalus gazella at Marion Island

dc.contributor.authorMakhado, Azwianewi Benedict
dc.contributor.authorBester, Marthan Nieuwoudt
dc.contributor.authorKirkman, Steve P. (Stephen Patrick)
dc.contributor.authorPistorius, Pierre Anton
dc.contributor.authorFerguson, Jan Willem Helenus
dc.contributor.authorKlages, N.T.W.
dc.date.accessioned2009-04-16T07:10:34Z
dc.date.available2009-04-16T07:10:34Z
dc.date.issued2008
dc.description.abstractThe prey of Antarctic fur seals, Arctocephalus gazella, was investigated through scat analysis at Marion Island from 1996 until 2000. A total of 25 different prey species were identified from scats, of which 21 were fish, 1 crustacean and 3 cephalopods. Fish were by far the main prey item, occurring in 96.1% of samples, followed by crustaceans (2.7%) and cephalopods (1.2%). Fishes from the family Myctophidae (Gymnoscopelus piabilis, Electrona carlsbergi, G. fraseri and E. subaspera) were the most abundant prey (97.2%) every year, while those from the families Notothenididae, Paralepididae, Notosudidae, Microstomatidae and Gempylidae were present in small numbers. G. piabilis, E. carlsbergi, E. subaspera and G. nicholsi contributed the most in terms of biomass to the diet. Significant seasonal differences existed in the diet when comparing summer and winter. G. piabilis, K. anderssoni, P. bolini and P. choriodon dominated in summer as opposed to E. carlsbergi, E. subaspera, G. fraseri and G. nicholsi that dominated in winter. The fish varied in size and mass, from the small K. anderssoni to the large Paranotothenia magellanica. Cephalopods and the crustacean Nauticaris marionis, in very low numbers and in winter, appeared in the scats, but not in all years of study. Unidentified penguin remains rarely turned up in scats.en_US
dc.identifier.citationMakhado, AB, Bester, MN, Kirkman, SP, Pistorius, PA, Ferguson, JWH & Klages, NTW 2008, ‘Prey of the Antarctic fur seal Arctocephalus gezella at Marion Island’, Polar Biology, vol. 31, no. 5, pp. 575-581. [http://www.springer.com/life+sci/ecology/journal/300]en_US
dc.identifier.issn0722-4060
dc.identifier.other10.1007/s00300-007-0391-y
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/9654
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherSpringeren_US
dc.rightsSpringer. The original publication is available at www.springerlink.comen_US
dc.subjectArctocephalus gazellaen_US
dc.subjectOtolithsen_US
dc.subjectPrey speciesen_US
dc.subjectFrequency of occurrenceen_US
dc.subjectNumerical abundanceen_US
dc.titlePrey of the Antarctic fur seal Arctocephalus gazella at Marion Islanden_US
dc.typePostprint Articleen_US

Files

Original bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Makhado_Prey(2008).pdf
Size:
159.15 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format

License bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
2.43 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description: