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Este fichero contiene información de las historias de captura individuales de Pardela cenicienta criando en el islote de Pantaleu, Mallorca, durante el período 2000-2022. En estas historias de captura anuales se ha incluido información de la colocación de dispositivos geolocalizadores en algunos de estos individuos, y la información que se obtuvo de las zonas de invernada visitadas por estos individuos.

Empirical evidence about the role and interaction of immigration with local demographic processes in shaping population dynamics is still scarce. This knowledge gap limits our capability to derive a conceptual framework that can be used to inform conservation actions. Populations exposed to nonstationary environment do not converge to a stable stage distribution, implying the need for evaluating the demographic role of both vital rates and stage distribution using appropriate tools. This is particularly important for species with larger generation times like cetaceans. We explored the relative demographic role of vital rates and population structure of a poorly known cetacean, the Mediterranean Cuvier's beaked whale, while accounting for the exposure to nonstationary environments. We performed a retrospective analysis through transient life table response experiments (tLTRE) using demographic rates and population structure of both sexes obtained from an integrated population model. The contribution of immigration to variation in realized population growth rates was 4.2, 7.6, and 12.7 times larger than that of female apparent survival, proportional abundance of breeding females with a 2-year-old calf, and proportional abundance of breeding females with a 3-year-old calf, respectively. Immigration rate and proportional abundance of breeding females with a 2- or 3-year-old calf explained, respectively, 65% and 20% of total temporal variability in realized population growth rates. Changes in realized population growth rate between successive years were mainly driven by changes in immigration and population structure, specifically the proportional abundance of breeding females with a 2-year-old calf. Our study provides insight into the demographic processes that affect population dynamics and in a cryptic cetacean. We presented an analytical approach for maximizing the use of available data through the integration of multiple sources of information for individuals of dif

Capture mark recapture data of Audouin gulls breeding from 1995 until 2009 in Mediterranean locations including Ebro Delta, Chafarinas Islands, Columbretes Islands and Mallorca islets in the Balearic Islands. Individuals are shown in rows and years in columns followed by the cohort on which they were born, and the environmental covariates associated to that year. This data set has been used for the publication: Payo-Payo, A.; Sanz-Aguilar, A. and Oro, D. (2022) Long-lasting effects of harsh early-life conditions on adult survival of a long-lived vertebrate. OIKOS.

Plastic pollution is distributed patchily around the world’s oceans. Likewise, marine organisms that are vulnerable to plastic ingestion or entanglement have uneven distributions. Understanding where wildlife encounters plastic is crucial for targeting research and mitigation. Oceanic seabirds, particularly petrels, frequently ingest plastic, are highly threatened, and cover vast distances during foraging and migration. However, the spatial overlap between petrels and plastics is poorly understood. Here we combine marine plastic density estimates with individual movement data for 7137 birds of 77 petrel species to estimate relative exposure risk. We identify high exposure risk areas in the Mediterranean and Black seas, and the northeast Pacific, northwest Pacific, South Atlantic and southwest Indian oceans. Plastic exposure risk varies greatly among species and populations, and between breeding and non-breeding seasons. Exposure risk is disproportionately high for Threatened species. Outside the Mediterranean and Black seas, exposure risk is highest in the high seas and Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of the USA, Japan, and the UK. Birds generally had higher plastic exposure risk outside the EEZ of the country where they breed. We identify conservation and research priorities, and highlight that international collaboration is key to addressing the impacts of marine plastic on wide-ranging species.

