Long-term ecology studies in Patagonian seabirds: a review with the Imperial Cormorant as a case study

Abstract

Natural and human-induced environmental changes are worldwide and recurrent threats to seabirds. It is clear that global change and climate variability influence seabird reproduction, distribution, phenology, and survival in many regions of the globe, both on large and local scales. Indeed, seabirds are widely recognized as reliable indicators of marine environmental changes associated with climatic as well as other anthropogenic and natural factors. Long-term monitoring of seabirds, both at the breeding sites and at sea, is key to understand population drivers over time. In the present work, we listed and summarized the long-term ecological studies of seabirds along coastal Patagonia Argentina, and we offer unprecedented results from a long-term dataset (i.e., 16-year period) on demographic, breeding, and at-sea ecological variables for the imperial cormorant (Leucocarbo atriceps), as an example of the type of long-term ecological research needed on the Patagonian coast to understand the potential effects of global change on Patagonian seabirds.