Diving patterns and performance in the Antarctic blue-eyed shag Phalacrocorax atriceps

The pattern and characteristics of diving of two male blue-eyed shags Phalacrocorax atriceps were studied, using continuous-recording time-depth recorders, for a total of 15 consecutive days during which the depth, duration, bottom time, ascent and descent rates and surface intervals of 674 dives were recorded. Deep dives (> 35 m, averages80–90 m, max. 116 m) were twice as common (64% versus 34%) as shallow dives (< 21 m and 90% < 10 m). Deep dives were long (averages 2.7-4.1 min, max. 5.2 min) with half the time spent near maximum depth and fast travel speeds (averages 1.0-2.4 m s⁻¹). Shallow dives were short (average 0.5 min, max. 1.3 min), without bottom time and with slow travel speeds (0.1–0.6 m s⁻¹). The time spent at depth and the diet (mainly benthic fish and octopus) is consistent with benthic foraging; the function of shallow dives is uncertain. Male shags forage mainly in the afternoon in3–5 distinct bouts of diving. Within bouts (and shorter homogeneous sequences of diving) surface intervals are consistently2–3 times the preceding dive duration; in other shags the reverse is the case. Blue-eyed shag diving depth, duration and pattern is extreme amongst shags; and the relationship between dives and surface intervals suggests that they may regularly exceed their aerobic dive limit.     

When cormorants go fishing: the differing costs of hunting for sedentary and motile prey

Cormorants hunt both benthic (sedentary) and pelagic (motile) prey but it is not known if the energy costs of foraging on these prey differ. We used respirometry to measure the costs of diving in double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) foraging either for sedentary (fish pieces) or motile (juvenile salmon) prey in a deep dive tank. Short dives for sedentary prey were more expensive than dives of similar duration for motile prey (e.g. 20% higher for a 10s dive) whereas the reverse was true for long dives (i.e. long dives for motile prey were more expensive than for sedentary prey). Across dives of all durations, the foraging phase of the dive was more expensive when the birds hunted motile prey, presumably due to pursuit costs. The period of descent in all the dives undertaken appears to have been more expensive when the birds foraged on sedentary prey, probably due to a higher swimming speed during this period.     

Flexible foraging techniques in breeding Cormorants Phalacrocorax carbo and Shags Phalacrocorax aristotelis: benthic or pelagic feeding?

A total of 8772 dive durations were recorded during 117 diving bouts in five Cormorants Phalacrocorax carbo and five Shags Phalacrocorax aristotelis breeding at the Chausey Islands, France. Diet of the birds was assessed by analysis of 526 pellets containing 13,016 otoliths. Radio-tracking data indicated that Cormorants fed exclusively on pelagic fish during social fishing (5% of the trips) and executed 11% pelagic and 60% benthic dives during the remaining 95% of the trips. In Shags, 44% of all trips were pelagic, and the remaining 56% included 9% pelagic and 67% benthic dives. The proportions of benthic to pelagic dives varied widely between dive sequences of single birds and between individuals and sexes in both species. The prey spectrum of the Cormorants contained both pelagic (29%) and benthic fish (67%) and confirmed considerable flexibility in foraging. In Shags, birds may adjust their diving patterns to accommodate the behaviour of their main prey, sandeels Ammodytidae (87% of all prey). We propose that the wetability of plumage may explain this flexibility.     

Underwater observations of foraging free-living Atlantic walruses (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) and estimates of their food consumption

