Ecology Summary - Cepphus columba

Language:

Ecology of Cepphus columba

Main Ref.	SAUP Database, 2006
Remarks	Nearshore feeder (Ref. 87784). Pursuit diver; coastal; <15 km; water <20m deep (Ref. 356). Based on stable isotope analysis (SIA) diet study of egg albumin, belongs to higher N signature group (based on ratios of stable isotopes of nitrogen and carbon): piscivorous with pelagic foraging range. Aquatic courtship display such as calling and wing-raising, head dipping below the sea surface, and flipping below the sea surface or skittering. Typically nests in crevices. On the Farallon Islands, this species usurps nests of smaller Cassin's Auklet by destroying eggs or chicks thereby effectively lowering its habitat competitor's reproductive success. Severely affected by El Niño events by abandoning nesting attempts in the Farallon Islands in central California. Vulnerable to oil spill as a diving species; population still depressed, with over 50% decline, 9 years after the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound as an effect of persistent trace oil in the water that caused a decline in forage fish abundance (Ref. 87784).

Main Ref.

SAUP Database, 2006

Remarks

Nearshore feeder (Ref. 87784). Pursuit diver; coastal; <15 km; water <20m deep (Ref. 356). Based on stable isotope analysis (SIA) diet study of egg albumin, belongs to higher N signature group (based on ratios of stable isotopes of nitrogen and carbon): piscivorous with pelagic foraging range. Aquatic courtship display such as calling and wing-raising, head dipping below the sea surface, and flipping below the sea surface or skittering. Typically nests in crevices. On the Farallon Islands, this species usurps nests of smaller Cassin's Auklet by destroying eggs or chicks thereby effectively lowering its habitat competitor's reproductive success. Severely affected by El Niño events by abandoning nesting attempts in the Farallon Islands in central California. Vulnerable to oil spill as a diving species; population still depressed, with over 50% decline, 9 years after the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound as an effect of persistent trace oil in the water that caused a decline in forage fish abundance (Ref. 87784).

Aquatic zones / Water bodies

	Marine - Neritic	Marine - Oceanic	Brackishwater	Freshwater
Marine zones / Brackish and freshwater bodies	supra-littoral zone littoral zone sublittoral zone	epipelagic mesopelagic epipelagic abyssopelagic hadopelagic	estuaries/lagoons/brackish seas mangroves marshes/swamps	rivers/streams lakes/ponds caves exclusively in caves

Highighted items on the list are where Cepphus columba may be found.

Habitat

Substrate
Substrate Ref.
Special habitats
Special habitats Ref.

Associations

Ref.
Associations
Associated with
Association remarks
Parasitism

feeding

Feeding type	mainly animals (troph. 2.8 and up)
Feeding type Ref.	Schreiber, E.A. and J. Burger, 2001
Feeding habit	hunting macrofauna (predator)
Feeding habit Ref.	Schreiber, E.A. and J. Burger, 2001

Trophic Level(s)

Estimation method	original sample		unfished population		Remark
Estimation method	Troph	s.e.	Troph	s.e.	Remark
From diet composition
From individual food items	4.22	0.88			Trophic level estimated from a number of food items using a randomized resampling routine.
Ref.

Back to Search

Comments & Corrections

Cookie Settings

Aquatic zones / Water bodies

Habitat

Associations

feeding

Trophic Level(s)