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Willener A.S.T., Handrich Y., Halsey L.G. & S. Strike |
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Title |
Fat king Penguins are less Steady on their feet. |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2016 |
Publication |
Plos one |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
11 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
e0147784 |
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Abstract |
Returning to the shore after a feeding sojourn at sea, king penguins often undertake a relatively long terrestrial journey to the breeding colony carrying a heavy, mostly frontal, accumulation of fat along with food in the stomach for chick-provisioning. There they must survive a fasting period of up to a month in duration, during which their complete reliance on endogenous energy stores results in a dramatic loss in body mass. Our aim was to determine if the king penguin’s walking gait changes with variations in body mass. We investigated this by walking king penguins on a treadmill while instrumented with an acceleration data logger. The stride frequency, dynamic body acceleration (DBA) and posture of fat (pre-fasting; 13.2 kg) and slim (post fasting; 11 kg) king penguins were assessed while they walked at the same speed (1.4km/h) on a treadmill. Paired statistical tests indicated no evidence for a difference in dynamic body acceleration or stride frequency between the two body masses however there was substantially less variability in both leaning angle and the leaning amplitude of the body when the birds were slimmer. Furthermore, there was some evidence that the slimmer birds exhibited a decrease in waddling amplitude. We suggest the increase in variability of both leaning angle and amplitude, as well as a possibly greater variability in the waddling amplitude, is likely to result from the frontal fat accumulation when the birds are heavier, which may move the centre of mass anteriorly, resulting in a less stable upright posture. This study is the first to use accelerometry to better understand the gait of a species within a specific ecological context: the considerable body mass change exhibited by king penguins. |
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1932-6203 |
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6516 |
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Amélineau, F., Grémillet, D., Bonnet, D., Le Bot, T., & Fort, J. |
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Title |
Where to Forage in the Absence of Sea Ice? Bathymetry As a Key Factor for an Arctic Seabird |
Type |
Journal Article |
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Year |
2016 |
Publication |
Plos one |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
11 |
Issue |
7 |
Pages |
e0157764 |
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Abstract |
The earth is warming at an alarming rate, especially in the Arctic, where a marked decline in sea ice cover may have far-ranging consequences for endemic species. Little auks, endemic Arctic seabirds, are key bioindicators as they forage in the marginal ice zone and feed preferentially on lipid-rich Arctic copepods and ice-associated amphipods sensitive to the consequences of global warming. We tested how little auks cope with an ice-free foraging environment during the breeding season. To this end, we took advantage of natural variation in sea ice concentration along the east coast of Greenland. We compared foraging and diving behaviour, chick diet and growth and adult body condition between two years, in the presence versus nearby absence of sea ice in the vicinity of their breeding site. Moreover, we sampled zooplankton at sea when sea ice was absent to evaluate prey location and little auk dietary preferences. Little auks foraged in the same areas both years, irrespective of sea ice presence/concentration, and targeted the shelf break and the continental shelf. We confirmed that breeding little auks showed a clear preference for larger copepod species to feed their chick, but caught smaller copepods and nearly no ice-associated amphipod when sea ice was absent. Nevertheless, these dietary changes had no impact on chick growth and adult body condition. Our findings demonstrate the importance of bathymetry for profitable little auk foraging, whatever the sea-ice conditions. Our investigations, along with recent studies, also confirm more flexibility than previously predicted for this key species in a warming Arctic. |
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388 |
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1932-6203 |
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6518 |
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Combined bio-logging and stable isotopes reveal individual specialisations in a benthic coastal seabird, the Kerguelen shag |
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Year |
2017 |
Publication |
Plos one |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
12 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
e0172278 |
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Keywords |
Birds Animal sexual behavior Blood Diet Ecological niches Feathers Foraging Predation |
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Abstract |
Individual specialisations, which involve the repetition of specific behaviours or dietary choices over time, have been suggested to benefit animals by avoiding competition with conspecifics and increasing individual foraging efficiency. Among seabirds, resident and benthic species are thought to be good models to study inter-individual variation as they repetitively exploit the same environment. We investigated foraging behaviour, isotopic niche and diet in the Kerguelen shag Phalacrocorax verrucosus during both the incubation and chick-rearing periods for the same individuals to determine the effect of sex, breeding stage, body mass and morphometrics on mean foraging metrics and their consistency. There were large differences between individuals in foraging behaviour and consistency, with strong individual specialisations in dive depths and heading from the colony. Stable isotopes revealed specialisations in feeding strategies, across multiple temporal scales. Specifically, individuals showed medium term specialisations in feeding strategies during the breeding season, as well as long-term consistency. A clustering analysis revealed 4 different foraging strategies displaying significantly different ?15N values and body masses. There were no sex or stage biases to clusters and individuals in different clusters did not differ in their morphology. Importantly, the results suggest that the different strategies emphasized were related to individual prey preferences rather than intrinsic characteristics. |
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394 |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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6585 |
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Title |
How Elephant Seals (Mirounga leonina) Adjust Their Fine Scale Horizontal Movement and Diving Behaviour in Relation to Prey Encounter Rate |
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Journal |
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Year |
2016 |
Publication |
Plos one |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
11 |
Issue |
12 |
Pages |
e0167226 |
