Audrey Jaeger

University of Reunion Island · UMR ENTROPIE

Many species of seabirds are threatened and understanding their at-sea distributions during breeding is a priority for their conservation. Recent developments in tracking technology, data analytical frameworks and tools are proving invaluable in the identification of at-sea areas of high use and hence conservation importance, which can be used to i...

Marine plastic pollution is well described by bioindicator species in temperate and polar regions but remains understudied in tropical oceans. We addressed this gap by evaluating the seabird Barau’s petrel as bioindicator of plastic pollution in the South-West Indian Ocean. We conducted a multifaceted approach including necropsies of birds to quant...

Humans are regularly cited as the main driver of current biodiversity extinction, but the impact of historic volcanic activity is often overlooked. Pre-human evidence of wildlife abundance and diversity are essential for disentangling anthropogenic impacts from natural events. Réunion Island, with its intense and well-documented volcanic activity,...

Animal migration is a major driver of infectious agent dispersal. Duck and seabird migrations, for instance, play a key role in the spatial transmission dynamics and gene flow of avian influenza viruses (AIV), worldwide. On tropical islands, brown and lesser noddies (Anous stolidus and Anous tenuirostris) may be important AIV hosts, but the lack of...

Plastic pollution is distributed patchily around the world’s oceans. Likewise, marine organisms that are vulnerable to plastic ingestion or entanglement have uneven distributions. Understanding where wildlife encounters plastic is crucial for targeting research and mitigation. Oceanic seabirds, particularly petrels, frequently ingest plastic, are h...

We investigated coronavirus circulation in three tern species, in four islands of the Western Indian Ocean (Bird, Reunion, Europa, Juan de Nova). None of the 1513 samples tested positive by RT-PCR. We discuss the implication in term of host species range, ecological drivers of virus transmission, and diagnostic tools.

Animal migration is a major driver of infectious agent dispersal. Duck and seabirds migrations, for instance, play a key role in the spatial transmission dynamics and gene flows of avian influenza viruses (AIV), worldwide. On tropical islands, brown and lesser noddies ( Anous stolidus and A. tenuirostris ) may be important AIV hosts, but the lack o...

Background Shearwaters (order Procellariiformes) are an excellent study system to investigate the genetic consequences of the co-called “seabird paradox”, as they are able to disperse long distances but many species exhibit natal and breeding philopatry. However, few microsatellite markers are currently available for these taxa, hampering genetic i...

Studies performed in humans and farm animals indicate that infrared thermography can be used to estimate the body temperature of homeotherms. However, this method has seldom been validated for wild animals in their natural environment. To fill this major gap, we shot facial infrared thermograms of red-footed boobies (Sula sula) in situ, while remot...

Seabirds are distributed widely over the world’s oceans and have adopted a range of foraging tactics to secure food resources necessary for survival and reproduction. To better understand the foraging tactics and at-sea distribution of tropical seabirds, 38 Wedge-Tailed Shearwaters, Ardenna pacifica (WTS) from Réunion Island (21.375° S; 55.569° E)...

Every year, billions of birds undertake extensive migrations between breeding and non-breeding areas, facing challenges that require behavioural adjustments, particularly to flight timing and duration. Such adjustments in daily activity patterns and the influence of extrinsic factors (e.g., environmental conditions, moonlight) have received much mo...

Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite that uses felids as definitive hosts and warm-blooded animals as intermediate hosts. While the dispersal of T. gondii infectious oocysts from land to coastal waters has been well documented, transmission routes to pelagic species remain puzzling. We used the modified agglutination test (MAT titre ≥ 10) to d...

Migratory marine species cross political borders and enter the high seas, where the lack of an effective global management framework for biodiversity leaves them vulnerable to threats. Here, we combine 10,108 tracks from 5775 individual birds at 87 sites with data on breeding population sizes to estimate the relative year-round importance of nation...

Investigations of the genetic structure of populations over the entire range of a species yield valuable information about connectivity among populations. Seabirds are an intriguing taxon in this regard because they move extensively when not breeding, facilitating intermixing of populations, but breed consistently on the same isolated islands, rest...

