A new study published today in Current Biology, "Oceanic Seabirds Chase Tropical Cyclones," reveals that the rare Desertas Petrels (Pterodroma deserta), a wide-ranging seabird in the North Atlantic, exhibit unique foraging behaviors during hurricane season.
A new study published today in Current Biology, "Oceanic Seabirds Chase Tropical Cyclones," reveals that the rare Desertas Petrels (Pterodroma deserta), a wide-ranging seabird in the North Atlantic, exhibit unique foraging behaviors during hurricane season. Contrary to other pelagic seabirds, these petrels do not avoid intense tropical cyclones but instead exploit the dynamic conditions for their benefit, providing new insights into the impact of cyclones on open ocean marine life.
"Initial studies suggested that seabirds either circumnavigate cyclones or seek refuge in the calm eye of the storm. However, the Desertas Petrels we tracked did neither; instead, one-third of them followed the cyclone for days, covering thousands of kilometers,” stated Francesco Ventura, lead author and a Postdoc Investigator in Biology at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). “When we saw the data, we nearly fell off our chairs. This is the first time we have observed this behavior.”
“It’s striking how well the birds know how to exploit the large-scale wind conditions over the North Atlantic for their travels,” said Caroline Ummenhofer, Associate Scientist, Physical Oceanography, at WHOI. “When you overlay the petrels’ foraging trips on top of average winds, it’s a very close match.”
Read more at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Photo Credit: Christoph Moning via Wikimedia Commons
