EFFECTS OF THE WATER-OFFLOADING TECHNIQUE ON ADELIE PENGUINS

Experiments were conducted on Adelie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) to examine the effect of the water-offloading technique to collect stomac h samples on adult foraging cycle duration and mass gain in chicks dep rived of a meal. No difference in foraging cycle duration between cont rol and treated adults was measured. Deprivation of a single meal had no effect on mass gain to fledging of 2-wk-old chicks in two colonies, nor did it affect their growth. Survival rate of chicks of stomach-fl ushed adults and of those fed normally was similar for both colonies. The findings support the acceptance of the water-offloading technique as the most humane method of producing stomach samples from Adelie Pen guins.