Food consumption of Atlantic walruses (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus L.) was quantified by combining underwater observations of feeding with satellite-telemetry data on movement and diving activity. The study was conducted between 31 July and 7 August 2001 in Young Sound (74°N-20°W) in Northeast Greenland. On ten occasions, divers were able to accompany foraging walruses to the sea floor and collect the shells of newly predated bivalves (Mya truncata, Hiatella arctica, Serripes groenlandicus) for determination of number of prey and biomass ingested per dive. Simultaneously, the activity of a 1,200-kg adult male walrus was studied by use of satellite-telemetry during an entire foraging cycle that included 74 h at sea followed by a 23-h rest on land. An average of 53.2 bivalves (SE=5.2, range: 34-89, n=10) were consumed per dive, corresponding to 149.0 g shell-free dry matter (SE=18.9, range: 62.4-253.1 g), or 2,576 kJ per dive (SE=325.2, range: 1,072-4,377 kJ). During the foraging trip, the walrus spent 57% of the time diving to depths of between 6 and 32 m, and it made a total of 412 dives that lasted between 5 and 7 min (i.e. typical foraging dives). If the entire feeding cycle is considered (97 h), the estimated daily gross energy intake was 214 kJ per kg body mass (95% CI: 153-275 kJ), corresponding to the ingestion of 57 kg (95% CI: 41-72 kg) wet weight bivalve biomass per day, or 4.7 (95% CI: 3.3-5.9%) of total walrus body mass. Due to ice cover, walrus access to the plentiful inshore bivalve banks in the area is restricted to the short summer period, where walruses rely on them for replenishing energy stores. It is hypothesised that the documented decrease in the extent and duration of Arctic sea ice may increase food availability for walruses in eastern Greenland in the future.     

Regional heterothermy and conservation of core temperature in emperor penguins diving under sea ice

Temperatures were recorded at several body sites in emperor penguins (Aptenodytes forsteri) diving at an isolated dive hole in order to document temperature profiles during diving and to evaluate the role of hypothermia in this well-studied model of penguin diving physiology. Grand mean temperatures (+/-S.E.) in central body sites during dives were: stomach: 37.1+/-0.2 degrees C (n=101 dives in five birds), pectoral muscle: 37.8+/-0.1 degrees C (n=71 dives in three birds) and axillary/brachial veins: 37.9+/-0.1 degrees C (n=97 dives in three birds). Mean diving temperature and duration correlated negatively at only one site in one bird (femoral vein, r=-0.59, P<0.05; range <1 degrees C). In contrast, grand mean temperatures in the wing vein, foot vein and lumbar subcutaneous tissue during dives were 7.6+/-0.7 degrees C (n=157 dives in three birds), 20.2+/-1.2 degrees C (n=69 in three birds) and 35.2+/-0.2 degrees C (n=261 in six birds), respectively. Mean limb temperature during dives negatively correlated with diving duration in all six birds (r=-0.29 to -0.60, P<0.05). In two of six birds, mean diving subcutaneous temperature negatively correlated with diving duration (r=-0.49 and -0.78, P<0.05). Sub-feather temperatures decreased from 31 to 35 degrees C during rest periods to a grand mean of 15.0+/-0.7 degrees C during 68 dives of three birds; mean diving temperature and duration correlated negatively in one bird (r=-0.42, P<0.05). In general, pectoral, deep venous and even stomach temperatures during diving reflected previously measured vena caval temperatures of 37-39 degrees C more closely than the anterior abdominal temperatures (19-30 degrees C) recently recorded in diving emperors. Although prey ingestion can result in cooling in the stomach, these findings and the lack of negative correlations between internal temperatures and diving duration do not support a role for hypothermia-induced metabolic suppression of the abdominal organs as a mechanism of extension of aerobic dive time in emperor penguins diving at the isolated dive hole. Such high temperatures within the body and the observed decreases in limb, anterior abdomen, subcutaneous and sub-feather temperatures are consistent with preservation of core temperature and cooling of an outer body shell secondary to peripheral vasoconstriction, decreased insulation of the feather layer, and conductive/convective heat loss to the water environment during the diving of these emperor penguins.     

Sex and individual differences in foraging behavior of Japanese cormorants in years of different prey availability

Japanese cormorants, Phalacrocorax capillatus, are sexually dimorphic seabirds with males that are heavier and that dive deeper than females. Sex differences in prey composition and foraging behavior of those rearing chicks at Teuri Island, Hokkaido, were examined by collecting food-loads from parents in 1992–1998 and by radio-tracking ten birds each in 1997 and 1998 when prey availability was different. Males fed more on benthic and epibenthic fishes (82% mass) than did females (34%) while females fed more on epipelagic and coastal fishes (53%) than did males (18%). Males made longer dives (53 s) at feeding sites closer to the island (7 km) than females (39 s, 13 km) in 1997. In 1998 when the availability of epipelagic fish seemed to be higher, there were no sex differences in dive duration and distance to the feeding sites (35 s and 9 km for males, 36 s and 10 km for females). This sex difference in foraging behavior with a poor availability of epipelagic fish suggests that high diving ability possibly enables males to feed on demersal fish. Birds specializing in coastal shallow waters around the island made long dives; hence they were probably foraging in bottom layers. Those foraging in deeper shelf waters made short dives and they were thought to forage in surface layers. Electronic Publication     

