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Biology & Medicine
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Dr. Polly Penhale
Program Manager
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B-034-M
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NSF/OPP Award 01-25098
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Station:
McMurdo Station
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RPSC POC:
Patricia Jackson
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Research Site(s):
Cape Royds, Beaufort Island, Franklin Island, Terra Nova Bay
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Dates in Antarctica:
Late December to early February
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Occupation history and diet of Adélie penguins in the Ross Sea region
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An abandoned penguin colony near Australia's Casey Station before excavation. The mounded concentration of pebbles stands out from the rest of the natural landscape and makes these sites easy to identify. The mound was formed after penguins collected pe
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Deploying Team Members:
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Larry Coats
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Steven D. Emslie
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Jerzy Smykla
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Research Objectives:
This project builds on previous studies investigating the occupation history and diet of Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) with excavations of the many abandoned and active penguin colonies in the Ross Sea region, more specifically, the Victoria Land coast from Cape Adare to Marble Point. Some of these sites have been radiocarbon-dated and indicate that Adélie penguins have occupied these sites for 13,000 years. The material recovered by project team members, as demonstrated from previous investigations, will include penguin bones, tissue, and eggshell fragments, as well as abundant remains of prey (fish bones, otoliths, squid beaks) preserved in ornithogenic soils (formed from bird guano). These organic remains will be quantified and subjected to radiocarbon analyses to obtain a colonization history of the penguins in this region. Identification of prey remains in the sediment will allow researchers to assess penguin diet.
The group collaborates with New Zealand scientists to analyze other data from these sites (ancient DNA) and interprets past climatic conditions from published ice-core and marine-sediment records. These data will be used to test the hypothesis that Adélie penguins respond predictably to climate change, past and present. Scientists will also test the hypothesis that these penguins alter their diet in accordance with climate, sea-ice conditions, and other marine environmental variables along a latitudinal gradient. Graduate and undergraduate students will be involved, and a website will be developed to report results and maintain educational interaction between project personnel and students at local middle and high schools in Wilmington, North Carolina.
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