Breaking the fast: first report of dives and ingestion events in molting southern elephant seals.
Journal
Communications biology
ISSN: 2399-3642
Titre abrégé: Commun Biol
Pays: England
ID NLM: 101719179
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
08 Jan 2024
08 Jan 2024
Historique:
received:
12
04
2023
accepted:
18
12
2023
medline:
9
1
2024
pubmed:
9
1
2024
entrez:
8
1
2024
Statut:
epublish
Résumé
Southern elephant seals (SES) experience a 'catastrophic molt', a costly event characterized by the renewal of both hair and epidermis that requires high peripheral vascular circulation. Molting animals are therefore constrained by high metabolic heat loss and are thought to fast and remain on land. To examine the ability of individuals to balance the energetic constraints of molting on land we investigate the stomach temperature and movement patterns of molting female SES. We find that 79% of females swam and 61% ingested water or prey items, despite the cost of cold-water exposure while molting. This behavior was related to periods of warm and low wind conditions, and females that dived and ingested more often, lost less body mass. We conclude that the paradigm of fasting during the molt in this species, and the fitness consequences of this behavior should be reconsidered, especially in the context of a changing climate.
Identifiants
pubmed: 38191678
doi: 10.1038/s42003-023-05720-2
pii: 10.1038/s42003-023-05720-2
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
64Informations de copyright
© 2024. The Author(s).
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