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Keywords |
Foraging Predation Acceleration Animal behavior Predator-prey dynamics Seals Swimming Water columns |
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Abstract |
Understanding the diving behaviour of diving predators in relation to concomitant prey distribution could have major practical applications in conservation biology by allowing the assessment of how changes in fine scale prey distribution impact foraging efficiency and ultimately population dynamics. The southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina, hereafter SES), the largest phocid, is a major predator of the southern ocean feeding on myctophids and cephalopods. Because of its large size it can carry bio-loggers with minimal disturbance. Moreover, it has great diving abilities and a wide foraging habitat. Thus, the SES is a well suited model species to study predator diving behaviour and the distribution of ecologically important prey species in the Southern Ocean. In this study, we examined how SESs adjust their diving behaviour and horizontal movements in response to fine scale prey encounter densities using high resolution accelerometers, magnetometers, pressure sensors and GPS loggers. When high prey encounter rates were encountered, animals responded by (1) diving and returning to the surface with steeper angles, reducing the duration of transit dive phases (thus improving dive efficiency), and (2) exhibiting more horizontally and vertically sinuous bottom phases. In these cases, the distance travelled horizontally at the surface was reduced. This behaviour is likely to counteract horizontal displacement from water currents, as they try to remain within favourable prey patches. The prey encounter rate at the bottom of dives decreased with increasing diving depth, suggesting a combined effect of decreased accessibility and prey density with increasing depth. Prey encounter rate also decreased when the bottom phases of dives were spread across larger vertical extents of the water column. This result suggests that the vertical aggregation of prey can regulate prey density, and as a consequence impact the foraging success of SESs. To our knowledge, this is one of only a handful of studies showing how the vertical distributions and structure of prey fields influence the prey encounter rates of a diving predator. |
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109 |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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6607 |
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Title |
Southern Elephant Seals Replenish Their Lipid Reserves at Different Rates According to Foraging Habitat |
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Year |
2016 |
Publication |
PLOS ONE |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
11 |
Issue |
11 |
Pages |
e0166747 |
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Keywords |
Accelerometers Bioenergetics Foraging Lipids Musculoskeletal system Oceanography Predation Swimming |
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Abstract |
Assessing energy gain and expenditure in free ranging marine predators is difficult. However, such measurements are critical if we are to understand how variation in foraging efficiency, and in turn individual body condition, is impacted by environmentally driven changes in prey abundance and/or accessibility. To investigate the influence of oceanographic habitat type on foraging efficiency, ten post-breeding female southern elephant seals Mirounga leonina (SES) were equipped and tracked with bio-loggers to give continuous information of prey catch attempts, body density and body activity. Variations in these indices of foraging efficiency were then compared between three different oceanographic habitats, delineated by the main frontal structures of the Southern Ocean. Results show that changes in body density are related not only to the number of previous prey catch attempts and to the body activity (at a 6 day lag), but also foraging habitat type. For example, despite a lower daily prey catch attempt rate, SESs foraging north of the sub-Antarctic front improve their body density at a higher rate than individuals foraging south of the sub-Antarctic and polar fronts, suggesting that they may forage on easier to catch and/or more energetically rich prey in this area. Our study highlights a need to understand the influence of habitat type on top predator foraging behaviour and efficiency when attempting a better comprehension of marine ecosystems. |
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109 |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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Serial |
6626 |
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Author |
Tiphaine Jeanniard-du-Dot, Andrew W. Trites, John P. Y. Arnould, Christophe Guinet |
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Title |
Reproductive success is energetically linked to foraging efficiency in Antarctic fur seals |
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Journal |
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Year |
2017 |
Publication |
PLOS ONE |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
12 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
e0174001 |
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Keywords |
Accelerometers Antarctica Bioenergetics Foraging Predation Reproductive success Seals Trophic interactions |
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Abstract |
The efficiency with which individuals extract energy from their environment defines their survival and reproductive success, and thus their selective contribution to the population. Individuals that forage more efficiently (i.e., when energy gained exceeds energy expended) are likely to be more successful at raising viable offspring than individuals that forage less efficiently. Our goal was to test this prediction in large long-lived mammals under free-ranging conditions. To do so, we equipped 20 lactating Antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) breeding on Kerguelen Island in the Southern Ocean with tags that recorded GPS locations, depth and tri-axial acceleration to determine at-sea behaviours and detailed time-activity budgets during their foraging trips. We also simultaneously measured energy spent at sea using the doubly-labeled water (DLW) method, and estimated the energy acquired while foraging from 1) type and energy content of prey species present in scat remains, and 2) numbers of prey capture attempts determined from head acceleration. Finally, we followed the growth of 36 pups from birth until weaning (of which 20 were the offspring of our 20 tracked mothers), and used the relative differences in body mass of pups at weaning as an index of first year survival and thus the reproductive success of their mothers. Our results show that females with greater foraging efficiencies produced relatively bigger pups at weaning. These mothers achieved greater foraging efficiency by extracting more energy per minute of diving rather than by reducing energy expenditure. This strategy also resulted in the females spending less time diving and less time overall at sea, which allowed them to deliver higher quality milk to their pups, or allowed their pups to suckle more frequently, or both. The linkage we demonstrate between reproductive success and the quality of individuals as foragers provides an individual-based quantitative framework to investigate how changes in the availability and accessibility of prey can affect fitness of animals. |