SUMMER DIVING BEHAVIOR OF MALE WALRUSES IN BRISTOL BAY, ALASKA

Pacific walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus divergens ) make trips from ice or land haul-out sites to forage for benthic prey. We describe dive and trip characteristics from time-depth-recorder data collected over a one-month period during summer from four male Pacific walruses in Bristol Bay, Alaska. Dives were classified into four types. Shallow (4 m), short (2.7 min), square-shaped dives accounted for 11% of trip time, and many were probably associated with traveling. Shallow (2 m) and very short (0.5 min) dives composed only 1% of trip time. Deep (41 m), long (7.2 min), square-shaped dives accounted for 46% of trip time and were undoubtedly associated with benthic foraging. V-shaped dives ranged widely in depth, were of moderate duration (4.7 min), and composed 3% of trip time. These dives may have been associated with navigation or exploration of the seafloor for potential prey habitat. Surface intervals between dives were similar among dive types, and generally lasted 1–2 min. Total foraging time was strongly correlated with trip duration and there was no apparent diel pattern of diving in any dive type among animals. We found no correlation between dive duration and postdive surface interval within dive types, suggesting that diving occurred within aerobic dive limits. Trip duration varied considerably within and among walruses (0.3–9.4 d), and there was evidence that some of the very short trips were unrelated to foraging. Overall, walruses were in the water for 76.6% of the time, of which 60.3% was spent diving.     

Diving behaviour of the Shy Albatross Diomedea cauta in Tasmania: initial findings and dive recorder assessment

The diving behaviour of the Shy Albatross Diomedea cauta was investigated using archival time-depth recorders (TDRs) and maximum depth gauges (MDGs). Data from birds carrying multiple devices and from diving simulations indicated that the degree of correspondence between TDRs and MDGs varied with the dive depth, duration and frequency, as well as with body placement. The MDGs were the most reliable when the diving depth was greater than 0.5 m, when the diving frequency was low and when gauges were placed on the birds' backs. The TDRs were used during late incubation and early chick rearing in 1994. Fifty-two dives (0.4 m) were recorded during 20 foraging trips of 15 individuals. The majority of dives were within the upper 3 m of the water column and lasted for less than 6 s. However, dives to 7.4 m and others lasting 19 s were recorded. The albatrosses dived between 07.00 h and 22.00 h, with peaks in their diving activity near midday and twilight. Mean diving depth varied throughout the day. with the deepest dives occurring between 10.00 h and 12.00 h. Two dive types were identified on the basis of the relationship between dive depth and descent rate. Plunge dives were short (5 s), and the birds reached a maximum depth of 2.9 m. Swimming dives were both longer and deeper. The characteristics of Shy Albatross plunge dives were similar to those of gannets Morus spp., which are known to be proficient plunge divers. Swimming dives suggest that Shy Albatrosses actively pursue prey underwater.     

Diving pattern and performance in relation to foraging ecology in the gentoo penguin, Pygoscelis papua

