Data from: Adélie penguin population diet monitoring by analysis of food DNA in scats

The Adélie penguin is the most important animal currently used for
ecosystem monitoring in the Southern Ocean. The diet of this species is
generally studied by visual analysis of stomach contents; or ratios of
isotopes of carbon and nitrogen incorporated into the penguin from its
food. There are significant limitations to the information that can be
gained from these methods. We evaluated population diet assessment by
analysis of food DNA in scats as an alternative method for ecosystem
monitoring with Adélie penguins as an indicator species. Scats were
collected at four locations, three phases of the breeding cycle, and in
four different years. A novel molecular diet assay and bioinformatics
pipeline based on nuclear small subunit ribosomal RNA gene (SSU rDNA)
sequencing was used to identify prey DNA in 389 scats. Analysis of the
twelve population sample sets identified spatial and temporal dietary
change in Adélie penguin population diet. Prey diversity was found to be
greater than previously thought. Krill, fish, copepods and amphipods were
the most important food groups, in general agreement with other Adélie
penguin dietary studies based on hard part or stable isotope analysis.
However, our DNA analysis estimated that a substantial portion of the diet
was gelatinous groups such as jellyfish and comb jellies. A range of other
prey not previously identified in the diet of this species were also
discovered. The diverse prey identified by this DNA-based scat analysis
confirms that the generalist feeding of Adélie penguins makes them a
useful indicator species for prey community composition in the coastal
zone of the Southern Ocean. Scat collection is a simple and non-invasive
field sampling method that allows DNA-based estimation of prey community
differences at many temporal and spatial scales and provides significant
advantages over alternative diet analysis approaches.