Ecological adaptation in the Galápagos sea lion: The role of foraging ontogeny and interspecific competition

加拉帕戈斯海狮的生态适应：觅食个体发育和种间竞争的作用

• 批准号: 81016557
• 负责人: Professor Dr. Fritz Trillmich
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Arbeitsgruppe Verhaltensforschung
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2007-12-31 至 2011-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/81016557?language=en
• 关键词: Ecological; adaptation; Gal; pagos; sea

Environmental conditions during early development greatly influence later habitat choice, foraging behavior, and settlement patterns of juvenile animals. Such early influences may enable ecological separation within a population. We have previously demonstrated differences in food choice, morphology of the feeding apparatus, and genetic make-up of Galapagos sea lions (GSL; Zalophus wollebaeki) from the western and central populations of the archipelago. Such differences were unexpected given the high mobility of this species relative to its small geographical range. This difference between the western and central population may be caused by habitat differences as well as competition with Galapagos fur seals (GFS; Arctocephalus galapagoensis) that occur predominantly in the west. We here suggest to study the development of foraging behavior and area-use by young sea lions as well as potential competition with fur seals to determine the contribution of environmental differences during ontogeny to ecological adaptation in western and central populations. This should show how habitat use correlates with differences in foraging and how these differences become established during ontogeny. In addition, the study will determine the role of foraging ontogeny for juvenile survival and if competition with the sympatric GFS can explain that the western GSL population that lives in more productive waters is less abundant than that in the less productive central area. The study will thereby contribute to understanding the role of ontogenetic experience and interspecific competition for habitat choice, population dynamics, and the early stages of speciation.

早期发育过程中的环境条件极大地影响了后来的栖息地选择，觅食行为和少年动物的定居方式。这种早期影响可能使人口内的生态分离。我们以前已经证明了食物选择，喂养设备的形态以及来自群岛西部和中央种群的加拉帕戈斯海狮（GSL； Zalophus wollebaeki）的遗传组成的差异。鉴于该物种相对于其小地理范围的较高的迁移率，这种差异是出乎意料的。西方人口和中央人口之间的这种差异可能是由栖息地差异以及与加拉帕戈斯毛皮密封剂（GFS； Arctocephalus galapagoensis）竞争，主要是在西方发生。我们在这里建议研究幼狮的觅食行为和区域使用的发展，以及潜在的与皮草密封的竞争，以确定本体发育过程中环境差异对西方和中央人口生态适应的贡献。这应该表明栖息地使用如何与觅食差异以及在个体发育过程中建立这些差异的差异相关。此外，该研究将确定觅食对青少年生存的觅食的作用，如果与同胞GF的竞争可以解释说，生活在较高生产力水域中的西方GSL种群在生产力较低的中心地区的竞争不那么丰富。这项研究将有助于理解栖息地选择，种群动态和物种早期阶段的种族发育经验和种间竞争的作用。