Ocean climate prior to breeding affects the duration of the nestling period in the Atlantic puffin

Abstract

Time-series covering 23 years for a long-lived seabird, the Atlantic puffin ( Fratercula arctica L.) at Røst, northern Norway, was used to explore any indirect effects of climatic variations on chick production. By fitting statistical models on the duration of the nestling period, we found that it may be estimated using the average sea temperature and salinity at 0–20 m depth in March (having a positive and a negative effect, respectively). We propose that when the phytoplankton bloom occurs in early spring, adverse oceanographic conditions, i.e. low temperature and high salinity in March, have a negative effect on puffin reproduction by degradation of the prey availability (mainly Clupea harengus ) for chick-feeding adults three months later.