Data from: Responses of King penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus) adults and chicks to two food-related odours

Increasing evidence suggests that penguins are sensitive to dimethyl sulphide (DMS), a scented airborne compound that a variety of marine animals use to find productive areas of the ocean where prey is likely to be found. Here we present data showing that king penguins Aptenodytes patagonicus are also sensitive to DMS. We deployed DMS on a lake near a king penguin colony at Ratmanoff beach in the Kerguelen archipelago. We also presented DMS to ‘sleeping’ adults on the beach. On the lake, penguins responded to the DMS deployments by swimming more, while on the beach, penguins twitched their heads and woke up more for the DMS than for the control presentations. Interestingly, penguins did not respond to cod liver oil deployments on the lake; mirroring at-sea studies of other penguins. Although at-sea studies are needed to confirm that king penguins use DMS as a surface cue that informs them of productivity under the water, this study is an important first step in understanding how these birds locate prey over significant distances.

越来越多的证据表明，企鹅对二甲基硫（dimethyl sulphide, DMS）具有敏感性。二甲基硫是一种带有气味的空气传播化合物，多种海洋动物会借助它来定位海洋中饵料丰富的觅食区域。本研究证实王企鹅（Aptenodytes patagonicus）同样对二甲基硫具有敏感性。我们在凯尔盖朗群岛拉特马诺夫海滩附近的王企鹅群落周边的湖泊中开展了二甲基硫释放实验，同时还向海滩上处于“休憩”状态的成年王企鹅呈现了二甲基硫。实验结果显示：在湖泊环境中，王企鹅在接触二甲基硫释放后会增加游泳频次；而在海滩环境中，相较于对照处理组，王企鹅会更多地出现头部抽动并苏醒的行为。值得注意的是，王企鹅并未对湖泊中投放的鳕鱼肝油产生反应，这与其他企鹅的海上相关研究结果一致。尽管还需开展海上研究以验证王企鹅是否会利用二甲基硫作为水面线索，以此判断水下的饵料丰度，但本研究为理解这类鸟类如何在长距离范围内定位猎物迈出了重要的第一步。