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109 |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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6640 |
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Title |
Breeding success of a marine central place forager in the context of climate change: A modeling approach |
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Year |
2017 |
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PLOS ONE |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
12 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
e0173797 |
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Keywords |
Climate change Animal sexual behavior Foraging Predation Seals Bioenergetics Death rates Islands |
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109 |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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6645 |
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Title |
Emperors in Hiding: When Ice-Breakers and Satellites Complement Each Other in Antarctic Exploration |
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Year |
2014 |
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PLOS ONE |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
9 |
Issue |
6 |
Pages |
e100404 |
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Keywords |
Animal sexual behavior Animal sociality Antarctica Birds Census Glaciers Penguins Tongue |
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Abstract |
Evaluating the demographic trends of marine top predators is critical to understanding the processes involved in the ongoing rapid changes in Antarctic ecosystems. However, the remoteness and logistical complexity of operating in Antarctica, especially during winter, make such an assessment difficult. Satellite imaging is increasingly recognised as a valuable method for remote animal population monitoring, yet its accuracy and reliability are still to be fully evaluated. We report here the first ground visit of an emperor penguin colony first discovered by satellite, but also the discovery of a second one not indicated by satellite survey at that time. Several successive remote surveys in this coastal region of East Antarctica, both before and after sudden local changes, had indeed only identified one colony. These two colonies (with a total of ca. 7,400 breeding pairs) are located near the Mertz Glacier in an area that underwent tremendous habitat change after the glacier tongue broke off in February 2010. Our findings therefore suggest that a satellite survey, although offering a major advance since it allows a global imaging of emperor penguin colonies, may miss certain colony locations when challenged by certain features of polar ecosystems, such as snow cover, evolving ice topology, and rapidly changing habitat. Moreover our survey shows that this large seabird has considerable potential for rapid adaptation to sudden habitat loss, as the colony detected in 2009 may have moved and settled on new breeding grounds. Overall, the ability of emperor penguin colonies to relocate following habitat modification underlines the continued need for a mix of remote sensing and field surveys (aerial photography and ground counts), especially in the less-frequented parts of Antarctica, to gain reliable knowledge about the population demography and dynamics of this flagship species of the Antarctic ecosystem. |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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6689 |
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Title |
Inter-Annual Variability of Fledgling Sex Ratio in King Penguins |
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Year |
2014 |
Publication |
PLOS ONE |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
9 |
Issue |
12 |
Pages |
e114052 |
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Keywords |
Animal sexual behavior Animal sociality Birds Foraging Ocean temperature Penguins Seasons Sex ratio |
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137 |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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6693 |
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Title |
Spatial Heterogeneity as a Genetic Mixing Mechanism in Highly Philopatric Colonial Seabirds |
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Year |
2015 |
Publication |
PLOS ONE |
Abbreviated Journal |
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Volume |
10 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
e0117981 |
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Keywords |
Animal sexual behavior Animal sociality Birds Inbreeding Penguins Population genetics Seabirds Spatial autocorrelation |
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Abstract |
How genetic diversity is maintained in philopatric colonial systems remains unclear, and understanding the dynamic balance of philopatry and dispersal at all spatial scales is essential to the study of the evolution of coloniality. In the King penguin, Aptenodytes patagonicus, return rates of post-fledging chicks to their natal sub-colony are remarkably high. Empirical studies have shown that adults return year after year to their previous breeding territories within a radius of a few meters. Yet, little reliable data are available on intra- and inter-colonial dispersal in this species. Here, we present the first fine-scale study of the genetic structure in a king penguin colony in the Crozet Archipelago. Samples were collected from individual chicks and analysed at 8 microsatellite loci. Precise geolocation data of hatching sites and selective pressures associated with habitat features were recorded for all sampling locations. We found that despite strong natal and breeding site fidelity, king penguins retain a high degree of panmixia and genetic diversity. Yet, genetic structure appears markedly heterogeneous across the colony, with higher-than-expected inbreeding levels, and local inbreeding and relatedness hotspots that overlap predicted higher-quality nesting locations. This points towards heterogeneous population structure at the sub-colony level, in which fine-scale environmental features drive local philopatric behaviour, while lower-quality patches may act as genetic mixing mechanisms at the colony level. These findings show how a lack of global genetic structuring can emerge from small-scale heterogeneity in ecological parameters, as opposed to the classical model of homogeneous dispersal. Our results also emphasize the importance of sampling design for estimation of population parameters in colonial seabirds, as at high spatial resolution, basic genetic features are shown to be location-dependent. Finally, this study stresses the importance of understanding intra-colonial dispersal and genetic mixing mechanisms in order to better estimate species-wide gene flows and population dynamics. |
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1932-6203 |
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1932-6203 |
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yes |
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6695 |
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