The reduced species richness typical of oceanic islands provides an interesting environmental setup to examine in natura the epidemiological dynamics of infectious agents with potential implications for public health and/or conservation. On Amsterdam Island (Indian Ocean), recurrent die-offs of Indian yellow-nosed albatross (Thalassarche carteri) n...

The Mascarene petrel (Pseudobulweria aterrima ) is a critically endangered seabird endemic to Reunion Island, with an extremely small population suffering several threats. Fifteen polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated from this species to analyse genetic diversity, estimate contemporary effective population size, search for evidence of a po...

The wedge-tailed shearwater (WTS) population of New Caledonia is one of the largest in the world, yet its biology and foraging ecology are poorly known. We studied WTS from 4 colonies in New Caledonia. We examined foraging behaviour and habitats using GPS receivers and light sensors during and outside the breeding season, respectively, and compared...

Oceanic islands with reduced species richness provide an opportunity to investigate the emergence, maintenance and transmission of infectious diseases threatening wildlife. On Amsterdam Island, in the southern Indian Ocean, massive and recurrent mortality of the nestlings of Indian yellow-nosed albatross (Thalassarche carteri) has been attributed t...

The spatial structure of host communities is expected to constrain pathogen spread. However, predators and/or scavengers may connect distant host (sub)populations when foraging. Determining whether some individuals or populations play a prominent role in the spread of pathogens is critical to inform management measures. We explored movements and ep...

Oceanic islands with reduced species richness provide an opportunity to investigate the emergence, maintenance and transmission of infectious diseases threatening wildlife. On Amsterdam Island, in the southern Indian Ocean, massive and recurrent mortality of the nestlings of Indian yellow-nosed albatross (Thalassarche carteri) has been attributed t...

First at-sea distribution (breedin and non-breeding period) and activity for the endemic and critically endangered Mascarene Petrel (Pseudobulweria aterrima)

Despite critical implications for disease dynamics and surveillance in wild long-lived species, the immune response after exposure to potentially highly pathogenic bacterial disease agents is still poorly known. Among infectious diseases threatening wild populations, avian cholera, caused by the bacterium Pasteurella multocida, is a major concern....

Albatrosses (Diomedeidae) are iconic pelagic seabirds whose life-history traits (longevity, high trophic position) put them at risk of high levels of exposure to methylmercury (MeHg), a powerful neurotoxin that threatens humans and wildlife. Here, we report total Hg (THg) concentrations in body feathers from 516 individual albatrosses from 35 popul...

Infectious diseases may be particularly critical for the conservation of endangered species. A striking example is the recurrent outbreaks that have been occurring in seabirds on Amsterdam Island for the past 30 years, threatening populations of three Endangered seabird species and of the endemic, Critically Endangered Amsterdam albatross Diomedea...

Global change is contributing to unprecedented expansions of infectious diseases in wildlife. Recurrent avian cholera outbreaks are causing dramatic chick mortality and population decline in endangered albatross colonies on Amsterdam Island, a critical seabird breeding ground in the Southern Indian Ocean. We manufactured a killed vaccine using a Pa...

Migration is a fundamental aspect of the ecology and evolutionary history of many animals, driven by seasonal changes in resource availability and habitat structure. Seabird migration has been investigated extensively in highly seasonal temperate and polar environments. By contrast, the relationships between migration and seasonal environmental cha...

Penguins have been recently identified as useful bioindicators of mercury (Hg) transfer to food webs in the Southern Ocean over different spatial and temporal scales. Here, feather Hg concentrations were measured in adults and chicks of all the seven penguin species breeding in the southern Indian Ocean, over a large latitudinal gradient spanning A...

The impacts of global climate change on marine ecosystems are of increasing concern. Because of their restricted distribution, endemic organisms are especially sensitive. In this context, we investigated the impact of climate change on the wintering habitats of Barau's petrel Pterodroma baraui, an Endangered endemic species of Réunion Island (weste...

Birds play a central role in the epidemiology of several flaviviruses of concern for public and veterinary health. Seabirds represent the most abundant and widespread avifauna in the western Indian Ocean and may play an important role as host reservoirs and spreaders of arthropod-borne pathogens such as flaviviruses. We report the results of a sero...

