RAPID: Deepwater Horizon oil spill: Impacts on migratory shorebirds and carry-over effects

该项目的目的是评估深水地平线石油泄漏对迁徙的滨鸟的直接影响，以及泄漏对这些鸟类在夏季繁殖的遥远生态系统的携带效应。在一些鸟类物种中，由于冬季栖息地的退化而导致的繁殖成功的携带效应已经被记录下来，这不仅对滨鸟种群而且对整个滨鸟繁殖的生态系统都很重要。研究人员将比较暴露在石油污染下和未受影响的控制地点，包括个体鸟类的毒理学状况、环境污染水平、食物供应、存活率、后续繁殖成功的相关性以及四种小型越冬滨鸟的其他健康指标。结果将是确定个体的毒理学状况和环境状况如何影响适合度测量的变化和繁殖成功的相关因素。这项工作将为种群模型的发展和进一步研究提供基础，旨在记录石油泄漏对这些鸟类繁殖的遥远北极生态系统的影响。这项工作将突出墨西哥湾栖息地作为迁徙滨鸟越冬地的重要性，为保护受威胁的沿海栖息地和鸟类物种提供基线信息，并展示重大环境灾害可以在全球范围内影响生态系统的多种方式。该项目的一部分工作将是开发一种利用鸟类粪便样本测量油脂摄入的新方法。本项目将培养1名博士生、4名本科生和1名博士后。公民科学家将参与帮助重新看到被捆绑的鸟类。

The aim of this project is to assess both the direct impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on migrating shorebirds as well as the carry-over effects of the spill on distant ecosystems where these birds breed during summer months. Carry-over effects on breeding success resulting from the degradation of winter habitat have been documented in several avian species and are important not only to shorebird populations but also to the entire ecosystems in which the shorebirds breed. The investigators will compare oil-exposed versus unaffected control sites with respect to the toxicological status of individual birds, contamination levels in the environment, food availability, survival, correlates of subsequent breeding success, and other indicators of fitness for four small wintering shorebirds. The outcome will be to determine how individual toxicological status and environmental status contribute to variation in measures of fitness and correlates of breeding success. This work will provide a foundation for the development of population models and further studies aimed at documenting the effects of the oil spill on the distant, Arctic ecosystems where these birds breed. This work will highlight the importance of Gulf of Mexico habitats as wintering grounds for migrating shorebirds, providing baseline information for the conservation of threatened coastal habitats and bird species and demonstrating the multiple ways in which a major environment disaster can affect ecosystems on a global scale. Part of this project will be to develop a novel assay for measuring oil ingestion using fecal samples of birds. This project will provide training for one PhD student, four undergraduates and one postdoctoral researcher. Citizen scientists will be engaged to help re-sight banded birds.