Did you know that seabirds can help scientists understand the ocean? By looking at what they eat, where they fly, or the growing of their feathers we can learn about fish, climate change, pollution and even overall ocean health!
Some seabirds can spend months or years out at sea travelling thousands of kilometres before coming back to land to breed. When they return to land, we can use their blood or feathers that have grown whilst they were out at sea to find out what types of food they have been eating and where. This allows us to learn about not only the seabirds, but also about the plants and animals they are eating.
Not only can seabirds tell us about their food sources, but they also respond to changes in climate. So, when seabirds make drastic changes to their feeding or breeding behaviour it can be their way of letting us know something isn’t right or has changed for them.
Whilst we can learn lots from all seabird species, I study fairy prions a little seabird that are found in Eastern Tasmania. Despite being small enough to fit in your hand, these little birds travel all over the Southern Ocean. Fairy prions feed on tiny plants and animals at the ocean’s surface called plankton. However, due to the warming oceans, these plankton are becoming stressed. I am trying to work out what types of plankton fairy prions are eating in Eastern Tasmania, and if this is changing as the ocean warms.
Hopefully, through learning about fairy prions, they will be able to help me work out how healthy the ocean is in Eastern Tasmania and how it is changing.
