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Breeding behaviour of colour-aberrant Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at Cape Crozier, Ross Island, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2021

Parker M. Levinson Open the ORCID record for Parker M. Levinson [Opens in a new window] ,
Annie E. Schmidt Open the ORCID record for Annie E. Schmidt [Opens in a new window] ,
Virginia Morandini ,
Megan Elrod ,
Dennis Jongsomjit  and
Grant Ballard
Parker M. Levinson*
Affiliation:
Point Blue Conservation Science, 3820 Cypress Dr #11, Petaluma, CA94954, USA
Annie E. Schmidt
Affiliation:
Point Blue Conservation Science, 3820 Cypress Dr #11, Petaluma, CA94954, USA
Virginia Morandini
Affiliation:
Oregon State University, 104 Nash Hall, Corvallis, OR97331, USA
Megan Elrod
Affiliation:
Point Blue Conservation Science, 3820 Cypress Dr #11, Petaluma, CA94954, USA
Dennis Jongsomjit
Affiliation:
Point Blue Conservation Science, 3820 Cypress Dr #11, Petaluma, CA94954, USA
Grant Ballard
Affiliation:
Point Blue Conservation Science, 3820 Cypress Dr #11, Petaluma, CA94954, USA
*
parkerlevinson@gmail.com
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Abstract

Plumage colour variation occurs widely among bird species and is often associated with individual fitness. More specifically, colouration can affect thermoregulatory ability, mate selection and conspicuousness during foraging. Colour aberrations can be caused by genetic mutations, dietary imbalances, environmental conditions or disease and are rare. Plumage variations have previously been noted in Adélie penguins, although without any follow-up to measure implications for behaviour or fitness. To assess how this low-frequency condition affects breeding in Adélie penguins, we monitored the breeding of several colour-aberrant Adélie penguins during the 2019–2020 nesting season at the large Cape Crozier, Ross Island colony (> 300,000 pairs). In total, we found 12 individuals with unusual plumage for a frequency of 1:50,000 breeding penguins. There were seven dark brown Adélie penguins, three progressive greying Adélie penguins, one dilute Adélie penguin and one brown Adélie penguin, of which five were female, three male and four of unknown sex. Six colour aberrants initiated breeding with a normal-coloured mate, and five raised at least one chick to crèche. The likelihood of breeding and breeding success of colour aberrants were similar to those of normal-coloured Adélie penguins, suggesting that colour aberrations do not negatively affect breeding.

Keywords

dark browndiluteinoleucisticprogressive greying
Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 33 , Issue 4 , August 2021 , pp. 335 - 343
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Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2021

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