KLEPTOPARASITIC SILVER GULLS Larus novaehollandiae ON THE NORTHERN GREAT BARRIER REEF QUEENSLAND
| Posted: |
15/08/2021 |
| Author(s): |
Geoffrey C. Smith |
Low frequencies of prey stealing behaviour were exhibited by Silver Gulls in Black-naped Tern
and Crested Tern colonies on a tropical sand cay on the northern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland.
Egg predation by Silver Gulls in Black-naped Tern colonies was lower at this site compared with a
southern Great Barrier Reef locality. Chick mortality attributed to gulls in Black-naped Tern colonies
was similar between sites. Fledging success was higher at the northern site compared with the
southern for both tern species. Lower levels of kleptoparasitism at the northern site were probably a
consequence of the low population density of Silver Gulls in the area. An increase in gull numbers
could present a more serious threat, as it has done on the southern Great Barrier Reef.
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