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Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak

Many shorebirds are long-distance migrants and they congregate on intertidal mudflats for feeding throughout their non-breeding season. Despite being one of the key staging sites for migratory shorebirds, data on shorebirds foraging ecology in Sarawak is insufficient for the understanding of the int...

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Main Authors: Ng, Wen Teng, Mohamad Fizl Sidq, Ramji, Jongkar, Grinang, Andrew Alek, Tuen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: The Malaysian Society of Applied Biology 2024
Subjects:
QL Zoology
Online Access:http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/44535/4/Foraging.pdf
http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/44535/
https://jms.mabjournal.com/index.php/mab/article/view/2712
https://doi.org/10.55230/mabjournal.v53i1.2712
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spelling my.unimas.ir.445352024-04-02T07:35:45Z http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/44535/ Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak Ng, Wen Teng Mohamad Fizl Sidq, Ramji Jongkar, Grinang Andrew Alek, Tuen QL Zoology Many shorebirds are long-distance migrants and they congregate on intertidal mudflats for feeding throughout their non-breeding season. Despite being one of the key staging sites for migratory shorebirds, data on shorebirds foraging ecology in Sarawak is insufficient for the understanding of the interaction between shorebirds and their behaviour. This study aimed to determine the foraging behaviour of Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) and Terek Sandpiper (Xenus cinereus) at Asajaya and Buntal mudflats. Data collection of this study was conducted at low tide, during two non-breeding seasons with a total of 12 months of sampling. Focal observations were conducted within a 50 m × 50 m quadrat. A total of 8 exclusive foraging techniques were observed for the three shorebird species, including: pecking, probing, picking, stabbing, snapping, submerging, sweeping and ingesting. Terek Sandpiper displayed all the exclusive foraging behaviours, whereas Whimbrel and Bar-tailed Godwit showed 7 and 5 behaviours, respectively. The three shorebirds also displayed non-exclusive foraging behaviours such as walking, preening and defecating. Spearman correlation test indicates a positive correlation between the foraging behaviours performed among three shorebird species. All three shorebird species adopted similar mixed foraging strategies comprising pecking and probing, with an exception on supplementary behaviours observed in Whimbrel and Terek Sandpiper. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) analysis showed a strong correlation between picking and ingesting behaviours, suggesting a high chance of foraging success with the presence of picking behaviour. The outcome of this study is crucial in understanding how shorebirds maximise their behavioural performance when foraging as well as to assist in formulating better conservation strategies for targeted migratory shorebird species and coastal mudflats. The Malaysian Society of Applied Biology 2024-03 Article PeerReviewed text en http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/44535/4/Foraging.pdf Ng, Wen Teng and Mohamad Fizl Sidq, Ramji and Jongkar, Grinang and Andrew Alek, Tuen (2024) Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak. Malaysian Applied Biology, 53 (1). pp. 169-185. ISSN ISSN 2462-151X https://jms.mabjournal.com/index.php/mab/article/view/2712 https://doi.org/10.55230/mabjournal.v53i1.2712
institution Universiti Malaysia Sarawak
building Centre for Academic Information Services (CAIS)
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Universiti Malaysia Sarawak
content_source UNIMAS Institutional Repository
url_provider http://ir.unimas.my/
language English
topic QL Zoology
spellingShingle QL Zoology
Ng, Wen Teng
Mohamad Fizl Sidq, Ramji
Jongkar, Grinang
Andrew Alek, Tuen
Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak
description Many shorebirds are long-distance migrants and they congregate on intertidal mudflats for feeding throughout their non-breeding season. Despite being one of the key staging sites for migratory shorebirds, data on shorebirds foraging ecology in Sarawak is insufficient for the understanding of the interaction between shorebirds and their behaviour. This study aimed to determine the foraging behaviour of Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) and Terek Sandpiper (Xenus cinereus) at Asajaya and Buntal mudflats. Data collection of this study was conducted at low tide, during two non-breeding seasons with a total of 12 months of sampling. Focal observations were conducted within a 50 m × 50 m quadrat. A total of 8 exclusive foraging techniques were observed for the three shorebird species, including: pecking, probing, picking, stabbing, snapping, submerging, sweeping and ingesting. Terek Sandpiper displayed all the exclusive foraging behaviours, whereas Whimbrel and Bar-tailed Godwit showed 7 and 5 behaviours, respectively. The three shorebirds also displayed non-exclusive foraging behaviours such as walking, preening and defecating. Spearman correlation test indicates a positive correlation between the foraging behaviours performed among three shorebird species. All three shorebird species adopted similar mixed foraging strategies comprising pecking and probing, with an exception on supplementary behaviours observed in Whimbrel and Terek Sandpiper. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) analysis showed a strong correlation between picking and ingesting behaviours, suggesting a high chance of foraging success with the presence of picking behaviour. The outcome of this study is crucial in understanding how shorebirds maximise their behavioural performance when foraging as well as to assist in formulating better conservation strategies for targeted migratory shorebird species and coastal mudflats.
format Article
author Ng, Wen Teng
Mohamad Fizl Sidq, Ramji
Jongkar, Grinang
Andrew Alek, Tuen
author_facet Ng, Wen Teng
Mohamad Fizl Sidq, Ramji
Jongkar, Grinang
Andrew Alek, Tuen
author_sort Ng, Wen Teng
title Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak
title_short Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak
title_full Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak
title_fullStr Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak
title_full_unstemmed Foraging Behaviour of Three Shorebird Species on Coastal Mudflats of Southwestern Sarawak
title_sort foraging behaviour of three shorebird species on coastal mudflats of southwestern sarawak
publisher The Malaysian Society of Applied Biology
publishDate 2024
url http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/44535/4/Foraging.pdf
http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/44535/
https://jms.mabjournal.com/index.php/mab/article/view/2712
https://doi.org/10.55230/mabjournal.v53i1.2712
_version_ 1795293757730455552
score 13.211869

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