Abstract: Tick-borne flaviviruses and Borrelia spp. are globally spread pathogens of zoonotic potential that are maintained by a transmission cycle at the interface between ticks and vertebrate hosts, mainly wild animals. Aside data on pathogen burden in ticks, information on the status of various hosts relative to infection is important to acquire. We reviewed how those infections have been studied in wildlife host species in the field to discuss how collected data provided relevant epidemiological information and to identify needs for further studies. The literature was screened for observational studies on pathogen or antibody detection for tick-borne Borrelia spp. and flaviviruses in wildlife host animals. Overall, Borrelia spp. were more studied (73% of case studies, representing 297 host species) than flaviviruses (27% of case studies, representing 114 host species). Studies on both Borrelia spp. and flaviviruses focused mainly on the same species, namely bank vole and yellow-necked mouse. Most studies were order-specific and cross-sectional, reporting prevalence at various locations, but with little insight into the underlying epidemiological dynamics. Host species with potential to act as reservoir hosts of these pathogens were neglected, notably birds. We highlight the necessity of collecting both demographics and infection data in wildlife studies, and to consider communities of species, to better estimate zoonotic risk potential in the One Health context.

Abstract: Individuals differ in many ways. Most produce few offspring; a handful produce many. Some die early; others live to old age. It is tempting to attribute these differences in outcomes to differences in individual traits, and thus in the demographic rates experienced. However, there is more to individual variation than meets the eye of the biologist. Even among individuals sharing identical traits, life history outcomes (life expectancy and lifetime reproduction) will vary due to individual stochasticity, that is to chance. Quantifying the contributions of heterogeneity and chance is essential to understand natural variability. Interindividual differences vary across environmental conditions, hence heterogeneity and stochasticity depend on environmental conditions. We show that favourable conditions increase the contributions of individual stochasticity, and reduce the contributions of heterogeneity, to variance in demographic outcomes in a seabird population. The opposite is true under poor conditions. This result has important consequence for understanding the ecology and evolution of life history strategies.

Abstract: Oceanic frontal zones have been shown to deeply influence the distribution of primary producers and, at the other extreme of the trophic web, top predators. However, the relationship between these structures and intermediate trophic levels is much more obscure. In this paper we address this knowledge gap by comparing acoustic measurements of mesopelagic fish concentrations to satellite-derived fine-scale Lagrangian Coherent Structures in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean. First, we demonstrate that higher fish concentrations occur more frequently in correspondence with strong Lagrangian Coherent Structures. Secondly, we illustrate that, while increased fish densities are more likely to be observed over these structures, the presence of a fine-scale feature does not imply a concomitant fish accumulation, as other factors affect fish distribution. Thirdly, we show that, when only chlorophyll-rich waters are considered, front intensity modulates significantly more the local fish concentration. Finally, we discuss a model representing fish movement along Lagrangian features, specifically built for mid-trophic levels. Its results, obtained with realistic parameters, are qualitatively consistent with the observations and the spatio-temporal scales analysed. Overall, these findings may help to integrate intermediate trophic levels in trophic models, which can ultimately support management and conservation policies.

Abstract: Little is known on the food and feeding ecology of the soft-plumaged petrel Pterodroma mollis, which is the single gadfly petrel Pterodroma spp. with a circumpolar breeding distribution within the Southern Ocean. Our primary goal was to describe its diet at Kerguelen Islands, which is the southernmost breeding locality of the species. Soft-plumaged petrels fed on fish (71% by mass), and secondarily on crustaceans (22%), while cephalopods (7%) and other items (< 1%) were minor dietary components. Eight-hundred and sixty prey were identified from the pooled 33 food samples, with the 2 hyperiid amphipods Cyllopus magellanicus (48%) and Themisto gaudichaudii (35%) being the main food items by number. Owing to their larger size than crustaceans, mesopelagic fishes were the main prey by mass, with myctophids being the most important fish family in terms of both abundance (68% of the fish) and diversity (10 species). Prey distribution indicated that soft-plumaged petrels foraged primarily in oceanic subantarctic waters to feed their chicks. The oceanic life style of gadfly petrels was then highlighted by a review of their diet worldwide (20 species, 26 studies). Gadfly petrels prey mainly upon mesopelagic fishes (chiefly myctophids) and squids with their relative proportions depending on species and localities. Crustaceans are minor food items for tropical species, but they form a significant part of the food of the small- and medium-sized petrels that live in temperate and cold waters. The review underlines the need for more well-designed investigations on this globally endangered group of seabirds, since dietary information is available for only 57% of the 35 species of gadfly petrels.

Abstract: 1.Currently pelagic ecosystems are changing significantly due to multiple threats. An important management policy is to establish marine protected areas, until now overlooked due to the difficulty of declaring high seas protected areas, obtaining long-term distribution data on indicator species and the dynamic nature of these ecosystems. 2.Within this framework, we developed predictive habitat suitability models of an oceanic predator, the vulnerable wandering albatross Diomedea exulans, in the highly dynamic Southern Ocean. Based on a long-term tracking database (19982008), we estimated three quantitative ecological indices that complementarily describe the hierarchical habitat use of the species at multiple spatial scales: where the species (i) spent more time (the seascape, based on the time spent per area), (ii) searched for prey (the foraging habitat, based on zones of increased foraging intensity using first passage time), and (iii) fed (the feeding habitat, based on prey capture data). 3.Predictive habitat models reasonably matched the observed distribution patterns and described albatross multi-scale habitat use as a hierarchical arrangement: albatrosses foraged over topographic features in subtropical waters, nested within the wider seascape due to the constraint imposed by the colony effect, whereas feeding occurred nested over the continental shelf and seamounts in areas of low oceanographic variability within the Polar Frontal Zone. 4.Within the current oceanographic conditions, the location of key pelagic habitats for albatrosses breeding in the southern Indian Ocean encompassed certain topographic features such as pelagic areas surrounding main breeding sites, seamounts and submarine mountain ranges. The placement of these pelagic hotspots depends on the current sea surface temperature conditions. 5.Synthesis and applications. The present study provides two key conservation and management tools. First, we provide the first map to support the development of a prospective network of priority conservation zones across the southern Indian Ocean based on habitat predictions of an oceanic indicator species. This could be used not only to support conservation of top predators but also the underlying biodiversity associated with pelagic key habitats. Secondly, the developed habitat modelling procedure is widely applicable and could be used to track changes in species distribution in both marine and terrestrial environments within the current global change scenario.