IN A NUTSHELL ...
Biogeography
Carryover Effects
Feeding Ecology
Individual Plasticity
Marine Conservation
Meta-population studies
Migratory Connectivity
Seabirds
Spatial Ecology
Transequatorial Migrations
MY LATEST RESEARCH
The Pillars of Hercules and the smallest Mediterranean seabird: the unknown migration of the European storm petrels. The migration strategies of small seabirds, such as storm petrels (family Hydrobatidae), remain a pending matter in ecology. Here we describe the first complete migratory journeys of the European storm petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus) that breeds on the islet of Benidorm, as well as its main phenological features. Eight annual trips of the nine recovered geolocators show that all individuals exploit the Alborán Sea both at the end and at the beginning of breeding, and the wintering grounds are all located in the Northeast Atlantic and the Canary Current. The date of the post-nuptial crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar is very variable, between 17th August and 25th December, and the pre-nuptial return to the Mediterranean between 30th January and 3rd April. Resting time on the water increases a lot after the breeding, between September and November, when we assume birds moult most of the flight feathers still in the Mediterranean.
The global spatial ecology and conservation of the world’s smallest and elusive seabirds, the European storm petrel, across the Mediterranean and the North East Atlantic Ocean. Understanding the global spatial ecology of free-ranging fauna is currently needed for the effective conservation of global biodiversity. Merging integrative taxonomy with spatial and trophic ecology has enormous potential for defining Conservation Units (CU), but this has never been conducted for storm petrels (Hydrobatidae and Oceanitidae). We aim to build on limited knowledge of the spatial and trophic ecology of this group of species in Europe. European storm petrels (Hydrobates pelagicus) are excellent sentinels of the marine ecosystem: they are highly pelagic, cover huge distances over the sea, mostly feed on plankton, are long-lived, and they are very sensitive to anthropogenic threats in general. Until now, their small body size and secretive behaviour has posed a major constraint on their study. We will combine available tracking, genetic and isotopic data with new data to fill important gaps in sampling across Europe. The aims of this transnational study will be achieved through the combination of ultra-miniaturized tracking devices, habitat modelling, stable isotope analysis, DNA metabarcoding analysis, geometric morphometrics, and microplastic determinations. This multidisciplinary methodology and state-of-the-art technology, in combination with multi-colony and multi-species monitoring approaches, will reveal accurate distributions and habitats used by storm petrel metapopulations on European seas. It will allow identifying storm petrel hotspots not covered by the current network of Marine Protected Areas, editing sensitivity maps of diverse anthropogenic impacts, and defining the CU of storm petrels that inhabit the European seas.
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