Fidelity and persistence of Ring-billed ( Larus delawarensis ) and Herring ( Larus argentatus ) gulls to wintering sites

Daniel E. Clark; Kiana K. G. Koenen; Jillian J. Whitney; Kenneth G. MacKenzie; Stephen DeStefano

doi:10.1675/063.039.sp120

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Fidelity and persistence of Ring-billed ( Larus delawarensis ) and Herring ( Larus argentatus ) gulls to wintering sites

Daniel E. Clark·Kiana K. G. Koenen·Jillian J. Whitney·Kenneth G. MacKenzie·Stephen DeStefano

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Abstract

While the breeding ecology of gulls (Laridae) has been well studied, their movements and spatial organization during the non-breeding season is poorly understood. The seasonal movements, winter-site fidelity, and site persistence of Ring-billed ( Larus delawarensis ) and Herring ( L. argentatus ) gulls to wintering areas were studied from 2008–2012. Satellite transmitters were deployed on Ring-billed Gulls ( n = 21) and Herring Gulls ( n = 14). Ten Ring-billed and six Herring gulls were tracked over multiple winters and > 300 wing-tagged Ring-billed Gulls were followed to determine winter-site fidelity and persistence. Home range overlap for individuals between years ranged between 0–1.0 (95% minimum convex polygon) and 0.31–0.79 (kernel utilization distributions). Ringbilled and Herring gulls remained at local wintering sites during the non-breeding season from 20–167 days and 74–161 days, respectively. The probability of a tagged Ring-billed Gull returning to the same site in subsequent winters was high; conversely, there was a low probability of a Ring-billed Gull returning to a different site. Ring-billed and Herring gulls exhibited high winter-site fidelity, but exhibited variable site persistence during the winter season, leading to a high probability of encountering the same individuals in subsequent winters.

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Daniel E. Clark, Kiana K. G. Koenen, Jillian J. Whitney, Kenneth G. MacKenzie, Stephen DeStefano. 2016. Fidelity and persistence of Ring-billed ( Larus delawarensis ) and Herring ( Larus argentatus ) gulls to wintering sites. https://doi.org/10.1675/063.039.sp120

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