We present data on diving pattern and performance (dive depth, duration, frequency and organization during the foraging trip) in gentoo penguins Pygoscelis papua , obtained using time-depth recorders ( n = 9 birds, 99 foraging trips). These data are used to estimate various parameters of foraging activity, e.g. foraging range, prey capture rates, and are compared in relation to breeding chronology. Foraging trip duration was 6 h and 10 h, and trip frequency 1.0/day and 0.96/day, during the brooding and creche periods, respectively. Birds spent on average 52%of each foraging trip diving. Dive depth and duration were highly bimodal: shallow dives (< 21 m) averaged 4 m and 0.23 min, and deep dives (> 30 m) 80 m and 2.5 min, respectively. Birds spent on average 71%and 25%of total diving time in deep and shallow dives, respectively. For deep dives, dive duration exceeded the subsequent surface interval, but shallow dives were followed by surface intervals 2–3 times dive duration. We suggest that most shallow dives are searching/exploratory dives and most deep dives are feeding dives. Deep dives showed clear diel patterns averaging 40 m at dawn and dusk and 80–90 m at midday. Estimated foraging ranges were 2.3 km and 4.1 km during the brood and creche period, respectively. Foraging trip duration increased by 4 h between the brood and creche periods but total time spent in deep dives (i.e. time spent feeding) was the same (3 h). Of 99 foraging trips, 56%consisted of only one dive bout and 44%of 2–4 bouts delimited by extended surface intervals > 10 min. We suggest that this pattern of diving activity reflects variation in spatial distribution of prey rather than the effect of physiological constraints on diving ability.     

Pushed for time or saving on fuel: fine-scale energy budgets shed light on currencies in a diving bird

Animals may forage using different currencies depending on whether time minimization or energy maximization is more pertinent at the time. Assessment of net energy acquisition requires detailed information on instantaneous activity-specific power use, which varies according to animal performance, being influenced, for example, by speed and prey loading, and which has not been measured before in wild animals. We used a new proxy for instantaneous energy expenditure (overall dynamic body acceleration), to quantify foraging effort in a model species, the imperial shag Phalacrocorax atriceps, during diving. Power costs varied nonlinearly with depth exploited owing to depth-related buoyancy. Consequently, solutions for maximizing the gross rate of gain and energetic efficiency differed for dives to any given depth. Dive effort in free-ranging imperial shags measured during the breeding season was consistent with a strategy to maximize the gross rate of energy gain. We suggest that the divergence of time and energy costs with dive depth has implications for the measurement of dive efficiency across diverse diving taxa.     

Diving behaviour and energetics in breeding little penguins (Eudyptula minor)

We present data on the diving behaviour and the energetics of breeding little penguins in Tasmania, Australia. Using an 18 m long still water canal in conjunction with respirometry, we determined the energy requirements while diving. Using electronic devices measuring dive depth or swimming speed, we investigated the foraging behaviour at sea. Cost of Transport was calculated to be minimal at the speed the birds prefer at sea (1.8 m/s) and averaged 11.1 J/kg/m (power requirements at that speed: 20.0 W/kg). Metabolic rate of little penguins resting in water was found to be 8.5 W/kg. The externally-attached devices had no significant influence on the energy expenditure.
Foraging trips can be divided into four distinct phases with different diving behaviours. A mean of 500 dives was executed per foraging trip lasting about 18 hours with 60% of this time being spent swimming. The total distance travelled averaged 73 km per day, although foraging range was about 12km. Mean swimming speed of little penguins at sea was 1.8 m/s, maximum swimming speed was 3.3 m/s. More than 50% of all dives had maxima not exceeding 2 m. Maximum depth reached was 27 m. Mean dive duration was 21 s. There were inter-sex differences in diving behaviour as well as changes in foraging behaviour over the breeding period. Aerobic dive limits (ADL) in the wild were estimated between 42 and 50 s. From the swim canal experiments we derived an ADL of 44 s. Total oxygen stores were calculated to be 45 ml O₂/kg. Only 2% of all dives exceeded the ADL. FMRs at sea were calculated to be between 1280 and 1500 kJ/kg/d according to chick size. The yearly food requirements of a breeding little penguin amount to 114 kg.     

The diving behavior of blue and fin whales: is dive duration shorter than expected based on oxygen stores?

