Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds?
Abstract Conservation is increasingly in conflict with human activities due to global human population growth, particularly in areas that support threatened species. Conflicts often impede effective implementation of needed conservation measures and also have implications for social inequality, reso...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2020-05-01
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| Series: | Ecosphere |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3097 |
| _version_ | 1818622762747428864 |
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| author | Brooke Maslo J. Curtis Burkhalter David Bushek Tanner Yuhas Brian Schumm Joanna Burger Julie L. Lockwood |
| author_facet | Brooke Maslo J. Curtis Burkhalter David Bushek Tanner Yuhas Brian Schumm Joanna Burger Julie L. Lockwood |
| author_sort | Brooke Maslo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Conservation is increasingly in conflict with human activities due to global human population growth, particularly in areas that support threatened species. Conflicts often impede effective implementation of needed conservation measures and also have implications for social inequality, resource use and economic development. Bivalve molluscan shellfish aquaculture is commonly considered one of the least impactful forms of protein production worldwide but, in some locations, may interfere with essential activities of threatened species such as the stopover ecology of migrating shorebirds. Here we assess the impact of oyster aquaculture as practiced in Delaware Bay (New Jersey, USA) on the presence and foraging behavior of migratory shorebird species of conservation concern. We conducted counts and behavioral observations of shorebirds across a 4.8‐km stretch of the Delaware Bay and tested the effect of regulated aquaculture structures and activities on shorebird presence relative to various environmental factors. We also evaluated differences in mean peck rates for each species within and away from aquaculture areas, and we examined multiple factors influencing foraging rates for each species. For all species, we found that oyster tending reduced the probability of shorebird presence by 1–7%, whereas the untended aquaculture structures had no detectable impact. Foraging rates were mostly influenced by environmental conditions, particularly the presence of competitors (gulls or other shorebirds), and the foraging substrate. None of the focal species substantially altered their time budget or foraging rates in the presence of tended or untended oyster aquaculture. This evidence suggests that intertidal oyster aquaculture and migrating shorebirds can co‐utilize the resource rich intertidal areas on which they occur. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-16T18:30:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c2df8b3f995043278b19bee47c6c0ee9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2150-8925 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-16T18:30:20Z |
| publishDate | 2020-05-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecosphere |
| spelling | doaj.art-c2df8b3f995043278b19bee47c6c0ee92022-12-21T22:21:18ZengWileyEcosphere2150-89252020-05-01115n/an/a10.1002/ecs2.3097Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds?Brooke Maslo0J. Curtis Burkhalter1David Bushek2Tanner Yuhas3Brian Schumm4Joanna Burger5Julie L. Lockwood6Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey New Brunswick New Jersey 08901 USAShearwater Analytics Jacksonville Florida 32225 USAHaskin Shellfish Research Lab New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Port Norris New Jersey 08349 USAEcology, Evolution and Natural Resources Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey New Brunswick New Jersey 08901 USAEcology, Evolution and Natural Resources Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey New Brunswick New Jersey 08901 USAEcology, Evolution and Natural Resources Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey New Brunswick New Jersey 08901 USAEcology, Evolution and Natural Resources Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey New Brunswick New Jersey 08901 USAAbstract Conservation is increasingly in conflict with human activities due to global human population growth, particularly in areas that support threatened species. Conflicts often impede effective implementation of needed conservation measures and also have implications for social inequality, resource use and economic development. Bivalve molluscan shellfish aquaculture is commonly considered one of the least impactful forms of protein production worldwide but, in some locations, may interfere with essential activities of threatened species such as the stopover ecology of migrating shorebirds. Here we assess the impact of oyster aquaculture as practiced in Delaware Bay (New Jersey, USA) on the presence and foraging behavior of migratory shorebird species of conservation concern. We conducted counts and behavioral observations of shorebirds across a 4.8‐km stretch of the Delaware Bay and tested the effect of regulated aquaculture structures and activities on shorebird presence relative to various environmental factors. We also evaluated differences in mean peck rates for each species within and away from aquaculture areas, and we examined multiple factors influencing foraging rates for each species. For all species, we found that oyster tending reduced the probability of shorebird presence by 1–7%, whereas the untended aquaculture structures had no detectable impact. Foraging rates were mostly influenced by environmental conditions, particularly the presence of competitors (gulls or other shorebirds), and the foraging substrate. None of the focal species substantially altered their time budget or foraging rates in the presence of tended or untended oyster aquaculture. This evidence suggests that intertidal oyster aquaculture and migrating shorebirds can co‐utilize the resource rich intertidal areas on which they occur.https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3097aquacultureevidence‐based conservationred knotruddy turnstonesemipalmated sandpiperstopover ecology |
| spellingShingle | Brooke Maslo J. Curtis Burkhalter David Bushek Tanner Yuhas Brian Schumm Joanna Burger Julie L. Lockwood Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds? Ecosphere aquaculture evidence‐based conservation red knot ruddy turnstone semipalmated sandpiper stopover ecology |
| title | Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds? |
| title_full | Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds? |
| title_fullStr | Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds? |
| title_short | Assessing conservation conflict: Does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds? |
| title_sort | assessing conservation conflict does intertidal oyster aquaculture inhibit foraging behavior of migratory shorebirds |
| topic | aquaculture evidence‐based conservation red knot ruddy turnstone semipalmated sandpiper stopover ecology |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3097 |
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