The importance of feeding fast when thieves are around: A case study on Whimbrels foraging on a wave‐exposed sandy beach in southern Chile

Abstract

AbstractPrey profitability is one of the most important factors influencing prey selection. This factor varies along with both prey size and handling time. Thus, large prey are generally highly profitable for consumers and boost competition. Kleptoparasitism is a form of competition in which an individual steals food previously obtained by another individual. Accordingly, handling large prey should increase the likelihood of kleptoparasitism occurrence, but these relationships remain poorly understood. Here, we studied kleptoparasitism occurrence by the Brown‐Hooded Gull (Chroicocephalus maculipennis – Laridae) on Whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus hudsonicus – Scolopacidae) preying on intertidal Mole Crabs (Emerita analoga) in a wave‐exposed sandy beach in southern Chile. Generalized linear models, fitted to data from focal‐individual video sequences, showed that kleptoparasitism probability had a positive sigmoidal response to handling time. Moreover, with an increase of 1 s in handling time, a Whimbrel doubled its probability of being kleptoparasitized. Additionally, the odds of being kleptoparasitized were 17% higher with an increase of 10 mm in prey length and 47% higher with an increase of one gull per host. However, the effect of handling on kleptoparasitism probability slightly decreased (2%) with an increase of 10 mm in prey size class. Our results suggest the existence of a threshold time in which consumers can handle their prey before kleptoparasitism probability is too high. Nevertheless, Whimbrel's mean intake rate reached 0.15 ± 0.13 kJ s−1, allowing Whimbrels to theoretically meet their energetic requirements despite losing some prey to kleptoparasites. This study provides new insight into a common form of competition among consumers, highlighting the importance of prey handling time for shorebirds with a restricted foraging time driven by tidal cycles.