Data from: Combined use of GPS and accelerometry reveals fine scale three-dimensional foraging behaviour in the short-tailed shearwater

Determining the foraging behaviour of free-ranging marine animals is
fundamental for assessing their habitat use and how they may respond to
changes in the environment. However, despite recent advances in
bio-logging technology, collecting information on both at-sea movement
patterns and activity budgets still remains difficult in small pelagic
seabird species due to the constraints of instrument size. The
short-tailed shearwater, the most abundant seabird species in Australia
(ca 23 million individuals), is a highly pelagic procellariiform. Despite
its ecological importance to the region, almost nothing is known about its
at-sea behaviour, in particular, its foraging activity. Using a
combination of GPS and tri-axial accelerometer data-loggers, the fine
scale three-dimensional foraging behaviour of 10 breeding individuals from
two colonies was investigated. Five at-sea behaviours were identified: (1)
resting on water, (2) flapping flight, (3) gliding flight, (4) foraging
(i.e., surface foraging and diving events), and (5) taking-off. There were
substantial intra- and inter- individual variations in activity patterns,
with individuals spending on average 45.8% (range: 17.1–70.0%) of time at
sea resting on water and 18.2% (range: 2.3–49.6%) foraging. Individuals
made 76.4 ± 65.3 dives (range: 8–237) per foraging trip (mean duration 9.0
± 1.9 s), with dives also recorded during night-time. With the continued
miniaturisation of recording devices, the use of combined data-loggers
could provide us with further insights into the foraging behaviour of
small procellariiforms, helping to better understand interactions with
their prey.