Many diving seabirds and marine mammals have been found to regularly exceed their theoretical aerobic dive limit (TADL). No animals have been found to dive for durations that are consistently shorter than their TADL. We attached time-depth recorders to 7 blue whales and 15 fin whales (family Balaenopteridae). The diving behavior of both species was similar, and we distinguished between foraging and traveling dives. Foraging dives in both species were deeper, longer in duration and distinguished by a series of vertical excursions where lunge feeding presumably occurred. Foraging blue whales lunged 2.4 (+/-1.13) times per dive, with a maximum of six times and average vertical excursion of 30.2 (+/-10.04) m. Foraging fin whales lunged 1.7 (+/-0.88) times per dive, with a maximum of eight times and average vertical excursion of 21.2 (+/-4.35) m. The maximum rate of ascent of lunges was higher than the maximum rate of descent in both species, indicating that feeding lunges occurred on ascent. Foraging dives were deeper and longer than non-feeding dives in both species. On average, blue whales dived to 140.0 (+/-46.01) m and 7.8 (+/-1.89) min when foraging, and 67.6 (+/-51.46) m and 4.9 (+/-2.53) min when not foraging. Fin whales dived to 97.9 (+/-32.59) m and 6.3 (+/-1.53) min when foraging and to 59.3 (+/-29.67) m and 4.2 (+/-1.67) min when not foraging. The longest dives recorded for both species, 14.7 min for blue whales and 16.9 min for fin whales, were considerably shorter than the TADL of 31.2 and 28.6 min, respectively. An allometric comparison of seven families diving to an average depth of 80-150 m showed a significant relationship between body mass and dive duration once Balaenopteridae whales, with a mean dive duration of 6.8 min, were excluded from the analysis. Thus, the short dive durations of blue whales and fin whales cannot be explained by the shallow distribution of their prey. We propose instead that short duration diving in large whales results from either: (1) dispersal behavior of prey; or (2) a high energetic cost of foraging.     

Diet and diving behaviour of European Storm Petrels Hydrobates pelagicus in the Mediterranean (ssp. melitensis)

Capsule Unlike Atlantic populations, which feed on krill, Mediterranean populations feed mainly on pelagic fish Gymnammodites cicerellus.

Aims To determine the diet and dive depth of the Mediterranean subspecies of European Storm Petrels Hydrobates pelagicus melitensis.

Methods Analysis of regurgitates of adults arriving at the colony for chick feeding and by determination of dives depth using the capillary tube method.

Results The main prey is Gymnammodites cicerellus, a pelagic fish. Storm Petrels dive for their prey and can reach up to 5 m in depth. They also make short foraging trips just outside the colony where they capture Opossum Shrimps Misydacea.

Conclusions European Storm Petrels in the Mediterranean exploit pelagic fish which are taken by diving. This contrasts with the Atlantic populations which feed mainly on krill. Mediterranean birds also feed on Opossum Shrimps Mysidacea during short foraging trips made at night just outside the colony. Differences in diet between long and short foraging trips may be because adults have to forage for both themselves and their chicks.     

Diving in shallow water: the foraging ecology of darters (Aves: Anhingidae)

Diving birds have to overcome buoyancy, especially when diving in shallow water. Darters and anhingas (Anhingidae) are specialist shallow-water divers, with adaptations for reducing their buoyancy. Compared to closely-related cormorants (Phalacrocoracidae), darters have fully wettable plumage, smaller air sacs and denser bones. A previous study of darter diving behaviour reported no relationship between dive duration and water depth, contrary to optimal dive models. In this study I provide more extensive observations of African darters Anhinga melanogaster rufa diving in water<5 m deep at two sites. Dive duration increases with water depth at both sites, but the relationship is weak. Dives were longer than dives by cormorants in water of similar depth (max 108 s in water 2.5 m deep), with dives of up to 68 s observed in water<0.5 m deep. Initial dives in a bout were shorter than expected, possibly because their plumage was not fully saturated. Dive efficiency (dive:rest ratio) was 5–6, greater than cormorants (2.7±0.4 for 18 species) and other families of diving birds (average 0.2–4.3). Post-dive recovery periods increased with dive duration, but only slowly, resulting in a strong increase in efficiency with dive duration. All dives are likely to fall within the theoretical anaerobic dive limit. Foraging bouts were short (17.8±4.3 min) compared to cormorants, with birds spending 80±5% of time underwater. Darters take advantage of their low buoyancy to forage efficiently in shallow water, and their slow, stealthy dives are qualitatively different from those of other diving birds. However, they are forced to limit the duration of foraging bouts by increased thermoregulatory costs associated with wettable plumage.     