El estudio del movimiento de los individuos informa directamente sobre los tamaños de las áreas de campeo, las rutas migratorias o la selección de hábitat. Pero, además, la integración de datos de movimiento en modelos ecológicos permite además abordar mayores escalas. En este trabajo mostramos los resultados de nuestra línea de investigación utilizando STEPLAND, un modelo basado en el individuo de desarrollo propio. El modelo se parametrizó con datos de movimiento, demográficos y genéticos de tortugas terrestres (Testudo graeca) del SE de España. Llevamos a cabo diferentes experimentos de simulación con el fin de contestar a cuestiones sobre los efectos del cambio global en la conservación de la especie. A nivel de especie, identificamos aquellos rasgos evolutivos de las tortugas, como el almacenamiento de esperma por parte de las hembras, que evitan las extinciones en hábitats antropizados. A escala de paisaje, evaluamos el impacto del abandono agrícola y la intensificación en la dinámica poblacional de esta especie de vida larga. La intensificación afectó negativamente las tasas reproductivas, la densidad de población y la probabilidad de extinción de T. graeca, con respuestas de retardo de 20, 30 y 130 años respectivamente. Finalmente, en un contexto regional, pretendemos simular las primeras etapas de una expansión. Los primeros resultados sugieren patrones característicos de surfing genético, un proceso que afecta la expansión de especies de baja dispersión afectadas por deriva genética. Creemos que nuestra línea de investigación ejemplifica bien que el valor científico de los datos de movimiento excede el nivel de individuo., The study of the movement of individuals directly informs about home-range sizes, migratory routes or habitat selection. But also, integrating movement into ecological models allows for larger-scale studies. Here we summarize the results of our line of research based in the individual-based model STEPLAND. The model was parameterized with movement, demographic and genetic data of spur-thighed tortoises (Testudo graeca) in SE Spain. We developed different simulation experiments to answer questions about the effects of global change on the conservation of this species. At the species level, we identified those evolutionary traits of tortoises, such as female sperm storage, that prevent extinctions in human-altered habitats. At landscape scale, we assessed the impact of agricultural abandonment and agricultural intensification on the population dynamics of this long-lived species. Only agricultural intensification negatively affected reproductive rates, population density, and probability of extinction of T. graeca, with time-lag responses of 20, 30 and 130 years respectively. Finally, in a regional context, we aim to simulate the early stages of a range expansion. Preliminary results reveal patterns compatible to “genetic surfing”, a process affecting the expansion of low dispersal species impacted by strong genetic drift. We believe that our line of research exemplifies well that the scientific value of movement data goes well beyond the individual level.

Women (and all gender-discriminated people) are underrepresented in science, especially in leadership positions and higher stages of the scientific career. One of the main causes of career abandonment by women is maternity, with many women leaving Academia after having their first child because of the career penalties associated with motherhood. Thus, more actions to help scientific moms to balance family and academic work are urgently needed to increase representation of women and other gender discriminated people in Academia. Besides mothers, these rules may also benefit other groups such as mothers-to-be, fathers, caregivers, and women in general. Increasing women representation in science, including mothers, is critical because equality is a fundamental right, and because more diverse working environments are more productive and get to more optimal solutions. Here, we describe 10 simple rules that can be adopted in Academia to halt the abandonment of scientific careers by women after motherhood. We strongly encourage their implementation to increase gender diversity and equality in science.

Waterbirds are particularly affected by the high hunting pressure they face in many regions, which in some cases is compromising conservation actions for threatened species. The marbled teal Marmaronetta angustirostris is one of the most endangered waterbirds in Europe. In order to restore its population, several conservation actions have recently been undertaken, including a population reinforcement programme in Spain using captive-bred birds. With the aim of assessing the success of the reinforcement programme to establish a long-term self-sustaining population, we identified mortality causes of marbled teal, evaluated the survival of individual birds of the reinforcement programme and estimated the viability of the population under different management scenarios. We used data from wild and captive-bred individuals tracked by GPS since 2018 (n = 42) and from a mark–recapture programme initiated in 2015 (n = 297). We recovered 15 dead birds or transmitters: 20% died of natural causes, 60% of non-natural causes (including all anthropic causes) and 20% of unknown causes. Furthermore, the GPS tags of 24 birds unexpectedly stopped transmitting without any indication of malfunction, and for 66.7% of these disappeared birds, the cessation was suspected to be caused by illegal shooting. Survival during the hunting season was higher for males (31.3%) than for females (12.5%), and for the wild (50%) than for the captive-bred birds (9.4%), probably due to differences in migration patterns to North Africa. Population viability models revealed that maintaining the breeding population at the current mortality rates is only possible with a permanent release programme of captive-bred individuals, and that in order to establish a self-sustaining population, non-natural mortality would have to be reduced by at least 40%. We recommend management measures to reduce marbled teal mortality, such as limiting legal hunting to hours with clear visibility, prosecuting illegal shootings, co

