Deville A.-S., Labaude S., Robin J.-P., Béchet A., Gauthier-Clerc M., Porter W., Fitzpatrick M., Mathewson P., Grémillet D.
Centre de Recherche de la Tour Du Valat, Le Sambuc, Arles, France; Centre D'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE-CNRS), 1919 Route de Mende, Montpellier, France; Département Ecologie Physiologie et Ethologie, Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Unité Mixte de Recherche 7178 CNRS-ULP, 23 Rue Becquerel, Strasbourg Cedex 2, France; Departement Chrono-Environnement, UMR UFC/CNRS 6249 USC INRA, Université de Franche- Comté, Besançon, France; Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin, 250 N. Mills Street, Madison, WI, United States; DST/NRF Centre of Excellence, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
Deville, A.-S., Centre de Recherche de la Tour Du Valat, Le Sambuc, Arles, France, Centre D'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE-CNRS), 1919 Route de Mende, Montpellier, France; Labaude, S., Centre de Recherche de la Tour Du Valat, Le Sambuc, Arles, France; Robin, J.-P., Département Ecologie Physiologie et Ethologie, Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Unité Mixte de Recherche 7178 CNRS-ULP, 23 Rue Becquerel, Strasbourg Cedex 2, France; Béchet, A., Centre de Recherche de la Tour Du Valat, Le Sambuc, Arles, France; Gauthier-Clerc, M., Centre de Recherche de la Tour Du Valat, Le Sambuc, Arles, France, Departement Chrono-Environnement, UMR UFC/CNRS 6249 USC INRA, Université de Franche- Comté, Besançon, France; Porter, W., Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin, 250 N. Mills Street, Madison, WI, United States; Fitzpatrick, M., Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin, 250 N. Mills Street, Madison, WI, United States; Mathewson, P., Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin, 250 N. Mills Street, Madison, WI, United States; Grémillet, D., Centre D'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE-CNRS), 1919 Route de Mende, Montpellier, France, DST/NRF Centre of Excellence, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
Most studies analyzing the effects of global warming on wild populations focus on gradual temperature changes, yet it is also important to understand the impact of extreme climatic events. Here we studied the effect of two cold spells (January 1985 and February 2012) on the energetics of greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) in the Camargue (southern France). To understand the cause of observed flamingo mass mortalities, we first assessed the energy stores of flamingos found dead in February 2012, and compared them with those found in other bird species exposed to cold spells and/or fasting. Second, we evaluated the monthly energy requirements of flamingos across 1980-2012 using the mechanistic model Niche MapperTM. Our results show that the body lipids of flamingos found dead in 2012 corresponded to 2.6±0.3% of total body mass, which is close to results found in woodcocks (Scolopax rusticola) that died from starvation during a cold spell (1.7±0.1%), and much lower than in woodcocks which were fed throughout this same cold spell (13.0±2%). Further, Niche MapperTM predicted that flamingo energy requirements were highest (+6-7%) during the 1985 and 2012 cold spells compared with 'normal' winters. This increase was primarily driven by cold air temperatures. Overall, our findings strongly suggest that flamingos starved to death during both cold spells. This study demonstrates the relevance of using mechanistic energetics modelling and body condition analyses to understand and predict the impact of extreme climatic events on animal energy balance and winter survival probabilities. ©2014. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.