Divergent diving behavior during short and long trips of a bimodal forager,the little auk Alle alle

The purpose of this study was to characterize for the first time seabird diving behavior during bimodal foraging. Little auks Alle alle, small zooplanktivorous Alcids of the High Arctic, have recently been shown to make foraging trips of short and long duration. Because short (ST) and long trips (LT) are thought to occur in different locations and serve different purposes (chick‐ and self‐feeding, respectively) we hypothesized that foraging differences would be apparent, both in terms of water temperature and diving characteristics. Using Time Depth Recorders (TDRs), we tested this hypothesis at three colonies along the Greenland Sea with contrasting oceanographic conditions. We found that diving behavior generally differed between ST and LT. However, the magnitude of the disparity in diving characteristics depended on local foraging conditions. At the study site where conditions were favorable, diving behavior differed only to a small degree between LT and ST. Together with a lack of difference in diving depth and ocean temperature, this indicates that these birds did not increase their foraging effort during ST nor did they travel long distances to seek out more profitable prey. In contrast, where local foraging conditions were poor, birds increased their diving effort substantially to collect a chick meal during ST as indicated by longer, more U‐shaped dives with slower ascent rates and shorter resting times (post‐dive intervals and extended surface pauses). In addition, large differences in diving depth and ocean temperature indicate that birds forage on different prey species and utilize different foraging areas during LT, which may be up to 200 km away from the colony. Continued warming and deteriorating near‐colony foraging conditions may have energetic consequences for little auks breeding in the eastern Greenland Sea.     

On a wing and a prayer: the foraging ecology of breeding Cape cormorants

The Cape cormorant Phalacrocorax capensis is unusual among cormorants in using aerial searching to locate patchily distributed pelagic schooling fish. It feeds up to 80 km offshore, often roosts at sea during the day and retains more air in its plumage and is more buoyant than most other cormorants. Despite these adaptations to its pelagic lifestyle, little is known of its foraging ecology. We measured the activity budget and diving ecology of breeding Cape cormorants. All foraging took place during the day, with 3.6 ± 1.3 foraging trips per day, each lasting 85 ± 60 min and comprising 61 ± 53 dives. Dives lasted 21.2 ± 13.9 s (maximum 70 s), attaining an average depth of 10.2 ± 6.7 m (maximum 34 m), but variability in dive depth both within and between foraging trips was considerable. The within-bout variation in dive depth was greater when making shallow dives, suggesting that pelagic prey were targeted mainly when diving to <10 m. Diving ecology and total foraging time were similar to other cormorants, but the time spent flying (122 ± 51 min day⁻¹, 14% of daylight) was greater and more variable than other species. Searching flights lasted up to 1 h, and birds made numerous short flights during foraging bouts, presumably following fast-moving schools of pelagic prey. Compared with the other main seabird predators of pelagic fish in the Benguela region, Cape gannets Morus capensis and African penguins Spheniscus demersus , Cape cormorants made shorter, more frequent foraging trips. Their foraging range while feeding small chicks was 7 ± 6 km (maximum 40 km), similar to penguins (10–20 km), but less than gannets (50–200 km). Successful breeding by large colonies depends on the reliable occurrence of pelagic fish schools within this foraging range.     

Dive bout organization in the Chinstrap penguin at seal island, antarctica

Diving behavior of 2 breeding Chinstrap penguins (Pygoscelis antarctica) was studied focusing first and primarily on dive bouts rather than dives themselves. Analysis of dive bout organization revealed (1) though there are differences between solitary dives and dive bouts in dive duration and dive depth, the first dives of dive bouts do not differ from solitary dives in the dive parameters, (2) mean dive duration during bout correlates positively to both mean dive depth during bout and mean surface interval during bout, while number of dives during bout negatively correlates to both cost (consumed energy) and duration of a dive cycle during bout. These findings suggest the following possibilities on foraging behavior of penguins: (1) their decision to repeat diving depends on the result of the first dive at a site, and the first dives of bouts would tend to be searching or evaluating dives though they would be also successful foraging dives, (2) they repeat diving at a foraging patch until foraging efficiency decrease to a threshold of diminishing returns.     

