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Predation of artificial Xantus's murrelet (Synthliboramphus hypoleucus scrippsi) nests before and after black rat (Rattus rattus) eradication

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 March 2006

HOLLY P. JONES ,
R. WILLIAMHENRY III ,
GREGG R. HOWALD ,
BERNIE R. TERSHY  and
DONALD A. CROLL
HOLLY P. JONES*
Affiliation:
Island Conservation, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
R. WILLIAMHENRY III
Affiliation:
Island Conservation, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
GREGG R. HOWALD
Affiliation:
Island Conservation – Canada, 1485 Crawford Road, Kelowna, British Columbia, V1W3A9, Canada
BERNIE R. TERSHY
Affiliation:
Island Conservation, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
DONALD A. CROLL
Affiliation:
Island Conservation, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Center for Ocean Health, Long Marine Laboratory, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA
*
*Correspondence: Holly Jones, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, 370 Prospect Street, Greeley Laboratory, New Haven, CT 06511, USA Tel: +1 203 432 4952 e-mail: holly.jones@yale.edu
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Summary

Introduced rats depredate every life stage of island nesting seabirds, but the extent of predation is rarely quantified. Introduced black rat (Rattus rattus) and native deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus anacapae) predation on Xantus's murrelet (Synthliboramphus hypoleucus scrippsi) nests was experimentally quantified using artificial nests before and after rat eradication on Anacapa Island (California). The staged rat eradication programme provided experimental treatments: in 2002 rats were eradicated on one island (East Anacapa Islet) and remained on two islands (Middle and West Anacapa Islets), providing a control comparison, and, in 2003, rats were eradicated from the remaining islands (Middle and West Anacapa Islets). In 2002, 96% of artificial nests were depredated on control islands (rats present) with rats accounting for most predation. Nest predation on the treatment island (rats eradicated) in 2002 was significantly lower: 8% of artificial nests were depredated, mostly by endemic deer mice. In 2003, following rat eradication on the remaining islands (Middle and West Anacapa Islets), nest predation was reduced from 96% in 2002 to 3% of total nests in 2003. Predation of nests on East Anacapa Islet (rats eradicated in 2002) increased significantly due to reintroduction and recovery of native deer mouse populations, with 23% of artificial nests depredated. The inference is that rat predation on real Xantus's murrelet nests was responsible for the historically low nesting success and small population sizes of breeding murrelets on Anacapa Island. With rats removed, the hatching success of Xantus's murrelet chicks and the number of individuals nesting on Anacapa Island will increase dramatically. Artificial nest studies are particularly well suited to quantifying introduced rat impacts on hole and crevice nesting seabirds and can simultaneously serve as an effective monitoring tool to detect the presence of rats and the recovery of native nest predators.

Keywords

artificial nesteradicationinvasive speciesRattus rattusseabird conservationSynthliboramphus hypoleucus
Type
Papers
Information
Environmental Conservation , Volume 32 , Issue 4 , December 2005 , pp. 320 - 325
Copyright
Copyright © Foundation for Environmental Conservation 2006

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