Dear all, On behalf of all co-authors, I'm happy to inform you of our newest publication on the decadal decline of maternal body condition of southern right whales.
Vermeulen, E., Thavar, T., Glarou, M., Ganswindt, A., Christiansen, F. Decadal decline in maternal body condition of a Southern Ocean capital breeder. Scientific Reports, 2023 Abstract The changing physical properties of the Southern Ocean are known to impact the recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (*Euphausia superba*). For oceanic krill predators, the resulting reduced energy intake may lead to population-level effects likely preceded by an alteration in the animals’ body condition. This is especially true for capital breeders that rely on stored energy for successful reproduction. One such Southern Ocean capital breeder, the southern right whale (*Eubalaena australis*), has been monitored over the past 43 years in their South African wintering ground. Changes in the population have been documented in the past decade, including a decreased reproductive rate and a shift in foraging strategy. To evaluate if a reduced foraging success is an underlying factor, we assessed the temporal variation in morphological body condition through aerial photogrammetry. Results showed a 23% reduction in maternal body condition, potentially contributing to the decreased reproductive rate of the population. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to quantify a decadal reduction in the body condition of a capital breeder dependent on Southern Ocean productivity. Understanding the bioenergetic consequences of environmental change is vital to predicting species’ resilience to climate change. The article is open access, and can be downloaded from the link below: https://rdcu.be/c6iWf <https://t.co/BBSmEzjqfB> Kind regards, Els Dr Els Vermeulen Senior Lecturer and Research Manager Mammal Research Institute Whale Unit Department of Zoology and Entomology University of Pretoria, South Africa t: +27 (0)60 9714301 e: els.vermeu...@up.ac.za URL: mammalresearchinstitute.science/whale-unit <https://www.mammalresearchinstitute.science/whale-unit> <http://www.facebook.com/MRIWhaleUnit> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/mammal-research-institute-whale-unit> <http://www.instagram.com/mriwhaleunit/> <http://twitter.com/MRI_Whale_Unit> -- This message and attachments are subject to a disclaimer. Please refer to http://upnet.up.ac.za/services/it/documentation/docs/004167.pdf <http://upnet.up.ac.za/services/it/documentation/docs/004167.pdf> for full details.
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