Variation in offspring sex ratios is a central topic in animal demography and population dynamics. Most studies have focused on bird species with marked sexual dimorphism and multiple-nestling broods, where the offspring sex ratio is often biased due to different individual or environmental variables. However, biases in offspring sex ratios have been far less investigated in monomorphic and single-egg laying species, and few studies have evaluated long-term and large-scale variations in the sex ratio of nestling vultures. Here, we explore individual and environmental factors potentially affecting the secondary sex ratio of the monomorphic griffon vulture Gyps fulvus. We used information collected at three breeding nuclei from central Spain over a 30-year period (1990–2020) to analyse the effects of nestling age, parental age, breeding phenology, conspecific density, population reproductive parameters, and spatial and temporal variability on nestling sex. Sex ratio did not differ from parity either at the population or the nuclei level. No significant between-year differences were detected, even under highly changing conditions of food availability associated with the mad-cow crisis. We found that tree nesting breeders tend to have more sons than daughters, but as this nesting behavior is rare and we consequently have a small sample size, this issue would require additional examination. Whereas further research is needed to assess the potential effect of breeder identity on nestling sex ratio, this study contributes to understanding the basic ecology and population dynamics of Griffon Vultures, a long-lived species with deferred maturity and low fecundity, whose minor deviations in the offspring sex ratio might imply major changes at the population level.

Early life conditions, especially in long-lived organisms, can have both immediate and long-lasting effects in vital traits generating demographic structure across cohorts. Multiple non-exclusive hypotheses have been proposed to explore this question. For instance, the silver spoon, the viability selection or the predictive adaptive response hypothesis, predict that long lasting effects resulting from harsh early conditions could be negative, positive or vary with current environmental conditions, respectively. We use an 18-year capture–mark–recapture dataset on adult Audouin’s gulls Ichthyaetus audouinii to test for these different hypotheses while accounting for age, breeding experience and large-scale dispersal. Audouin’s gull cohorts experiencing harsh conditions during early life (i.e. nestling period and first winter) are known to experience lower first year survival. Here, we show that early life conditions also explained a large proportion (54%) of adult survival variation among cohorts. However, adulthood cohorts experiencing poor early life conditions had higher adult survival, in accordance with the viability selection hypothesis. Our results also show that apparent inexperienced breeders showed lower survival than experienced ones. Moreover, adult survival decreased with age. These results could suggest an increased cost of reproduction for deferred breeders, individual quality differences or survival senescence in this population. Overall, our study highlights the importance of early development, age and breeding experience as potential factors generating heterogeneity of survival between cohorts. Understanding the mechanisms driving responses to early life conditions at different life stages is fundamental to understanding the long-term dynamics of wild populations.

[ES] El estudio del movimiento de los individuos informa directamente sobre los tamaños de las áreas de campeo, las rutas migratorias o la selección de hábitat. Pero, además, la integración de datos de movimiento en modelos ecológicos permite además abordar mayores escalas. En este trabajo mostramos los resultados de nuestra línea de investigación utilizando STEPLAND, un modelo basado en el individuo de desarrollo propio. El modelo se parametrizó con datos de movimiento, demográficos y genéticos de tortugas terrestres (Testudo graeca) del SE de España. Llevamos a cabo diferentes experimentos de simulación con el fin de contestar a cuestiones sobre los efectos del cambio global en la conservación de la especie. A nivel de especie, identificamos aquellos rasgos evolutivos de las tortugas, como el almacenamiento de esperma por parte de las hembras, que evitan las extinciones en hábitats antropizados. A escala de paisaje, evaluamos el impacto del abandono agrícola y la intensificación en la dinámica poblacional de esta especie de vida larga. La intensificación afectó negativamente las tasas reproductivas, la densidad de población y la probabilidad de extinción de T. graeca, con respuestas de retardo de 20, 30 y 130 años respectivamente. Finalmente, en un contexto regional, pretendemos simular las primeras etapas de una expansión. Los primeros resultados sugieren patrones característicos de surfing genético, un proceso que afecta la expansión de especies de baja dispersión afectadas por deriva genética. Creemos que nuestra línea de investigación ejemplifica bien que el valor científico de los datos de movimiento excede el nivel de individuo., [EN] The study of the movement of individuals directly informs about home-range sizes, migratory routes or habitat selection. But also, integrating movement into ecological models allows for larger-scale studies. Here we summarize the results of our line of research based in the individual-based model STEPLAND. The model was parameterized with movement, demographic and genetic data of spur-thighed tortoises (Testudo graeca) in SE Spain. We developed different simulation experiments to answer questions about the effects of global change on the conservation of this species. At the species level, we identified those evolutionary traits of tortoises, such as female sperm storage, that prevent extinctions in human-altered habitats. At landscape scale, we assessed the impact of agricultural abandonment and agricultural intensification on the population dynamics of this long-lived species. Only agricultural intensification negatively affected reproductive rates, population density, and probability of extinction of T. graeca, with time-lag responses of 20, 30 and 130 years respectively. Finally, in a regional context, we aim to simulate the early stages of a range expansion. Preliminary results reveal patterns compatible to “genetic surfing”, a process affecting the expansion of low dispersal species impacted by strong genetic drift. We believe that our line of research exemplifies well that the scientific value of movement data goes well beyond the individual level.

