Collaborative Research: Hunting in Darkness: Behavioral and Energetic Strategies of Weddell Seals in Winter

摘要智力优势：威德尔海豹（Leptonychotes weddellii）全年在滨冰下定位和捕获分布稀疏的移动猎物，包括环境光照水平非常低且呼吸孔通道非常有限的南方冬季。这是水生哺乳动物捕食者所处的最具挑战性的环境之一，它提供了独特的机会来验证以下假设：1)觅食的行为策略和能量成本；2)在海冰下捕获猎物的感官模式。为了实现这些目标，我们将在秋季、冬季和早春期间在自由放养的威德尔海豹的背上安装数字视频和数据记录器。这些仪器同时记录猎物的追捕和捕获以及三维运动、游泳表现、环境光照水平和其他环境变量的视频。整个潜水和部分潜水的能量消耗将根据划水努力和我们发表的威德尔海豹游泳表现和能量之间的关系来估计。不同潜水类型的能量消耗将被评估为最大化觅食效率、范围（行进距离）和潜水时间的策略。本研究将对威德尔海豹觅食行为、感官生态学、能量学、栖息地利用和猎物分布中视觉和光照条件变化的作用提供更深入的了解。它还将为威德尔海豹全年居住在南极沿海海洋生态系统的生存策略提供新的见解。更广泛的影响：拟议的研究将培养两名研究生和一名博士后。外联活动将包括采访，书面材料和照片提供给印刷和电子媒体，项目网站，高中电子邮件交流从麦克默多站，接待来访的艺术家在我们的野外营地，和公开讲座。我们将每周通过我们的网站向小学项目的教师和学生提供我们的研究成果总结，其中一个获得了教育奖。我们以前的项目吸引了大量的媒体报道，有效地将科学研究带给了公众。这些报道和我们的工作产生的视频图像激发了想象力，并有助于向儿童和成人灌输对科学和野生动物保护的兴趣。

AbstractIntellectual Merit: Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) locate and capture sparsely distributed and mobile prey under shore-fast ice throughout the year, including the austral winter when ambient light levels are very low and access to breathing holes is highly limited. This is one of the most challenging environments occupied by an aquatic mammalian predator, and it presents unique opportunities to test hypotheses concerning: 1) behavioral strategies and energetic costs for foraging and 2) sensory modalities used for prey capture under sea ice. To accomplish these objectives, we will attach digital video and data recorders to the backs of free-ranging Weddell seals during the autumn, winter and early spring. These instruments simultaneously record video of prey pursuit and capture and three-dimensional movements, swimming performance, ambient light level and other environmental variables. Energetic costs for entire dives and portions of dives will be estimated from stroking effort and our published relationship between swimming performance and energetics for Weddell seals. The energetic cost of different dive types will be evaluated for strategies that maximize foraging efficiency, range (distance traveled), and duration of submergence. The proposed study will provide a more thorough understanding of the role of vision and changing light conditions in foraging behavior, sensory ecology, energetics and habitat use of Weddell seals and the distribution of encountered prey. It also will provide new insights into survival strategies that allow Weddell seals to inhabit the Antarctic coastal marine ecosystem throughout the year. Broader Impacts: The proposed study will train two graduate students and a Post-doctoral Fellow. Outreach activities will include interviews, written material and photographs provided to print and electronic media, project web sites, high school email exchanges from McMurdo Station, hosting visiting artists at our field camp, and public lectures. We will provide a weekly summary of our research findings to teachers and students in elementary school programs through our websites, one of which received an educational award. Our previous projects have attracted an extraordinary amount of press coverage that effectively brings scientific research to the public. This coverage and the video images generated by our work excite the imagination and help instill an interest in science and wildlife conservation in children and adults.