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Hargan KE, Duda MP, Michelutti N, Blais JM, Smol JP. Assessing long-term diatom changes in sub-Arctic ponds receiving high fluxes of seabird nutrients. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e11034. [PMID: 38371864 PMCID: PMC10870249 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Algal bioindicators, such as diatoms, often show subdued responses to eutrophication in Arctic lakes because climate-related changes (e.g., ice cover) tend to be the overriding factors influencing assemblage composition. Here, we examined how sub-Arctic ponds historically receiving high nutrient inputs from nesting seabirds have responded to recent climate change. We present diatom data obtained from 12 sediment cores in seaduck-affected ponds located on islands through Hudson Strait, Canada. All study cores show consistently elevated values of sedimentary ẟ15N, an established proxy for tracking marine-derived nutrients, indicating seabirds have been present on these islands for at least the duration of the sediment records (~100 to 400 years). We document diverse epiphytic diatom assemblages to the base of all sediment cores, which is in marked contrast to seabird-free Arctic ponds-these oligotrophic sites typically record epilithic diatom flora prior to recent warming. Diatoms are likely responding indirectly to seabird nutrients via habitat as nutrients promote the growth of mosses supporting epiphytic diatom communities. This masks the typical diatom response to increased warming in the Arctic, which also results in habitat changes and the growth of mosses around the pond edges. Changes in sedimentary chlorophyll a were not consistently synchronous with large changes in ẟ15N values, suggesting that primary production in ponds is not responding linearly to changes in seabird-derived nitrogen. Across all ponds, we recorded shifts in diatom epiphytic assemblages (e.g., increases in % relative abundance of many Nitzschia species) that often align with increases in chlorophyll a. The changes in diatoms and chlorophyll a, although variable, are most likely driven by climate change as they are generally consistent with longer ice-free conditions and growing seasons. Together, our results show that to effectively use diatoms in animal population reconstructions across the sub-Arctic and Arctic, a strong understanding of eutrophication and climate change, based on supplementary proxies, is also required.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Matthew P. Duda
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of BiologyQueen's UniversityKingstonOntarioCanada
| | - Neal Michelutti
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of BiologyQueen's UniversityKingstonOntarioCanada
| | - Jules M. Blais
- Department of BiologyUniversity of OttawaOttawaOntarioCanada
| | - John P. Smol
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of BiologyQueen's UniversityKingstonOntarioCanada
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2
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Philippe-Lesaffre M, Thibault M, Caut S, Bourgeois K, Berr T, Ravache A, Vidal E, Courchamp F, Bonnaud E. Recovery of insular seabird populations years after rodent eradication. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY : THE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 2023; 37:e14042. [PMID: 36661083 DOI: 10.1111/cobi.14042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Seabirds have been particularly affected by invasive non-native species, which has led to the implementation of numerous eradication campaigns for the conservation of these keystone and highly vulnerable species. Although the benefits of eradication of invasive non-native species for seabird conservation have been demonstrated, the recovery kinetics of different seabird populations on islands after eradication remains poorly evaluated. We conducted long-term monitoring of the number of breeding pairs of seven seabird species on a small atoll, Surprise Island, New Caledonia (southwestern tropical Pacific). Marine avifauna of the island were surveyed yearly 4 years before to 4 years after rodent eradication (conducted in 2005), and we conducted multiple one-time surveys from ∼10 years before and ∼15 years after eradication. We sought to determine how different seabird species responded to the eradication of invasive rodents in an insular environment. Three species responded positively (two- to 10-fold increase in population size) to eradication with differences in lag time and sensitivity. The number of breeding pairs increased (effect sizes = 0.49-0.95 and 0.35-0.52) for two species over 4 years post-eradication due to immigration. One species had a longer (at least 5 years) response time than all others; breeding pairs increased for over 10 years after eradication. Long-term sampling was necessary to observe the responses of the seabird populations on the island because of the delayed response of a species to eradication not visible in the first years after eradication. Our results confirmed the positive effects of eradication of invasive non-native species on seabirds and emphasize the importance of mid- and long-term pre- and posteradication surveys to decipher the mechanisms of seabird recovery and confirm the benefits of eradication for conservation purposes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Philippe-Lesaffre
