Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TR, United Kingdom.
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, 1098XH, The Netherlands.
Sci Rep. 2019 Jul 19;9(1):10527. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-46890-6.
Increasing urbanisation is detrimental for some animal species and potentially advantageous for others. Urban-nesting populations of gulls have undergone rapid population increases worldwide, which has resulted in an increase in human-gull conflicts. In order to inform management and conservation decisions in relation to these populations, more information is needed about the behaviour of these birds in urban settings and how they utilise their environment. This study combined Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking data of 12 urban-nesting lesser black-backed gulls, Larus fuscus, with habitat and behaviour data over three breeding seasons (2016-2018). Despite the proximity of marine areas (~10 km), the birds only made significant use of terrestrial environments, spending two-thirds of their time away from the nest in suburban and urban areas, and one-third in rural green areas. The gulls utilised suburban and urban areas more as their chicks grew and appeared to use diverse foraging strategies to suit different habitats. These results indicate that the range of potential foraging areas available needs to be considered in management decisions and that urban bird populations may not use the resources they are expected to.
城市化的增加对一些动物物种有害，但对另一些动物物种可能有利。海鸥的城市筑巢种群在全球范围内经历了快速的种群增长，这导致了人与海鸥之间冲突的增加。为了为这些种群的管理和保护决策提供信息，需要更多关于这些鸟类在城市环境中的行为以及它们如何利用环境的信息。本研究将 12 只城市筑巢的黑背鸥（Larus fuscus）的全球定位系统（GPS）跟踪数据与三个繁殖季节（2016-2018 年）的栖息地和行为数据相结合。尽管靠近海洋地区（约 10 公里），但这些鸟类只在很大程度上利用陆地环境，在离巢三分之二的时间里在郊区和城市地区，三分之一的时间在农村绿地。随着雏鸟的成长，海鸥更多地利用郊区和城市地区，似乎使用多种觅食策略来适应不同的栖息地。这些结果表明，在管理决策中需要考虑到可用的潜在觅食区域范围，并且城市鸟类种群可能不会利用它们预期的资源。