Ducks and seabirds are natural hosts for influenza A viruses (IAV). On oceanic islands, the ecology of IAV could be affected by the relative diversity, abundance and density of sea-birds and ducks. Seabirds are the most abundant and widespread avifauna in the Western Indian Ocean and, in this region, oceanic islands represent major breeding sites f...

Ducks and seabirds are natural hosts for influenza A viruses (IAV). On oceanic islands, the ecology of IAV could be affected by the relative diversity, abundance and density of seabirds and ducks. Seabirds are the most abundant and widespread avifauna in the Western Indian Ocean and, in this region, oceanic islands represent major breeding sites fo...

Evidence of age-dependent changes in foraging behavior of free-ranging individuals is scarce, especially at older stages. Using the isotopic niche as a proxy of the trophic niche during both the breeding (blood) and inter-nesting (feather) periods, we report here empirical evidence for age-, gender- and breeding status-dependent foraging ecology an...

The foraging ecology of small seabirds remains poorly understood because of the difficulty of studying them at sea. Here, the extent to which 3 sympatric seabirds (blue petrel, thinbilled prion and common diving petrel) alter their foraging ecology across the annual cycle was investigated using stable isotopes. δ13C and δ15N values were used as pro...

Blood parasites of the sub-genus Haemoproteus have been reported in seabirds, in particular in species in the Suliformes order. These parasites are transmitted by hippoboscid flies of the genus Olfersia; strong specificity has been suggested between the vector and its vertebrate host. We investigated the prevalence of Haemoproteus infection in Suli...

We found a diversity of Rickettsia spp. in seabird ticks from 6 tropical islands. The bacteria showed strong host specificity and sequence similarity with strains in other regions. Seabird ticks may be key reservoirs for pathogenic Rickettsia spp., and bird hosts may have a role in dispersing ticks and tick-associated infectious agents over large d...

Fisheries potentially affect seabirds both directly and indirectly. Well-documented direct effects have resulted in significant losses to seabird populations, but indirect effects are less well known. One way in which tropical seabirds may be indirectly affected is through overexploitation of large subsurface predators. Tropical seabirds must forag...

Seabird ticks are known reservoirs of bacterial pathogens of medical importance; however, ticks parasitizing tropical seabirds have received less attention than their counterparts from temperate and subpolar regions. Recently, Rickettsia africae was described to infect seabird ticks of the western Indian Ocean and New Caledonia, constituting the on...

Invasive Ratten beeinträchtigen auf ozeanischen Inseln eine große Anzahl von einheimischen Arten. Kontrollprogramme und in vielen Fällen die vollständige Ausrottung werden genutzt, um diese Beeinträchtigungen zu mildern. Grundlegende Daten zur Kleinsäugerbiologie erleichtern die Planung von Kontroll- und Ausrottungsprogrammen. Sie werden besonders...

Wandering albatrosses are large long-lived seabirds that inhabit the Southern Ocean. This species uses wind to move at low energetic costs and probably represents one of the best studied life-history models in animals. Here, using both tracking and isotopic data, we report on the lifetime distribution of wandering albatrosses at sea, constructing a...

Blood and feathers are the most targeted tissues for isotopic investigations in avian ecology, primarily because they can be easily and non-destructively sampled on live individuals. Comparing blood and feather isotopic ratios can provide valuable information on dietary shifts, trophic specialization and migration patterns, but it requires a good k...

Evidence of age-dependent changes in foraging behavior of free-ranging individuals is scarce, especially at older stages. Using the isotopic niche as a proxy of the trophic niche during both the breeding (blood) and inter-nesting (feather) periods, we report here empirical evidence for age-, gender-, and breeding status-dependent foraging ecology a...

Seabird ticks are known reservoirs of bacterial pathogens of medical importance, however, ticks parasitizing tropical seabirds have received less attention than their counterparts from temperate and sub-polar regions. Recently, Rickettsia africae was described to infect seabird ticks of the western Indian Ocean and New Caledonia, constituting the o...

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