Variation in offspring sex ratio, particularly in birds, has been frequently studied over the last century, although seldom using long-term monitoring data. In raptors, the cost of raising males and females is not equal, and several variables have been found to have significant effects on sex ratio, including food availability, parental age, and hatching order. Sex ratio differences between island populations and their mainland counterparts have been poorly documented, despite broad scientific literature on the island syndrome reporting substantial differences in population demography and ecology. Here, we assessed individual and environmental factors potentially affecting the secondary sex ratio of the long-lived Egyptian vulture Neophron percnopterus. We used data collected from Spanish mainland and island populations over a ca. 30-year period (1995-2021) to assess the effects of insularity, parental age, breeding phenology, brood size, hatching order, type of breeding unit (pairs vs. trios), and spatial and temporal variability on offspring sex ratio. No sex bias was found at the population level, but two opposite trends were observed between mainland and island populations consistent with the island syndrome. Offspring sex ratio was nonsignificantly female-biased in mainland Spain (0.47, n = 1112) but significantly male-biased in the Canary Islands (0.55, n = 499), where a male-biased mortality among immatures could be compensating for offspring biases and maintaining a paired adult sex ratio. Temporal and spatial variation in food availability might also have some influence on sex ratio, although the difficulties in quantifying them preclude us from determining the magnitude of such influence. This study shows that insularity influences the offspring sex ratio of the Egyptian vulture through several processes that can affect island and mainland populations differentially. Our research contributes to improving our understanding of sex allocation theory by invest

Plastic pollution is distributed patchily around the world's oceans. Likewise, marine organisms that are vulnerable to plastic ingestion or entanglement have uneven distributions. Understanding where wildlife encounters plastic is crucial for targeting research and mitigation. Oceanic seabirds, particularly petrels, frequently ingest plastic, are highly threatened, and cover vast distances during foraging and migration. However, the spatial overlap between petrels and plastics is poorly understood. Here we combine marine plastic density estimates with individual movement data for 7137 birds of 77 petrel species to estimate relative exposure risk. We identify high exposure risk areas in the Mediterranean and Black seas, and the northeast Pacific, northwest Pacific, South Atlantic and southwest Indian oceans. Plastic exposure risk varies greatly among species and populations, and between breeding and non-breeding seasons. Exposure risk is disproportionately high for Threatened species. Outside the Mediterranean and Black seas, exposure risk is highest in the high seas and Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of the USA, Japan, and the UK. Birds generally had higher plastic exposure risk outside the EEZ of the country where they breed. We identify conservation and research priorities, and highlight that international collaboration is key to addressing the impacts of marine plastic on wide-ranging species.

Women (and all gender-discriminated people) are underrepresented in science, especially in leadership positions and higher stages of the scientific career. One of the main causes of career abandonment by women is maternity, with many women leaving Academia after having their first child because of the career penalties associated with motherhood. Thus, more actions to help scientific moms to balance family and academic work are urgently needed to increase representation of women and other gender discriminated people in Academia. Besides mothers, these rules may also benefit other groups such as mothers-to-be, fathers, caregivers, and women in general. Increasing women representation in science, including mothers, is critical because equality is a fundamental right, and because more diverse working environments are more productive and get to more optimal solutions. Here, we describe 10 simple rules that can be adopted in Academia to halt the abandonment of scientific careers by women after motherhood. We strongly encourage their implementation to increase gender diversity and equality in science.