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Gif-sur-Yvette, France., Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Martin Thibault
- IRD, Université de La Réunion, CNRS, Université de La Nouvelle-Calédonie, Ifremer, UMR ENTROPIE, Nouméa, New Caledonia
| | - Stephane Caut
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Gif-sur-Yvette, France., Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Karen Bourgeois
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie marine et continentale, Bât. Villemin, Technopôle Arbois-Méditerranée, UMR IMBE, Aix-en-Provence, France
| | - Tristan Berr
- IRD, Université de La Réunion, CNRS, Université de La Nouvelle-Calédonie, Ifremer, UMR ENTROPIE, Nouméa, New Caledonia
- Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie marine et continentale, Bât. Villemin, Technopôle Arbois-Méditerranée, UMR IMBE, Aix-en-Provence, France
| | - Andreas Ravache
- IRD, Université de La Réunion, CNRS, Université de La Nouvelle-Calédonie, Ifremer, UMR ENTROPIE, Nouméa, New Caledonia
| | - Eric Vidal
- IRD, Université de La Réunion, CNRS, Université de La Nouvelle-Calédonie, Ifremer, UMR ENTROPIE, Nouméa, New Caledonia
| | - Franck Courchamp
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Gif-sur-Yvette, France., Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Elsa Bonnaud
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Gif-sur-Yvette, France., Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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3
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Duda MP, Grooms C, Sympson L, Blais JM, Dagodzo D, Feng W, Hayward KM, Julius ML, Kimpe LE, Lambertucci SA, Layton-Matthews D, Lougheed SC, Massaferro J, Michelutti N, Pufahl PK, Vuletich A, Smol JP. A 2200-year record of Andean Condor diet and nest site usage reflects natural and anthropogenic stressors. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230106. [PMID: 37132237 PMCID: PMC10154929 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding how animals respond to large-scale environmental changes is difficult to achieve because monitoring data are rarely available for more than the past few decades, if at all. Here, we demonstrate how a variety of palaeoecological proxies (e.g. isotopes, geochemistry and DNA) from an Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) guano deposit from Argentina can be used to explore breeding site fidelity and the impacts of environmental changes on avian behaviour. We found that condors used the nesting site since at least approximately 2200 years ago, with an approximately 1000-year nesting frequency slowdown from ca 1650 to 650 years before the present (yr BP). We provide evidence that the nesting slowdown coincided with a period of increased volcanic activity in the nearby Southern Volcanic Zone, which resulted in decreased availability of carrion and deterred scavenging birds. After returning to the nest site ca 650 yr BP, condor diet shifted from the carrion of native species and beached marine animals to the carrion of livestock (e.g. sheep and cattle) and exotic herbivores (e.g. red deer and European hare) introduced by European settlers. Currently, Andean Condors have elevated lead concentrations in their guano compared to the past, which is associated with human persecution linked to the shift in diet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew P. Duda
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Christopher Grooms
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Lorenzo Sympson
- Sociedad Naturalista Andino Patagónica (SNAP), R8400 Bariloche, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - Jules M. Blais
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1N 6N5
| | - Daniel Dagodzo
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1N 6N5
| | - Wenxi Feng
- Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Kristen M. Hayward
- Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Matthew L. Julius
- Department of Biological Sciences, St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, MN 56301, USA
| | - Linda E. Kimpe
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1N 6N5
| | - Sergio A. Lambertucci
- Grupo de Investigaciones en Biología de la Conservación, Laboratorio Ecotono, INIBIOMA-CONICET, Universidad Nacional del Comahue, R8400 Bariloche, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - Daniel Layton-Matthews
- Queen's Facility for Isotope Research (QFIR), Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Stephen C. Lougheed
- Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Julieta Massaferro
- CENAC/APN, National Park Administration – National Research Council (CONICET), R8400 Bariloche, Argentina
| | - Neal Michelutti
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - Peir K. Pufahl
- Queen's Facility for Isotope Research (QFIR), Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - April Vuletich
- Queen's Facility for Isotope Research (QFIR), Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
| | - John P. Smol
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario Canada, K7L 3N6
