Dynamic space use of Andalusian rice fields by Lesser Black-backed Gulls (Larus fuscus) is driven by flooding pattern

Research on the space use and behaviour of waterbirds yields important insights on human-wildlife interactions of ecological and societal importance under global change. The extent to which dynamic (within-season) changes in anthropogenic landscapes affect these interactions is poorly understood. Lesser Black-backed Gulls Larus fuscus are prominent bio-vectors of biological, synthetic and inorganic materials and have exhibited large increases in abundance in parts of southern Europe in recent decades. We combined GPS tracking, earth observation, accelerometry and field observations to study the space use of overwintering gulls in a mixed rice field landscape in Andalusia, southern Spain. We used Manly selectivity metrics, a common quantitative measurement of habitat selection, and classified remote sensing imagery directly to evaluate space use and habitat selection for these gulls and how it changed throughout the rice harvest cycle. Analysis of over 45 000 GPS fixes and 14 classified remotely sensed images from winter 2016/17 showed dynamic space use driven by the harvest-related flooding across the rice harvest cycle. Prior to harvest, gulls foraged in rice paddies during the day and roosted in adjacent waterbodies (the River Guadalquivir and fish ponds) at night. During harvest, they spent nearly 100% of their daily cycle within the rice fields, foraging in harvested paddies and roosting in post-harvest, flooded paddies. After harvest, they roosted in flooded paddies at night and foraged at landfills in the surrounding landscape. Gull space use at landscape and paddy scales was closely linked to dynamic land and water management over the rice agricultural cycle, illustrating how human activities influence the movements of ecologically important, human-associated bio-vectors such as gulls. The frequent early-spring movement patterns of gulls between landfills and agricultural fields makes them an important bio-transport link for potentially toxic materials and pathogens between waste sites and places where food is grown for human consumption.

Automated summary

Research on the space use and behavior of waterbirds reveals the dynamic changes in their interactions with human activities in anthropogenic landscapes, highlighting the influence of human activities on ecologically important bio-vectors such as gulls.