Large-scale climatic indices are extensively used as predictors of ecological processes, but the mechanisms and the spatio-temporal scales at which climatic indices influence these processes are often speculative. Here, we use long-term data to evaluate how a measure of individual breeding investment (the egg volume) of three long-lived and long-distance-migrating seabirds is influenced by i) a large-scale climatic index (the North Atlantic Oscillation) and ii) local-scale variables (food abundance, foraging conditions, and competition). Winter values of the North Atlantic Oscillation did not correlate with local-scale variables measured in spring, but surprisingly, both had a high predictive power of the temporal variability of the egg volume in the three study species, even though they have different life-history strategies. The importance of the winter North Atlantic Oscillation suggests carry-over effects of winter conditions on subsequent breeding investment. Interestingly, the most important local-scale variables measured in spring were associated with food detectability (foraging conditions) and the factors influencing its accessibility (foraging conditions and competition by density-dependence). Large-scale climatic indices may work better as predictors of foraging conditions when organisms perform long distance migrations, while local-scale variables are more appropriate when foraging areas are more restricted (e.g. during the breeding season). Contrary to what is commonly assumed, food abundance does not directly translate into food intake and its detectability and accessibility should be considered in the study of food-related ecological processes.

Determining the non-breeding distribution and activity patterns of migratory animals is essential to understand the trade-offs across breeding, moulting and migratory periods and to evaluate the differential levels of exposure of these animals to threats throughout the year. By taking advantage of the current miniaturization of geolocators, during the breeding season of 2019, we deployed geolocators on 10 European Storm Petrels Hydrobates pelagicus breeding on Benidorm Island, Western Mediterranean, to determine the distribution and activity patterns of this small seabird species. Of the eight individuals that were recaptured with usable geolocation data, all individuals migrated to the North Atlantic Ocean, ranging between the Canary Islands and south of Iceland. They possibly take advantage of the more productive waters in the North Atlantic areas explored during the non-breeding period compared with the Western Mediterranean areas explored during the breeding period. This migratory pattern contrasted with the partial migration described for individuals breeding in the Central Mediterranean. Tracked individuals were more synchronous in their prenuptial than in their postnuptial migratory phenology, probably due to a higher probability of breeding success related to earlier arrival to the breeding area. At-sea activity data indicated that individuals spent more time on the water at night (and especially on those nights around the new moon) during the first half of the non-breeding period (matching the dates of the moulting period of the species). Although birds may begin to moult their feathers while breeding, some seemed to overlap the moulting period with the postnuptial migration. Our results show that multi-colony studies are needed to understand the drivers of distinct migratory patterns at intra- and inter-population levels and how small migratory species trade-off the overlap of moult with other energetically demanding activities such as breeding or migratin

Synchrony can have important consequences for long-term metapopulations persistence, community dynamics and ecosystems functioning. While the causes and consequences of intra-specific synchrony on population size and demographic rates have received considerable attention only a few factors that may affect inter-specific synchrony have been described. We formulate the hypothesis that food subsidies can buffer the influence of environmental stochasticity on community dynamics, disrupting and masking originally synchronized systems. To illustrate this hypothesis, we assessed the consequences of European policies implementation affecting subsidy availability on the temporal synchrony of egg volume as a proxy of breeding investment in two sympatric marine top predators with differential subsidy use. We show how 7-year synchrony appears on egg volume fluctuations after subsidy cessation suggesting that food subsidies could disrupt interspecific synchrony. Moreover, cross correlation increased after subsidy cessation and environmental buffering seems to act during synchronization period. We emphasize that subsidies dynamics and waste management provide novel insights on the emergence of synchrony in natural populations.

Large-scale climatic indices are extensively used as predictors of ecological processes, but the mechanisms and the spatio-temporal scales at which climatic indices influence these processes are often speculative. Here, we use long-term data to evaluate how a measure of individual breeding investment (the egg volume) of three long-lived and long-distancemigrating seabirds is influenced by i) a large-scale climatic index (the North Atlantic Oscillation) and ii) local-scale variables (food abundance, foraging conditions, and competition). Winter values of the North Atlantic Oscillation did not correlate with local-scale variables measured in spring, but surprisingly, both had a high predictive power of the temporal variability of the egg volume in the three study species, even though they have different life-history strategies. The importance of the winter North Atlantic Oscillation suggests carry-over effects of winter conditions on subsequent breeding investment. Interestingly, the most important local-scale variables measured in spring were associated with food detectability (foraging conditions) and the factors influencing its accessibility (foraging conditions and competition by density-dependence). Large-scale climatic indices may work better as predictors of foraging conditions when organisms perform long distance migrations, while localscale variables are more appropriate when foraging areas are more restricted (e.g. during the breeding season). Contrary to what is commonly assumed, food abundance does not directly translate into food intake and its detectability and accessibility should be considered in the study of food-related ecological processes.