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Duda MP, Cyr F, Robertson GJ, Michelutti N, Meyer-Jacob C, Hedd A, Montevecchi WA, Kimpe LE, Blais JM, Smol JP. Climate oscillations drive millennial-scale changes in seabird colony size. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2022; 28:4292-4307. [PMID: 35320599 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2022] [Revised: 03/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Seabird population size is intimately linked to the physical, chemical, and biological processes of the oceans. Yet, the overall effects of long-term changes in ocean dynamics on seabird colonies are difficult to quantify. Here, we used dated lake sediments to reconstruct ~10,000-years of seabird dynamics in the Northwest Atlantic to determine the influences of Holocene-scale climatic oscillations on colony size. On Baccalieu Island (Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada)-where the world's largest colony of Leach's storm-petrel (Hydrobates leucorhous Vieillot 1818) currently breeds-our data track seabird colony growth in response to warming during the Holocene Thermal Maximum (ca. 9000 to 6000 BP). From ca. 5200 BP to the onset of the Little Ice Age (ca. 550 BP), changes in colony size were correlated to variations in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). By contrasting the seabird trends from Baccalieu Island to millennial-scale changes of storm-petrel populations from Grand Colombier Island (an island in the Northwest Atlantic that is subjected a to different ocean climate), we infer that changes in NAO influenced the ocean circulation, which translated into, among many things, changes in pycnocline depth across the Northwest Atlantic basin where the storm-petrels feed. We hypothesize that the depth of the pycnocline is likely a strong bottom-up control on surface-feeding storm-petrels through its influence on prey accessibility. Since the Little Ice Age (LIA), the effects of ocean dynamics on seabird colony size have been altered by anthropogenic impacts. Subsequently, the colony on Baccalieu Island grew at an unprecedented rate to become the world's largest resulting from favorable conditions linked to climate warming, increased vegetation (thereby nesting habitat), and attraction of recruits from other colonies that are now in decline. We show that although ocean dynamics were an important driver of seabird colony dynamics, its recent influence has been modified by human interference.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew P Duda
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
| | - Frédéric Cyr
- Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
| | - Gregory J Robertson
- Wildlife Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
| | - Neal Michelutti
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
| | - Carsten Meyer-Jacob
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
| | - April Hedd
- Wildlife Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
| | - William A Montevecchi
- Departments of Psychology and Biology, Cognitive and Behavioural Ecology Program, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
| | - Linda E Kimpe
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jules M Blais
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - John P Smol
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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Duda MP, Hargan KE, Michelutti N, Blais JM, Grooms C, Gilchrist HG, Mallory ML, Robertson GJ, Smol JP. Reconstructing Long-Term Changes in Avian Populations Using Lake Sediments: Opening a Window Onto the Past. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.698175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The lack of long-term monitoring data for many wildlife populations is a limiting factor in establishing meaningful and achievable conservation goals. Even for well-monitored species, time series are often very short relative to the timescales required to understand a population’s baseline conditions before the contemporary period of increased human impacts. To fill in this critical information gap, techniques have been developed to use sedimentary archives to provide insights into long-term population dynamics over timescales of decades to millennia. Lake and pond sediments receiving animal inputs (e.g., feces, feathers) typically preserve a record of ecological and environmental information that reflects past changes in population size and dynamics. With a focus on bird-related studies, we review the development and use of several paleolimnological proxies to reconstruct past colony sizes, including trace metals, isotopes, lipid biomolecules, diatoms, pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs, invertebrate sub-fossils, pigments, and others. We summarize how animal-influenced sediments, cored from around the world, have been successfully used in addressing some of the most challenging questions in conservation biology, namely: How dynamic are populations on long-term timescales? How may populations respond to climate change? How have populations responded to human intrusion? Finally, we conclude with an assessment of the current state of the field, challenges to overcome, and future potential for research.