Pursuit plunging by northern gannets (Sula bassana) feeding on capelin (Mallotus villosus)

Northern gannets (Sula bassana) are considered to obtain prey usually by rapid, vertical, shallow plunge dives. In order to test this contention and investigate underwater foraging behaviour, we attached two types of data-logging systems to 11 parental northern gannets at Funk Island in the North-Wiest Atlantic. We documented, for the first time to the authors' knowledge, gannets performing long, flat-bottomed, U-shaped dives that involved underwater wing propulsion as well as rapid, shallow, V-shaped dives. The median and maximum dive depths and durations were 4.6 and 22.0 m and 8 and 38 s, respectively. Short, shallow dives were usually V-shaped and dives deeper than 8 m and longer than 10 s were usually U-shaped, including a period at constant depth (varying between 4 and 28s with median 8s). Diving occurred throughout the daylight period and deepest dives were performed during late morning. On the basis of motion sensors in the loggers and food collections from telemetered birds, we concluded that extended, deep dives were directed at deep schools of capelin, a small pelagic fish, and we hypothesized that V-shaped dives were aimed at larger, pelagic fishes and squids. Furthermore, these V-shaped dives allowed the birds to surprise their pelagic prey and this may be critical because the maximum swimming speeds of the prey species may exceed the maximum dive speeds of the birds.     

Deep-diving foraging behaviour of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus)

1. Digital tags were used to describe diving and vocal behaviour of sperm whales during 198 complete and partial foraging dives made by 37 individual sperm whales in the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico and the Ligurian Sea. 2. The maximum depth of dive averaged by individual differed across the three regions and was 985 m (SD = 124.3), 644 m (123.4) and 827 m (60.3), respectively. An average dive cycle consisted of a 45 min (6.3) dive with a 9 min (3.0) surface interval, with no significant differences among regions. On average, whales spent greater than 72% of their time in foraging dive cycles. 3. Whales produced regular clicks for 81% (4.1) of a dive and 64% (14.6) of the descent phase. The occurrence of buzz vocalizations (also called 'creaks') as an indicator of the foraging phase of a dive showed no difference in mean prey capture attempts per dive between regions [18 buzzes/dive (7.6)]. Sperm whales descended a mean of 392 m (144) from the start of regular clicking to the first buzz, which supports the hypothesis that regular clicks function as a long-range biosonar. 4. There were no significant differences in the duration of the foraging phase [28 min (6.0)] or percentage of the dive duration in the foraging phase [62% (7.3)] between the three regions, with an overall average proportion of time spent actively encountering prey during dive cycles of 0.53 (0.05). Whales maintained their time in the foraging phase by decreasing transit time for deeper foraging dives. 5. Similarity in foraging behaviour in the three regions and high diving efficiencies suggest that the success of sperm whales as mesopelagic predators is due in part to long-range echolocation of deep prey patches, efficient locomotion and a large aerobic capacity during diving.     

Long-term monitoring of leatherback turtle diving behaviour during oceanic movements

The diving behaviour of four leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) was recorded for periods of 0.5-8.1 months during their postnesting movements in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, when they covered 1569-18,994 km. Dive data were obtained using satellite-linked transmitters which also provided information on the dive depths and profiles of the turtles. Turtles mainly dove to depths < 200 m, with maximum dive durations under 30-40 min and exhibited diel variations in their diving activity for most part of the routes, with dives being usually longer at night. Diurnal dives were in general quite short, but cases of very deep (> 900 m) and prolonged (> 70 min) dives were however recorded only during daytime. The three turtles that were tracked for the longest time showed a marked change in behaviour during the tracking, decreasing their dive durations and ceasing to dive deeply. Moreover, diel variations disappeared, with nocturnal dives becoming short and numerous. This change in turtle diving activity appeared to be related to water temperature, suggesting an influence of seasonal prey availability on their diving behaviour. The turtle diving activity was independent on the shape of their routes, with no changes between linear movements in the core of main currents or looping segments in presence of oceanic eddies.