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Seaduck engineers in the Arctic Archipelago: nesting eiders deliver marine nutrients and transform the chemistry of island soils, plants, and ponds. Oecologia 2021; 195:1041-1052. [PMID: 33675409 PMCID: PMC8052239 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-021-04889-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Accepted: 02/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Seabirds are thought to provide ecological services such as the movement of nutrients between marine and terrestrial ecosystems, which may be especially critical to productivity and diversity in nutrient-poor environments. Most Arctic ecosystems are unaffected by local human impacts and are naturally nutrient poor and especially sensitive to warming. Here, we assessed the effects of nesting common eider ducks (Somateria mollissima) on soil, vegetation, and pond sediments on island archipelagoes in Hudson Strait between Nunavut and Québec, Canada. Soil, moss, and pond sediments were significantly higher in nitrogen on islands with large numbers of nesting eiders compared to sites with no nesting birds. The highest concentrations of nitrogen in soils and moss occurred at the margins of ponds on eider islands, which correspond to the areas of highest eider use. δ15N and δ34S values in soils, moss, and sediments indicated substantial marine-derived organic matter inputs at the higher nutrient sites. We propose that by foraging on coastal marine benthic invertebrates and returning to islands to nest, eider ducks bio-transport and concentrate marine-derived nutrients to their colony islands, fertilizing Arctic island ecosystems in the process. As common eiders nest on thousands of low to mid-latitude islands throughout the circumpolar Arctic, these nutrient inputs likely dramatically affect biota and ecosystem functioning throughout the tundra biome.
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Duda MP, Allen-Mahé S, Barbraud C, Blais JM, Boudreau A, Bryant R, Delord K, Grooms C, Kimpe LE, Letournel B, Lim JE, Lormée H, Michelutti N, Robertson GJ, Urtizbéréa F, Wilhelm SI, Smol JP. Linking 19th century European settlement to the disruption of a seabird's natural population dynamics. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:32484-32492. [PMID: 33288699 PMCID: PMC7768677 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2016811117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent estimates indicate that ∼70% of the world's seabird populations have declined since the 1950s due to human activities. However, for almost all bird populations, there is insufficient long-term monitoring to understand baseline (i.e., preindustrial) conditions, which are required to distinguish natural versus anthropogenically driven changes. Here, we address this lack of long-term monitoring data with multiproxy paleolimnological approaches to examine the long-term population dynamics of a major colony of Leach's Storm-petrel (Hydrobates leucorhous) on Grand Colombier Island in the St. Pierre and Miquelon archipelago-an overseas French territory in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. By reconstructing the last ∼5,800 y of storm-petrel dynamics, we demonstrate that this colony underwent substantial natural fluctuations until the start of the 19th century, when population cycles were disrupted, coinciding with the establishment and expansion of a European settlement. Our paleoenvironmental data, coupled with on-the-ground population surveys, indicate that the current colony is only ∼16% of the potential carrying capacity, reinforcing concerning trends of globally declining seabird populations. As seabirds are sentinel species of marine ecosystem health, such declines provide a call to action for global conservation. In response, we emphasize the need for enlarged protected areas and the rehabilitation of disturbed islands to protect ecologically critical seabird populations. Furthermore, long-term data, such as those provided by paleoecological approaches, are required to better understand shifting baselines in conservation to truly recognize current rates of ecological loss.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew P Duda
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada;
| | - Sylvie Allen-Mahé
- Maison de la Nature et de l'Environnement, Place des Ardilliers, BP8333 Miquelon, Langlade, St. Pierre et Miquelon, France
| | - Christophe Barbraud
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 du CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Jules M Blais
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
| | - Amaël Boudreau
- Association SPM Frag'îles, 97500 St. Pierre et Miquelon, France
| | | | - Karine Delord
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 du CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Christopher Grooms
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
| | - Linda E Kimpe
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
| | - Bruno Letournel
- Office Français de la Biodiversité, Service Départemental de Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, 97500 Saint Pierre et Miquelon, France
| | - Joeline E Lim
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
| | - Hervé Lormée
- Office Français de la Biodiversité, Direction de la Recherche et de l'Appui Scientifique-Unité Avifaune Migratrice, Station de Chizé, Carrefour de la Canauderie 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Neal Michelutti
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
| | - Gregory J Robertson
- Wildlife Research Division, Environment Canada and Climate Change, Mount Pearl, NL A1N 4T3, Canada
| | - Frank Urtizbéréa
- Direction Territoriale de l'Alimentation et de la Mer, Service Agriculture, Eau et Biodiversité, Quai de l'Alysse, BP4217, 97500 Saint Pierre et Miquelon, France
| | - Sabina I Wilhelm
- Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada and Climate Change, Mount Pearl, NL A1N 4T3, Canada
| | - John P Smol
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory, Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
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Long-Term Changes in Terrestrial Vegetation Linked to Shifts in a Colonial Seabird Population. Ecosystems 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10021-020-00494-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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